Swearing on Roshar (Rhythm of War edition)

[ccstat he/him]

Storms! I just realized that I somehow neglected to actually post my updated catalog of swears after Rhythm of War released. My apologies to all for the egregious multi-year delay! This is an update on my prior iterations of this compilation of swears, most recently the Oathbringer edition. I will try to be much more timely when I've completed the Winds and Truth edition.

To my knowledge, the list is exhaustive for all Stormlight books prior to Winds and Truth. Please comment with suggested additions. 

On attributions: In most cases, speaker attributions are omitted for the sake of clarity, but speakers are identified parenthetically if their identity adds important context to the entry. If you think a particular phrase should be attributed (or not), please make your case in a comment.

 

Storms and Storming are universal, and people use them frequently. So far we haven’t had many scenes from people on the western half of the continent where the storms are weaker; there is a good chance that the storms are invoked far less in such regions.

Notably, Taffa uses a storm-related curse in Dalinar’s Starfalls vision, indicating that it was used historically as well. 

• Variants and related curses:
  • Stormwinds
  • Storms alight
  • Storms within
  • Blustering
  • Storms bright and brash
  • Storms send -- (a construction more commonly used when invoking the Heralds, see below)

 

The Heralds, collectively and as individuals, are invoked across many Rosharan cultures.

Vorin speakers most frequently swear by Kelek, but across the series Vorin speakers have invoked each of the ten Heralds at least once. As they occur in curses, the Alethi forms are: Jezerezeh, Nalan, Chana, Vev/Vedeledev, Pailiah/Pali, Ash, Battah, Kelek, Talat, Ishi. Herdazian speakers will use Kalak instead.

• [Herald] knows or [Herald] send are frequent formulations. ”Chana help” is a similar construction
• [Herald’s] [attribute] A herald is often paired with a body part or attribute. Some appear to be traditional associations, but others are most likely spontaneous variations. (e.g. Nale's nuts). 
  Examples with traditional attributes:
  • Kelek's breath / tongue 
  • Ash's eyes
  • Ishar's soul
  • Nalan's hand
  • Pali's mind—(Adrotagia)
  • Vev's golden keys
  • Talat's hand / palms / nails

Notable unique examples:

• • Ash's mask
  • Ash's brush of endless paint
  • Kelek's own truth
  • Sweet wisdom of Battar -- (Taffa, from Dalinar's vision)
• Other Variants:
  • Living Heralds above
  • Heralds send
  • Heralds-forsaken
  • What in Kelek's name
  • Thank Kelek

Azish speakers refer to the Heralds as Kadasixes and use alternate names for them, primarily invoking Yaezir (Jezrien)

• Variants: "for Yaezir's sake," "Yaezir help", "Yezir's own speed"
• Kadasixes and Stars -- the association with stars is interesting, especially considering cosmological features like Taln's scar and the gas giants shown in the star chart in Arcanum Unbounded.

Tashikki speakers frequently invoke Tashi, a name for Ishar. Variants: "Tashi above," "Tashi, God of Gods and Binder of the World"

 

Other Vorin Curses

• Almighty is a frequent Vorin curse, referencing Honor/Tanavast. Many variants of usage are found:
  • "Almighty above"
  • "by the Almighty's tenth name"
  • Elithanathile (tenth name of the Almighty)
  • "what in the Almighty's own eyes?"
  • "by the names of God himself"
  • "Almighty, cast from heaven to dwell in our hearts"
• Stormfather is a ubiquitous Vorin curse. NOTE: While the general usage is distinct, we should remember that Vorinism has conflated the Stormfather with Jezerezeh/Jezrien. In contrast, the Natan people conflate him with Kelek.
• Damnation is an especially common curse among Vorin speakers. Variants and related phrases:
  • “What in Damnation's eleventh name?"—(Sebarial)
  • Storms above and Damnation beyond
  • Damnation's own device
• The Tranquiline Halls, frequently shortened simply to Halls
  • holy halls
  • Halls above
• Blood of my fathers  -  Used so far by Dalinar, Amaram, and Moash, this may be a specific feature of the violent Alethi culture, rather than the wider Vorin nations. Sometimes rendered as ancestors rather than fathers.

