The Dragon Alphabet is the alphabet used for the Dragon Language. Text written in the Dragon Alphabet is found on walls in ancient dungeons and on burial grounds in the form of Word Walls.[1] The alphabet consists of 34 symbols: 25 that map directly to letters in the Latin alphabet, and nine that represent pairs of letters. There is a symbol for every letter in the Latin alphabet.
The shape of the letters is constrained by their need to be written using three large talons and a vestigial fourth digit called the dewclaw. Thus, all of the character symbols consist of a maximum of three scratches occasionally punctuated with a dot from the dewclaw.[UOL 1]
| A | AA | AH | B | D | E | EI | EY | F | G | H | I | II | IR | J | K | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 1 | 4 | B | D | E | 2 | 9 | F | G | H | I | 3 | 7 | J | K | L |
| M | N | O | OO | P | Q | R | S | T | U | UU | UR | V | W | X | Y | Z |
| M | N | O | 8 | P | Q | R | S | T | U | 5 | 6 | V | W | X | Y | Z |
The letter "C" does not usually appear, due to the fact that the letter is unused in the Dragon Language. See Legends Card Packs below for details. The character "0" is a part of the Dragon Alphabet Font. It goes unused as there is no associated letter.
| C | "0" |
|---|---|
| C | 0 |
ExamplesEdit
Song of the DragonbornEdit
The first text in the Dragon Alphabet appeared in a Game Informer post about their February 2011 edition, along with a post about translating the cover. The original article contained the following samples of Dragon text:
| Dragon alphabet | Latin alphabet | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| DOV4K3N DOV4K3N | DOVahKiiN DOVahKiiN | Dragonborn Dragonborn |
| N1L OK ZIN LOS V4R3N | NaaL OK ZIN LOS VahRiiN | By his honor is sworn |
| W4 D2N VOKUL M4FAER1K 4ST V1L | Wah DeiN VOKUL MahFAERaaK ahST VaaL | To keep evil forever at bay |
| 4RK FIN NOROK P1L GR1N | ahRK FIN NOROK PaaL GRaaN | And the fiercest foes rout |
| FOD NUST HON ZINDRO Z1N | FOD NUST HON ZINDRO ZaaN | When they hear triumph's shout |
| DOV4K3N F4 HIN KOG1N MU DR1L | DOVahKiiN Fah HIN KOGaaN MU DRaaL | Dragonborn for your blessing we pray |
| 4RK FIN KEL LOST PROD4 | ahRK FIN KEL LOST PRODah | And the scrolls have foretold |
| DO VED V3NG KO FIN KR4 | DO VED ViiNG KO FIN KRah | Of black wings in the cold |
| TOL FOD Z9M4 WIN K2N M9Z FUND2N | TOL FOD ZeyMah WIN KeiN MeyZ FUNDeiN | That when brothers wage war come unfurled |
| ALDUIN F9N DO JUN | ALDUIN FeyN DO JUN | Alduin bane of kings |
| KRUZ3K VOKUN ST1DNAU | KRUZiiK VOKUN STaaDNAU | Ancient shadow unbound |
| VOTH 1N B4LOK W4 D3VON FIN L2N | VOTH aaN BahLOK Wah DiiVON FIN LeiN | With a hunger to swallow the world |
Coincidentally, this poem is also the song that is heard throughout the game when the player enters combat with a dragon or if the player lets the game run on the main menu without selecting an option.
Originally known as "Dragon Poem", it was revealed through the in-game book Songs of Skyrim that this is only a portion of a longer work. Loading Screen text name the work Song of the Dragonborn. The full version, in both English and the Dragon Tongue, can be found in Songs of Skyrim.
E3 Word WallEdit
At E3 2011, Bethesda's booth displayed a Word Wall (right) which contained the following sample of Dragon text:
| Dragon alphabet | Latin alphabet | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 4RK OND DR9 | ahRK OND DRey | And lo, did |
| S4ROT | SahROT | Mighty |
| H2MVERLUND | HeiMVERLUND | Heimverlund |
| M9Z NOL HEVNO | MeyZ NOL HEVNO | come from the brutal |
| BROM MED STRUN | BROM MED STRUN | North, like a storm |
| DO UZN4G1R | DO UZNahGaaR | Of unbridled |
| N4KR3N NOL | NahKRiiN NOL | Vengeance from |
| SOVNGARDE | SOVNGARDE | Sovngarde |
| NIM1R | NIMaaR | Itself |
- "Sovngarde" is the Nordic idea of the afterlife, a part of Aetherius.
- The same text appears on the dragon wall statue included with the collector's edition of the game.
- This is also the text for the first Word Wall for the shout Storm Call.
DragonstoneEdit
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A Dragonstone found in Bleak Falls Barrow has the following inscription:
| Dragon alphabet | Latin alphabet | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| HET NOK UN | HET NOK UN | Here lie our |
| MAHL1N DROGGE | MAHLaaN DROGGE | Fallen lords |
| ER2 SUL9K SE | ERei SULeyK SE | Until power of |
| ALDUIN VOKR3 | ALDUIN VOKRii | Alduin revives |
Legends Card PacksEdit
Heroes of Skyrim Legendary card packs in The Elder Scrolls: Legends feature the Dragon Alphabet, but it is used to replace English characters rather than words in the Dragon Language. Legendary packs display the following phrases:
| Dragon alphabet | Latin alphabet |
|---|---|
| WALK IN THE PA OF THE LEGENDS | WALK IN THE PA[TH] OF THE LEGENDS |
| UNLEASH THE STRENGTH OF LEGENDS AND CONQUER ALL | UNLEASH THE STRENGTH OF LEGENDS AND CONQUER ALL |
| THE POWER OF LEGENDS AWAITS YOU | THE POWER OF LEGENDS AWAITS YOU |
This is the only instance of the letter "C" in the Dragon Alphabet.
Dragon Alphabet FontEdit
A Dragon font containing all known characters is available for download.
ReferencesEdit
Note: The following references are considered to be unofficial sources. They are included to round off this article and may not be authoritative or conclusive.
- ^ Skyrim's Dragon Shouts, GameInformer, January 20, 2011