List of Dune terminology

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The following is a list of terminology used in the fictional Dune universe created by Frank Herbert, the primary source being Terminology of the Imperium, the glossary contained in the novel Dune. Terms not formally defined in separate articles are marked in bold; topics requiring more extensive explanation are linked to the appropriate Main articles.

Contents:	A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z References

[edit] A

• Aba ~ A loose, usually black robe worn by Fremen women and Bene Gesserit sisters^[1].
• Abomination ~ Bene Gesserit term for one who is pre-born and thus susceptible to being taken over by the ancestral personalities in Other Memory.
• Ajidamal (or Amal) ~ Disastrously-flawed synthetic melange created by the Tleilaxu Project Amal before the process of producing spice in axlotl tanks was perfected.
• Akarso ~ "Plant native to Sikun (of 70 Ophiuchi A) characterized by almost oblong leaves. Its green and white stripes indicate the constant multiple, condition of parallel active and dormant chlorophyll regions"^[2].
• al-Lat ~ "Mankind's original sun; by usage: any planet's primary."^[3]
• Ampoliros ~ "Legendary 'Flying Dutchman' of space"^[4]; Lady Jessica refers to the pre-Guild legend in Dune: "Like the men of the lost star-searcher, Ampoliros — sick at their guns — forever seeking, forever prepared and forever unready."
• Amtal (or Amtal Rule) ~ "Common rule on primitive worlds under which something is tested to determine its limits or defects. Commonly: testing to destruction"^[5][6].
• Axlotl tank ~ Biological tank in which gholas and melange may be produced.
• Ayat ~ "The signs of life. (See Burhan.)"^[7] The Arabic word ayah (plural: ayat) means "omen/sign" or "miracle."

[edit] B

• Baliset ~ "Nine-stringed musical instrument, lineal descendant of the zithra, tuned to the Chusuk scale and played by strumming. Favorite instrument of Imperial troubadours"^[8].
• Bashar ~ Military rank, slightly above a traditional Colonel and primarily used for military leader of a planetary subdistrict; alternately, Colonel Bashar, or Supreme Bashar for a military's most senior commander.
• Bene Gesserit ~ Secretive and powerful matriarchal order whose members possess extraordinary physical and mental powers.
• Bene Tleilax (or Tleilaxu) ~ Secretive and powerful patriarchal race known for their genetic manipulation technologies.
• Burhan "The proofs of life. (Commonly: the ayat and burhan of life. See Ayat.)"^[9]
• Burseg ~ Miltary general.
• Butlerian Jihad ~ Crusade by mankind against thinking machines.

[edit] C

• Caid ~ "Sardaukar officer rank given to a military official whose duties call mostly for dealings with civilians; A military governorship over a full planetary district; Above the rank of Bashar but not equal to a Burseg"^[10].
• Carryall ~ Aircraft used on Arrakis to "transport large spice mining, hunting and refining equipment"^[11].
• Chakobsa ~ Language of the Fremen of Arrakis.
• Chaumas ~ "Poison in solid food as distinguished from poison administered in some other way"^[12].
• Chaumurky ~ "Poison administered in a drink"^[13].
• CHOAM (Combine Honnete Ober Advancer Mercantiles) ~ the "universal development corporation controlled by the Emperor and Great Houses with the Guild and Bene Gesserit as silent partners"^[14]. This corporation essentially controls the economy of the known universe, with shares and directorships determining each House's income and financial leverage.
• Cogitor ~ One of several ancient philosophers whose brains were transplanted into fluid-filled canisters so that they could analyze the universe indefinitely.
• Coriolis storm ~ Sandstorms on Arrakis in which "winds across the open flatlands are amplified by the planet's own revolutionary motion to reach speeds up to 700 kilometres per hour"^[15].
• Crysknife ~ Weapon made from the tooth of a sandworm from Arrakis.
• Cutterray ~ "Short-range version of a lasgun used mostly as a cutting tool and surgeon's scalpel"^[16].
• Cymek ~ Type of cyborg, or machine-human hybrid.

[edit] D

• D-wolves ~ Guardians of the Sareer on Arrakis in the time of Leto Atreides II; ferocious wolves with Gaze Hounds in the ancestry, "noted for their keen eyesight"^[17].
• Deathstill ~ Fremen device used to extract all moisture from a living or dead human or creature.
• Distrans ~ Steganographic device producing a "temporary neural imprint on the nervous system of Chiroptera (bats) or birds. The creature's normal cry then carries the message imprint which can be sorted from that carrier wave by another distrans"^[18].

[edit] E

• Elacca drug ~ Narcotic produced from the "blood-grained" elacca wood of Ecaz; users' skin shows a characteristic carrot color. The drug's effect is to remove most of the will to self-preservation; commonly used to prepare slave gladiators for the ring^[19].

