Always Coming Home

by Ursula K. Le Guin

  dreví green, or yellowish green.

  dú (may precede or follow obj.) through; throughout (an area or space).

  dúcha son.

  dúchatat half-brother, father’s son.

  dúdam enclosure, enclave, cell, room (usually underground). To enclose, surround, contain.

  duéde clarity, transparency. To be transparent, clear.

  dúí a breed of sheepdog with very short curly hair.

  dukab (or) berka (or) tuk poultry; fowl.

  dúme calculate, figure out.

  dúmí fill up; reach the limit; attain; win a game or a race.

  dúr red.

  dut (pronoun, rel. pron., or adj.: object of verb) which, whom; that/those which, whom.

  dwe bringing. To bring, to fetch.

  E

  ed sight, seeing. To see.

  em extent/duration; space/time.

  emwey (or) emweyem: ever, forever, always, everywhere.

  emwoum manifestation. To manifest, to be manifest.

  ene maybe not. (Often used to mean “No.”)

  ense 1. (precedes obj.) after. 2. (follows obj.) then; next, next after.

  eppe end, halt, stop, interruption. To stop, cease, leave off.

  eppeshe death (of living being), cessation, destruction, end (of nonliving being). To cease being, to end; not to be.

  er northwest.

  erai (or) farer north.

  erhwaha west.

  eshe while; during; during the time that.

  estun choice, option. To choose.

  evai Society: so translated in this book. A group of people formally organised with a common interest and the activities of such a group, guild, or cult; also the place where they meet or work.

  eye (or) ey yes.

  F

  farkí ground squirrel (Citellus).

  fas soup, broth, juice.

  fat clown

  sufat White Clown.

  drevífat Green Clown.

  wediratsfat Blood Clown.

  fefinum incense cedar (Libocedrus decurrens).

  fege tick, wood tick.

  fehoch field, cultivated land, arable.

  fehochóvoud To farm, to cultivate

  feitúlí a poisonous mushroom (an Amanita?).

  fen cord, string.

  fesent moving in line, following. To move or go in line, to follow after. One after another.

  fía evaporation. To evaporate, to go into or become part of the atmosphere (used of water, smoke, breath, etc.).

  finí a poetic contest of insults (fliting or flyting in the OED).

  fíyóyú buckeye (Aesculus califomica), a wild horse-chestnut which blooms in May and loses its leaves in late summer.

  foure beginning, start. To begin, to start.

  fumó a substance, apparently a residue of industrial products or byproducts, perhaps of petroleum-based plastics, which occurs in small whitish grains or larger concretions, covering regions of the ocean surface and found on beaches and tidal flats, often to a depth of several feet; useless, indestructible, and poisonous when burning.

  fún mole.

  G

  galik deer (Odocoileus? or similar, slightly larger new species).

  ogalik doe

  galika buck.

  galikaiha fawn.

  gai 1. ready (for), prepared; resolved, resolute, determined. 2. socketed, fixed, settled, tightened.

  gam buzzard, turkey-vulture (Cathartes).

  ganai creek, brook, stream. To run, flow (of a creek, or a small amount of water).

  gat to hit, strike. Blow.

  gawatse toad (Bufo).

  gebayú Jupiter (planet).

  gedadha direction.

  gedwean bringing-in; a medical treatment, described in the section “Notes on Medical Practices.” To bring in.

  gele running. To run on two legs. (To run on four legs: yaklegele, yaklele, leste.)

  gettop skunk (Mephitis).

  gettop wevave: cloudy skunk (the description sounded like the Western Spotted Skunk, Spilogale, but the Kesh insisted that the animal danced upon its hands while emitting a sweet perfume that attracted dogs, wild dogs, and coyotes and made them dance too until they died of exhaustion; hence, perhaps, a mythical animal).

  geved hanóya meditation. To meditate.

  gewotun arban to plant, to garden.

  gowotun (or) mane dam gowotun garden, planted plot.

  gey fire. To burn.

  houmgey forest fire.

  geyí tone (in music).

  gí patient, attentive, waiting; patience; a patient person.

  gochey shared, common, commonly owned or used.

  gólí live oak (Quercus agrifolia) tree or wood.

  golidun (Q. wislizenii).

  góra eating, drinking. To eat, to drink, to consume with the mouth.

  gou dark, darkness. To be dark, to darken, grow dark.

  goutun (or) gedagoutun twilight of morning.

  gouwoy (or) gedagouwoy twilight of evening.

  grut slug.

  gunyú wild pig (domestic swine reverted to feral).

