Post by Cael on Dec 19, 2006 19:52:37 GMT -5
Since there's been an influx of activity, I've noticed that a lot of people are taking on qualities of the wonderful Watership Down, like vocabulary and mannerisms. While the warren is not strictly adhering to Richard Adams' book (I highly recommend reading it if you haven't), I thought it would be good for those who have not read it to have a little background information just in case someone uses a word or phrase that they are not familiar with. I'm taking this information straight from the Lapine Glossary in the back of my copy. Some of the information here doesn't appear in Hawthorn, but I thought I might put it in anyway. Anything in italics and parentheses is my additional input. Enjoy:
Bob-stones: A traditional game among rabbits. It is played with small stones, fragments of sticks or the like. Fundamentally it is a very simple kind of gambling, on the lines of "Odds or Evens." A "cast" of stones on the ground is covered by the player's front paw. The opponent must then hazard some sort of surmise about its nature -- e.g., one or two, light or dark, rough or smooth.
Crixa, the: The center of Efrafa, at the crossing point of two bridle paths.
Efrafa: The name of the warren founded by General Woundwort.
El-ahrairah: The rabbit folk hero. The name (Elil-hrair-rah) means "Enemies-Thousand-Prince" = the Prince with a Thousand Enemies.
Elil: Enemies (of rabbits).
Embleer: Stinking, e.g. the smell of a fox (used as an explative, e.g., Embleer Frith!).
Flay: Food, e.g. grass or other green fodder.
Flayrah: Unusually good food, e.g. lettuce.
Frith: The sun, personified as a god by rabbits. Frithrah! = the lord Sun--used as an exclamation.
Fu Inlé: After moonrise.
Hlao: Any dimple or depression in the grass, such as that formed by a daisy plant or thistle, which can hold moisture. The name of a rabbit.
Hlao-roo: "Little Hlao." An affectionate diminutive of the name of Hlao, one of the rabbits in the story.
Hlessi: Any rabbit living above ground, without a regular hole or warren. A wandering rabbit, living in the open. (Plural, hlessil.)
Homba: A fox (Plural, hombil.)
Hrair: A great many; an uncountable number; any number over four. U Hrair = The Thousand (enemies).
Hrairoo: "Little Thousand." The name of Fiver in Lapine. (From page 13): Rabbits can count up to four. Any number above four is hrair -- "a lot" or "a thousand." Thus they say U Hrair -- "The Thousand" -- to mean, collectively, all the enemies (or elil, as they call them) of rabbits -- fox, stoat, weasel, cat, owl, man, etc. There were probably more than five rabbits in the litter when Fiver was born, but his name, Hrairoo, means "Little Thousand" -- i.e., the little one out of a lot or, as they say of pigs, "the runt."
Hraka: Droppings, excreta.
Hrududu: A tractor, car or any motor vehicle. (Plural, hrududil.)
Hyzenthlay: Literally, "Shine-dew-fur" = Fur shining like dew. The name of a doe.
Inlé: Literally, the moon; also moonrise. But a second meaning carries the idea of darkness, fear, and death. (As a curse, Frith and Inlé!)
Lendri: A badger.
Marli: A doe. Also carries the meaning "mother."
M'saion: "We meet them."
Narn: Nice, pleasant (to eat).
Ni-Frith: Noon.
Nildro-hain: "Blackbird's Song." The name of a doe.
Owsla: The strongest rabbits in a warren, the ruling clique. (From page 26): Nearly all warrens have an Owsla, or group of strong or clever rabbits -- second-year or older -- surrounding the Chief Rabbit and his doe and exercising authority. Owslas vary. In one warren, the Owsla may be the band of a warlord: in another, it may consist largely of clever patrollers or garden-raiders. Sometimes a good storyteller may find a place; or a seer, or intiuitive rabbit. In the Sandleford warren at this time, the Owsla was rather military in character (though, as will be seen later, not so military as some).
Owslafa: The Council police (a word found only in Efrafa).
Pfeffa: A cat.
Rah: A prince, leader or chief rabbit. Usually used as a suffix. E.g. Threarah = Lord Threar.
Roo: Used as a suffix to denote a diminutive. E.g. Hrairoo
Sayn: Groundsel.
Silf: Outside, that is, not underground.
Silflay: To go above ground to feed. Literally, to feed outside. Also used as a noun.
Tharn: Stupefied, distraught, hypnotized with fear. But can also, in certain contexts, mean "looking foolish," or again "heartbroken" or "forlorn."
Thethuthinnang: "Movement of Leaves." The name of a doe.
