Tuesday, May 17, 2022

Valthungians in Spaaaaaaace!

I wanted to put together some fun Valthungian stuff about astronomy and other cosmological stuff, but I don’t really have a cohesive theme for it other than to just give you some sets of interesting words. So here you go:

(I’m including the dative form of these terms where applicable, because one of the interesting things about astronomy terms is that many of them are formed by turning normal a-stem nouns or adjectives into j- or u-stem neuters, giving them a little spin. Unfortunately the j-stem neuters look completely boring and ordinary in the nominative and accusative singular, but they can get pretty wild in the remaining cases.)

Sōgila (n.f, dat. sōgila): The Sun.

Early Germanic had two words for ‘sun’: *sōwilō (cognate with Latin sol) and *sunnǭ (cognate with English sun). In Valthungian, *sōwilō became sōgila, which kept the meaning of ‘sun’, while *sunnǭ became sutna and came to mean ‘sunlight’ or ‘sunshine’.

  • Sōgilaris (adj): solar.
  • Sutna (n.f, dat. sutnin): sunlight, sunshine, the light from the sun.

Mēna (n.m, dat. mēnin): The Moon.

  • Mēnalis (adj): lunar.
  • Baðmus Mēnalis (n.m. dat. baðmua mēnalitma): phase of the moon.
  • Ǧunge (n.n, dat. ǧunǧa): Young Moon. (The phases of the moon from new to full.)
  • Lēse (n.n, dat. lēša): New Moon (“Empty Moon”).
  • Nio (n.n, dat. njuga): Waxing Crescent (“New Moon” – careful, false friends!)
  • Tǣsue (n.n, dat. tǣsuja): Waxing/First Quarter (“Right Moon”).
  • Saðe (n.n, dat. seþia): Gibbous Moon (“Sated Moon”).
  • Laðe (n.n, dat. leþia): Old Moon  (The phases of the moon from full to new.)
  • Futle (n.n, dat. fytlia): Full Moon (“Full Moon”).
  • Flage (n.n, dat. fleǧa): Disseminating Moon  (“Fallow Moon”).
  • Þlīðume (n.n, dat. þlīðumia): Waning/Last Quarter (“Left Moon”).
  • Sigiðe (n.n, dat. sigiþia): Balsamic Moon (“Scythe Moon”).

Hreufs (n.m, dat. hreuva): Planet. While this readily translates to “planet” in our traditional understanding of it, there are small differences. Hreufs refers specifically to celestial objects which orbit a sun and have achieved hydrostatic equilibrium (i.e. they are round), so this includes the category of dwarf planets which do not clear their solar neighborhood. Pluto may not be a planet anymore, but it is definitely a hreuf, as is Ceres, and Eris, and others! Hreufs comes from the verb hreuvna ‘to bend’ or ‘to arc’, i.e. ‘to be round’, hence the additional importance placed on hydrostatic equilibrium.

The planets in Valthungian are generally named for the Germanic counterparts of the Roman and Greek deities they are named for in most languages, though most with a j- or u-stem suffix to distinguish them from the Gods themselves, and it doesn’t hurt that that obscures them a little from the mayonnaise people who get excited whenever someone says “Germanic” on the internet.

  • Brekurio (n.n, dat. Brekuria): Mercury (from Latin Mercurius).
  • Wōðe (n.n, dat. Wœuǧa): Mercury (from Wōðnas ‘Odin’, an archaic name, now mostly replaced by Brekurio).
  • Frīðe (n.n, dat. Frīǧa): Venus (from Frīde ‘Frigg’).
  • Miǧingraþs (n.f, dat. Miǧingraða) Earth (“Middle Area”). Not to be confused with reða, which just means ‘dirt’.
  • Tījo (n.n, dat. Tījuga): Mars (from Tījus ‘Tiw, Týr’).
  • Sive (n.n, dat. Sibia): Ceres (from Sifs ‘Sif’).
  • Þundre (n.n, dat. Þyndria): Jupiter (from Þundra ‘Thor’).
  • Boro (n.n, dat. Borua): Saturn (from Bor ‘Bor’).
  • So Boris Greða (n.f, dat. þiža Boris Greða) Saturn’s Rings. (Literally, “Bur’s Belt”) – Note that it’s “Boris” and not “Borus,” so actually “Bur” and not the derived planetary name.
  • Būre (n.n, dat. Bȳria): Uranus (from Bȳria ‘Búrr’).
  • Dreðo (n.n, dat. Dreðua): Neptune (from Dreðus ‘Njǫrðr, Nerthuz’).
  • Hale (n.n, dat. Helia): Pluto (from Helia ‘Hel, Hela, Hell’).
  • Luke (n.n, dat. Lyča): Eris (from Luka ‘Loki’).

Rikuže (n.n, dat. rikuža): eclipse (of any sort).

  • Tunglarikuže (n.n, dat. tunglarikuža): eclipse (pretty much a synonym of rikuže, though the latter has some metaphorical applications that are lost once you add tungla- to the word.)
  • Rikuže sōgilare (n.n, dat. rikuža sōgilaritma): solar eclipse.
  • Rikuže mēnale (n.n, dat. rikuža mēnalitma): lunar eclipse.
  • Blōðe (n.n, dat. blœuþia): lunar eclipse (informal).

