Elder Speech

Elder Speech is predominantly an elven language but technically it refers to all languages which originated prior to the Conjunction of the Spheres. As it is one of the oldest languages still in use, it is referred to as the "Old" or "Elder" Speech and the lingua franca is "Common Speech". It is mainly used by the elves and dryads, though mages, scientists and the more educated people also know it. The sung version of Elder Speech is used by sirens and nereids. Nilfgaardian and the Skellige Islands dialects both derive from Elder Speech. Its vocabulary is based heavily on the Celtic languages of Ireland, Scotland and Wales, with several seemingly arbitrary spelling changes from the original words. In addition to these, dice 'to say', ess 'to be' and mid- 'mid-' all suggest lesser influence from Latin; folie 'frenzy', shaent 'sing' and que 'that' imply influence from French; and fen 'fen, marsh' and hael 'greeting; health/safety/cure' suggest English (or possibly Old Norse) influences.

Old Speech - Polish original text on Andrzej Sapkowski Zone

Names [[Image:Icon TOC.png|16px|link=#Dictionary|Top of page]]
Starší mluva Alte Sprache Αρχαία Διάλεκτο Lengua Antigua Langage ancien Lingua Antica Senoji kalba Starsza Mowa