Greeting the Lone Power: "dai stihó?"

[talkingbeast]

When wizards say "greetings" to the Lone Power, are they saying "dai stiho"?

[semiramis]

Hmmm, interesting question... I think dai stiho translates lit. as "Go well," kind of like the old english meaning of goodbye (it's actually something like "go-thee-well" run together, except I think there's another word in there somewhere... someone? help...?), whereas the little schpeel they say to the LP goes "greeting and defiance", not "go well..." which would be a bit of a contradiction... but then, the orig. meaning of dai stiho may be slightly diluted/changed into something without the well-wishing undertone, just as "goodbye" has become no more or less than a simple acknowledgement of parting... can that happen with the Speech? Obviously, it branches and evolves, but...

...mweh....

[Rysade]

"Fairest and Fallen;
greetings and defiance."

I doubt it. They are voicing a very formal greeting. The greeting is made for only one situation, and only for one person. It's not likely they would reuse a semi-formal greeting for that.

[Peter Murray]

Supposedly, "Goodbye" is a contraction of "God be with you" and "Farewell" is more like what you meant, Semiramis.

Hmmm. I tried browsing through SYWTBAW quickly, but couldn't find the first use of Dai'stiho in that. I found a use in Deep Wizardry, but it must have appeared before that.

[semiramis]

Oh yeah! I remember now. Richard Letterer said that, yah ^.^ "God be with you"... "Good'b'w'ye?" XD That makes me think of "Djetyet?" ("did you eat yet?")

(although it is rather formal; the word "you" used to be the english plural/respectful second person pronoun.... right?)

[drea]

I doubt it. They are voicing a very formal greeting. The greeting is made for only one situation, and only for one person. It's not likely they would reuse a semi-formal greeting for that.

So here's my issue with what you said. It's not only for one situation. It's a greeting for the Lone Power anytime that a wizard should run into It, or seek It out, or what have you.

I do however, agree that it is a very formal greeting. The whole greetings and defiance part makes it seem like...well, even the Lone Power deserves repect, even if it isn't necessarily the good kind.

[Rysade]

Well, the situation being, "having met the Lone Power," and not something more specific.

In any case, I can't think of any OTHER greetings that can only be used on one person.

[semiramis]

I dunno... there's probably a specific greeting for meeting the One. And there's a specific greeting for the Transdecent Pig, although that's not necissarily a greeting... XD

(...And does anyone else ever get the weird desire to type "Transcendental Pig"?)

[Gryphon]

Semiramis:
I dunno... there's probably a specific greeting for meeting the One. And there's a specific greeting for the Transdecent Pig, although that's not necissarily a greeting... XD

(...And does anyone else ever get the weird desire to type "Transcendental Pig"?)

Ooo... I think you spelled it wrong the first time, not accidentally. Isn't it transcendent? Hehe... Transdecent...

[Peter Murray]

I'm just desperately hoping that we aren't going to see a fanart of the Transdecent Pig.

I forget how the whole thou/you, thy/your, thine/yours and thee thing went. (I'm not that old.)

[Wilf]

"Transdecent", adj, lit. 'between decentcy states'. (Wilf Standard English Dictionary)

So you could have pig half way between nice and nasty... ot half way bewteen nasty and hellish....hmm...


A transcendtal number is one that cannot be expressed as the root of a polynomial with rational/interger co-efficients... nope, cannot see how you could have a transcental pig.

[semiramis]

Oops... *sweatdrop* I hate when I leave out letters when typing... or add them... esp. when it means sth else when I do... XD... TRANSDESCENT. GAAAH... XD

(and then there's talking out loud and switching sounds. A friend and I were once discussing a weird Harry Potter dream she'd had, and, instead of "Voldemort's last breath," I accidentally said "Voldemort's lath breast...")

...Peter... please, please, don't tempt me. DON'T. XD

(Thee=familiar object; thou=familiar subject; thy=familiar possesive; thine=familiar possessive w/vowel)

Wilf: actually, he kinda is halfway between nice and nasty... just not halfway between nice and nasty like THAT. XD

[talkingbeast]

OK, on the "ye" thing, I just happen to have my copy of The Known World Handbook handy with its article "The Art of Writing Forsoothly." According to that, it goes:
I/We
You/You
Thou/Ye
He-she-it/They-they-they

[Delphi]

I've been wondering...How do you pronounce dai stiho?

Delphi, there is a thread about the pronuniciation (I can't spell well) of Dai Stiho, but I think it says there that it's pronounced "Die Stee-ho" That's how I always pronounced it when I read the series, too.