The language of the Gem homeworld

I would very definitely be okay with that! I have phonetic notations for all the words in their original entries; a guide to IPA phonetics can be found here.

Why, none other than my hyper-advanced brain! It starts out with intuition - words that just “feel” right. Then I devise some rules based on what I’ve already set down, and keep on going!

Notes: From rosh, “tectosilicate”, dyath, “irradiation”, and vel, “silicon”.

Notes: From shor, “iron”, ayai, “inosilicate”, and yav, “magnesium”. Most Gem names put the silicate structural component first, but when it begins with a vowel, it is usually put in the middle. (Really, I was trying to make the word for “Nephrite” have the same lexical envelope as “gurgle-click-click”, because given that nephrite is the same green as Centi’s gem and Bismuth mentions one being pulled out of a dropship cockpit, like the one Centi piloted, I’m fairly sure Centipeetles are corrupted Nephrites.)

Notes: The word for “Bismuth” is much shorter than the names of other Gem castes because bismuth is composed of a single element.

Okay, so I said I wasn't going to deal with Gem reproduction, but that was before two things happened. One, Peridot said that Gem creation requires "resources" of which Homeworld is running out, and two, Gem corruption has been confirmed as being caused by sound. I'll explain the significance of these as we go. So: We already knew that the bacteriophage drills were used somehow in Gem creation, which involved implanting them in a planet's crust, but we didn't know whether or not implantation was their only function. My hypothesis is that they do in fact have another function: that of extraction, as well as implantation. Because of Peridot's "resources" comment, as well as her "lava is made out of the same stuff as Peridots" comment, I posit that Gems aren't made from the physical material of other Gems: Gems are physically created from gems. Now, unless life on Homeworld is significantly different from Earth, I don't mean to suggest Gems have used drills for their entire existence (although it would be a truly STUNNING plot twist if Gems are entirely artificial, engineered by a completely different species). I think the drills are just a way to make the reproduction process faster - a reproductive process that begins with a nonsentient mineral. However, I didn't come up with a mechanism by which this could occur until Monster Reunion, when the mechanics of Gem corruption were revealed. I considered physical carving when Peridot said "I like the cut of your gem", but I didn't really feel like that would work. So when Centipeetle described the corruption superweapon as a sound, everything just clicked. If a sound can cause a Gem to lose control of their manifested form, might it not also give a Gem the ability to manifest that form in the first place? Even to think? My hypothesis is that Gems reproduce through vibration, setting up specific harmonies in nonliving crystal in order to give it life. I know I've left most of it up to quantum, but I don't think the concept of Gems as a self-repeating harmonic life-form is totally far-fetched. I’m not sure how this will make itself manifest in the lexicon, but I did want to post this here as a basis for future entries.

Notes: used both for manipulating inanimate substances such as water or metal and for manipulating sentient beings.

Notes: Comes from lum, “hand”, and masht, a general negative phoneme. Connotatively similar to “to dirty one’s hands”, a necessary but unpleasant evil.

I THINK WE’RE GOING TO SEE GEM WRITING IN THE SHOW WITH TRANSLATIONS

Notes: Dyovosh is onomatopoeia.

Notes: A portmanteau of esurin, “gem (the anatomical feature)”, and yinol, “tool”.

Notes: the word luvalash refers specifically to a technological pad.