Thlay: Fur.
Thlayli: "Fur-head." A nickname.
Threar: A rowan tree, or mountain ash.
Vair: To excrete, pass droppings.
Yona: A hedgehog. (Plural, yonil.)
Zorn: Destroyed, murdered. Denotes a catastrophe. (Not to be confused with Tharn).
Bob-stones: A traditional game among rabbits. It is played with small stones, fragments of sticks or the like. Fundamentally it is a very simple kind of gambling, on the lines of "Odds or Evens." A "cast" of stones on the ground is covered by the player's front paw. The opponent must then hazard some sort of surmise about its nature -- e.g., one or two, light or dark, rough or smooth.
Crixa, the: The center of Efrafa, at the crossing point of two bridle paths.
Efrafa: The name of the warren founded by General Woundwort.
El-ahrairah: The rabbit folk hero. The name (Elil-hrair-rah) means "Enemies-Thousand-Prince" = the Prince with a Thousand Enemies.
Elil: Enemies (of rabbits).
Embleer: Stinking, e.g. the smell of a fox (used as an explative, e.g., Embleer Frith!).
Flay: Food, e.g. grass or other green fodder.
Flayrah: Unusually good food, e.g. lettuce.
Frith: The sun, personified as a god by rabbits. Frithrah! = the lord Sun--used as an exclamation.
Fu Inlé: After moonrise.
Hlao: Any dimple or depression in the grass, such as that formed by a daisy plant or thistle, which can hold moisture. The name of a rabbit.
Hlao-roo: "Little Hlao." An affectionate diminutive of the name of Hlao, one of the rabbits in the story.
Hlessi: Any rabbit living above ground, without a regular hole or warren. A wandering rabbit, living in the open. (Plural, hlessil.)
Homba: A fox (Plural, hombil.)
Hrair: A great many; an uncountable number; any number over four. U Hrair = The Thousand (enemies).
Hrairoo: "Little Thousand." The name of Fiver in Lapine. (From page 13): Rabbits can count up to four. Any number above four is hrair -- "a lot" or "a thousand." Thus they say U Hrair -- "The Thousand" -- to mean, collectively, all the enemies (or elil, as they call them) of rabbits -- fox, stoat, weasel, cat, owl, man, etc. There were probably more than five rabbits in the litter when Fiver was born, but his name, Hrairoo, means "Little Thousand" -- i.e., the little one out of a lot or, as they say of pigs, "the runt."
Hraka: Droppings, excreta.
Hrududu: A tractor, car or any motor vehicle. (Plural, hrududil.)
Hyzenthlay: Literally, "Shine-dew-fur" = Fur shining like dew. The name of a doe.
Inlé: Literally, the moon; also moonrise. But a second meaning carries the idea of darkness, fear, and death. (As a curse, Frith and Inlé!)
Lendri: A badger.
Marli: A doe. Also carries the meaning "mother."
M'saion: "We meet them."
Narn: Nice, pleasant (to eat).
Ni-Frith: Noon.
Nildro-hain: "Blackbird's Song." The name of a doe.
Owsla: The strongest rabbits in a warren, the ruling clique. (From page 26): Nearly all warrens have an Owsla, or group of strong or clever rabbits -- second-year or older -- surrounding the Chief Rabbit and his doe and exercising authority. Owslas vary. In one warren, the Owsla may be the band of a warlord: in another, it may consist largely of clever patrollers or garden-raiders. Sometimes a good storyteller may find a place; or a seer, or intiuitive rabbit. In the Sandleford warren at this time, the Owsla was rather military in character (though, as will be seen later, not so military as some).
Owslafa: The Council police (a word found only in Efrafa).
Pfeffa: A cat.
Rah: A prince, leader or chief rabbit. Usually used as a suffix. E.g. Threarah = Lord Threar.
Roo: Used as a suffix to denote a diminutive. E.g. Hrairoo
Sayn: Groundsel.
Silf: Outside, that is, not underground.
Silflay: To go above ground to feed. Literally, to feed outside. Also used as a noun.
Tharn: Stupefied, distraught, hypnotized with fear. But can also, in certain contexts, mean "looking foolish," or again "heartbroken" or "forlorn."
Thethuthinnang: "Movement of Leaves." The name of a doe.
Thlay: Fur.
Thlayli: "Fur-head." A nickname.
Threar: A rowan tree, or mountain ash.
Vair: To excrete, pass droppings.
Yona: A hedgehog. (Plural, yonil.)
Zorn: Destroyed, murdered. Denotes a catastrophe. (Not to be confused with Tharn).
