Language barriers: yea or nay?

[Ireth]

I've discovered a potential problem with my newest project. The three groups of good guys are Celtic Fae, Norse light elves, and Norse-Gaelic humans. The light elves arrive in Faerie in the first scene, and come across the Fae first of all. The elves speak Ancient Scandinavian/Old Norse, while the Fae speak various Celtic languages, Welsh and Irish being the main ones. (Alternately, the Fae may speak a "common tongue", a blending and bastardization of the various tongues.) Either way, there's a serious language barrier problem -- which is bad, because they find the MC with his dying friend, and how can they communicate enough to say "please get me a healer" with such a divide? The MC in particular hasn't spent any time with the Norse-Gaelic humans, so he hasn't had the chance to pick up any of the Norse language.

The alternative could be a magical translation effect, which would mean that when the elves speak Norse, the Fae hear their native tongue, and vice-versa. That could be a problem, though, if people want to talk in their own tongues to keep from being overheard by others who normally wouldn't understand. What are your thoughts?

 

[Caged Maiden]

I think if I saw someone dying and their friend holding say, their hand over a wound... they could utter some unintelligible words or cluck like a chicken and I'd understand they were pleading for help. If however, your problem is bigger than that one scene, you might have to come up with another solution. Now, knowing what I do about language, many languages have roots in an older one. Gaelic is pretty hard to understand compared to, say, High German or ancient Norse (to an English-speaker like me). Now, I wrote a novel using many Italian words (all the chapter titles are in Italian). It's not terribly difficult to understand if you speak English. So I'm not worried about offering a translation in the book. Perhaps your characters have been around enough to understand a few key phrases? If not, there's always tone of voice and gestures. The wonderful thing about being creatures born to communicate is that humans can be dumped in a ocmpletely foreign culture and cope relatively well in no time because we understand certain universal things. Body language is very strong, even if you can't understand the words someone is speaking...

 

[TWErvin2]

In my novels there are different languages. But there is also Sea Spittle, the Sailor's Tongue, the Trade Language, which is less complex than many language, but not difficult to learn. It can be a bridge. Maybe there might be a logic for such a language in your world?

Some of my characters speak more than one language, or tongue. This may be an option as well. It does, however, take great care so that the scenes and dialogue flow and don't read as awkward, especially when not all are able to comprehend, but are part of the scene/action/discussion.

 

[Ireth]

In my novels there are different languages. But there is also Sea Spittle, the Sailor's Tongue, the Trade Language, which is less complex than many language, but not difficult to learn. It can be a bridge. Maybe there might be a logic for such a language in your world?

*nod* Your Sea Spittle idea is kind of what I was getting at with the "common tongue" among Fae being a blend of the various Celtic tongues. I would think that might be distinct from the varied languages that humans would speak, though, which is a problem if the elves in question have only come into contact with Gaelic-speaking humans before, not Fae, which was my intent.

 

[Filk]

You could possibly have a magical device or artifact that when activated or worn could translate or allow the speaker to communicate telepathically. This would allow the user to choose when he/she is understood and you can retain the language barrier as a norm.

 

[Ireth]

You could possibly have a magical device or artifact that when activated or worn could translate or allow the speaker to communicate telepathically. This would allow the user to choose when he/she is understood and you can retain the language barrier as a norm.

That would be interesting. I'll think about it. ^^

 

[teacup]

Perhaps have an elf or whoever place their hand upon another's head and kind of read their mind? - Like a translation through magic through their minds?