For those wanting to play Age of Empires 2

Ever wondered what the units are actually saying?

Found this on Reddit

– old english (influenced by several languages, but mostly saxon)

yay?: yes?

mandatum: order (from latin)

ready

greetin

correctus: right (from latin)

ich willen: i will (from germanic)

yes

–

chopper

gatherer

hunter

fisk: fish (from norse)

firm: farm (from latin firmere; stems from firmus meaning ‘steady’)

dič (saxon, but like ‘ditch’ it really means a trench, not a shaft!)

builden

estorer: restorer

fight!

battal!: battle!

briton monks speak latin like byzantines do (1–7 below).

– latin (people spoke greek, but the official language was latin)

ain?: really?

impero: i command (or ‘a command’; maybe impere – ‘command!’ would’ve been better)

presto (praesto): i’m ready (‘i do’; ‘i present’ – medieval latin)

salve: hello

correctus: right

ago: i go

sane: certainly

–

caedo: i fell (it can also mean ‘i kill’!)

pabulo: i forage

venatus: meat

capto: i catch

colo: i cultivate (think of ‘colony’ for instance)

fodio: i mine

condo: i build

reficio: i repair

veleo!*: could it be velio! – ‘i skirmish’?

comitta!: commit! (could also be comita! – ‘follow!’?)

punio!: punish!

porro!: forward!

monks use select and order phrases like peasants (1–7).

– gaeilge (scottish gaelic i believe)

for-ghaire: what? (select only, not orders; for-ghairm means ‘provoke’ so i suppose this is an annoyed exclamation)

eard loubh*: at once

quid?*: what? (?; latin)

quia?*: why? (?; latin)

ceart: right

beidh fear: as you wish (?; literally ‘man will’)

taoubh?: which way? (literally ‘direction?’)

–

boudhnidh*: (lumberjack)

feodheghe*: (gatherer)

sealgaire: hunter (fheòl is ‘meat’)

iasgaire: fisher (old irish has iasch-)

treabhach: farmer (treabh is ‘farm’)

niadhnege*: (miner)

draughboudhie*: (builder)

fear abnodhege*: working man (?; fear-oibre is ‘worker’)

dun ceart!: near right! (?)

taoubh cuideachd! (?): this way, troops! (daibh is ‘to them’; cuideachd is ‘troops’)

ho! go!*:

monks use 1–7.

– mandarin (classic chinese)

shén mè?: what? (select only, not orders)

fú cong mìng lìng: i’ll follow your order

zhun bèi jìu sùi: i’m all ready

wei: hi

zhèng qùe: right

zun mìng: yes sir

xíng: alright

hao: yes

fá mù gong: wood chopper

liáng cao zheng shou ren: food gatherer (ren means ‘people’)

lìe ren: hunter

yú fu: fisherman

nóng fu: farmer

kuàng gong: miner

jiàn zhú gong: builder

xiu li gong: repairer

zùo zhàn!: to battle!

shì: yes

jìn gong!: charge!

gong ji!: attack!

monks use 1–8.

– old frenchöe? (male) / que? (female): yes?/what? (also suggested ohé – ‘hi ho’)

que fait?: what shall i do?

prêt: ready

verax: truly (from latin)

cértes: surely

libet/livet:

oïl/oïli: yes (monks use the form oïe)

mil select – que liër?: what is your order? (?)

bûcheron: woodcutter

maraud: scavenge (could also be marron, an old form of maradeur)

chassëoir: hunter

peschëoir: fisher

vilain: peasant (same as in ‘villa’ and ‘villain’!)

minëor: miner

bastisëor: builder

artuison: craftsman

assault!: attack!

à la bataille!: to (the) battle!

da: (?)

montjoie!: old french warcry; montjoie was a name the crusaders gave to a hill near jerusalem

montmirail!: old french warcry monks use 1a/3–8 plus que valié – ‘what do you want’ (?).

do they also say que y a – a short form of ‘what’s up’? notice that monks and peons speak with a northern accent, and military with a southern accent!

– japanese

hai: yes (order only)

vil select – io*, na i*

female vil select – watashi: me, oi*

male vil select – ore: me (boastful), nan da: what?

vil move: hai hai!: yes yes!, nai*, ikimasu: i go, wakarimasute: understood

mil select – toini*, ho!, komereo*

mil move – sho chi*, hiza!, wotosenoto

–

ki wo kirimasu: i cut a tree (think of hara kiri – ‘cutting the stomach’!)

shu kakushimasu*: (gatherer)

kariochimasu*: (hunter)

sagana wo torimasu: i catch a fish

tagayashimasu: i cultivate

orimasu*: (miner)

tatemasu: i build

naoshimasu: i repair

hiza hatschom* (hard to hear)

ike!: go!

hik sodja*

(yaaaa!) monk select – nan narito*, io kata*, nan dara*. monk order – hai, sho chi*, hmmm*, katarima* (rather hard to hear).

