Amil, one of the secret names of the One, which appears to mean either “Brother” or “River.” It later became the name of the line of kings that began with Amil the Great.
Ammet, a straw image thrown into the sea every year at the Sea Festival in Holand in South Dalemark, which was said to bring luck to the city. Small images were also made and sold for luck. Even greater luck was supposed to come to any boat that found Ammet floating beyond the harbor and brought him aboard. The name is a corruption of Alhammitt, one of the names of the Earth Shaker. See also Poor Old Ammet.
Andmark, the earldom in the center of South Dalemark which was probably the wealthiest in Dalemark. Henda was Earl of Andmark until he was killed in the Great Uprising.
Anoreth of the Undying became the wife of Closti the Clam. The name means “unbound.”
Ansdale, a remote valley east of Gardale. The birthplace of Biffa, whose family kept the mill there.
Arin, a senior lord of the (Heathen) invaders from Haligland and chief warrior-minister of Kars Adon.
Armor was markedly different in the two halves of Dalemark.
Southern soldiers wore helmets and breastplates with exaggerated curves designed to deflect bullets, over tough leather, with knee-length boots and big gauntlets. Many carried guns as well as swords, and foot soldiers carried pikes.
Northern soldiers still used chain mail under sleeved jerkins of leather or tough cloth. The mail was long enough to protect the wearer to the wrists and knees, and the helmets were round, coming low enough in the back to protect the neck. Gloves were leather with mail or studs on the backs. Weapons were usually crossbows, swords, and daggers. Guns were few and could only be spared for picked hearthmen.
Arms inspectors were employed by all the earls of South Dalemark to keep strict watch on gunsmiths, armorers, and weapons makers, who were not allowed to work without the inspectors’ seal on all their equipment. The earls rightly feared that the craftsmen might otherwise sell weapons to the common people or make weapons for the earls that were deliberately flawed. Despite the inspectors, many armorers seem to have done both these things.
Arris, a rough spirituous liquor brewed throughout South Dalemark from discarded grapes and sprouting corn. All that can be said in its favor is that it was much cheaper than wine.
Ath, the river that runs north into the sea at Aberath. It is thought to be one of the remnants of the great River of prehistory.
Autumn Festival, the usual name in the South of Dalemark for Harvest, the feast that celebrated the gathering of crops.
Autumn floods in the prehistoric Riverlands were as regular as spring floods but never so large. They were due to the rains that fell in the autumn storms.
Autumn storms were a regular feature in Dalemark. In historic times they reached as far north as Gardale and could be very severe. The worst lasted for days, with the gale swinging from northwest to southwest. With a shorter storm the winds tended to gust even stronger but not veer so much. If the gale was southerly, the storms came repeatedly for several days.
Bad luck gave rise to many superstitions all over Dalemark. Those which require explanation are:
1. Giving. It was considered disastrously unlucky to give, or promise to give, something and then not give it. This is why Ganner was forced to give Lenina to Clennen and also why he seems to have been certain she would one day come back; he had not incurred bad luck by refusing to give her away.
2. Festivals, feasts, and ceremonies. Enormous bad luck was incurred if anything happened to interrupt these. Note that the Heathens interrupted the One’s fire ceremony; that both Mitt and Al interrupted the Sea Festival; and that Fenna interrupted the Midsummer Feast by fainting.
3. A death brought great bad luck and could only be countered by a marriage on the same day. Lenina and Ganner take advantage of this belief.
4. Speaking a falsehood to the Undying brings more bad luck than any of the foregoing.
5. An unlucky person can bring bad luck to others. Gull was considered to be doing this, and Kialan believed he was such a person.
6. A person or group can carry their own cloud of bad luck around with them and nothing will go right for them until the cloud passes away.
Barangarolob, the full name of the horse that pulled Clennen the Singer’s cart. Clennen, who loved long names, named him after the Adon’s horse Barangalob, with the inserted superlative particle ro meaning “youngest” or “much younger.”
Barlay, Lawschool slang. “No barlay” means “no quarter given.”
