The Song of Ice and Fire, a 5-book series written by George Martin, has long been a bestseller. But the saga reached its peak of popularity after the decision of the HBO television company to buy the rights to film the works of the writer and create a series. It was named after the first book - “Game of Thrones”.
The huge world of George Martin
The epic about the Seven Kingdoms occupies the top positions in world rankings, and the last episode of the 4th season was watched by 7 million people.
Now the series talks about the events of Martin's third book. The writer, as you know, is very slow at working on his works. The first book was written in 1996, the fifth - in 2011. The cycle, which was originally conceived as a trilogy, will now consist of seven volumes. I must say that George Martin is very thoroughly working on manuscripts, so the writing of each volume takes from 3 to 5 years. For a long time working as a screenwriter in Hollywood, the creator of the famous epic saga was always upset by the need to ruthlessly cut off exciting moments and downplay the scale of battles and battles.
Sitting down at the book, Martin told himself that it was only his world, and he would be as vast as he himself wished. Therefore, the characters in the saga of the Seven Kingdoms are huge, and battles and battles occupy a good part of books.
The writer created a huge fantasy world, carefully worked on descriptions of the continents and countries, the history, languages and culture of the peoples inhabiting these lands. Many quotes from the cycle have become very popular: “Winter is coming”, “Lannisters always pay their debts”, “In the game of thrones they either die or win, there is no third.” But there are also mysterious, mysterious words in the book, for example, “Valar Margulis”. What does this phrase mean and why is it needed?
Languages of the Seven Kingdoms
For George Martin, the credibility of his books is of utmost importance. This is a fictional universe, but it can be correlated with the Middle Ages of our world. The writer carefully thought out everything, even the languages of the peoples inhabiting the Seven Kingdoms and other countries. In Westeros they speak a common dialect. Essos uses a low Valyrian language. Four hundred years ago, people stopped using the high Valyrian language. He is known only to the priests of R'glore and the most educated people. The Targaryen Dynasty, which ruled the Seven Kingdoms for over 300 years, is of Valyrian origin.
For the book, the writer created several words and phrases in this ancient language. These are the names of the rulers from the Targaryen dynasty and their famous dragons, the name of the dragonfire is "drakaris", as well as "valar margulis", which means "all people are mortal", and "valar dohaeris". The last phrase translates as "all people should serve."
These words do not have much distribution, although there are characters (except Faceless, they will be discussed later) who heard about the “Valar Margulis”. The translation of this phrase from the high Valyrian language is known, for example, by Missandeya, the assistant Daenerys Targaryen, mother of dragons. The meaning of these words is also known to the prince of Dornia, Oberin Martell.
Another language used quite often in the series is Dothraki. For the adaptation of Martin's novels, it was specially designed by linguist David Peterson.
A little warrior from the line of the kings of the North and her dangerous debtor
And in the books “A Song of Ice and Fire” and in the series “Game of Thrones”, the phrase valar morghulis is most often mentioned in relation to Arya Stark and Yaken Khgar from the Order of the Faceless. The youngest daughter of the ruler of the North, Ned Stark, betrayed and executed by enemies, managed to slip out of the city before she was captured. The girl is only 9 years old, but she knows how to handle weapons well and can stand up for herself.
Arya rescues a prisoner named Yaken Khgar, and he says that he will now kill her three enemies, whom she points to. From him, the girl subsequently hears the mysterious words "valar margulis", which means - "all people are mortal." This character is a real mystery of the cycle of books and series. Like all Faceless, he easily changes his appearance, so he appears in different places in the guise of an alchemist and Pat from Night Watch. It is also possible that he is Sirio Trout, Arya's martial arts teacher.
Valar morghulis and the iron coin - a farewell gift for Arya
Essos is a continent that is separated from the rest of the land by the Narrow Sea.
Free cities, former colonies of ancient Valiria, are located on it. The most famous of them is Braavos. From there comes Syrio Forel, the best sword of the city that Aryu taught at the request of Ned Stark, as well as Yaken Hgar, one of the Faceless.
The name of each series has a special meaning in the epic saga "Game of Thrones." “Valar Margulis” is the name of one of them in the second season. It is here that Arya says goodbye to her strange debtor, Yaken Khgar, who tells her about the Order of the Faceless. He gives the girl an iron coin, showing which to people from Braavos and giving the password, she can get any help. Hgar forces Arya to learn words in the high Valyrian language, which are the password of the Order of the Faceless. “Valar Margulis,” which means “all people are mortal,” is what the girl should say to any Braavosi, if there is no one else to help her. Before parting, Yaken Khgar invites her to go with him and learn the skills of the Faceless, because he sees great abilities in her. But Arya, who still hopes to find her family, refuses regretfully.
“Valar Margulis”, “Valar Dohaeris” - phrases that offer great opportunities
These words are a password and a response to it from members of the Order of the Faceless and those who serve them. The Temple of the Many Faces, the Black and White House, is the center of activity of this secret society. Faceless - the best hired killers, whose services are incredibly expensive. Being able to change their appearance at their discretion, members of the order arrange the death of the victim so that it looks like an accident or like the action of mystical forces. They take to their students only the most capable, those who can withstand incredibly difficult, and sometimes inhuman training. For someone who owns a coin and password, the doors to the Temple of the Many Faces are always open.
Conclusion
Valar morghulis can be called the motto of George Martin himself. On five books - more than 300 deaths, including key characters. The writer strictly follows the principle of realism and authenticity in his works. They die in the war, therefore, the heroes of the epic "Game of Thrones" die one after another.