Here, the otters have their own language. Sometimes it’s hard to understand exactly what’s what. Here’s a helpful dictionary to aid you in reading and writing for New Inlé.
Chak'la: enemy. All elil are the same to otters. Plural same as singular.
Chall: otter burrow in a riverbank.
Dra: Death
Drachall: Otter wanderer or exile. Not welcome in any chall unless the otter defeats three of the chall's otters in combat.
Dra J'ssal: Fall. Literal: The death of the land
Drascar: the moon. Scarban who made the sun was so pleased with the sun he tried the same trick at night and made the moon. Unfortunately the fall back to the earth killed him and now the moon is associated with death by all otters.
Dunscar: warm, heat, hot Dunscar
J'ssal: Summer. Literal: The warmth from the sun
Duvrén: female otter
Fee'rall: great food
Fee: just food
Fee'ram: not so great food
Garal: Hard, a rock
Garalsan J'ssal: Winter. Literal: The hardness of the water
Graleaplae: hare
Halla Tressan: Otter afterlife where they exist in a river full of Fee'rall with no chak'la or Vallerinak to bother them.
Lae: friendly creatures (plural: Dalae) (species plural: **Species**Dalae ie. Skysdalae or leapdalae)
Lask: male otter
Leaplae: rabbit
J'ssal: Season
Kreesh: idiot
Osh: Parting of paths. Otters don't say goodbye, they just travel down different paths for a time.
San: water
Scar: the sun. Otter lore states that in the beginning of the world Scarban deSlatterstroke was leaping in the water and leapt so high that he pierced the sky and created the sun
Scarban Slatterstroke: otter warrior of myth. Kind of an otter Elahrairah
Skyslae: bird of any type. Otters don't really care about species
Trahoplae:
Squirrel
Tressan: Flowing river
Tressan J'ssal: Spring. Literal: The flowing
of the waters Vallerinak:
humans. Never classified as chak'la or (Scarban forbid!) lae. They are a separate
category of enemy and to call them otherwise would be to reduce those enemies
to the levels of a human. Otter
traditions: "name"-chall:
designation of chieftain in otter clan. Ie) Scarban-chall
Battle: Unlike rabbits there is no Owlsa in an otter clan. Everyone
fights, even the young, in times of battle. Of course young and expecting females
are the last line but they still take a place in the fight if possible. The
moment an otter can walk or swim they learn to fight. Mating:
Otters mate casually but a great significance is attached to the mates while
they're together. Should one half of the pair die or go missing the other will
not have children with another and must avenge the death of its mate at all
costs. Only then can mating resume. Scarban Slatterstroke is said to have killed
a pack of dogs after they slew his mate. Food:
Otters eat when and where they wish except on nights of a full moon. At this
time all otters enter the water and hunt down a large fish for the clan to share
in the light of the moon. While doing this they leap as high out of the water
as they can and give thanks to Scarban for making the sun and moon though it
cost him his life. Gambling:
Otters prefer tests of strength in races and moving objects than to luck or
wit. Wagers of small fish and such are placed on the favored otter.
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