Conlang General Sketch: Orcish

This is a useful one. There are a few partially-created Orcish dialects out there, but I may be able to publish a fully developed language anyway. The concept here is, again, like Tolkien's, in that it is a worn-down version of Black Speech used by creatures who don't care enough about language to maintain one of any complexity. This will almost certainly be the easiest for writers and players to learn and use, should they so desire.

Because orcs are orcs, sloppy usage of Orcish will be considered a fairly minor issue. This makes it even easier on the players. Note that even orcs can speak their language well enough if necessary, for worship, military directions, diplomatic situations, etc, so having a "proper" way to do things is still needful. However, their grammar is quite simple.

The sound of Orcish should take into account the speech issues inherent in creatures that generally have tusks or other enlarged teeth. Subtleties such as tones are out of the question.

The difference between casual and "proper" Orcish speech extends to the vocabulary as well. While the usual sort of dictionary could (and shall) be made, largely of words derived from Black Speech, a gloriously and inventively foul additional vocabulary comprises orcs' daily speech. Most languages would consider this slang, but in Orcish it is the better part of the language. By "better" I mean not only more commonly used, but also where orcish subtlety can be found. Most scholars look at Orcish, an apathetic version of Black Speech, itself simplified from Draconic, and see a low-minded mire. This is not an unfair assessment. However, in a bewildering array of grotesque metaphors, orcs have a startlingly precise and nuanced mode of communication.

Needless to say, a lot of the time a literal translation might not be the best idea.

As I mentioned at the top, there are Orcish glossaries to be found, mostly online, and have been for a long time. What's funny is that the Orcish dialect makers and gamer-users get along with each other far better than the Elvish ones. I think it's partly because the assumed origin of Orcish means that since every major group of orcs has its own dialect, new creations just add to the depth of things, whereas most Elvish want to be definitive, when not actually created for an elvish sub-race... and then they want to be definitive for that group.

I think it's also because people who have orcish fun are less uptight in general. These are also reasons why I created Dwarven and tend to prefer that species in general. But don't tell the Elf-folk.