Writing to engage the mind and stir the heart.
Muninn's Keep Trade Paper (Word Alive, 2010) ISBN 978-1-926676-66-1
Pronounciation Guide
Characters Glossary
Characters Glossary
Glossary
ale-wife (Āl-wīf) -- A woman who keeps an ale-house, expert in brewing ale and beer.
Alf-blot (Alf-blot) -- An offering to the elves.
Athelings (Ath-lings) -- Members of a noble family.
Below the Salt (Bē-lō the Sält) -- The position of the Salt Cellar on the table gave
indication of rank. The farther below the salt a person sat, the lower they ranked among those at the table.
Beltane, Feast of (Bell-tān) -- Celebrated on the day the hawthorn begins to blossom, traditionally May 1st, often dedicated to Bel, the Shining One.
bladder-pipe (blad-der-pīp) --An instrument predating bag-pipes, often used at funerals and during battle.
braw (bra) -- handsome, fine.
Brighid (Brig-hid) -- Goddess, patron of lore, protector of women in childbirth. (Not to be mistaken for Bridget of Kildare who later filled a Christianized role of the festival.) Celebrated during the first days of February as part of the Feast of Imbolc.
burn -- A brook or rivulet.
carnyx (kärn-nex) -- A war trumpet used by the Pict, with a wooden tongue
that gave it a strident, undulating tone. Click for a youtube clip.
cubit (ku-bit) -- A measure of about 45.5 cm (18 inches), the length of a
man’s forearm.
darkle (därk-el) -- To appear indistinctly with a rippling effect.
faerie folk (fairē-fōlk) -- Little people of great wisdom and power, often mischievous, but rarely malicious.
fealty (fē-al-tē) -- Faithfulness, loyalty.
flædg-stafir (flej-staff-ur) -- Deception runes. Deliberately misleading, thought to have magical powers.
flagellum (flag-all-lum) -- A whip with multiple thin strands and bits of lead or bone
attached to tear flesh.
Freya’s Tears (Frā-as Tears) -- Pieces of amber (tree sap), especially small tear-shaped drops. Highly valued, some thought them to give magical protection, like a talisman.
gibbet (jib-bet) -- An upright timber with a crossbeam projecting at right angles from its upper end, used for hanging criminals condemned to death.
Gungnir (Gung-gnur) -- Name of Woden’s Spear; also the sacrificial knife made from a boar’s tusk.
hlaut-bolla (ha-lot bōwl-la) -- A basin for catching the blood of sacrifices made to the gods.
hroefn (hä-rā-ven) -- (raven) Large black carrion bird; similar to the crow, but larger.
Imbolc, Feast of (Im-bōl-ak) -- Celebrated during the first days of February. See Brighid.
jarl (yärl) -- A warrior of noble birth.
Keep (Kēp) -- Fortress -- especially the inner refuge where a last stand can be made, or a larger fortress with exceptional defensive capabilities. See Muninn’s Keep.
kelpies (kelp-pēs) -- Water Sprite, demon; a malicious spirit that would drown
and devour.
knucklebones (knuck-el-bōnes) -- An old game played with the knucklebones of sheep or goats. Has some similarity to the modern game of jacks.
Lay (Lā) -- A ballad or narrative poem, especially as told by a bard.
Muninn (Mun-nin) -- The name of one of Woden’s ravens.
Muninn’s Keep (Mun-nin’s Kēp) -- The massive and highly defensible fortress Theodoric rebuilds from the ruins.
peat (pēt) -- Dense, partially carbonized moss, often cut in blocks, dried
and used for fuel.
Pict (Picked) -- A warring people from the north, noted for their blue (woad)
tattoos and their savagery in battle.
polecat (pōl-cat) -- A skunk.
portcullis (port-kul-is) -- A heavy lattice-work gate that can be dropped to close off
an entry to a fortress, usually with sharpened spikes at the bottom.
portend (pour-tend) -- To warn of, as an omen.
portent (pour-tent) -- An indication or sign of what is to happen, ominous significance.
pulse -- Leguminous plants, such as peas, beans etc., and their edible greens.
rowan (rō-wän) -- A small tree native to Europe; Mountain Ash. The staff is a
symbol among the Druidic priesthood.
salamandríne (sal-ä-män-drin) -- A mythical lizard said to live in fire; a wingless
dragon.
sark (särk) -- A shirt.
scrivener (skriv-in-er) -- A clerk or scribe.
sen’night (sen-nīt) -- Literally “seven-night,” a one week period.
skep -- A beehive made of straw in the shape of a small rounded thatched dome.
stone (stōn) -- A unit of weight, about 6.35 kilograms (14 pounds).
thræl (thräll) -- Literally “slave” one in bondage.
Tlæchtgö (Tlak-tgō) -- Name of the god worshiped by the Pict.
tor -- A high rocky crag; a hill, quite rugged.
torc (tork) -- A collar made of soft twisted bands of gold. A symbol of rank.
trencher (trench-er) -- A shallow wooden plate.
Valhalla (Väl-häl-lä) -- The great hall into which the souls of heroes fallen bravely
in battle were received and feasted by Woden; the hall of the worthy dead.
ween (wēn) -- Understand.
wench -- A young serving girl; an unmarried girl labourer.
woad (wōd) -- An Old World herb of the Mustard family. The blue dye-stuff obtained from the leaves.
Woden (Wōd-un) -- The chief Norse god. Wednesday is named for Woden. Many ancient and modern documents spell the name, Odin.
Woden’s Nine (Wōd-un’s Nīn) -- The circle of nine stones surrounding a well in a
grove dedicated to Woden Worship.
worm (wurm) -- A word commonly used for dragon, although wyvern was also
frequently used.
wraith (rāth) -- A spirit or ghost.
wyvern (wiv-urn) -- A winged dragon, sometimes called a worm.
ale-wife (Āl-wīf) -- A woman who keeps an ale-house, expert in brewing ale and beer.