Beat the water, as part of the Holand Sea Festival in South Dalemark. People pretended to beat the sea with garlands of fruit and flowers. The ancient aim seems to have been to subdue the sea for the following year.
Beer was drunk throughout the North of Dalemark instead of water, wine, or coffee until near the end of Amil the Great’s reign. One of Navis Haddsson’s many profitable enterprises was to set up a large brewery in the Shield of Oreth, but the best beer came from Hannart and still does. The lager brewed in Kinghaven is to be avoided at all costs.
Bence, captain in chief of the fleet of the Holy Islands and commander of the Wheatsheaf. Bence was not a Holy Islander. He was born in Wayness in the earldom of Waywold.
Besting, Lawschool slang for best friend.
Biffa, pupil at the Gardale Lawschool, a native of Ansdale and best friend of Hildrida Navissdaughter. The name is a shortened pet-name form of Enblith.
Big Shool, one of the larger of the Holy Islands.
Black Mountains, the highest range of mountains in prehistoric Dalemark. It is possible, though not certain, that they were thrown higher in the mountain-folding at the start of the reign of King Hern, to become the Black Mountains of historic Dalemark, in which case the name may refer to the large deposits of coal to be found there.
“Both hands cut off…” refers to the law of primitive Haligland, whereby any member of the High Lord’s (King’s) family who was suspected of treason could be legally deprived of both hands, not as a punishment but as a precaution against a threat to the throne.
Bradbrook, a lordship on the coast of Waywold in South Dalemark.
Brid, daughter of Clennen the Singer and sister of Moril and Dagner, who fled North with Moril. Soon after her arrival Brid went to Gardale and trained as a law-woman, and thence to a professional appointment in Loviath. After the Great Uprising she became Countess of Hannart and eventually the first head of the Royal Dalemark Academy of Music, which she helped her brother Moril to found.
Bull, the most usual form in which the Earth Shaker appears. For this reason bulls’ heads are carried in the Holand Sea Festival. It is said that the Bull is most frequently seen in the Holy Islands.
Canden, the younger of two brothers from Waywold in South Dalemark, devoted to freedom fighting. He moved from Waywold to Holand, where conditions were much worse, deliberately to foment rebellion. In Holand he joined the secret society of the Free Holanders and shortly proposed the firing of one of the Earl’s warehouses. The older Free Holanders refused and stayed at home, while Canden led the younger ones to the warehouse. There he found that they had been betrayed and that soldiers were waiting for them.
Canderack, the earldom on the west coast of South Dalemark, where the best wine was grown. Until the reign of Amil the Great, Canderack owned a fleet that rivaled Holand’s.
Canderack Head, south of Canderack Bay, an important landmark for shipping on the South Dalemark coast.
Carne Bank, a mudbank at the far east of the prehistoric Rivermouth, notorious for quicksands and shallows.
Cenblith, a queen of prehistoric Dalemark who first took the One for her lover and then bound him to the will of mortals, apparently either by forcing him to make the great River or by carving an image of him.
Cennoreth, one of the Undying, known in legends as a witch and often called the Weaver. It was said that whatever she wove became truth. She was sister to the legendary King Hern and mother of Manaliabrid, wife of th
e Adon.
Chindersay, one of the outer ring of the Holy Islands, notable for the dark color of its rocks.
Cindow, a village northeast of Markind in South Dalemark.
City of Gold, King Hern’s lost city of Kernsburgh, which gave rise to the saying “The City of Gold is always on the most distant hill,” meaning that your ideal is never here, under your hands, but always out over there.
Clans, the tribe families of the Heathens of Haligland. The clans are very large and contain all classes, from aristocrat to lowborn. For instance, Kars Adon and Ked both belonged to Clan Rath, but Kars Adon was King while Ked was lowborn and had no real relation to the royal family.
Clennen Mendakersson, one of the most famous and characterful of the old-style Singers, a musician, composer, and teller of tales. He married Lenina, niece of the Earl of the South Dales, and was the father of Dagner, Brid, and Moril. He was murdered near Markind in South Dalemark on suspicion of being a spy, and bequeathed to Moril a cwidder with strange powers, which he claimed had been handed down to him from their ancestor Osfameron.
