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Post by Iddy on Feb 21, 2017 0:25:52 GMT
I'm sure the Keeper, the First and the storyteller may be familiar with the human written language since their roles are more intellectual.
But what about the rest of the clan? How much would they know of the common tongue?
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Post by Lazarillo on Feb 21, 2017 0:49:37 GMT
I don't see why they wouldn't be able to, provided they can read at all (and I don't see much reason, for that matter, to assume they can't). From what we've seen, they don't really speak Elvish, they just kind of pepper their speech with it, Super-Friends style; the language itself is still mostly dead and there's nobody out there who knows enough of it to speak it fluently anyway.
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Post by xerrai on Feb 21, 2017 3:26:14 GMT
In terms of reading and writing common, I guess it would depend on the Clan. A Clan that experiences regular human interaction or trading relations are more likely to know common than a Clan that is in some forgotten forest. But even they have a chance to know how to read/write at least some common. After all, it is not unheard of for even nomads to use some form of literacy among themselves.
That being said, it would not be at all unusual for a Dalish elf to be illiterate. Most of their means of communication is by oral communication. Just about everything from their history to their cultural tales are given by reciting them by word of mouth. A possible exception may be what the Keeper and First, but as I said they are likely the exception.
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Post by gervaise21 on Feb 21, 2017 13:21:00 GMT
Considering there is no longer said to be uniformity among the clans, I would imagine it would entirely depend on the Keeper and other clan elders whether they thought teaching them the common script was going to be of use. An isolationist clan that wanted nothing to do with their human neighbours probably wouldn't bother. A clan which freely trades with them would likely think it something useful for every clan member to know. Luckily Lavellan came from a clan that wasn't adverse to peaceful interaction with their neighbours, so had been taught enough common script to get by. Since you can be a warrior or hunter as well as the First of the clan, the Keeper would hardly send you on a spying mission if you would be unable to read important information along the way.
I think every clan member would be taught rudimentary elven runes as well. Many clans seem to actively search out old ruins in the hope of finding something useful within. If Marethari was anything to judge by, she didn't go in herself but sent other members of the clan to investigate. They would need to be able to work out if something was a warning or useful information when confronted with it, so must have been given sufficient teaching to enable this.
I think the oral traditions of the Dalish probably involve a sort of patois combining common and elven but that would be rather difficult to show in game, so they always seem to be speaking common. The reality would be that they would use elven in their speech as much as possible because of the fact that they are anxious not to lose it. However, whilst the writing often does seem to be intended for an human Inquisitor, the fact that both Solas and Morrigan can hide what they are really saying in elven from Lavellan if they choose to, would suggest that the Dalish knowledge of their own language is pretty limited. What Solas claims to say to Abelas is not the exact translation of his words based on what limited access we have been given to the language.
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Post by Iakus on Feb 21, 2017 17:51:42 GMT
In terms of reading and writing common, I guess it would depend on the Clan. A Clan that experiences regular human interaction or trading relations are more likely to know common than a Clan that is in some forgotten forest. But even they have a chance to know how to read/write at least some common. After all, it is not unheard of for even nomads to use some form of literacy among themselves. That being said, it would not be at all unusual for a Dalish elf to be illiterate. Most of their means of communication is by oral communication. Just about everything from their history to their cultural tales are given by reciting them by word of mouth. A possible exception may be what the Keeper and First, but as I said they are likely the exception. Agreed. only clans we've seen thus far are the ones willing to make contact with humans. There are some that attack humans on sight, and others that retreat from them entirely. Those may not bother to learn how to write common.
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Post by Iddy on Feb 21, 2017 18:04:14 GMT
In terms of reading and writing common, I guess it would depend on the Clan. A Clan that experiences regular human interaction or trading relations are more likely to know common than a Clan that is in some forgotten forest. But even they have a chance to know how to read/write at least some common. After all, it is not unheard of for even nomads to use some form of literacy among themselves. That being said, it would not be at all unusual for a Dalish elf to be illiterate. Most of their means of communication is by oral communication. Just about everything from their history to their cultural tales are given by reciting them by word of mouth. A possible exception may be what the Keeper and First, but as I said they are likely the exception. Agreed. only clans we've seen thus far are the ones willing to make contact with humans. There are some that attack humans on sight, and others that retreat from them entirely. Those may not bother to learn how to write common. Well, there is clan Virnehn which is absolutely hostile to humans. The one from the Masked Empire.
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Post by gervaise21 on Feb 22, 2017 11:40:36 GMT
Even Clan Virnehn's Keeper was willing to deal with the humans to get the things he needed. However, it is likely that teaching his clan to read and write common would probably not figure high on his list of priorities. A lot would depend on how things were managed in the old Dales. If the general feeling there was that the ordinary rank and file should be literate, then the Dalish would probably try to maintain that attitude since. Even if it was only the "nobility" of the Dales who were educated, then that would still continue in exile. It all comes down to resources available and how important it is to survival.
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