The Speech

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For Ronald's Reagan's address at 1964 Republican National Convention on behalf of Republican candidate Barry Goldwater, see A Time for Choosing.

The Speech is an idealized language found throughout modern fantasy/science fiction. It is considered a central language, the root of all tongues, and in some cases the true describing words that made the universe. Unifying characteristics of this language in many books include:

• Using it as a language root to understand all other languages, including animals
• Used as a medium for magic
• Used as a mode of communication for a high class of people
• Is difficult, if impossible, to lie in.

A popular example of this is used in the Young Wizards series of novels by Diane Duane. All creatures and things understand and, to a degree, can speak the Speech intuitively, but specifically, it is the wizards who use it as their primary language and means of performing their works of magic. It is incredibly detailed and describes things which other languages cannot. Describing something inaccurately in the Speech may result in catastrophic effect (including changing the nature of the thing or being therein mis-described); therefore, wizards are advised to never curse or lie in the Speech. Spells are described in the Speech; the wizard tells the object/subject what he/she wants to happen to it. With a final word, the spell can be let loose to do what it was supposed to do.

Letters written in the Speech have been described in several of the books as Arabic-seeming in nature. In Deep Wizardry, Nita's father mistakes the writing on the title page of Nita's Manual for Arabic letters.

Spells using the Speech are, for example, shield spells, worldgating spells, transfer spells, and finding spells, though there are many others.

The most common words in the Speech are probably "Dai Stihó," which means, literally, "go well," and is the approximate equivalent of "hello" or "good-bye" in English - much like salut in French - or the shortened form "Dai," which is the equivalent of "hi."

Another example includes the Books of Pellinor by Alison Croggon, in which the Bards of the land, magic users and Light brginers, use the Speech.

A final example is Christopher Paolini's Eragon, Eldest and Empire books, in which there is a dead language called the Ancient Language used for spellcasting and by elves.