 

Other Human Cultures

• Thaylen
  • Passions-- Rendered "Blessed passion" on one occasion (Yokska). Thaylen speakers also say things like "I had Passion that help would come," meaning hope or expectation. Both usages are related to (but distinct from) the Passion spoken of by singers Fused, and Odium himself. The singer version so far does not appear to be used as a curse.
• Herdazian
  • Flick my sparks –(Lopen), a reference to sparkflickers.
  • Three Gods--So far only used by The Mink in modern day and Taffa from Dalinar's visions, so the association with Herdaz could be mistaken.
• Unkalaki
  • Beautiful lights and fallen stars -- (Rock) 
  • Blessed gods of sea and stone -- (Rock) 
  • Kali’kalin’s ghost – (Rock)
• Shin
  • Glories within—(Szeth)
  • Stones Unhallowed -- (Szeth)

 

Listeners/Singers

• Thank the purest tones -- (Rlain)
• Praise the ancient storms -- (Venli)
• Oh rhythms ancient and new-- (Venli)
• For Ado's sake -- (Raboniel) **as the speaker is a Fused, this might more appropriately be considered an ancient or worldhopper curse rather than a Listener one.

 

Spren It is not yet clear how spren culture divides, so instances are noted by speaker:

• Wyndle: “Sweet virtue” and variants of "Mother" including “Oh blessed mother” and "Oh Mother, oh Cultivation!"
• Stormfather: "Why in Damnation", an apparently Vorin appropriation.

 

 Unique or Uncategorized

• Drynets—a sailor curse implied to be quite inappropriate.
• Stonefalls --(Adolin)
• Starving--unique curse used by food-obsessed Lift. Variants include "Starve me"
• Storming Mother of the World and Father of Storms Above. (Lift) Originally Reshi, Lift has travelled widely, so it is difficult to assign a parent culture.
• frozen -- (Malata) derogatory adjective, possibly Veden
• Dustmother—(Ton, a Bavlander). Possibly Vorin?
• Starlight - (Geranid) Speaker is a Vorin ardent with extended residence in the Reshi isles
• By the Brightcaller's Rays -- used by Drehy, so presumably a phrase from far western Roshar (presumably Rira)
• Blight it all – (Axies) presumably Siah/Aimian, but Axies is a traveler and could have acquired it elsewhere
• This place [Urithiru] glows like Nomon’s own backside.--(Red) This reference to one of the moons is somewhat ambiguous. It could be merely descriptive, but the construction mirrors other in-world swears, and so I've included it here.
• Oh God of Oaths

Worldhoppers

• Shadows—(Nazh) Threnody
• By purity's eye - (Nazh) Threnody
• Merciful Domi - (Riino) Sel
• Damnation--(Azure) A Vorin curse, notable because Azure uses it ungrammatically as "Damnation me" and "Damnation these creatures," betraying her incomplete command of the language
• Oh God. Oh Adonalsium! - (Ash)
• Heavens, no--(Wit) Notable only for the lack of similar phrases by native Rosharans.
• God Beyond --multiple worldhopping speakers, but notably Dalinar has adopted this invocation
• The Beyond knows --(Wit)

 

 

Highlight of new/notable instances from Dawnshard and Rhythm of War, in order of appearance.

Spoiler

DAWNSHARD

"Gods far and near" - Talik
"By the Halls themselves"
"hie me off to Damnation"
 

RHYTHM OF WAR

“Storms bright and brash”-Navani
“Vev’s golden keys!”
“By the Three Gods” - Herdazian General
“No casualties so far, thank Kelek.”
“These Heralds-forsaken stormlands”
Storms send he was still alive
“Nale’s nuts,” muttered one of Adolin’s soldiers. 
“Stonefalls.” Adolin
“God Beyond willing…” Dalinar
“By Kalak’s mighty breath.” The Mink
“Kelek, Jezerezeh, and Heralds above”-Adolin
“That’s Kelek’s own truth.” - Teft
“Almighty send”
“Ash’s mask”
“Ash’s brush of endless paint...”
“Holy halls!”
“For Ado’s sake” - Raboniel (fused)
“This place [Urithiru] glows like Nomon’s own backside.” - Red
“Halls above” 
“By the blood of our fathers” 
“Kelek help him.”
“Oh storms. Oh rhythms ancient and new.” - Venli
“Praise the ancient storms” –Venli
“By the holiest name of the Almighty” –Navani
“Thank the purest tones.” –Rlain
The honest-by-Kelek’s-own-breath truth. --Teft 
“You know Kelek’s own storming truth?”
Elithanathile (tenth name of the almighty)
“Storms above and Damnation beyond.”
“Damnation’s own device, that was.”
“Go with Yaezir’s own speed.”--Yanagawn
“God Beyond bless it to be enough.”
“Storms within” -Dalinar
“The Beyond knows” –Wit
 

 

Edited December 12, 2024 by ccstat

[ccstat he/him]

Note: I have also discovered this coppermind page maintained by @King of Herdaz, which is a comprehensive list across cosmere books. I like to think that my organization and summary by category is helpful, but if you want individual citations and a more exhaustive catalog of variants, that is an excellent resource.