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If a creature is known throughout the lands by the same name, there is a reason: It can either save your life or end it. -- Estelroth Twilyght

The Gamman language is a strange patchwork of nicknames, translations, and scientific names, all taken from civilizations long past. Eventually, some players will learn this new vocabulary. Srea, for instance, means invisible. If an NPC mentioned that a srea-something-or-other lived in the hills into which they were venturing, they knew that there were creatures living there who were either excellent at camouflage or could bend light around themselves and be invisible.

Most of the Gamman names are simple constructs of individual syllables, each of which has its own meaning. This is very much like German word construction in which, instead of creating a new word for the animal bat, a couple of other words are combined to create a name that liter ally means "the mouse that flies." In the Gamman tongue, seroon lous means "aquatic trees that are masters of their areas." Sometimes a letter used in the middle of a word grouping, or used as a suffix or prefix, is actually a substitute for a word (such as i, meaning "living") or a concept (such as n followed by an accent mark, meaning "beings who are"). Most of these syllables can be used as prefixes, suffixes, or as root words. There are no rules governing how the syllables should be combined. As a general rule, if a combination of syllables forms a word but is repetitive (such as par ("sword") + arn ("beetle") = pararn, "sword beetle"), the repetition is usually dropped (thus, parn), though this is certainly not always the case. This abbreviating of words is a result of handing a name down over generations, with the repetitive sounds being dropped for convenience.

The following is a simple lexicon of Gamman terms translated to English. There are actually so few Gamman words compared to the bounty of the English vocabulary that a reverse translation would be highly repetitive. Some names are ignored completely because they don't fit this system; these names were probably affixed to creatures at the beginning of the Shadow Years and have undergone hundreds of pronunciation changes. Other names, like blood birds, are borrowed directly from English. These names do not fit in with the overall nomenclature of Gamman creatures and were dropped.

-A-:

Concealed, hiding (usually used to mean cowardly, as part of an extremely derogatory term).

Al:

One who climbs extreme heights, like a mountain climber.

Am:

Shapeless.

An:

Tail

Ar, er:

Folks, people.

Arl:

Slime, slimy.

Arn:

Of or belonging to the beetle family.

Ark:

Of or belonging to one of the larger canine families, such as a wolf or coyote.

Ash, ashe:

Post-Shadow Years, gamma (as in the Gamma World environment).

At:

Servant, one who obeys.

Ba, bar:

Endlessly, forever, eternally; frequently used for any material that lasts "Forever," such as a rock.

Bad:

Dig, digger, one who burrows.

Bai:

Beast.

Barl:

Large fish.

Bat:

To spin, spinning.

Bber:

Beggar, one who is a pest.

Ber:

Sweet (as in taste or smell).

Besh:

Any member of any of the large insect families.

Bil:

Crescent, in a crescent shape.

Bis:

Of or belong to the swine family; also used as a derogatory term for one who is sloppy.

Bla, blaa, blas:

Of or belonging to the moth family.

Bli, blit:

Any creature that is or resembles a worm; also a derogatory term for one who does not stand up for himself.

Bof:

Powerful; of or belonging to the oxen family.

Boom, booma:

Explosion, exploding.

Brath:

To consume with a voracious appetite.

Bru:

Big.

Bu, buo:

Moon-flier, any creature that flies at great altitudes.

Bumb:

Of or belonging to the bee family.

Cal:

Of or belonging to any family of flying insects.

Carr:

Emperor, ruler.

Cee:

Feathers, feathered.

Centi:

One who is fast.

Choo:

Plant, generic term.

Chot, chote:

Bristles, short needles, small spines, etc.

Con:

Hunger, hungry.

Coo:

Any baying animal.

Cren:

Any member of any fish family that can alter its appearance.

Crep:

Carnivorous.

Crisp:

Midwinter.

Crol:

One who runs, running.

Cut:

Friend, friendly.

Cyn:

Yellow.

Daan:

An indescribable animal.

Dab:

Brown.

Day:

Bird.

Deb:

Crest, crested.

Dek:

Thatched hut.

Dent:

Deviate, sick creature; exiled.

Die:

Block, cube.

Dog:

Any mount not of an equine nature.

Dol:

Trade, bargain, barter.

Ed:

Paradise.

Eeb:

Without structure or form.

Ek, eka:

Fur, furry.

El:

Sneaky, one who moves by sneaking around.

Ep:

Tree.

Erd:

Fin, finned.

Erf:

Psionics, mental powers, powerful thoughts.

