Worldlore

The Valar

  • Moritsagus - the great badger - is a Maia of Mahal associated with delving. An ancient image of him was discovered in a cave on the mountainside, revealing a hidden way in to Moria.
  • A town in Moria has a mysterious device, called Thucoron 'Thucoron' - the Sphere of Manwe the Breather
  • Mahal's consort, Ivanna, is called She-Who-Feeds-the-Forge by the Dwarves

Language

  • Non-dwarves with a fascination for dwarven culture are sometimes, disparagingly, called Khaza-stans or Khaza-boos
  • The Khazad term 'khaki-hok' can, in the common tongue, be roughly rendered as 'a total fucking disaster'
  • The Dwarven for 'duuuuude!' is more-or-less translated as 'rock bro' or 'my brother in stone'
  • 'granite polished like marble' means someone or thing above their station

The Dwarves

  • Dwarves live 200 years on average, though some families are notably long-lived - Dwalin reached the rare age of 340. Dwarves attain adulthood around 40.
  • Dwarves prefer to learn the languages of other cultures than share their own secret tongue - and adopt names in the local style, keeping their own names among their own people. They also have a sign language - iglishmêk
  • The cities within the Blue Mountains are built to reflect social hierararchy - with the more prestigious living at the top, and the lesser in the base and deeps.
  • There are no particular taboos around a dwarven beard, but they tend to reveal culture and status.

Culture

  • The game 'rock, paper, scissors' is known across Middle Earth - with local variations. For the dwarves, it is 'rock, pickaxe, shovel' - and in the Shire, 'pebble, parchment, shears'.