Cenors-efellsan: Literally “most advantaged,” a term of awed respect applied only to the very powerful.
Cenors-censto pl. cenors-censtinno: Senior, or most favored, wife. Hostess.
Cimmersan: Advantage, initiative.
Deissu (pl. Deissin): Oligarch, merchant prince. Usually the head of a large trading house, or beggru.
Deo: Wealth, honor, moral advantage.
Demro: Earth. Native name for home planet.
Denorru-Deissin pl. Denorrin-Deissin: City council, ruling board of oligarchs.
Dinessu pl. Diné: Hustler, merchant, “little deissu.” Familiar term of affectionate respect.
Elfellsan: Commercial advantage.
Elva: A long-term alliance, as contrasted with Ghilta. Also, marriage as opposed to concubinage.
Elva vor Denorru-Dorsu: Literally “Alliance of/for Community of Interest.” A trading federation of major cities, formed to maintain monopolies, assure political stability, and exploit unused markets.
Enventan: Gentleman of leisure. A term of respect. Also, an abbot or high-ranking priest.
Envo-Deo: Favored by fortune. “Lucky bastard.”
Flenssu pl. Flenssin: Mercenary. A term often used with disrespect, not because they fight for money but rather because of a reputation for unreliability.
Ghilta pl. Ghiltin: Friendship, alliance for political or commercial gain. Assumed to be short-term, in order to secure temporary advantage, as opposed to Elva.
Klossila pl. Klossilin: “Romantics,” followers of an anti-commercial, pro-agrarian philosophical and artistic movement developed by city intelligentsia.
Lariman pl. Larimin: Dotard, old fool.
Mallanto pl. Mallantinno: A large, predatory bird native to Echidne, living principally on shellfish (for the consumption of which it possessed a hooked beak and opposed talons), but also on small animals and fish, and living principally on seacoasts. Also, the heraldic symbol for the city of Arrandal.
Ozannu pl. Ozanni: Cuckold. A vicious insult.
Partillo pl. Partillinno: Wives’ quarters. Harem.
Reygran: Competition, “free enterprise” Considered morally beneficial.
Scottu pl. Scottin: Bumpkin, country clown. Used insultingly to describe feudal barons.
Stansisso pl. Stansissinno: Literally “goodwife:” A term of respect applied to a married woman.
II
The Gostu language: Gostu is spoken by the Brodaini families of the northern continent, and by their dependents. Gostu, unlike Abessas, is not a greatly inflected language: instead of cases and verb forms, Gostu depends on a wide variety of compound and periphrastic expressions, prepositional phrases, and a syntax of word order that generally takes precedence over case. Many of the translations given here are approximate, partly because certain Gostu concepts (hostu, vail) are rather vague to begin with, but chiefly because many concepts in use among the Brodaini will not translate in all their meanings.
Gostu, like Abessas, allows the creation of compound nouns with new meanings, created by stringing other words together. The “ch” sound is hard, as in loch. Gostu words are generally accented heavily on the first syllable (not counting prefixes), with a secondary accent on the third syllable, if there is one: TEGestu, DEMmin, MENingil.
Achadan: Earth; the Gostu name for their home planet.
“Aiau!”: An exclamation of surprise or approval.
Aldran: The body of elders ruling a kamliss.
An-demmina: The act of losing one’s honor, becoming ar-demmin. See demmin.
An-hosta: Change, evolution, disharmony. An evil condition. See hosta.
An-vaila: Gross disharmony, satanic evil. See vail.
Angu: Blood feud.
Ar-demmin pl. ar-demmini: Honorless, outcast. See demmin.
Aspistu: Vengeance, considered as an art. Also, the religious cult of vengeance.
Autraldu pl. Autraldi: Literally “incorruptible.” Priests, usually proved warriors, appointed to guard the demmis-dru.
Ban-demmin pl. ban-demmini: “Honored,” a term of polite respect. See demmin.
Bearni: Mercenaries. A term of insult, as mercenaries fight for pay rather than for the acquisition of demmin.
Bohau: A large stringed instrument, played with a plectrum. A 3-stringed, horizontal bass fiddle.
Brodainu pl. Brodaini: A member of the warrior class, the highest caste of Gostandu society. Often used incorrectly by the Abessla to describe both the Brodaini and their dependents.
Bro-demmin pl. Bro-demmini: “Most honored,’’ a term of high respect. Use of bro-demmin, as opposed to ban-demmin, implies acknowledging the fact of higher status, or greater authority, than oneself. See demmin.
Cambranu pl. Cambrani: Spy. Among Brodaini, an honorable occupation
Canlan pl. Canlani: Liege lord.
Cathrelku:. Chief of bodyguards.
Cathrunu pl. Cathruni: Bodyguard
Classanu pl. Classani: “Servant,” a member of the second class of Gostandu society. In addition to providing personal servants to the Brodaini, Classani form an auxiliary military force.
Clattern pl. Clatterni: Kinglet, prince. A chieftain owed allegiance by more than one clan.
Clattern-y-Clatterni: “King of kings,” a recently-invented title assumed by the conquering overlord of Gostandu, and not recognized by the Gostandi exiles such as the Brodaini of Arrandal.
Dai-terru: Overreaching, attempting to gain more demmin than required by the situation or by one’s status.
Demmin: Honor, in its peculiarly Brodaini sense, meaning also correctness, advantage, esteem, self-worth. Required for status in warrior society. Related etymologically to demmis-dru, shemmina; see also an-demmina, ar-demmin, ban-demmin, bro-demmin, kamliss-demmin, demmin-drax.
Demmin-drax: Gaining demmin at the expense of another’s demmin.
Demmis-dru: Holy place; household shrine, where wills, secret documents, treaties, etc., are kept under the protection of gods, ancestral spirits, and the autraldi.
Dentraldu: The head of the autraldi.
Drandor: Literally “eldest.” The leader of a kamliss, elected for life by the aldran.
Ghanaton: The Brodaini afterlife, a bleak, bloodless, shadowy land where status is granted the shades of the dead based on the amount of honor rendered them by the living.
Gostandu (1): The land of the Gostu-speakers, i.e., the homeland of the Brodaini and their dependents. A recently-invented term, coined because of the need for the Clattern-y-Clatterni to describe the place he was king of. (Previous to the uniting of the continent, Gostandu rulers would have described themselves as being from a particular geographic area, or simply as being a member of a governing kamliss.)
Gostandu (2) pl. Gostandi: A native of Gostandu.
Hostu: Stasis, perfection. An ideal earthly condition, a manifestation of vail.
Hostlu pl. Hostli: A tradesman or merchant, member of the lowest class of Gostandu society. Often used as an insult. Ar-demmin almost by definition.
Ilean: “Sir,” “Madam.” A term of polite respect, accorded by Brodaini to Classani, Meningli, foreigners, and others assumed to lack proper understanding of demmin.