Alf-blot (Alf-blot) -- An offering to the elves.
Athelings (Ath-lings) -- Members of a noble family.
Below the Salt (Bē-lō the Sält) -- The position of the Salt Cellar on the table gave
indication of rank. The farther below the salt a person sat, the lower they ranked among those at the table.
Beltane, Feast of (Bell-tān) -- Celebrated on the day the hawthorn begins to blossom, traditionally May 1st, often dedicated to Bel, the Shining One.
bladder-pipe (blad-der-pīp) --An instrument predating bag-pipes, often used at funerals and during battle.
braw (bra) -- handsome, fine.
Brighid (Brig-hid) -- Goddess, patron of lore, protector of women in childbirth. (Not to be mistaken for Bridget of Kildare who later filled a Christianized role of the festival.) Celebrated during the first days of February as part of the Feast of Imbolc.
burn -- A brook or rivulet.
carnyx (kärn-nex) -- A war trumpet used by the Pict, with a wooden tongue
that gave it a strident, undulating tone. Click for a youtube clip.
cubit (ku-bit) -- A measure of about 45.5 cm (18 inches), the length of a
man’s forearm.
darkle (därk-el) -- To appear indistinctly with a rippling effect.
faerie folk (fairē-fōlk) -- Little people of great wisdom and power, often mischievous, but rarely malicious.
fealty (fē-al-tē) -- Faithfulness, loyalty.
flædg-stafir (flej-staff-ur) -- Deception runes. Deliberately misleading, thought to have magical powers.
flagellum (flag-all-lum) -- A whip with multiple thin strands and bits of lead or bone
attached to tear flesh.
Freya’s Tears (Frā-as Tears) -- Pieces of amber (tree sap), especially small tear-shaped drops. Highly valued, some thought them to give magical protection, like a talisman.
gibbet (jib-bet) -- An upright timber with a crossbeam projecting at right angles from its upper end, used for hanging criminals condemned to death.
Gungnir (Gung-gnur) -- Name of Woden’s Spear; also the sacrificial knife made from a boar’s tusk.
hlaut-bolla (ha-lot bōwl-la) -- A basin for catching the blood of sacrifices made to the gods.
hroefn (hä-rā-ven) -- (raven) Large black carrion bird; similar to the crow, but larger.
Imbolc, Feast of (Im-bōl-ak) -- Celebrated during the first days of February. See Brighid.
jarl (yärl) -- A warrior of noble birth.
Keep (Kēp) -- Fortress -- especially the inner refuge where a last stand can be made, or a larger fortress with exceptional defensive capabilities. See Muninn’s Keep.
kelpies (kelp-pēs) -- Water Sprite, demon; a malicious spirit that would drown
and devour.
knucklebones (knuck-el-bōnes) -- An old game played with the knucklebones of sheep or goats. Has some similarity to the modern game of jacks.
Lay (Lā) -- A ballad or narrative poem, especially as told by a bard.
Muninn (Mun-nin) -- The name of one of Woden’s ravens.
Muninn’s Keep (Mun-nin’s Kēp) -- The massive and highly defensible fortress Theodoric rebuilds from the ruins.
peat (pēt) -- Dense, partially carbonized moss, often cut in blocks, dried
and used for fuel.
Pict (Picked) -- A warring people from the north, noted for their blue (woad)
tattoos and their savagery in battle.
polecat (pōl-cat) -- A skunk.
portcullis (port-kul-is) -- A heavy lattice-work gate that can be dropped to close off
an entry to a fortress, usually with sharpened spikes at the bottom.
portend (pour-tend) -- To warn of, as an omen.
portent (pour-tent) -- An indication or sign of what is to happen, ominous significance.
pulse -- Leguminous plants, such as peas, beans etc., and their edible greens.
rowan (rō-wän) -- A small tree native to Europe; Mountain Ash. The staff is a
symbol among the Druidic priesthood.
salamandríne (sal-ä-män-drin) -- A mythical lizard said to live in fire; a wingless
dragon.
sark (särk) -- A shirt.
scrivener (skriv-in-er) -- A clerk or scribe.
sen’night (sen-nīt) -- Literally “seven-night,” a one week period.
skep -- A beehive made of straw in the shape of a small rounded thatched dome.
stone (stōn) -- A unit of weight, about 6.35 kilograms (14 pounds).
thræl (thräll) -- Literally “slave” one in bondage.
Tlæchtgö (Tlak-tgō) -- Name of the god worshiped by the Pict.
tor -- A high rocky crag; a hill, quite rugged.
torc (tork) -- A collar made of soft twisted bands of gold. A symbol of rank.
trencher (trench-er) -- A shallow wooden plate.
Valhalla (Väl-häl-lä) -- The great hall into which the souls of heroes fallen bravely
in battle were received and feasted by Woden; the hall of the worthy dead.
ween (wēn) -- Understand.
wench -- A young serving girl; an unmarried girl labourer.
woad (wōd) -- An Old World herb of the Mustard family. The blue dye-stuff obtained from the leaves.
Woden (Wōd-un) -- The chief Norse god. Wednesday is named for Woden. Many ancient and modern documents spell the name, Odin.
Woden’s Nine (Wōd-un’s Nīn) -- The circle of nine stones surrounding a well in a
grove dedicated to Woden Worship.
worm (wurm) -- A word commonly used for dragon, although wyvern was also
frequently used.
wraith (rāth) -- A spirit or ghost.
wyvern (wiv-urn) -- A winged dragon, sometimes called a worm.
