Outer-Wilds-SK-Translation-Mod/docs/glossary.md

# Glossary / Slovník — Outer Wilds SK

Fixed Slovak renderings for proper nouns and recurring terms, so names stay
**identical everywhere** in `assets/Translation.xml`. Follow this file when
translating; propose changes here (not ad-hoc in the XML).

> **Status:** place names & proper nouns reviewed and **locked** (2026-07-20,
> the "go risky" pass — planet names are translated, not kept in English). Rows
> still marked `❓ review` need the Slovak-speaking review pass before they are
> final; `🔒 locked` rows are settled unless there's a strong reason. The UI/menus
> translation in `Translation.xml` has been re-passed to match the locked terms.

---

## 0. Tone & register (locked)

- **Address the player informally — *ty*, not *vy*.** Outer Wilds has a warm,
  around-the-campfire tone; the Hearthians are your friends. Use *ty* / informal
  imperatives (e.g. *"Pozri sa"*, not *"Pozrite sa"*) throughout menus, prompts,
  and dialogue.
- **UI casing mirrors the source.** The game bakes capitalization into the
  strings (many buttons are ALL-CAPS in the data), so ALL-CAPS English → ALL-CAPS
  Slovak; otherwise sentence case. Fixed proper names (Skaut, Signáloskop, Dvojča
  Popolu, …) keep the capitalization given in this glossary.
- **Keep the source's voice per speaker.** Nomai text is formal and precise;
  Hearthian dialogue is casual. Register can shift by *speaker*, but the
  player is always addressed as *ty*.
- **Diacritics always** — á ä č ď é í ĺ ľ ň ó ô ŕ š ť ú ý ž. Never strip them.
- **Narrator gender (locked):** the player-character is canonically genderless, but
  Slovak past tense forces a gender. Use **masculine** for the player's first-person
  log/dialogue voice (*Našiel som*, *Videl som*, *Vypustil som*). Named characters
  take their English gender where given (**Solanum** = feminine; **Coleus** =
  masculine); the singular-*they* travelers (Riebeck, Feldspar, Gabbro, Esker,
  Chert) default to **masculine**.

## 1. General rules

- **Never edit `<key>`.** Translate only `<value>`. (See `CLAUDE.md`.)
- **Preserve inline markup verbatim:** `&lt;color=…&gt;…&lt;/color&gt;`,
  `&lt;i&gt;…&lt;/i&gt;`, entities `&lt; &gt; &amp;`. Translate the words, keep
  the tags and the exact color names (`lightblue`, `orange`, …).
- **Keep speaker prefixes verbatim:** `POKE:`, `CLARY:`, `SOLANUM:`, etc. — do
  not translate or reorder the label.
- **Declension:** Slovak inflects. A glossary entry gives the base (nominative)
  form; decline it naturally in context (*na Drevenom kozube*, *z Temného tŕnia*,
  *do Krehkej dutiny*). Keep the **stem/spelling** from this table so
  search-and-replace stays reliable. **Nomai** is the one exception — see below.
- **Brand / title names stay in English (verbatim):** the game title **Outer
  Wilds**, the space program **Outer Wilds Ventures**, and "the Outer Wilds" on
  the *Planetary Chart* poster. They're the actual named brand in the game (like
  a company name — you wouldn't translate "SpaceX"). Inflect the *surrounding*
  Slovak, not the name: *v hre Outer Wilds*, *podporuješ Outer Wilds Ventures*.
- **Character names are kept in English** (they're geology terms — Hornfels,
  Slate, Gabbro, Riebeck, Feldspar, Chert, Esker, Hal, Gossan, Marl, Tuff,
  Tephra, Galena, Moraine, Rutile, Spinel, Mica, Porphy, Arkose…). Decline
  where natural: *Gabbrovi*, *s Riebeckom*, *Hala*.

---

## 2. Peoples & beings

| English | Slovak | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nomai (species & individual) | **Nomai** | 🔒 | **Indeclinable** — keep spelling *Nomai* in every case (sg. = pl.). It's an alien species name; leave it as-is. |
| Hearthian(s) | **Kozubčan** (sg.), **Kozubčania** (pl.) | 🔒 | From *kozub* (→ Drevený kozub). Adj. *kozubčiansky*. |
| the Owlks *(DLC, fan term)* | **Soví človek** (sg.), **Soví ľudia** (pl.) | 🔒 | The game never names them; "owl-people". |

## 3. Celestial bodies & places

Decision (locked, "go risky"): **place names are translated**, including the home
planet and moons — not kept in English.

| English | Slovak | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| the Sun | **Slnko** | 🔒 | |
| Sun Station | **Slnečná stanica** | 🔒 | |
| Timber Hearth (home planet) | **Drevený kozub** | 🔒 | Home planet. Demonym *Kozubčania* derives from *kozub*. |
| The Attlerock (moon) | **Skalka** | 🔒 | Diminutive of *skala* — mirrors the "a little rock" pun. |
| Brittle Hollow | **Krehká dutina** | 🔒 | |
| Hollow's Lantern (moon) | **Lampáš** | 🔒 | |
| Hourglass Twins | **Presýpacie dvojčatá** | 🔒 | Ember + Ash together. |
| Ember Twin | **Dvojča Uhlíka** | 🔒 | Matched pair with *Dvojča Popolu* (uhlík ↔ popol). |
| Ash Twin | **Dvojča Popolu** | 🔒 | Drives *Projekt Dvojčaťa Popolu* (§4). |
| Giant's Deep | **Obrova hlbina** | 🔒 | |
| Dark Bramble | **Temné tŕnie** | 🔒 | *bramble* = tŕnie. |
| The Interloper (comet) | **Votrelec** | 🔒 | |
| Quantum Moon | **Kvantový mesiac** | 🔒 | |
| White Hole / Black Hole | **biela diera / čierna diera** | 🔒 | Lowercase (common noun). |
| Black Hole Forge | **Zlieváreň čiernej diery** | 🔒 | "Foundry" — forges the warp cores; industrial, not medieval (*vyhňa* rejected). |
| The Stranger *(DLC)* | **Cudzinec** | 🔒 | |
| Echoes of the Eye *(DLC title)* | **Ozveny Oka** | ❓ | Translate in prose; may keep English as a store/product title. |

