an alternative translation of enir-ilim
recently i've been on a Hornsent mythos and culture kick, and by recently i mean for the past 8 months. i'm interested in highlighting the West Asian and North African influences on this specific group, as it seems everyone else is good at focusing on the East Asian and West/Central European inspirations for Elden Ring's setting. which is perfectly fine! it makes sense -- this is a game developed in Japan that has a large and very verbal Western audience. i just like to focus on stuff that people seem less interested in, because contrarianism runs through my veins. so, here's some shoddy Sumerian mixed with my obsessive fixation on a culture everyone ignores for being evil. or whatever.
OBLIGATORY DISCLAIMER: i'm not a linguistics expert, i like to read about media and political theory; i play video games and then write about them for 4-8 hours every day when i'm not doing any of the first three things. info from more knowledgable folks will be linked.
ENIR-ILIM: A SHORT LEXICON
here is a list of Sumerian logograms that i compiled (as well as comparible words) that are possible inspirations for the Hornsent temple name. this is to give context to what i'll be talking about later.
en:
n., dignitary; lord; high priest; ancestor (statue); diviner.
v., to rule.
adj., noble.
..., ír:
n., tears; lamentation; prayer; complaint.
v., to weep.
ir:
n.,sweat; smell; odor; scent; perfume; fragrance.
adj., scented; perfumed; fragrant.
OR v., to bring; to lead away.
(cf., arad: n., slave; servant; subordinate)
..., ..., íl:
n., carrier.
v., to lift, carry; to deliver; to bring; to endure; to support; to carry forward; to shine.
il (suffix only):
(cf., lá: v., to penetrate, pierce, force a way into (in order to see); to know; to look after.)
im:
(cf., imi, im, em: n., clay, loam mud; tablet.
OR n., wind; direction; weather; storm; cloud; rain)
ím:
(cf., gim, kim, gin: prep., equative suffix; as, like; instead of; just as, during)
WIDELY ACCEPTED BY FANBASE: "e-nir"(or en-ir) "ilim" -- "where gods/lords are born, realm of god, god's light".
i don't agree with this one, mainly because very few of these track with any logograms that i've found. "en" is certainly the "god/lord/higher power" aspect, but it seems like many interpretations of "ilim" in particular come from more modern languages, such as Arabic and Hebrew. in particular, translations of "il" and "ilim" as "light" are focused on the similar-sounding English word "illuminate" (which is fair, given the origins of the word), but the closest Sumerian logogram would be "íl", which is more associated with carrying or lifting up, as opposed to literal light. maybe "light" as "wisdom" (as in: "seeking the light") makes more sense. my subjectivity also plays into my disagreement: i just kinda think this is a boring translation and wanted to attempt other readings.
this reddit comment is so far the only one i've found that has some solid backing to it. it mentions that there's a mix of Sumerian and Akkadian going on in the full name, which disrupts attempts at a "realistic" translation. their interpretation, given what is available in text, is "House of God" or "House of the Lord". i like their note on traditional temple naming conventions; they give an example of a real temple in Ur that has the title "é" at the front of it, which means "house". this person managed to share a source, which is why i'm more willing to take them at their word here, as opposed to the hundreds of other posts I've seen just kinda throwing 3-5 different languages (some of which are thousands of years more modern than most imagery associated with the Hornsent) at the wall and seeing what sticks. but in the end we're all just floundering around. we can't really know the writers' true intentions.
HOW I PRONOUNCE IT: "en-ír" "íl-ím" -- "a lord/ancestor(statue)'s prayer to lift up (as/like something)".
...doesn't quite make sense with my pronunciation (particularly with how "ím" is meant to be a preposition), but it could be in reference to a desire to be lifted to the heavens by the Tower. the ancestor-statues found around Enir-Ilim are a nice touch if you consider this pronunciation, as is the idea of the Sculpted Keepers: monks that are stone puppets for assorted divinities. i'm not so sure this is the best interpretation either, but i will still make an argument as to why i prefer this to the prior entry.
i'm inclined to believe that the Hornsent were not the first people in Rauh, given how they can be found scavenging the ruins of older civilizations, but much of their culture and language can be traced to a shared space with ancient Rauh civilization. there was conflict, cooperation, or both between these groups, as you can find Rauh imagery in Hornsent settlements and vice versa. it's also why you can find statues and carvings of non-horned ancestors in Enir-Ilim and Belurat -- those ancestors are of equal importance to horned ones in modern Hornsent culture. ancestry is a huge theme in Elden Ring. having one of the largest known pre-Golden Order cultures practice heavy ancestor-reverence, treat their deities not just as distant cosmological quandaries but parts of their lineage (some of whom were still living, as we see with the horned "statues" that hold revered spirit ashes), and name their grand Tower after their statuesque ancestors is both moving and thematically appropriate. even if the suffix leaves an empty space, i quite enjoy how my initial pronunciation led to this translation.
OTHER READINGS
it's possible that i'm just as wrong as anyone else. mostly i made this short blog-essay to start documenting in more permanent and personal locations my thoughts on Crucible cultures, and the Hornsent in particular. feel free to take me with a grain of salt, or take me at my word entirely. it's up to you. also have fun making your own Enir-Ilim combinations based on my list, or with other documentations you find. it's like a holy madlib.
there's a few other logograms of note in the linked document that are fun and... illuminating -- such as the fact that "ug" can be translated to "lion", "fury", and "storm" all at once; which is pretty neat, given how one of the Hornsent's major non-living deities is the Divine Beast -- a horned lion known for its stormy temperament. check it out. make some Hornsent characters and name them using that document. please. it can't just be me and like three other people with them.
[END TRANSMISSION]