#dragon age elvhen

[kaija-rayne-author]

I've finished my Dragon Age elvish/elven/elvhen/el'vhen dictionary. And 99% of it is posted. I just need to clean up the primer and post that.

I have a linguistics minor and broke el'vhen down into its component parts. It started as just a list for me, but took on a life of its own.

Anyway. Hopefully, this will give us more words and tools to work with.

[densewentz]

mmm not to be a solasmancer on main but im thinking about those few days after the Cole debacle if a solavellan Inquisitor encourages him to remain a spirit. just. Solas, watching her fret so much in the aftermath, terrified that she may have taken someone's choice away, worried that she influenced what Cole wanted somehow, watching her sheer relief and unbridled joy after Cole's, free and light and brimming with happy incredulity, "but you didn’t change, didn’t make me change. Thank you". He watches her, and thinks of Mythal. Thinks of devotion, and abuse. Regret. Thinks of Cole, and spirits and Wisdom and Pride- Thinks, wistfully, achingly, "in her hands, I might have been safe".

[solasisms]

my lovely friend @gefionne was gracious enough to let me draw some fanart of fen'harel!solas for her amazing (AND VERY DELICIOUS) fanfic, these hands, if not gods! (au! solavellan, smutty, WITH PLOT.) 100/10, would recommend time & time again. read it or i'll beat up vhenan please enjoy the fen'harel tiddies

[guminami]

snowy dalish 🐇

edit: i’ve removed the reference because it ended up being ai :/ please stop sending me asks about this, i didn’t know at the time of drawing it and i already feel bad enough about not noticing on my own.

[teyrnacousland]

With a new Dragon Age game out I am once again begging people to stop citing "Project Elvhen" when you're trying to figure out what in game elven phrases and words mean. That's just some thing some guy made up. It's not correct, it's not trying to be, it's fanmade.

Good Alternatives:

Bitter Gossamer's Elvhen Cipher (it is literally amazing! I highly recommend this one) Katiebour's Best Guess at Elvhen (very outdated, but still a good resource!) Dragon Age Wiki's Elven Language Page

[an-established-butt-dent]

One more piece titled 'going wild in procreate fueled by Solavellan angst'

I need Dreadwolf teasers like I need air

[bardandbear]

Theory: Solas isn't doing it to save the elves, he's doing it to save the spirits.

With the new information coming out about Solas's plan in in DAV and the much-memed back and forth between Solas and Varric, I think we may have gotten the wrong end of the stick regarding what is at stake, or why Solas is doing what he's doing. There has been increasing back and forth about whether the Veil should come down in the decade since DAI, but a lot of conversation has focused on a) the collateral damage necessary to do so and b) elven immortality. The assumption being that Solas has decided that any collateral damage (with opinions varying from 'some' to 'apocalyptic' in what they expect that to look like) is worth it to bring back ancient elves, aka 'his people'.

However, repeated dialogues throughout DAI and Trespasser paint a different association - Solas refers to the elves as 'our people' when convenient (eg when trying to get the Inquisitor on side following their first confrontation with Corypheus). When you or other characters ask him about what he considers to be 'his people' he either dodges the question, or to Abelas:

Solas: There are other places, friend. Other duties. Your people yet linger. Abelas: Elvhen such as you? Solas: Yes. Such as I.

While this seems pretty straight forward, it begs the question what the ancient elves, what the Elvhen actually are. Think about the origin of Elvhen as a deliberate identifier, rather than just using 'elves' which Solas repeatedly rejects. Breaking down the word the answer may have been staring us in the face this whole time: vhen is translated to 'people', and El is the root for spirit. I think there is a very good chance Elvhen literally translates to 'spirit people', and that has been the key distinction all this time.

What that functionally meant before the Veil (spirits that chose to manifest personality/bodies, spirits that were bound to bodies, perhaps 'possession' or symbiosis was the norm) is yet to be determined. But the connection to spirits is what Solas considers his people, which is why appeals to save 'this world' will ultimately fail for him, even in a state where he acknowledges mortal beings are 'people':

Inquisitor: We aren't even people to you? Solas: Not at first. You showed me that I was wrong, again. That does not make what must come next any easier. Inquisitor: You'd murder countless people? Solas: Wouldn't you, to save your own?

While many players would consider the current world state 'acceptable' to those living in it, that discounts the perspective of those trapped on the other side of the Veil. The spirits are very clearly suffering, which will not improve while the Veil remains, and it's why Solas can't just live with 'this world'.

[missygoesmeow]

Statue of Mythal and Elgar'nan from Ancient Elvhenan in Arlathan I know there aren't statues like this but I wish there were. Based on the Pallas Athene fountain in Vienna

[scribeofmorpheus]

I love translating the elvhen language, and I really want to translate what the final solavellan dialogue actually translates to.

And if anyone has screencaps of Solas and Elgar'nan speech fighting, feel free to hand them over, I desperately want to translate those!

Give me any elvish you're curious about from dav and I'll try my best to translate!

[bonesaints]

June, God of the Craft and Beauty ✨

[theresa-draws]

The air itself rent asunder, Spilling light unearthly from the Waters of the Fade, Opening as an eye to look Upon the Realm of Opposition In dire judgment.

[hejee]

morrigan mansplaining elvhen culture while playing as lavellan hits so close to home (ily morrigan but this is not it 😭)

[zaahvi]

ghilan'nain, mother of the halla 🦌

[tawnyfool]

he's always wearing that stole

[ekalita-blr]

Q: In your rich life experience, have you ever changed your image: cut your hair, dyed it, shaved your head??? Fashion Age: Podiumguard

[edenxroseyposey]

Ancient Arlathan