[edit] F

• Face Dancers ~ Creatures able to mimic other humans exactly and go undetected by all known means.
• Famine Times ~ Years after the reign of Leto II, marked by chaos and famine on many worlds, that led to The Scattering.
• Faufreluches ~ "The rigid rule of class distinction enforced by the Imperium. 'A place for every man and every man in his place.'"^[20]
• Fedaykin ~ "Fremen death commandos; historically: a group formed and pledged to give their lives to right a wrong."^[21] Personally trained by, and fiercely loyal to, Paul Atreides.
• Fish Speakers ~ All-female military force created by Leto Atreides II to enforce his rule over the known universe.
• Fogwood ~ Wood native to Ecaz, capable of being shaped by thought alone.
• Fremen ~ "Native" inhabitants of Arrakis.
• Fremkit ~ Fremen desert survival kit.
• Futar ~ Primitive and fierce humanoid creatures, a genetic mix of man and cat.

[edit] G

• Galach ~ Universal language of the Dune universe.
• Ghola ~ Clone grown in an axlotl tank from genetic material retrieved from the cells of a deceased subject.
• Glowglobe ~ "Suspensor-buoyed illuminating device, self-powered (usually by organic batteries)"^[22].
• Golden Path ~ Paul Atreides and Leto II's strategy to prevent humanity's destruction.
• Gom jabbar ~ "Specific poison needle tipped with meta-cyanide used by Bene Gesserit Proctors in their death-alternative test of human awareness"^[23].
• Great Convention ~ "Universal truce enforced under the power balance maintained by the Guild, the Great Houses, and the Imperium. Its chief rule prohibits the use of atomic weapons against human targets"^[24].
• Guild Navigator ~ Melange-mutated humans safely able to navigate interstellar space (using prescience) in ships called Heighliners.

[edit] H

• Handlers ~ Humanoid race who bred and trained Futars to hunt Honored Matres.
• Harvester (also Harvester Factory or Crawler) ~ "Large (often 120 metres by 40 metres) spice mining machine ... [with a] buglike body on independent tracks"^[25].
• Heighliner ~ Enormous carrier spaceships used by the Spacing Guild for interstellar travel.
• High Council ~ "The Landsraad inner circle empowered to act as supreme tribunal in House to House disputes"^[26].
• Holtzman effect ~ Scientific phenomenon that makes (among other things) instantaneous space travel and defensive force shields possible.
• Honored Matres ~ Violent matriarchal order formed in The Scattering.
• Hunter-seeker ~ "Ravening sliver of suspensor-buoyed metal guided as a weapon by a nearby control console; commonassassination device"^[27]. Floating in mid-air, it kills by entering the body and following nerve pathways to vital organs.

[edit] I

• Inkvine ~ "Creeping plant native to Giedi Prime and frequently used as a whip in its slave pens. Victims are marked by beet-colored tattoos that cause residual pain for many years"^[28].
• Ixian Probe ~ Device used to capture the thoughts of a person (living or dead) for analysis; can be blocked by the substance shere.

[edit] J

• Jihad, Butlerian ~ Crusade by mankind against Thinking Machines.
• Judge of the Change ~ "An official appointed by the Landsraad High Council and the Emperor to monitor a change of fief, a kanly negotiation, or formal battle in a War of Assassins. The Judge's arbitral authority may be challenged only before the High Council with the Emperor present"^[29].

[edit] K

• Kanly ~ "Formal feud or vendetta under the rules of the Great Convention carried on according to the strictest limitations"^[30].
• Kralizec ~ Long-foretold "Typhoon Struggle" or final "battle at the end of the universe"^[31]
• Kwisatz Haderach ~ Bene Gesserit label applied to "the unknown for which they sought a genetic solution: a male Bene Gesserit whose organic mental powers would bridge space and time"^[32].

[edit] L

• Landsraad ~ The Assembly of all nobles in the Imperium.
• Lasgun ~ Energy weapon, technically a "continuous-wave laser projector"^[33]; Variably Lasegun.
• Lost Tleilaxu ~ Offshoot race of the Bene Tleilax, formed in The Scattering.
• Levenbrech ~ A military rank that is roughly inbetween a sergeant and a lieutenant.