  H

  ha way; wayfaring, journey. To journey, travel; to go on a way or one’s way.

  hai now.

  haip bite. To bite.

  haitrou fear. To fear, to be afraid.

  ham breath; air. To breathe.

  hamdúshe bird.

  han 1. in a…manner; resembling; like. 2. (suffix, indicates use of the word as adverb; may be translated -like or -ly.) 3. so.

  Han (es) im So you are here, i.e., Hello.

  hannaheda stream, flow, flowing, continuous coherent onward motion. To run, flow, pour, stream (of any substance).

  hanyó in such a manner that.

  hat adobe clay or earth.

  dúrhatvma the House of Red Adobe.

  hwanhatvma the House of Yellow Adobe.

  hechí a breed of domestic dog resembling a chow.

  he action. To act, to do.

  hedom Lodge: so translated in this book. A formally organised group of people learning, teaching, or practicing certain crafts, skills, rituals, bodies of knowledge, etc., and the practices and work of such a group, and the place or building where they meet and work.

  hedou 1. great, major, important, notable. 2. the California condor (Gymnogyps californianus) or a closely similar species, but with a more northerly range and far wider distribution than at present.

  heggai domestic dog (used when the breed or type is not specified.)

  hebbí (or) wí puppy.

  hegou black.

  hegoudo obsidian (volcanic glass).

  hegoudovma the House of Obsidian.

  hehóle a keepsake, treasure, object considered beautiful or sacred.

  hehóle-nó an object, usually the size to be held in the hand and carried easily in a pouch or pocket, used as an adjunct to meditation or “sitting easily.”

  hem, helm [archaic] soul.

  hemham breathsoul (one of the varieties of soul).

  henni (interrogative) what? what is…?

  hersh 2 feet 9.2 inches: the basic unit of linear measurement in the Valley and in all cultures of the area except the northern Redwood Coast peoples. The hersh was subdivided into fourths, into fifths, into tenths, twelfths, and twenty-fourths, to give various “feet” and “inches,” some of which were used preferentially in various professions (e.g., paper was measured in kekel, lumber in eyai, wool fabric in ótónehou, cotton in kumpetú).

  hestanai Art: so translated in this book. A guild or society of people learning, teaching, and practicing a skill, craft, or profession, and the practice itself.

  heve (or) hevewaho soul (used as a generic term).

  heyimas the building (variously evolved from a basic pattern of five-sided underground room with four-sided pyramidal roof) where the activities of one of the Five Houses of Earth took place. The “Right Arm” of each Valley town consisted of the five heyimas laid out in a curve around the dancing place.

  heyiya sacred
, holy, or important thing, place, time, or event; connection; spiral, gyre, or helix; hinge; center; change. To be sacred, holy, significant; to connect; to move in a spiral, to gyre; to be or to be at the center; to change; to become. Praise; to praise.

  heyiya-if a figure or image of the heyiya.

  hilla enough (n. and adj.) To suffice, to be enough.

  himpí a small animal resembling a large guinea pig, domesticated in the Valley; said to occur wild in the Range of Light.

  híó (invariant verbal form used to form imperatives and optatives; may be translated may, would that.)

  híó wóya (es) may you be easy, i.e., goodbye.

  híó dadam (es) hanóya go along easily, i.e., goodbye.

  hirai homesick, homesickness. To be homesick, to long for home.

  hish swallow (Tachycinata?).

  ho age, old age, old. To be old.

  hoo old woman.

  aho, hota old man.

  hohevoun spirit, deity, supernatural or non-natural object; god. To be divine, spiritual, supernatural.

  honne rootlet, fine fiber.

  hosó wood; timber.

  houdada growth; bigness; swelling. To grow (in size), to increase, swell, swell up, get big.