Erp:

Beetle.

Er, ert (when followed by k, I, m, or n):

Fish. Given the many varieties of fish, the four additional letters designate either the size or variety of the subject, but this distinction is unfathomable.

Erth:

Bush.

Esk:

Hedge, any bushlike plant that forms a hedge.

Et, eta, ethh:

Plains, grasslands, or savannah; usually pertaining to a creature found there or to the grass itself.

Eth:

Of or belonging to any family of lizards with near-human intelligence.

Eto:

Cactus.

F, fal:

Manlike, humanoid.

Farb:

Haven, sanctuary.

Fel:

Metal stud, studded.

Fer:

Overly willing, gutless.

Fho, fhot:

Orange.

Flin, fl-in:

To fly in a fluttering manner.

Flipp:

Of or belonging to the porpoise family.

Frid:

A creature that resurrects itself, like a phoenix; one who is believed to be immortal.

Froth:

Glider, gliding.

Ga, gar, gr:

Various shades of color, from light to medium green.

Garr:

Of or belonging to the squirrel family.

Gel:

Plate (armor), plated.

Ghit, ght:

Cloud, air.

Gon, gen (or a prefix of -n):

Dragon, dragonlike.

Goth:

Of or belonging to the elephant family.

Gre:

Wooded, one who belongs in the woods.

Gum:

Flat.

Har:

Powdery snow.

Hel, h-el:

Devil, demon, hellish.

Her:

Tiger, tiger-striped.

Herk:

Cannibalistic, a cannibal.

Hex:

To suspend above the surface by ropes or poles.

Hoi:

Ugly.

Hoop, hop:

Of or belonging to the rabbit family.

Horl:

Of or belonging to the porcupine family, a porcupine-like creature or plant.

Hri:

Indestructible creature, one who can withstand a great amount of damage.

Hu:

Hungry or omnivorous, a creature that will eat anything.

Hur:

Packed snow.

Hydr:

Multiheaded (three or more heads).

Hyr:

Ice.

I:

When used at, the beginning of a word and followed by an apostrophe, it means "living."

Ik:

Acid, acidic.

Il:

Of or belonging to the feline family in general.

In:

Black, dark.

Irn:

Ribbonlike, flat and twisted, spiraling.

Jag, jagg:

Of or belonging to one of the family of felines that inhabit the plains or savannahs.

Jema:

Glass.

Jin:

Wing, winged, wing-shaped.

Ju, jut:

White.

Jugg, jugger:

Rampage, a creature that runs rampant.

Kak, -k, -ak, -og:

Of or belonging to the canine family.

Kai, kam:

Of or belonging to the lizard family.

Kath:

Fun, amusement.

Kee:

Weird, a highly mysterious creature.

Kep:

Sand.

Khesh:

Reclusive, a hermit.

Kiik:

Love, loved, loving.

Kins:

Bramble, thorny bush.

Kir:

Endless, seemingly never-ending.

Kit:

Mud, clay.

Klos:

Dusk.

Ko:

Shadowy, shadowlike.

Kraw:

Demon.

Krea:

A hateful creature, a monster.

Kreel:

To leap, leaping.

Kus:

Motion, moving.

Laj:

Blue.

Lar:

Village.

Leen:

A cottage, a home surrounded by plants.

Len, lens:

One who walks upright, bipedal.

Lep:

Of or belonging to any of the families of aquatic plants that float on the water.

Li:

Tall, one who is large.

Lil:

Small, one who is tiny.

Lin:

A mobile plant, a plant that can move by itself.

Lop, lope:

Of or belonging to the deer family.

Lou:

A large aquatic plant.

Ma, maa:

Slasher, one who slashes.

Man:

Render, one who rends.

Mar:

Warrior, one who fights.

Mel:

Ruins.

Men:

Troublemaker, one who bedevils others.

Mish:

Goo, a substance or creature that has a jellylike structure.

Mub:

Murder, to kill.

Mut, mutan:

Gas, to spray gas.

N:

When used at the beginning of a word and followed by an apostrophe, or at the end of a word and preceded by an apos- trophe, it means "beings who are.

Narl:

Ghost, spirit.

Naut:

Blue-black.

Neks:

Predator.

Nep:

Death.

Nog:

Gray.

Nos:

Of or belonging to the monkey family.

Not:

Place, location.

Ny, ni:

Deadly.

Oala, ola:

Ball, sphere.

Obb:

Of or belonging to any of the Gamman families of mutated, intelligent, airborne fungi.