[edit] M

• Mahdi ~ "In the Fremen messianic legend, 'The One Who Will Lead Us to Paradise'"^[34]; applied to Paul Atreides by the Fremen when they have determined that he is their prophesied messiah.
• Maker hooks ~ "The hooks used for capturing, mounting, and steering a sandworm of Arrakis"^[35].
• Maula pistol ~ "Spring-loaded gun for firing poison darts; range about 40 metres"^[36].
• Melange ~ Drug essential to space travel and extended life, and therefore to the survival of the universe.
• Mentat ~ Individuals trained as "human computers"^[37], their minds developed to staggering heights of cognitive and analytical ability.
• Missionaria Protectiva ~ An arm of the Bene Gesserit charged with spreading contrived myths, prophecies and superstition on primitive worlds so that the Bene Gesserit may later exploit those regions^[38].
• Muad'Dib ~ "The adapted kangaroo mouse of Arrakis, a creature associated in the Fremen earth-spirit mythology with a design visible on the planet's second moon. This creature is admired by Fremen for its ability to survive in the open desert"^[39]. Muad'Dib is also the Fremen name taken by Paul Atreides.
• Muadru ~ Ancient religion predating the Old Empire before the Time of the Titans.^[40].

[edit] N

• na-Baron ~ Noble title given to a Baron's heir-apparent.
• No-chamber ~ Construct that hides anything inside from prescient and ocular vision, as well as other methods of detection.
• No-ship ~ No-chamber in spaceship form, with enough limited prescience to be capable of interstellar travel without a Guild Navigator.
• Nullentropy ~ Technology akin to the science fiction concept of stasis, in which the natural processes of time, such as decomposition, are ceased. In this way, matter such as human cells may be stored for millennia and remain undamaged.

[edit] O

• Obliterators ~ Honored Matre weapons of mass destruction; they combust the atmosphere of a planet and subsequently its surface.
• Other Memory ~ The combined ego and memories of all female ancestors that a Bene Gesserit is trained to access.
• Ornithopter (or 'Thopter) ~ "Aircraft capable of sustained wing-beat flight in the manner of birds"^[41].

[edit] P

• Palm lock ~ "Lock or seal which can be opened only by contact with the palm of the human hand to which it has been keyed"^[42].
• Phibian ~ Primitive and amphibious humanoid creatures, a genetic mix of man and fish.
• Plasteel ~ Extremely tough form of steel, "stabilized with stravidium fibers grown into its crystal structure"^[43].
• Plaz (or windowplaz) ~ Synthetic glass, used for windows (especially in aircraft and spaceships) due to its superior strength.
• Poison snooper ~ "Radiation analyzer within the olfactory spectrum and keyed to detect poisonous substances"^[44].
• Prana-bindu ~ Training providing a Bene Gesserit with complete muscle control (Prana nervature relates to nervous system control).
• Probe, Ixian ~ Device used to capture the thoughts of a person (living or dead) for analysis; can be blocked by the substance shere.
• Probe, T ~ Device used to capture the thoughts of a person (living or dead) for analysis; unlike an Ixian Probe, it cannot be blocked by the substance shere.
• Pundi rice ~ "A mutated rice whose grains, high in natural sugar, achieve lengths up to four centimeters; chief export of Caladan"^[45].

[edit] Q

• Qanat ~ "Open canal for carrying irrigation water under controlled conditions through a desert"^[46].

[edit] R

• Residual poison ~ "Innovation attributed to the Mentat Piter De Vries whereby the body is impregnated with a substance for which repeated antidotes must be administered; withdrawal of the antidote at any time brings death"^[47].
• Reverend Mother ~ Bene Gesserit who has survived a ritual wherein she consciously transforms a toxic dose of melange to a non-poisonous substance at the molecular level, thereby raising herself to a higher level of awareness and enabling her to access Other Memory^[48].