Climbers, Lawschool slang name for the cloistered court with steps.
Closti the Clam, father of Tanaqui the weaver and a native of Shelling in the prehistoric Riverlands kingdom of Dalemark. He was called the Clam for his extreme uncommunicativeness, which may have been caused by the early death of his wife, Anoreth, or perhaps by the command of the One. He was killed in the invasion of the Heathen Haliglanders before he could tell his children many very important facts.
Collen, one of the two Southern forms of the name Kialan; a name fairly common in Markind.
Collet, the steward of the King of the Riverlands, whose duty was to memorize the King’s debts for lodging and provision.
“The Color Song,” composed and sung by Dagner Clennensson.
“Come Up the Dale with Me,” an apparently innocent love song from South Dalemark which was actually urging rebellion. It was banned.
“Come with Me,” a song being composed by Dagner Clennenson, which Clennen objected to on the ground that it could be seen by spies as urging rebellion.
Coran, a townsman of Derent in Waywold in South Dalemark, later well known as a freedom fighter.
Countess
1. A female who is earl in her own right, like the Countess of Aberath.
2. The wife of an earl.
3. Mitt’s name for his bad-tempered horse, which was not even female.
“Cow-calling,” a traditional patter song to a lively tune. Each verse is two lines longer than the last, until the singer is addressing the whole herd of cows.
Crady, a large town in the south of Andmark in South Dalemark.
Credin, the tidal wave which, at certain seasons, runs up the river Aden from the sea. A lesser wave usually runs up the river Ath at the same time. It is thought the name derives from memories of the mage Kankredin.
Cressing Harbor, a small fishing port to the northeast of the Point of Hark. It was the nearest landing for ships from South Dalemark and much involved in smuggling goods and people from both sides.
Cruddle, one of the traditional instruments played at the Holand Sea Festival, a sort of triangular fiddle with three gut strings. The player held the cruddle under his chin and scraped the strings with a loose horsehair bow. Cruddlers were seldom musicians. Their sole aim was to make as much noise as possible.
“Cuckoo Song,” a comic song with rather indecent words composed by Clennen the Singer.
Cwidder, a musical instrument rather like a lute but with some of the properties of an acoustic guitar. Cwidders are found in all sizes, from small trebles through medium-sized altos and tenors to large bass and deep bass. Moril’s cwidder was a large bass, but it could be used as a tenor. Cwidders were much used by Singers because they were both versatile and easy to carry.
Dagner, the elder son of Clennen the Singer and a noted composer. Dagner became Earl of the South Dales very early in his life but was so reluctant to leave his life as a traveling Singer that he only took up his earldom after fifteen years, at the urgent request of Amil the Great.
Dalemark, the fifteen earldoms of Aberath, Loviath, Hannart, Gardale, Dropwater, Kannarth, the North Dales, the South Dales, Fenmark, Carrowmark, Andmark, Canderack, Waywold, Holand, and Dermath, with the so-called King’s Lands (the Holy Islands, the Marshes, and the Shield of Oreth), that, together with their peoples and history, make up historic Dalemark. For prehistoric Dalemark, see Riverlands.
Dapple, the mottled gray horse belonging to Hestefan the Singer. It was blind in one eye. There was usually something amiss with Singers’ horses because they could only afford to buy them cheap.
Dark Land, the place where the souls of the newly dead gather before they make their way to the constellation of the River and on to oblivion.
Dastgandlen Handagner, the full name of Dagner Clennensson, who was named for the twin brothers of the Undying encountered by the witch Cennoreth. It was said that Clennen could not resist long names.
Derent, a prosperous town in the northeast of the earldom of Waywold in South Dalemark.
Dermath, the earldom in the extreme southeast of South Dalemark.
Diddersay, one of the Holy Islands.
Dideo, a fisherman of Holand in South Dalemark, one of the older members of the Free Holanders, who knew how to make bombs. Dideo put this knowledge to use for Mitt, and again in the Great Uprising, when he had a hand blown off by one of his own bombs, but he survived this and ended his days on the City Council of Holand.
