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The subject line really says it all but to reiterate, is there any real life language that comes to mind when you think of the halfling language in terms of sound and tone? It's one of those languages that is basically a core language but I almost never see referenced or built onto and I'm looking for some ideas.
Spanish or Italian, in my head, definitely.
Klingon?
French. Hon hon hon.
Pidgin.
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Pikey, from the movie Snatch.
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Pikey, from the movie Snatch.
That's probably a good example. At least in the Pathfinder campaign setting it started out as a code, after all, and at least some of the words are recognizably from Common, but put together in ways that are impossible to understand unless you learn to speak tje language. Maybe think "English English" from the third Austin Powers movie.
Somali. Here's an example, just imagine it in a high childlike tone:
http://globalrecordings.net/en/program/C32961
(some christian missionary stuff, i don't actually understand anything of it myself, it's just for the sound)
It would use lots of vocab from the Ancient Egyptian-esque Osirioni and Roman-ish Taldane and Bantu-esque Mwangi Polyglot in those areas where Halflings are typically found.
Lordoftheringrish?
Since Tolkien invented the creature we refer to as Halfling (yes, I know the word was used in olden times to mean "child," it also was used in reference to half-grown livestock and sometimes to dwarf versions of animals), and the fictional Red and Green books were meant to represent the history of Middle-Earth as implied to have been written by Hobbits, I would say that Halfling is probably a lot like Old English, or some proto-English variant.
Swedish, only on helium.
Haflings have a language? Especially in Golarion I assumed they just speak common or whatever the local language is.
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Haflings have a language? Especially in Golarion I assumed they just speak common or whatever the local language is.
Yeah I know how you feel, their language along with gnomish have a tendency to be totally forgotten considering how little prominence either of the races get as their own unique and equal culture within the setting as written right now. I mean seriously I cannot think of any npc in recent memory out of paizo that even has the language and isn't also a halfling which kind of helps further its fall into obscurity since we as gm's and players start to not notice it anymore ourselves.
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Swedish, only on helium.
Why swedish exactly? I come from a english background with a smattering of German and latin so it's not a language I'm really familiar with. What part of it makes you think, "Yeah this is how halflings sound when there sitting in a pub ordering a beer."?
Though this is referencing Swedish here specifically feel free to aim this at your own suggested languages as well. As someone who doesn't play halflings that often and is looking to incorporate them more I'm interested to see what people associate their mother language with as well as why that seems to fit in their minds.
If we're going by Medieval Europe, halfling might as well be old English, while common is old French.
Pig Latin
In my game, it's pretty close to Common, and uses mostly Common words, but in a manner and accent that is incomprehensible to those who don't speak it. Kind of like Cockney rhyming slang to an American's ears, or Yiddish to a German speaker.
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Google how Tomi Undergallows from NWN talked. That's THE voice I have in my head for how halflings should sound.
Swedish, only on helium.Why swedish exactly?
Because it was the first language that popped into my head that wasn't trying to ground halflings in the same old tired Tolkien pigeonhole they were spawned from. Honestly, I don't often think of what languages sound like unless I'm coming up with a name for a person/place/thing that's in those languages.
Besides, it sounds pretty cool.
I'd probably go:
Common: (english) (since I mostly play with anglophones)
Elven: French (more elaborate, complex language)
Dwarves: Uncertain. I'd go German-ish, I believe they should have a very "hard" language.
Halfling: Spanish could work, it's a language that can be spoken very quickly which would fit in my mind.
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I though halflings sounded like foxes.
What does the fox say?
I'd probably go:
Common: (english) (since I mostly play with anglophones)
Elven: French (more elaborate, complex language)
Dwarves: Uncertain. I'd go German-ish, I believe they should have a very "hard" language.
Halfling: Spanish could work, it's a language that can be spoken very quickly which would fit in my mind.
Common: American
Elvin: ChineseDwarfs: German
Halfling: Chechen
Since the Hobbits were representative of the English, I'd have to go with that language for them.
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Haflings have a language? Especially in Golarion I assumed they just speak common or whatever the local language is.Yeah I know how you feel, their language along with gnomish have a tendency to be totally forgotten considering how little prominence either of the races get as their own unique and equal culture within the setting as written right now. I mean seriously I cannot think of any npc in recent memory out of paizo that even has the language and isn't also a halfling which kind of helps further its fall into obscurity since we as gm's and players start to not notice it anymore ourselves.
