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Thien zalh thieh xlirn, nglrq mlieh zirnq thliel
Thlan lielq xan nien, xlirnq zluonq pir liel
Lielq hlrn thlrq gar, zieq plarq turq mlielh
Glieq mlien nglielq yen, klie zrq kluon thliel

“The sage plays the four tones, the melody never-ending and incomplete.
They infer in rhythms calm and content, endlessly turning, wandering adrift.
The rhythms follow an orderly ascent, each beat dispelling biases and faults.
Wisdom shines with the waxing of the moon, and when it wanes, refinement begins anew.”

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Introduction

Thernese (.sဓု့ɜ.sဓှုံs. Nglrq Thlrnh [ŋlɚʔ.ɬɚ̤ɳᶳ]; Luanese: 蜃語 sịnẹ) is the language of the Thern, the native inhabitants of the islands of the Jasper Sea (海瓊 Th. Harq Klirn, Lu. ), the largest island being Nacre Island (島瑤 Th. Dharq Yir, Lu. ). Thernese is distantly related to Luanese, but unlike its distant relative, it is an extremely right-branching language. The primary word order in the modern language is VOS with modifiers following the noun they modify. It is extremely analytic with most words consisting of one or two syllables. There are two literary traditions: Classical Thernese and Modern Thernese, the former reflecting Old Thernese and the latter reflecting modern colloquial Tharnese. Thernese has its own native script, which might be described as a “featural syllabary” and can be written both vertically or horizontally; however, the language can alternatively be written using Luanese characters, including a native stylized variant. Typically, the modern language is written with the native script apart from names, proper nouns, and instances where it is necessary to disambiguiate homophones, which are written using Luanese characters. The classical language, on the other hand, is written almost exclusively in the native stylized variant of Luanese characters.

The Thern (.sဓံɜ.sဓှုံs. Lrn Thlrnh) are the descendants of an ancient sea people said to be blessed by the Moon. They stand out for their pale, iridescent complexions, large eyes, and light-colored irises. They typically lead nocturnal lifestyles, following strict asceticism and a philosophy known as “Sapientism”, in which they cultivate virtues such as rationalism, abstract thinking, and self-restraint in the pursuit of wisdom. The philosophy of Sapientism is layed out in the three foundational texts known as the Gien Glieh (經智) “Classic of Sapience”, the Gien Slurn (經純) “Classic of Purity”, and the Gien Lien (經蓮) “Classic of the Lotus”. Solitude, mathematics, and the pursuit of knowledge and art as an end unto itself are regarded as the noblest of activities for the Thern. On the other hand, willful ignorance, vanity, and placing value on material things are generally frowned upon. Thern are known to have exceedingly long lifespans, longest of all the Senins, and some are rumored to have even achieved immortality, such as the mythicized Queen Mother of the West (母王西 Th. Muoq Won Thie, Lu. ). They are a peaceful race and avoid conflict, usually seeking a neutral disposition concerning other nations. They typically have the ability to control the elements of water and light, specializing in healing and restoration. The cultivation of other elements, especially those of the sun, sky, fire, and thunder are virtually taboo as they rely on unrestrained emotions. Additionally, Thern men and women are sterilized shortly after reaching maturity, and gender is virtually non-existent in Thern culture and language, many among the other races believing them to be a race of only women. Most Thern have long iridescent, almost translucent, hair, and they wear long, flowing robes, preferring light, plain colors such as grey, white, or light-blue. The Thern also have an acute affinity for jellyfish and marine life in general, which is frequently reflected in their art and language.

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