Tungla (n.n, dat. tungla): planet, star, asteroid, sun, moon, natural satellite, or any other large celestial body. This is a nice old word that has sadly fallen out of use in English, though it would probably be a modern “**tungle,” rhyming with “jungle,”  meaning basically anything in the sky that isn’t a bird or a cloud. Any “heavenly sphere,” if you will, but the modern Valthungian word also extends to celestial objects that are not spherical, like asteroids.

  • Tangle (n.n, dat. tenglia): comet. This word has some mysterious etymology, but the consensus is usually that it was an early portmanteau of tungla (see above) and tagla ‘ponytail’ with a j-stem suffix added.
  • Tunglasproþs (n.f, dat. tunglasproða) orbit. Literally, “racetrack for celestial objects.”
  • Strǣna (n.f, dat. strǣna): asteroid.
In English, an asteroid is any small rocky object which orbits the sun, but the definition of strǣna in Valthungian is both broader and narrower. Any asteroid which is round is considered to be a hreuf (‘planet’), while similar rocky bodies orbiting or caught in the orbit of planets – which we would call moons or satellites in English – are also strǣna in Valthungian.
  • Sa Strǣnaþrinǧ (n.m, dat. þam Strǣnaþringa) The Asteroid Belt
  • Strǣnahuīn (n.n, dat. strǣnahuīna): meteor, shooting star, falling star.
  • Tunglamēna (n.m, dat. tunglamēnin) moon (not Earth’s), planetary moon.
Tunglamēna is a specialized word which specifically means any object orbiting a planet (or dwarf planet) which is round in shape (i.e. large enough to have reached hydrostatic equilibrium). Smaller planetary satellites which are not round are considered to be asteroids (“strǣna”), though if it needs to be specified that they orbit a planet or another satellite as opposed to the Sun, they can be called Tunglastrǣna

Þos Strenasiglis (n.f.pl, dat. þem strenasiglim): The Zodiac.

  • Widrus (n.m, dat. wiðrua): Aries.
  • Ǭsus (n.m, dat. ǭsua): Taurus.
  • Tuinulingas (n.m.pl, dat. tuinulingma): Gemini.
  • Krāba (n.m, dat. krābin): Cancer.
  • Ljuga (n.m, dat. ljugin): Leo.
  • Magaþs (n.f, dat. magaða): Virgo.
  • Wēga (n.f, dat. wēgin): Libra.
  • Skrœpia (n.m, dat. skrœpin): Scorpio.
  • Šutaris (n.m, dat. šutaria): Sagittarius.
  • Havra (n.m, dat. havra): Capricorn.
  • Ǧutaris (n.m, dat. ǧutaria): Aquarius.
  • Fiškas (n.m.pl, dat. fiškma): Pisces.

Þo mēla þiža Strenasigliro (n.n.pl, dat. þem mēlma þiža Strenasigliro): The Zodiacal Periods. Valthungian has different terms for the zodiac periods themselves, which make up part of the Valthungian calendar. This isn’t so much an astrology thing as a measurement of the seasons, lining up with the Chinese “Solar Terms” or 節氣 (jiéqì).

  • Wynimēnaþs (n.m, dat. Wynimēnaða): Period of Aries (the pre-Gregorian month of April).
  • Milukimēnaþs (n.m, dat. Milukimēnaða): Period of Taurus (pre-Gregorian May).
  • Sutnamēnaþs (n.m, dat. Sutnamēnaða): Period of Gemini (pre-Gregorian June).
  • Linþis (n.m, dat. Linþia): Period of Cancer (pre-Gregorian July).
  • Haugimēnaþs (n.m, dat. Haugimēnaða): Period of Leo (pre-Gregorian August).
  • Wiðumēnaþs (n.m, dat. Wiðumēnaða): Period of Virgo (pre-Gregorian September).
  • Wīnamenaþs (n.m, dat. Wīnamēnaða): Period of Libra (pre-Gregorian October).
  • Blōtamenaþs (n.m, dat. Blōtamēnaða): Period of Scorpio (pre-Gregorian November).
  • Wintrumēnaþs (n.m, dat. Wintrumēnaða): Period of Sagittarius (pre-Gregorian December).
  • Ǧulis (n.m, dat. Ǧulia): Period of Capricorn (pre-Gregorian January).
  • Langistmēnaþs (n.m, dat. Langistmēnaða): Period of Aquarius (pre-Gregorian February).
  • Blatimēnaþs (n.m, dat. Blatimēnaða): Period of Pisces (pre-Gregorian March).

Rūme (n.n, dat. rȳmia) Space, outer space.

  • Þa Gaskējo Sōgilare (n.n, dat. þam gaskējuga sōgilaritma): The Solar System (our own).
  • Gaskējo tunglare (n.n, dat. gaskējuga tunglaritma): solar system, planetary system (someone else’s).
  • Gamíluke (n.f, dat. gamíluča) galaxy.
  • Þa Rǭmarūm (n.n, dat. þam Rǭmarūma) the Milky Way. (Fun fact: If you want to get literal about it, Rǭmarūm could be translated as “Creamy Space.”)
  • Rūminǭst (n.m, dat. rūminǭsta) space ship, starship.
  • Rūmiberia (n.m, dat. rūmiberin) space shuttle.

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