Duolingo has partnered with HBO for the premiere of House of the Dragon by updating its High Valyrian course to feature lessons inspired by the new show.
Linguist David Peterson was behind the construction of High Valyrian and he stepped up to the plate when it came to adding new content to the High Valyrian course on Duolingo. "It's been a pleasure to revisit the world of Westeros for House of the Dragon and work with the team at Duolingo to breathe new life into this course," said Peterson. Nearly 400 words and phrases have been added for Game of Thrones fans to study before the House of the Dragon premiere in August. This update will match the vocabulary and grammar of the High Valyrian used in the upcoming show.
Duolingo has provided a sneak peek of the new content with a few examples of what fans can expect:
- Aōhyz zaldrīzesse gevī sōvetis, Daenerys. > Your dragons flew beautifully, Daenerys.
- Havorzo dohaeragon kostā, Arȳs. > You can serve the food, Arya.
- Zaldrīzes jēdrot heptas. > The dragon ascended to the sky.
- Sombāzmion dārio syt lenātās! > Build a castle for the queen!
There's another pro to brushing up on High Valyrian. HBO recently announced the launch of a new augmented reality app where players can raise their virtual dragons. House of the Dragon: DracARys will be available for download on July 20 and players will need to know High Valyrian to command their dragon hatchling. The app itself will provide some instruction on how to speak High Valyrian, but more in-depth learning can be found through Duolingo's language course. Duolingo's High Valyrian course will also include the same augmented reality commands for players to practice.
"At Duolingo, we know content drives interest in language. Our data shows a direct correlation between user growth and what's happening in the cultural zeitgeist," explained George Audi, Duolingo's head of business development, about the language app's involvement with HBO. He went on to add that the partnership between the two of them was unique and was done to "build excitement for one of the most anticipated shows of the year."
Audi went on to add that this partnership "will enable fans across the globe to see how fun learning a new language can be while connecting closer with the world of Westeros."
House of the Dragon premieres on Aug. 21, 2022, on HBO and HBO Max.
Source: Duolingo / AP News