[edit] S

• Salusan bull ~ Fierce and very aggressive creature with multiple horns, used in bullfighting on Caladan and supposedly originating from Salusa Secundus.
• Sandworm ~ Giant sand-dwelling creatures native to Arrakis, essential to the production of melange. Called Shai-Hulud by the Fremen and worshipped as deities.
• Sapho ~ "High-energy liquid extracted from barrier roots of Ecaz. Commonly used by Mentats who claim it amplifies mental powers. Users develop deep ruby stains on mouth and lips"^[49].
• Sardaukar ~ Ferocious "soldier-fanatics" of the Padishah Emperor, later disbanded by Leto II^[50].
• Sareer ~ Last Desert of Arrakis in the time of Leto Atreides II, location of his Citadel; guarded by D-wolves.
• Sayyadina ~ Fremen version of a Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother, possessing Other Memory but none of the standard Bene Gesserit training.
• Scattering, The ~ Event after the reign of Leto II in which billions of people left the settled worlds of the Old Empire, striking off into unknown space.
• Selamlik ~ "Imperial audience chamber"^[51].
• Semuta ~ "Second narcotic derivative (by crystal extraction) from the burned residue of elacca wood [from Ecaz]. The effect (described as timeless, sustained ecstasy) is elicited by certain atonal vibrations referred to as semuta music"^[52].
• Shai-Hulud ~ Fremen name for the sandworms of Arrakis.
• Shere ~ Significant presence of this substance in the body will block the use of an Ixian Probe.
• Shigawire ~ "Metallic extrusion of a ground vine (Narvi narviium) grown only on Salusa Secundus and III Delta Kaising. It is noted for extreme tensile strength"^[53] and used as a recording medium (among other things).
• Sietch ~ Cave warren inhabited by a Fremen tribal community^[54].
• Sietch orgy (or sietch tau orgy) ~ Fremen ritual of unrestrained sexual indulgence which takes place after a Reverend Mother shares the changed Water of Life with her community.
• Slig ~ Livestock animal, hybrid of a large slug and a pig, considered a delicacy.
• Snooper, Poison ~ "Radiation analyzer within the olfactory spectrum and keyed to detect poisonous substances"^[55].
• Solido ~ "Three-dimensional image from a solido projector using 360-degree reference signals imprinted on a shigawire reel"^[56].
• Soostone ~ Valuable iridescent gem produced on Buzzell by the abraded carapaces of monoped sea creatures called Cholisters, much in the manner of pearls.
• Spacing Guild ~ Powerful organization with a monopoly on space travel and transport due to their Navigators.
• Spice agony ~ Fremen version of the ritual used by the Bene Gesserit to create Reverend Mothers, using the Water of Life instead of melange.
• Steersman ~ Title given to Guild Navigators.
• Stillsuit ~ "Body-enclosing garment" of Fremen design which performs the "functions of heat dissipation and filtering bodily wastes", as well as retaining and reclaiming moisture^[57].
• Stone burner ~ Atomic weapon, the explosion and radiation of which can be precisely adjusted depending on the desired effect. Stone burners emit "J-Rays", a form of radiation that has an affinity for destroying the eyes of anyone surviving the initial radiation blast.
• Suk School ~ Medical school whose Imperial Conditioning is the highest conditioning against taking human life; initiates are marked by a diamond tattoo on the forehead and wear a silver Suk ring in their hair.
• Suspensor ~ Any of a number of 'hovering' devices which utilize the "secondary (low-drain) phase of a Holtzman field generator" to nullify gravity "within certain limits prescribed by relative mass and energy consumption"^[58].

[edit] T

• T-Probe ~ Device used to capture the thoughts of a person (living or dead) for analysis; unlike an Ixian Probe, it cannot be blocked by the substance shere.
• Tachyon net (or tachyon web) ~ Technology (involving faster-than-light tachyon particles) used by Daniel and Marty in their attempt to track and capture the no-ship Ithaca.
• Thinking Machines ~ Intelligent and sentient machines, created by humans, who enslaved much of humanity and eventually incited the Butlerian Jihad.
• 'Thopter (Ornithopter) ~ "Aircraft capable of sustained wing-beat flight in the manner of birds"^[59].
• Thorse ~ A six legged pack animal bred for its stability.
• Thumper ~ "Short stake with a spring-driven clapper at one end", placed in the sand to 'call' sandworms^[60].
• Titan ~ One of several ancient dictators whose brains were transplanted into fearsome, weaponized machine bodies to achieve immortality.
• Truthsayer ~ Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother trained to "detect insincerity or falsehood"^[61].

[edit] U

• Umma ~ "One of the brotherhood of prophets; a term of scorn in the Imperium, meaning any "wild" person given to fanatical prediction"^[62].
• Usul ~ Fremen word, meaning "The base of the pillar"^[63]; secret "sietch name" (known only to his tribe) given to Paul Atreides upon his joining the Fremen.

[edit] V

• Verite ~ Will-destroying narcotic from Ecaz that "renders a person incapable of falsehood"^[64].
• Voice ~ Training that allows the Bene Gesserit "to control others merely by selected tone shadings of the voice"^[65].

[edit] W

• War of Assassins ~ Regulated form of conflict between noble houses.
• Water of Life ~ Toxic liquid exhalation of a drowning sandworm, used by Fremen Reverend Mothers in the spice agony^[66].
• Weirding Way ~ Specialized martial art component of Bene Gesserit prana-bindu.
• Windowplaz (or plaz) ~ Synthetic glass, used for windows (especially in aircraft and spaceships) due to its superior strength.

[edit] X

[edit] Y

• Yali ~ "A Fremen's personal quarters within the sietch"^[67].

[edit] Z

• Zensunni ~ Ancient religious sect, ancestors of the Fremen.

[edit] References

The extended Dune series

by Frank Herbert: Dune  • Dune Messiah  • Children of Dune  • God Emperor of Dune  • Heretics of Dune  • Chapterhouse Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson: Prelude to Dune: Dune: House Atreides  • Dune: House Harkonnen  • Dune: House Corrino Legends of Dune: Dune: The Butlerian Jihad  • Dune: The Machine Crusade  • Dune: The Battle of Corrin Dune 7: Hunters of Dune  • Sandworms of Dune Paul of Dune: Paul of Dune  • Jessica of Dune  • Irulan of Dune