Last week, we checked out the in-universe languages, from Chakobsa to Islamiyat.

This week, we’ll be focusing on the real-world languages and words that appear in the fictional ones, whether it’s Arabic, Turkish, or German in Fremen, or the Slavic and Romance influences on Galach.

But before we get into the details, I’d like to share with you the result of my research. My latest project: the Dictionary of Dune. (click to browse and play around with it)

It’s a database containing non-English terms used in Dune, including their language of origin and original meaning.

So far, I have 138 entries, but I’m sure it’s not complete → so if you find anything missing, please add it through this form.

If you’re not ready to subscribe but would like to support the databases I build, please consider buying me a (spice) coffee. Previous projects include the one with all the quotes from the Princess Irulan and the one with all the epigraphs from the core canon.

SPOILER WARNING: CONTENT FROM THE ORIGINAL 6 BOOKS

I know it won’t come as a surprise: Arabic is, by a considerable margin, the most significant and pervasive real-world linguistic influence.

I’ve found over 100 terms of Arabic origin and, of course, most of them are showing up in the Fremen language.

You know plenty of these by heart: Naib, Mahdi, (eyes of the) Ibad, Muad’Dib, Usul, Shai-Hulud, and Fedaykin, and the list goes on.

Herbert said he utilized "colloquial Arabic" to signal to the reader that "something of here and now has been carried to that faraway place and time."

While the idea might seem dated to some, the use of Arabic is intended to ground the Fremen in a recognizable desert-dwelling cultural mix, lending authenticity to their struggle and traditions.

But we find Arabic words (or variations of them) in Galach (Caid, Jihad, and Shaitan), and also in Chakobsa (Shadout). It’s used by the Bene Gesserit (gom jabbar) and the Bene Tleilaxu (ghola, ghufran).