Racial Languages:
Aarakocra*:
This language has many similarities to the Auran tongue, and the Aarakocra
do in fact have many legends about the Lords of the Air gifting them with
speech shortly after gifting them with flight. Aarakocra is not a written
language. On the rare occasions some industrious human has tried to write
it down, they usually transliterate it using the Dwarven script.
Aquan: This is the "common" language of the various denizens of the Elemental Plane of Water. Clerics of Water and Druids with Guarded Lands with a strong water theme may choose Aquan as a Bonus Language.
Auran: Auran is the "common" language of the various denizens of the Elemental Plane of Air. Clerics of Air and Druids with Guarded Lands with a strong air theme may choose Auran as a Bonus Language.
Belgoi: These savage humanoids nevertheless have a distinct language. It isn't written, at least not by Belgoi.
Braxat: For all of their impressive bulk and monstrous appearance, Braxat are surprisingly intelligent and cunning. Their language tends to be strongly tonal, with very little morphological variation. As a result, their tongue sounds like moans or howls in varying pitch. This allows them to communicate with surprising sophistication over long distances. For all their intelligence, Braxat are not known to write.
Draconic**: Nobody knows why this language is called Draconic. Legends say that this is the tongue of the Dragon himself, who taught it to all wizards. Speaking Draconic is a sure way to get lynched in a city-state. Draconic can be written in a variety of scripts (usually to hide what it really is) or can even be encoded on sneakier ways, such as convoluted patterns of beads or geometric shapes.
Dwarven*: The Dwarves provided the first "sound-based" alphabet (where each letter represents a sound rather than a whole word) and the Dwarven script is still used as the most popular method of writing Common (and many other languages) to this day. The Dwarven language itself is carefully guarded by the tradition-bound dwarven race, who rarely speak it around outsiders. It's a sonorous language, conducive to chants and rhythmic song to aid in repetitive work.
Elven*: The elves, it is said, once had an elegant script to go along with their elegant language. Traces of it can still be seen in ancient graceful ruins. Elves now, however, if they bother to learn to write at all, tend to use the Dwarven script for their language. Elves will freely speak Elven around outsiders as the nuances of the tongue are difficult to master without significant dexterity of the tongue and mouth. Getting an elf to actually actively teach Elven, however, is a different story, often met with suspicion or--if you're unlucky--a knife in the back.
Ettercap: The language of the savage ettercaps is typically only learned by the halflings of the Forest Ridge, who have managed to learn and pass on the language of their hated enemies for espionage purposes. It's difficult to reproduce without the spider-like mouth organs of the ettercaps, but with practice it is possible.
Giant: The language of the giants is said to be as old as Draconic. Some scholars speculate that there used to be entire Giant civilizations with their own systems of writing. Now, however, Giants speak their own tongue among their own people and few have the bravery to try to learn it.
Gith: The gith language is an anomaly. It seems to have no related languages among all the other races of Athas. The language has surprising depth, but most gith never care to use it to its full potential. Only a select few gith master their ancient arts of grammar and psionics. The majority tend to be no better than Belgoi.
Halfling: The halfling tongue is graceful and lilting. It has many common qualities with the Elven tongue, and many who have learned both suspect that they're related languages. Halflings rarely teach outsiders their language, often preferring to eat the outsider instead.
Ignan: Ignan is the "common" language of the various denizens of the Elemental Plane of Fire. Clerics of Fire and Druids with Guarded Lands with a strong fire theme may choose Ignan as a Bonus Language.
Jazl: Jazl is the language of Jozhal, composed of clicks, pops, and whistles. Due to its unusual nature, many who are not familiar with jazl will not even recognize it as a language. The vast majority of Jozhal do not keep a written form of their language, and the Pyreen alphabet is the only known writing system that can be adapted to writing the Jozhal tongue.
Kenku*: The Kenku don't exist... or that's what they want people to believe. Their secretive and ancient language is, like Aarakocran, related to Auran. Nevertheless, it has a subtle and specialized vocabulary and is never spoken except in very private conversation with other Kenku. Most Kenku speak the Common Tongue and a number of other languages fluently and without accent. If there is a writing system for the Kenku tongue, no-one but the Kenku know it.
Pterran: The language of the Pterrans is extremely complex and difficult to understand. The long appendage at the back of their heads enables them to create sounds that no other race in the Tablelands can reproduce. The sounds are low, and resonate through the special appendage like wind through hollow reeds. Even if a humanoid could hear such sounds, they would be unable to hold a conversation, since their vocal chords cannot reproduce them.
Ruvokan: Ruvoka are denizens of the various Elemental Planes. They often speak the language of their native plane as well as Ruvokan. They rarely, if ever, speak Ruvokan to denizens of Athas, preferring instead to use a sort of telepathy.
Terran: Terran is the "common" language of the various denizens of the Elemental Plane of Earth. Clerics of Earth and Druids with Guarded Lands with a strong earth theme may choose Terran as a Bonus Language.