  houhwo Valley oak (Quercus lobata).

  houm big, large, long and wide, long-lasting.

  hóv staying, dwelling, living (in a place). To stay, dwell, inhabit.

  manhóv to live in a house, or in a House (hence to be).

  hóvinye to visit, stay a while, be a guest, or visitor.

  hoyfit raccoon (Procyon lotor).

  hú two.

  húge division, separation, split, parting. To part, divide, separate two things, split in two.

  húgele to run (on two legs).

  húí two-legged being or person; human being, human. To be human.

  huppaida hop, jump with two feet.

  hur support, foundation; vehicle, that which carries. To hold up, carry, take, sustain.

  hurga leg (of chair, table, etc.); pedestal, support.

  HW

  hwa sun. To shine (of, or like, the sun).

  hwadíúha south.

  hwaha southwest.

  hwai time (time of day, at which an event occurs, a point in time, a length of time). To time, to measure time.

  hwan yellow, golden.

  hwapeweyo the dry season (approx. May-October).

  hwavgedíú morning, forenoon.

  hwavgodíú noon.

  hwavgemaló afternoon.

  hwavgomaló sunset, evening.

  hwe 1. (precedes obj.) in front of, before (in place or time). 2. (after a verb) forward; forth.

  hwefesent train, the Train.

  hwerin horse.

  ohwerin mare.

  tahwerin, hwerina stallion.

  pehwerin gelding.

  klin foal.

  hwette scrub oak (Quercus dumosa). (Spelled Whette as a name, to conform to English spelling, in the text.)

  hwette súdrevídoun Q. durata.

  hwik half. To halve.

  hwikonoy mule; she-mule.

  tahwik he-mule.

  hwo oak (tree or wood).

  hwovwon acorn.

  hwoi help, assistance. To help, aid, assist.

  hwol outbreath. To blow, to puff.

  hwots a dice game.

  hwu an industrial residue, occurring as fragmentary or fibrous matter, mostly in earth and as a water pollutant.

  hwún olive tree, wood, or fruit.

  hwya 1. (follows obj.) behind, in back of. 2. (after verb) back, backwards.

  hwyahwe reversal. To reverse.

  wehwyahwe reversed, backward (adj.).

  I

  im here.

  íme lip.

  ímehú lips.

  imhai here now, here and now.

  rru imhaian in this place at this time.

  in (diminutive prefix. Little…)

  inye little, small, brief. (See also diftú. Most small living creatures would be inye, not diftú, except perhaps a tortoise, or something small but notable for longevity.)

  irai home; being home. To be home, at home.

  iraiwoi dad to go home.

  íríwin Valley hawk, redwing or red-shouldered hawk (Buteo).

  íshavó wilderness, wild places, wild. To be wild.

  íshavólen feral cat (Felis domesticus gone wild).

  ísítut wild iris (Iris spp.)

  íúgó zenith; heights.

  iya hinge; connection; gyre; source, beginning, center. To connect; to originate.

  iyakwun love, mutual love, interdependence; love of people, place; cosmic love.

  iye energy, power to work. To work.

  K

  ka coming. To come.

  kach city (not used of Kesh towns).

  kada wave. To come and go; to move as or like a wave or waves.

  kailíkú Valley quail (Lophortyx californicus).

  kaiya turn, turning. To turn, turn round.

  kakaga dry streambed; arroyo. (The bed of a running stream is genakaga or nahevha.)

  kan the act of entering, coming in. To enter, come in.

  kanadra duck (wild or domestic).

  kaou leaving, coming out, exit. To leave, to come out.

  karai homecoming. To come home.

  ke (usually prefixed) female, woman, feminine gender.

  kekosh sister (see kosh).

  kemel Mars (planet).

  kesh 1. valley, esp. the Valley of the Na River; variants of the latter: keshheya, amakesh, rrukesh, keshnav. 2. person, people, inhabitant of the Valley of the Na; variant: keshivshe. 3. the language of the human inhabitants of the Valley of the Na; variants: arrakeshiv, arrawekesh.

  keshe, kesho woman, female person or being.

  kevem sandal.

  kinta war. To make war.