Oda, odo:

Thunder, deafening sound.

Og:

Of or belonging to the ape family.

Omnit, omnite:

Mirror, mirrored.

Oon:

The area or environment around a creature that it prowls or controls.

Or:

Double, twin, twice as much.

Par:

Sword.

Per:

Radiation, irradiated.

Phant:

An elephant-like trunk.

Pier:

Of or belonging to the bear family.

Pin:

Mount, horselike.

Pod:

Terrifying.

Prot:

Protection, defense.

Puf:

Wind.

Qas, qash:

Electricity, electrical; also an electrical shock (like a zap).

Qith:

Clear, transparent.

Quan, quana:

Barricade, barricading.

Rak:

Horns, horned.

Rakee:

Literally means "one whose horns have grown inside," it is a derogatory term for someone who is not mentally balanced (i.e., crazy).

Ram:

Of or belonging to the sheep family.

Rark:

Den.

Reg:

Of or belonging to the turtle family.

Ren:

Pure strain humans.

Ris:

Sticky, gooey.

Rod:

Rodent (mice, rat, etc.).

Rot:

Roost, avian perch.

Rrer:

Cold, freezing.

Sar:

Dirt, earth.

Strep:

Of or belonging to any of the tree-dwelling lizard or reptile families.

Seen:

One who tangles, tangling.

Sep:

Of or belonging to the shark family.

Ser:

Master, one who has mastery.

Shee:

Long hair, one who is long-haired.

Shez:

Any fast, flying bird.

Shil:

Rain.

Shin, shiny:

Water (highly reflective and pure).

Sho, shoo:

Moonlight.

Sith:

Nest.

Sky:

Of or belonging to the ant family. Sled,

sledd:

Tunnel, tunneling.

Slee:

Seers, prophets.

Slith, slithe:

Of or belonging to the snake families.

Smok:

Flames, flaming.

Smov, smove:

Iron.

Soul:

Blood-drinker, vampire.

Spir:

Tall and thin, spiral-like.

Sprot:

Growing, to grow, growth.

Squeek:

One who emits sonic attacks.

S'Re:

Dependable, reliable.

Sre, srea:

Invisibility, invisible.

Sree:

Home.

Ssi, ssis:

A gathering of snakes.

Steed:

An animal that serves as a mount, usually an equine creature.

Suc, suck:

Suction cup, covered with suckers.

Sut:

Giant.

T:

When used at the beginning of a word and followed by an apostrophe, or at the end of a word and preceded by an apostrophe, it means "she who."

Ta, tat:

Dark green.

Tel, teld:

Fire, fiery.

Ter:

Tree-dweller, tree-dwelling.

Tes, -ets, -ts:

Stone, stonelike.

Then:

Ripper, shredder.

Thlai:

Strange, bizarre.

Tis:

Emerald green.

Tith:

Garden.

Tog:

Day, a 24-hour period measured from dawn to dawn.

Tor:

Of or belonging to the reptile family in general.

Torrn:

Of or belonging to the grasshopper family.

Tos:

Cactus, cactuslike.

Tosh:

Of or belonging to the amphibian family in general.

Torz:

Walker, one who walks.

Tsor:

Of or belonging to the bat family.

Tsurp:

A batlike humanoid.

Tyen:

Nameless, unclaimed.

Uns, unus:

Of or belonging to the spider family, spiderlike.

Ur, urr:

Spike, spiked.

Vath:

Hideous.

Ven, vene:

Villain, villainous.

Ver, verz:

Guardian.

Vilch:

Jump, jumping.

Ward:

Small beast, usually used to refer to a smaller than man-sized mammal.

Wed:

Red.

Win:

Vines.

Wolk:

Week, seven togs.

Xan:

Mildew.

Xen:

Mushrooms, toadstools, and other large fungi.

Xil:

One who eats with incredible speed; to eat like a beast.

Xon:

Mold, moldy.

Y:

When used at the beginning of a word and followed by an apostrophe, or at the end of a word and preceded by an apostrophe, means "he who."

Yak:

To talk, chatter.

Yama:

City.

Ye:

Orange-yellow, golden.

Yuk:

Spores.

Zar:

To drill, bore.

Ze, zee:

Purple.

Zeta:

Rocky, mountainous.

Zorr:

To fight, to combat.

Zu:

Scamper, to climb small heights very rapidly.

Apostrophe ('):

When placed between two syllables that stand alone, it means "of the," "which has," or "which is."