> Jan van Steenbergen scripsit:
>
> > Interesting. No, never seen it before. Who are these Giants of Kemrese legend?
> > I don't think I have ever read about them.
> > How come they speak a descendant of Old English (or perhaps Old Frisian?)
>
> Well, Giants are traditionally stupid, and that's the Welsh view of the
> English (broadly considered), so it's reasonable. If the English
> *here* can count their sheep (real sheep, not the kind you count when
> you have insomnia) in slightly garbled Welsh ("Yan, tyan, tethera, methera,
> pimp, sethera, lethera, hovera, dovera, dick" is the version I'm most
> familiar with; many others have been collected), and one of their oldest
> bits of fiction has devils who talk in the British tongue, it's not
> surprising that the Kerno should return the (dubious) compliment.
>
> > What exactly are the Daine? Another sentient humanoid species within The World?
>
> It would be fair to say, I think, that the Daine (who have vestigial wings
> and long life) are the dominant species on The World. Humans mostly fit
> into the cracks between the huge Dainish kingdoms -- Southern China is
> all Daine, for example.
>
> > > Only in Westmarche do the Daine count in Mannish
> > > fashion:
> >
> > That's England, I suppose?
>
> No, it's in northeastern Asia, just west of Auntimony.
>
> > > The Dream Language numbers: [...]
> >
> > Hmm... Celtic impressionism?
> >
> > > Mentolatian, spoken by a curious people a ways
> > > down the coast whose chief occupation is the
> > > cultivation and export of medicinal herbs:
> >
> > Strange, I was always under the impression that Mentolatian was a Romance
> > language. Well, clearly Indo-European, but I couldn't say which family. I see
> > traces of Italic, Germanic, Tocharian, Indic...
> > Please remind me: Mentolatian is also a language of The World, right?
> >
> > Jan
> >
> > =====
> > "Originality is the art of concealing your source." - Franklin P. Jones
> >
> > ________________________________________________________________________
> > Want to chat instantly with your online friends? Get the FREE Yahoo!
> > Messenger
http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com/
>
> --
> Not to perambulate John Cowan <jcowan@...>
> the corridors
http://www.reutershealth.com
> during the hours of repose
http://www.ccil.org/~cowan
> in the boots of ascension. --Sign in Austrian ski-resort hotel
>