Kreen: The language of the Thri-Kreen is commonly called simply "Kreen." It is rarely written, and if it is, it is only by humans who have learned the tongue. Often strange marks of punctuation are used to represent the sounds that can only properly be made by insect vocal apparati.
[*
These creatures generally speak Common]
[**
There is supposedly only one "Dragon" on Athas. Draconic is the language
of the ancient Sorcerer-Kings that has been passed on as the language of
magic, used by both Defilers and Preservers]
Regional Tongues:
Balican:
Balican is the aristocratic language of Balic. The Common Tongue is fairly
common in Balic, but all conversation and debate in the Senate and the
all the business of the city's elite is done in Balican. Balican uses the
Dwarven script.
Draji: This tongue is referred to by the residents of Draj as: The Holy Tongue of the Sun King. Most outsiders call it simply Draji. Draji is written using a pictographic system and is exceptional beyond all other languages for discussing matters astronomical and astrological. While Common is tolerated in Draj, most pious worshipers of Tectuktitlay speak The Holy Tongue whenever possible.
Eldaarish: The language of the city-state of Eldaarich is rarely if ever heard outside of the walls of that paranoid and insular city. So removed is Eldaarich from the knowledge of most people in the Tyr region that many merchant houses haven't even heard of it. Only the merchants of Kurn have regular contact with their geographical neighbor. The Eldaarish script is incredibly complicated. It is commonly read by even the lowest commoner, but even after a lifetime of reading and recognizing Eldaarish word-signs, only the Templars master the exacting task of writing. It can often take a half hour to scribe a single symbol or phrase.
Gulg: By decree of the Oba of Gulg, no resident of Gulg is to speak any other language. New slaves in Gulg are given a new Gulg-name, and severely punished for using any language other that Gulg. Anyone speaking the Common Tongue in Gulg is assumed to be a spy or malcontent unless they prove otherwise. This serves to make Gulg one of the most insular of the city-states. Gulg has no written form. The Templars use a modified Dwarven script and some Common terms to keep records as it's difficult to express numbers in the Gulg speech.
Kalidnese: Kalidnese is referred to by those who speak it as The Ancient Tongue. Kalidnese was once the language of the city-state of Kalidnay. When that city-state was destroyed under mysterious circumstances, the remnants of House Mareneth who were away at the time relocated to Celik. Now, Kalidnese is spoken in Celik almost exclusively. The Royal House of Mareneth (as the dynastic family of the merchant house now styles itself) is the only group of people allowed to use the script of Kalidnay, a secretive pictographic system of symbols depicting mythical creatures and abstract symbols. This "hieroglyphic" script is thought to have some sort of magical power, even by the otherwise pragmatic merchants of House Mareneth.
Kurnish: Few in the Seven Cities of the Tyr region have heard of the city-state of Kurn, and that's just how the Kurnish people like it. The unique Kurnish language is painted rather than written, usually in two colors of ink on rough wasp-paper cards using extremely simplified and streamlined versions of Eldaarish pictographic icons to represent words. Literacy is legal and quite common in Kurn. Even slaves typically have some knowledge of Kurnish writing.
Nibenese: Nibenese is considered to be an ancient and elegant tongue. It, like Kurnish, is painted but using a special black ink made by a secretive and specialized guild in Nibenay that provides writing material for the Shadow King and his Templar-wives for exclusive use within the Walled City. The Nibenese language is also pictographic.
Raamin: In Raam, the Common Tongue is practically the official tongue. Only the many bickering noble families of Raam cling to their own dialects, different in particulars but mutually intelligible variations on the old Raamin language. Raam is pretty much the only city-state where Common is regularly written by the nobility and the Templars, using the Dwarven script.
Shom: While most older dynastic merchant houses have developed their own specialized dialects and languages, the decadent and ancient House Shom has, perhaps, gone the farthest. The language of the House, taught to all House employees and used exclusively among their number and taught to no one else, is convoluted and complex with deep grammatical structure. Some cynically claim that the House has self-consciously made its language the most difficult tongue to learn in all the Tyr region just to support their endless intrigues. It is written using whatever script will serve the purpose. The language of Shom is included here as an example of a merchant tongue. There are many others.
Tyrian: The Tyrian speech seems to be the base language from which the Common Tongue evolved. This is unsurprising as more slaves pass in and out of Tyr than any other city. Tyrian is typically written in the Dwarven script.
Urikite: Referred to in the Law Books of Hamanu as The Right Speech, The Urikite language is arguably the finest in the Tyr Region for discussing elaborate military strategy. It has developed an extensive specilized vocabulary for the art of war. Urik's Templars write the official annals of the city using wedge-shaped sticks and clay. This writing system is unique to Urik, and must be inscribed quickly before the clay dries.
Yaramuke: The ancient language of Yaramuke is nearly extinct. Branded as The Black Speech by King Hamanu of Urik, it has been ruthlessly suppressed. Anyone caught speaking the Black Speech in Urik is slain. Occasionally, daring nobles of Raam will take it upon themselves to learn it as some sort of dangerous sport. The Grand Vizier of Raam, however, has been known to punish those who would needlessly incite the ire of the warlike Hamanu by flaunting such learning.
