Colorful Language

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Just like people anywhere, those of Avaria have some colorful means of expressing themselves in different situations, from insults and curses to taking oaths and telling proverbs.

Salutations

Although a simple "hello," "goodbye," or "good morning/afternoon/evening" can suffice, Avarian cultures also have their own unique ways of greeting one another and bidding them farewell.

Greetings

  • "Peace/harmony be upon you." - "And upon you, peace/harmony." (Azadi)
  • "Do you dream well today?" (a slightly more formal equivalent to "How are you?")

Farewells

  • "May the Song set your steps."/"Set your steps to the Song."
  • "Fair dreaming to you."
  • "Dreamer guide your path."
  • "Go with God."
  • "Outcast watch over/guide you." (Nirzali)

Profanity

From mild to shocking, profanity allows the colorful expression of surprise, alarm, fury, disgust, and so much more! Most real-life profanity is considered acceptable in Avaria (though please use it only in moderation, according to the nature of your character), but examples like the following can give your avowals of rage and dismay a special Avaria-specific flair. "Mild" epithets could be used by anyone without drawing more than similarly mild (if any) disapproval from their peers. "Shocking" epithets, on the other hand, would be used only by extremely coarse or extremely upset individuals.

Sirdabi Caliphate

  • Mild: "Jumping Djabeli!", "By the father of stink!" (or insert your particular bad-smelling thing of choice here)
  • Moderate: "By the beard of the Prophet!", "By the splendor of God!"
  • Shocking: "By Adwa's eyes!", "By God's flaming tongue!"

Idiri

  • Mild: "By Nirzali's crying eyes!", "(By) Nirzali's nipples!"
  • Moderate: "By the black eyes of the night!", "By the Nightmare!"

Ensor

  • Mild: "By the saint's itchy feet!", "Pigswill!"
  • Moderate: "Fire and ashes!", "By the phoenix' flaming wings!", "Mysterious mother of God!"
  • Shocking: "God's ashes!", "flame-licking"

Yehani Diaspora

  • Moderate: "By the salty breath of God!", "Thundering hell!", "God's thunder!"
  • Shocking: "By the Eye of God!"

Insults

Handy phrases to throw at others to show them just how you feel.

  • You thieving olliwag!
  • You slimy-tongued fishkisser!
  • You son of a grub!
  • You daughter of the dunghill!
  • Your head is as empty as the Koshari Waste!
  • Your mother loved a bruul! (Naturally other choices of language besides "love" can add more zing, but in fact stronger language does not actually make this any more shockingly insulting than it already is.)

Curses

Handy phrases to toss back at those who have just insulted you and all your kin.

  • Go eat sand!
  • Go screw a shadow! (Omrazi)
  • Shadows take you! (Omrazi)
  • May the father of all stink embrace you!
  • Jinniyah take your rotten heart!
  • May God strike down your house and the house of those who gave you birth!
  • May the scorpions find your blankets at night and the centipedes your shoes at dawn!
  • May Malugh eat all your luck and shit it back out on your shoes!

Binding Oaths

These are what a person might swear on when making a serious promise, or swearing to the truth of their words or intentions.

  • I swear by the Song of the Prophet/God (Azadi)
  • I swear in the name of the Prophet/God (Azadi)
  • I swear by the tears of the goddess (Nirzali)
  • I swear by the (divine) ember (Elestaari/Kalentism)
  • I swear by the sign of the flame (Elestaari/Kalentism)
  • I swear upon the holy pyre (Kalentism)
  • I swear by the holy phoenix (Kalentism)
  • I swear by my grandmother/father's grave (general)
  • I swear by the souls of my ancestors (general/pagan)
  • I swear by the all-seeing spirits (pagan)

Omrazi Slang

These terms are common currency in Omrazir, particularly though not exclusively among the lower classes. Similar variants of many of these can be found in cities throughout the caliphate.

  • "cormorant" -- a pirate or, in the city, a mugger
  • "spots", "slinkers" -- the bey's Leopard Guard
  • "growlers" -- the bey's Lion Guard
  • "sticks", "thumpers" -- customs/market inspectors
  • "olliwags" -- street urchins and small-time thieves
  • "pinkeyes" -- Yehani
  • "flounders" -- Elukoi
  • "paintlickers/saintlickers" -- Kalentians (for their habit of kissing icons and holy relics)
  • "sparks" -- Elestaarians, or a mocking term for Irzali more generally
  • "goldfingers" -- Koumbasi
  • "to get cleared" -- a euphemism in the White City for getting murdered (and often having the corpse dumped at Cloud's End)
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