## 4. Story, projects & artifacts

| English | Slovak | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| the Eye of the Universe | **Oko vesmíru** | 🔒 | Short form: **Oko**. Keep any color markup around "Eye". |
| the Eye (short) | **Oko** | 🔒 | |
| Eye Signal | **signál Oka** | 🔒 | |
| Ash Twin Project | **Projekt Dvojčaťa Popolu** | 🔒 | Matches *Dvojča Popolu* (§3). |
| the Vessel (Nomai ship) | **Plavidlo** | 🔒 | |
| Warp Core | **warpové jadro** | 🔒 | |
| Advanced Warp Core | **pokročilé warpové jadro** | 🔒 | |
| Ghost Matter | **prízračná hmota** | 🔒 | |
| the Nomai statue | **socha Nomai** | 🔒 | |
| supernova | **supernova** | 🔒 | |
| the time loop | **časová slučka** | 🔒 | |

## 5. Tools, UI & systems

| English | Slovak | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| ship log | **lodný denník** | 🔒 | |
| Rumor Mode (ship log) | **režim fám** | 🔒 | |
| Map Mode (ship log) | **režim mapy** | 🔒 | |
| Signalscope | **Signáloskop** | 🔒 | Device name (treated as a proper name, capital S). |
| Little Scout / Scout | **Malý Skaut** / **Skaut** | 🔒 | The camera probe; capital S. Decline *Skauta*, *Skautom*. |
| Scout Launcher | **Odpaľovač Skauta** | 🔒 | |
| the Translator (Nomai) | **Prekladač** | 🔒 | |
| Autopilot | **autopilot** | 🔒 | |
| Landing Camera | **pristávacia kamera** | 🔒 | |

---

## 5b. Ship-log locations & DLC terms (locked, 2026-07-20)

Named places and recurring terms from the ship log. Descriptive location names not
listed here are translated literally (River Lowlands → *Riečne nížiny*, Northern
Glacier → *Severný ľadovec*, Fire Chamber → *Ohňová komora*, …).

| English | Slovak | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The Hanging City | **Visuté mesto** | Brittle Hollow's Nomai city. |
| The Sunless City | **Bezslnečné mesto** | Ember Twin's Nomai city. |
| Orbital Probe Cannon | **Orbitálne delo sondy** | Modules: *Riadiaci / Štartovací modul*, *Modul sledovania sondy*. |
| Cinder Isles *(DLC)* | **Vyhorené ostrovy** | |
| High Energy Lab | **Vysokoenergetické laboratórium** | |
| White Hole Station | **Stanica bielej diery** | |
| Gravity Cannon | **Gravitačné delo** | |
| Tower of Quantum Knowledge / Trials | **Veža kvantového poznania** / **Veža kvantových skúšok** | |
| Quantum Shrine | **Kvantová svätyňa** | *Quantum X* → *kvantový/-á/-é X* throughout. |
| Construction Yard | **Stavenisko** | |
| Nomai Mines / Grave / Shipwreck | **Bane / Hrob / Vrak lode Nomai** | *X Nomai* (indeclinable). |
| Escape Pod (1/2/3) | **Únikový modul (1/2/3)** | |
| the Vessel | **Plavidlo** | |
| anglerfish | **udicovka** (pl. *udicovky*) | The Dark Bramble monster fish. |
| Nomai shuttle | **raketoplán Nomai** | |
| astral body | **nebeské teleso** | |
| slide reel *(DLC)* | **kotúč diapozitívov** | |
| vault *(DLC)* | **trezor** | vault seal → *pečať trezoru*. |
| the Prisoner *(DLC)* | **Väzeň** | An Owlk (*Soví človek*). |
| Vision Torch / Artifact *(DLC)* | **Fakľa vízií** / **Artefakt** | |
| mural | **nástenná maľba** | |
| clan | **klan** | Nomai social group. |
| star system | **hviezdna sústava** | vs. *slnečná sústava* = solar system. |
| pilgrimage | **púť** | Solanum's journey to the Quantum Moon. |
| Nomai character names | *kept in English* | Solanum, Poke, Clary, Coleus, Melorae, Cassava, Yarrow, Pye, Conoy, Bells, … Decline the surrounding Slovak, not the name. |

## 6. Resolved decisions (2026-07-20 review)

1. **Planet names → translated** (not kept in English). ✅
2. **Nomai → indeclinable**, kept as-is (alien species name). ✅
3. **UI length** — not a concern: the text display supports variable lengths. ✅
4. **DLC titles** — translate in prose (*Ozveny Oka*, *Cudzinec*); keep English
   only where a string functions as a store/product title. ✅ (`Echoes of the Eye`
   the DLC title still `❓` in §3 for that reason.)

## 7. Still open

- **`Echoes of the Eye`** as a product/menu title — translate everywhere, or keep
  English on title/store strings? (Prose already uses *Ozveny Oka*.)
- Terms that will surface in the **dialogue** and **ship log** phases and aren't
  fixed yet: the Vessel interior locations, the Hanging City, the Sunless City,
  the High Energy Lab, the Quantum Shrine, DLC props (Slide Reel → *Kotúč
  diapozitívov*, Vision Torch → *Fakľa vízií*, the Artifact → *Artefakt*), etc.
  I'll raise these as we hit each category.