• ket’afari ābwulidat alghubar inēmii ābihayth ket’yi

translates to "as you have been born from cosmic dust, so have I." stems from the ancient Altean belief that all beings share a common ancestor of pure quintessence and cosmic dust derived from arabic "kama wulidat min alghubar alkawnii bihayth yakun" and amharic "ket’eferi ābwara inidetewelediki inēmi ālenyi"

• shi’menā

literally "life-weaver." an Altean who possesses the ability to manipulate the pure quintessence around them by weaving threads of quintessence like a tapestry. derived from amharic "shimena"

• najāmi

"my star" or "starlight." a very meaningful term of endearment most commonly used by a parent to a child. (Coran's use of it toward Allura sheds some light on their very close relationship.) derived from arabic "najima"

• ii’zamh

"bones." an Altean game involving small rods carved with numbers. derived from arabic "eazam"

• mota ii'zamh

"bone death." a degenerative Altean disease similar to muscular dystrophy derived from amharic "moti"

• pieramoha ilo smeirk

victory or death. the motto of the Galra Empire. stems from the Galra belief that strength (their most important virtue) is defined by victory over their enemies, or honor by death in battle.

• znaniya ilo smeirk

knowledge or death. the motto of the Blade of Marmora. a subversion of the Galra belief of death and glory in battle being paragons of honor; instead, the Blade of Marmora define strength in their own way: biding their time from the shadows and gathering all the knowledge they possibly can before striking. to the Blade, strength lies in collaboration and patience; rather than battling their enemy with a cannon, they use many tiny blades to cut and whittle away piece by piece.