– mongolian

tiimo: yes (tiime for orders)

tsu te*:

zecher*:

bi fin baen*:

bi bodhroy/-o*: (bi means ‘i’; bolno is ‘all right’)

zasah: correct

tsu te*:

select – amr mend vv*: (mend vv means ‘hello*)

modchin: lumberer (chin means ‘person’, i guess – sounds like chüng*)

emten ti-chichtch*: (gatherer; rather a tongue-twister, this one!)

anchin: hunter

zagaschin: fisher

hüdachmu yrchtytch*: (farmer; me oh my, what a language!)

uurhaichin: miner

barilgachin: builder

zasvarchin: repairer

mil select – tushaal sonz*: your command? (?; sayn is ‘all right’)

mil select – bechin*:

mil move – khri*:

mil move – routztri*:

mil order – mitchle routztri*:

mil attack – reden däsz!*:

mil attack – aëltchänt!*:

monk select – soyüchri*:

monk select – sorvaen sonz*:

monk select – amr weno*:

monk order – saratsoutje*:

monk order – bodhroy*: 2–8 (and, of course, 9–15) are vil only.

– farsi (persian)

ari: yes

amade: ready

farman: order (mil only)

salam: hello/welcome

sahi: correct

mikonam: i’m doing it

–

–

chubbur: lumberer

oulupe jamkon: gather the harvest

shekarchi: hunter

mahigir: fisher

mikonam (farmer; just like 6)

madanchi: miner

me’mar: builder

tamir kar: repairer

hamle!: attack!

bejangin!: fight! monks use select 1–3 and order 5–6.

– arabic

naam: yes

alom: yes

amron: any service?

mostaed / mostaedaton (male/female): ready

saheeh: true

hassanan: okay

se ethal / athal*: ?

mil select – musalb*: ?

hattabonn / hattabaton: woodcutter

bahithon / bahithaton aan el taam: food gatherer

sayyad / sayyadaton: hunter

sayyad samak / sayyadat samak: fish-hunter

musareaa / mosaareaton: farmer

amel mangam / amelato mangam: miner

bannaon / bannaaton: builder

morammemon/morammematon: repairer

hojoom!: attack! (command)

al quetal!: we’ll fight!

al hojoom!: we attack! monks use 1–2/5–7.

– old or middle high german

ja: yes

heisse?: order? (auf dein geheiß is old fashioned german for ’at your order’)

bereite: ready

he ja: hi, yes

reite: right

das ich soll: that i shall

des wahre: truly

–

holzer: lumberer

sucher: seeker

jägere: hunter

fischere: fisher

geboere: steadfast

heowe: hack

bouwere: build

flickmann: tinkerer

se sturmere!: storm them!

sassa!: to swords! (saxe is germanic/norse for ‘sword’; found in the district sachsen, and as the names saxo/sasso/sassa)

strietet!: fight! monks use 1–7.

– turkish

evet: yes

emrin?: your command? (like in emir)

hazır: ready (mil sound more like hazıron)

efendim?: sir?

doğru: right

yaparım: i’ll do it (yap means ‘to do’; -ar is a future particle and -ım means ‘i’ as a subject)

tamam: ok

–

oduncu: lumberjack

seyis: groom

avcı: hunter

balıkçı: fisherman

çiftçi: farmer

madenci: miner

usta: builder

tamirci: repairer

saldır!: attack!

ileri!: forward!

allah-allah!: common turkish warcry (although with the tone used in aok it is used in everyday talk to express curiosity and surprise – probably a matter of less-than-perfect pronounciation) monks use 1–7.

– old norse (precursor to the modern nordic languages)

ja: yes (same as modern nordic; norwegian pronounciation)

waþoþr*: ?

búinn: ready (same as modern icelandic)

ho/wo*: ? (hó means ‘oh dear’, while hot? means ‘what?’ – the most likely candidate)

rett: right (same as modern nordic)

allt í lagi: all right (same as modern icelandic)

vil ek: i will (same as modern icelandic)

mil select – wúgurd

timberhochwandi: lumber-chopping (i guess this is an old form of e.g., norwegian tømmerhoggande)

gagnismaor: useful man (gagn means ‘usefulness’, but i guess that it used to have a wider meaning)

veiþimaðr: hunterman

fiskimadr: fisherman

boandi*: steadfast (if it’s bóndi like in modern icelandic i guess it should have been pronounced baondi*)

námamadr: gathering man (modern landnåm for instance, means ’gathering lands’ – exploring/conquering)

húsasmiþr: carpenter (‘house-smith’. i don’t think there should be an ‘sh’ sound in húsa-, but i’m not sure)

verkmadr: craftsman (verk means ‘work’)

til bardaga!: to battle!

radi da!*: ?