I Wish That Zelda: BOTW And TOTK’s Gerudo Used Their Own Language More

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I find the Gerudo language to be a very interesting part of ’s worldbuilding in and, and I only wish the franchise made more use of it. The spoken form of the fictional language was a notable contributor to the amazing depth that the open-world gave the Kingdom of Hyrule. Since its debut, has also built upon this language, although not as much as I would have preferred.

The Gerudo may be one of many races found in , but they are undeniably also one of the most significant. In addition to their prominent role in and, as well as more recently in, ’s iconic villain Ganondorf is a Gerudo himself; the only known male Gerudo, in fact. For the most part, the Gerudo are defined by being exclusively female, as well as their prominent physical prowess; as such, much of their cultural identity in the games is analogous to the Amazons of Greek mythology.

To me, one of the most interesting aspect of worldbuilding that a fictional world can contain is a conlang, a constructed language. The Gerudo language is a simple but no less intriguing example of this concept, presented in and as an integral part of Gerudo culture; many NPCs consistently use Gerudo greetings, as well as a few other nouns. Although the full list of Gerudo words is ultimately very short, the language’s prevalence amongst Gerudo still gives the illusion of a much more extensive dictionary existing.

It is very cool to be able to pick up a few words of an entirely fictional language through regular gameplay. The experience makes the Gerudo culture feel both real and something distinct from the rest of Hyrule, as indicated by their native language not being shared by the rest of the Kingdom. Of course, this makes perfect sense given that the desert-dwelling race was once at odds with Hyrule while under the leadership of Ganondorf; originally existing outside Hyrule’s borders would undoubtedly contribute to the Gerudo having a more distinct culture and language.

Although the Nintendo Switch 2 will have a dramatic