  kintash warrior.

  kintashúde the Warriors (Society).

  klei, kley four-legged being or person; animal.

  klema the Four Houses of the Sky; (as adj.) Four-House, of the Four Houses.

  klemahóv, klemashe inhabitant of the Four Houses. To inhabit the Four Houses; hence, to be or to exist as such; hence also, in some cases, to be dead, to be not yet born, to be unreal, to be mythological, fictional, historical, or eternal. Klemashe is usually translated as Sky Person in the text.

  kliltí chamise (Adenostoma).

  kod corn, maize.

  kosh sibling. The terms for biological siblings:

  kekosh womb-sister.

  takosh womb-brother.

  souma half-sister, father’s but not mother’s daughter.

  dúchatat half-brother, father’s but not mother’s son.

  The terms for siblings of one’s House (not necessarily related biologically):

  makosh House brother or sister.

  makekosh House sister.

  matakosh House brother.

  (See the section “Kinfolk” in the text.)

  koum craft; creation, making. To make, to shape, to form.

  gokoum (n) shape, form.

  kulkun mountain. (Ama Kulkun, Grandmother Mountain, is the dormant volcano at the head of the Valley of the Na.)

  kwaiyó heart, in the metaphorical sense; emotional being, sensibility, feeling, feelings; intellect in the feeling mode, cognition informed by the senses, bodily knowledge. To think and feel, to know bodily or with mind and heart.

  kwaiyó —woi dad to like.

  L

  lahe sleep. To sleep.

  lama intercourse, fucking. To fuck.

  lamawenun sexual passion or desire or love. To love, lust, desire.

  lemaha beauty. To be beautiful.

  lení cat (Felis domesticus).

  olen tabby.

  lena tom.

  bínbín kitten.

  leste to run on four feet (especially of small animals).

  lim hair.

  lír dream; vision. To dream, to have a vision.

  lírsh visionary.

  líyi like, see
ming, seemingly.

  lonel bobcat (Lynx rufus).

  louswa sinking. To sink, to drain.

  lúte amole. (Chlorogalum pomeridianum).

  M

  m, me and; also; as well as.

  ma house (dwelling place), House (social/cosmic principle).

  machumat towhee (Pipilo spp.).

  mal hill, knoll.

  maldou ascent; uphill, upward. To ascend, to go up, to climb.

  maló descent; downhill, downward. To descend, to go down.

  mamou mother (biological).

  mane (usually a partitive adj.) some; not all; a portion of.

  manhóv the act or condition of living in a house or a House. To live in a house or House; to inhabit, to dwell.

  manhóvoud community, commensality. To live with, together with.

  marai household (the place and the people).

  med cattails; bed of cattails or reeds.

  meddelt left; Left-Hand (of the heyiya-if figure).

  mehoi to listen, pay attention (to).

  memen semen.

  míp mouse (when the species is unknown or unspecified).

  aregímíp saltmarsh mouse (Reithrodontomys).

  míbí fieldmouse or meadow vole (Microtus spp.).

  útí deer mouse (Peromyscus).

  mo cow, cattle.

  amo cow.

  momota bull.

  mudí ox, steer.

  aihamo, aihama calf.

  muddumada muttering, buzz. To mutter, to buzz, to simmer.

  múdúp brush rabbit (Sylvilagus).

  mun clay.

  súmun blue or potters clay.

  N

  na river, esp. the River flowing through the Valley where the Kesh people live. To flow as or like a river.

  nahai freedom. To be free.

  nahe water.

  nen for.

  nó stillness; meditation. To be still, unmoving; to be quiet.

  O

  o (prefix or suffix indicating feminine gender)

  ó, ók (usually preceding or prefixed to obj.) under; beneath; below; down.

  ób (precedes obj.) to, toward (see also woi).

  ógó nadir; depths.

  ohu (interrogative, indicating the statement is a question; most often at the beginning, but may be anywhere in the sentence)

  ohuhan how much? how many? how? in what way?

  óló heron (Ardea).

  ólun bay laurel, myrtlewood (Umbellularia californica) tree, shrub, wood, fruit, or leaves (used as condiment).

  om there; in that place.