You seem to already know what I'm going so say here.
Halfling is basically a "code" version of common, mostly developed by Halfling slaves. On topic: I imagine Halfling sounding a bit Welsh or maybe Gaelic, I tend to give my halflings Gaelic names anyway. Oddly enough I imagine Pathfinder Dwarves sounding like Russians, go figure.
Honestly, their status as under appreciated, unnoticed, and under represented is exactly what a normal Halfling would want in Golarion. Mission Accomplished by Paizo?
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Well now I can't help but think Halflings talk like Cajuns.
Which is sooooo much better. Thank you, people, sincerely.
Esperanto
if they have there own language i think they sound like folks from Belgium.
Definitely sounds like Doge.
I understand the Tolkienish association with Welsh, and Welsh sound-wise mostly feels at least in the ballpark (sound-wise),
but as far as a Golarion setting, going too far with that association seem ill-advised,
as Halflings are not really associated with any culture any where near British isle norms.
Taldans/Chelish are Italian/French/Byzantine, Osirioni is Ancient Egyptian, and Mwangi is Bantu,
those are the associated areas where Halflings are common.
Maltese is an interesting language to listen to as example of one that draws many terms from other languages, particularly Italian.
Maltese is Arabic-derived, but sound-wise, I felt Somali would be a better base to so 'modify' (also a 'Semitic' language),
and given the geographical/cultural associations of Inner Sea region, Somali/Maltese seem
appropriate as "another" linguistic-cultural association in the vaguely Mediterranean area,
from where Halflings seem to primarily derive, i.e. in the region of Roman and Ancient Egyptian civilizations.
You could even understand it as some Phoenecian analog, also Semitic AFAIK,
although Phoenecian lacks a known pronunciation, Somali pronunciation seems good.
Halfling is basically a "code" version of common, mostly developed by Halfling slaves.
I would not be so certain of the centrality of "Common", i.e. Chelaxo-Taldane.
Halfling language also exist in the Osirioni milieu, which was the dominant Human language in Inner Sea from before Taldane.Likewise, Halflings also exist in Mwangi Expanse and still speak mutually intelligible "Halfling" there.
It seems as plausible as not that Halflings also played a role in Azlanti civilization,
although the language is nowhere noted as being especially derived from that either, despite that many other languages do note an Azlanti derivation.
So to me, Halfling just doesn't make sense as simply a 'code' or dialect of Taldane. If Halflings also tend to know other languages
(the norm in Inner Sea region, perhaps not as common for isolated tribes in Mwangi Expanse),
they will certainly know and use vocab from those languages, and likely 'code switch' (mixing languages),
but that doen't make such vocab an inherent central part of the Halfling language,
which again is mutually intelligible across all the mentioned region/contexts.
Sharing SOME Taldane/Osirioni/Mwangi vocab that is mutually understandable by all Halflings is plausible
(Taldane/Osirioni/Mwangi may themselves share some such vocab for term imported from each others' cultures),
but that is distinct from it being central to the language, or the language being a derivation of any one of those.
(with Taldane being the least likely source of those, given Taldane's only relatively recent rise, while Halflings have lived amongst Human for milennia before that)
if they have there own language i think they sound like folks from Belgium.
I don't think that will resolve this language debate ;-)
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My money's on Lorem Ipsum.
their language is essentially all the lines from wizard of oz spoken backwards.
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Minionese (see Despicable Me).
Minionese (see Despicable Me).Jawa was also an acceptable answer.
Yeah, my first thought was either Jawa or Ewok. Of course, he would ask for real languages...
Perhaps like Lando Calrissian's Copilot in Return of the Jedi.
The subject line really says it all but to reiterate, is there any real life language that comes to mind when you think of the halfling language in terms of sound and tone? It's one of those languages that is basically a core language but I almost never see referenced or built onto and I'm looking for some ideas.
I first 'conceived' of what the various racial languages sounded like back in 3rd grade when I read Lord of the Rings and those idea's have stayed with me since then.
So:
Elvish - French
Dwarvish - German
Hobbitish - Welsh or Scottish
Hey I was in third grade and hardly worldly but that is how it works for me.
Dwarven: Hungarian
Chelaxian/Taldane: Portuguese/Romanian