so i just finished rewatching season 1 of voltron and i found some little nuggets of altean culture that may be useful to know!
āNunvil, the nectar of the godsā (coran, e4)
the use ofĀ āgodsā in the plural implies that alteans were probably polytheistic!
the wordĀ āNunvilā is also capitalized, meaning that it is either a brand named drink or has significant importance in altean culture. my guess is the latter, considering it is followed directly by its epithetĀ āthe nectar of the godsā
additionally, the following statement about Nunvil is that itĀ āmakes a wonderful hair tonic.ā this can perhaps broaden the importance of Nunvil due to its multipurpose nature
āwe were supposed to think you were a boy?ā (coran, e6)
in saying this, coran reveals that he did, in fact, have a preconception about pidgeās gender. the fact that allura is surprised about learning her gender (āpidge is a what?ā in e4) also shows that she, too, had a preconception about her gender
what we learn from this is that altean do, in fact, have the concept of gender within their culture, and that concept of gender is based on observable mannerisms (as in, appearance or behaviors)
this is also supported in that coran uses an altean proverb with gendered language:Ā āa manĀ can be driven to do anything if a beautiful womanĀ is just really, really mean to himā (e2)
the use of kinship terms and epithets
itās not super rigid, but between alforās and alluraās interactions, they tend to use kinship terms over names when they address each other
allura calls alforĀ āfatherā and alfor calls alluraĀ ādaughterā throughout the season without really differing from that. this language probably reflects the importance placed on relationships and kinship ties
however, when allura talks aboutĀ alfor (as opposed to talking toĀ him), she tends to address him asĀ āking alforā over justĀ āalforā or even calling him her father (though she does very occasionally call him her father)
this can perhaps signify the importance of status in altean culture, where again relation is more important than the individual. this conclusion is supported by both addressing alfor as a king (as opposed to a father) and by alfor calling him his daughter (as opposed to her name), since they both refer to a kind of status within the culture (familial and socioeconomic)
this is also supported by the heavy use of epithets throughout the season. allura introduces herself asĀ āallura of alteaā continuously, and also refers to zarkon asĀ āking of the galraā
by following an individualās name with their status in the form of an epithet, they tie the individual to a status and give relation to who these individuals are
(also, the castleship is referred to as theĀ ācastle of lionsā meaning it gets its own epithet as the host and home base for the voltron lions. this gives the castle, itself, its own status and relation to altean culture)
(also also, allura refers to keith, shiro, lance, hunk, and pidge collectively as eitherĀ āpaladinsā or theĀ āpaladins of voltronā which assigns them their own epithet and relation to the culture by tying them to voltron and, perhaps, even the castle)
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