Dike End, the birthplace of Mitt, farmed by his parents for the first six years of Mitt’s life. The name comes from the situation of the farm and the nearby village at the end of the great Flate Dike, quite near where it runs into the sea about ten miles west of the port of Holand.
Doen, one of the Holy Islands.
Doggers, Lawschool slang for top of the game league.
Doreth, second daughter of Alk and the Countess of Aberath.
Dropthwaite, a secluded valley at the source of the river Dropwater where the Adon is said to have hidden as an outlaw. A center of tourism in modern Dalemark.
Dropwater, after Hannart, the richest and most influential earldom of North Dalemark, situated facing southwest astride a wide fjord that is ideal for shipping, and sheltered by the mountains from the normal harsh weather of the North. The chief riches of Dropwater come from wool and leather goods, but it was mostly famous for its strong plum brandy and, above all, for the spectacular giant waterfall at the head of its dale.
Duck, the pet name of the youngest son of Closti the Clam, who later became famous as Mage Mallard.
Duke of Kernsburgh, a new title created by Amil the Great and bestowed upon Navis Haddsson. It was designed to ensure that Navis outranked all the earls.
Earl
1. The aristocratic ruler of one large segment of Dalemark. In the old days, prior to the reign of the Adon, earls held their places as officers of the King but, when Dalemark ceased to have kings, each earl became a small king in his own right, with absolute authority over everything in his earldom. Many misused this power, some brutally, and all went to great lengths to keep it.
2. The title of a clan chief among the Heathens of Haligland. This later became the modern title.
Earldom, a division of Dalemark ruled by an earl. It was said that earldoms came into being when King Hern divided his kingdom into nine and set nine men in charge, whom he called earls after the name of the clan chiefs, to govern under him. These divisions he called marks. Later six more marks were added in the South when Hern’s conquests had reached that far. The system worked well, provided the King was strong. The common people traditionally regarded the earls as only the officers of the King and continued to think this way even after there were no kings.
Earth Shaker, the title of Alhammitt, one of the elder Undying, who had become the god of corn and of the sea. The title might describe the sea, but it possibly also refers to what happens if any o
f the Earth Shaker’s secret names are spoken.
Edril, the younger grandson of Amil the Great and one of Maewen’s ancestors.
Egil, a hearthman in the service of Earl Keril of Hannart.
“The Eighth March,” the last of a set of marching songs usually called “The Seven Marches,” and only sung or played in North Dalemark because the words were offensive to the South.
Eleth of Kredindale, the mother of Noreth, who died soon after Noreth was born, declaring to the end that her daughter was the child of the One.
Elthorar Ansdaughter, keeper of antiquities at Hannart in North Dalemark in the time of Earl Keril, a law-woman of great learning who gave up the law in order to study the history and prehistory of Dalemark. She was present at the discovery of the spellcoats and translated them, sometimes rather inaccurately.
Eltruda, the Lady of Adenmouth, wife of Lord Stair, and younger sister of Eleth of Kredindale. Being childless herself, Eltruda brought Noreth up when Eleth died. On the death of Lord Stair, Eltruda married Navis Haddsson and became a considerable force in Dalemark politics and almost legendary for her quarrels with her stepdaughter, Hildrida.
Enblith the Fair, Queen of Dalemark some hundreds of years after the reign of King Hern, daughter of the Undying and said to be the most beautiful woman who ever lived. The musician-mage Tanamoril found Enblith living as a pauper in the woods and tricked the King into marrying her.
Falls
1. In prehistoric Dalemark the great River rose as a waterfall said to be half the height of a mountain. This was the site of Hern’s battle with the mage Kankredin.
2. In historic times the falls at the head of the dale of Dropwater, where the river Dropwater fell nearly three hundred feet to the floor of the valley, were among the most admired sights of North Dalemark.
Fander, a revolutionary in Neathdale in South Dalemark, a grocer by trade, who provided the family of Clennen the Singer with bacon, lentils, and, for some reason, a large bunch of rhubarb.
Farn, the southernmost of the Holy Islands.
Fayside, one of the dormitory houses in the Lawschool at Gardale.