Dawnchant
| Dawnchant | |
|---|---|
| World of Origin | Roshar |
“Anak malah kaf, del makian habin yah ”
—The phrase 'To be human is to want that which we cannot have' in the Dawnchant[1]
The Dawnchant was a lost language on Roshar, believed to be the language spoken by the Heralds. While there appear to be no known examples, there are several untranslatable works believed to be written in the Dawnchant. These include several maps of Urithiru[2] and the songs sung by the Vanrial (collected by Corvana in the Analectics).[1] The writing on the Oathgate to Urithiru was also written in the Dawnchant. [3]
It was discovered by Navani that the Dawnchant (at least, the language sung by the Vanrial) was one of the languages that Dalinar spoke when he entered his trances during the highstorms.[1] She hoped to be able to translate it by questioning Dalinar as to what he said during his trances.
Jasnah recorded in her notebook on Urithiru that she wanted to find a way to translate the Dawnchant.[4]
The Dawnate language family, consisting of the Shin, Parshendi, and Horneater languages, has distant roots in the Dawnchant. While the vocabulary of these languages vary greatly, they share similar grammar.[5]