Like the title says, but I'm mostly interested in specifically dunmer lifespan, and if known, dwemer lifespan.

" Long ago, one evening, when I was just an ashy-cheeked merling barely out of short-breeches, I climbed into the lap of my Grandserjo as he sat by the fire with the words of Holy Vekh. He was wizened old Tongmer of prodigious years and thick white whiskers who'd seen all corners of ol' Tamr'el in a long, long career. Then I asked "Muth Grandserjo, we Dunmer are quite long-for-this-land by the grace of ALMSIVI. Six-score good years for even humble Netch'mer. But for how long do the infidels toil in their ignorance, Grandserjo? I've asked everyone, even my schoolmaster, but no one seems to know."

My Grandserjo put aside the words of Holy Vekh and thought for a moment, eyes peeled on the fire dancing in the hearth-pit, the good lines of his face forming mountains of pensivity.

Then, finally, he cleared his throat in a great roar and spoke: "Long since have I ventured out into the wilderness beyond Tribune-lands, beloved, longer since that I have had occasion to chop open an infidel and count his years like tree-rings!" a fine jest that we laughed at long and hard enough to cause the scullery-cat to poke her head in so see what was the matter.

"But as a I recall " Grandserjo continued

"The haughty mer of decadant Summurset see the most Frostfalls - 200, I'm told, is average.

The kin-eaters clans of the great leaf-forests, with their menwives, far less.

Trin'mac's Dung-mer are shortest of life, with 60 seasons meaning age'd.

Men-o-Cyrod, Breton-men, Northmen, and Red-men-of-the-desert all strive for a hundred, and no more.

But with Beast-pvssyl, both cat and lizard, it depends on the breed and who well you water and keep them."

I tried to thank him, but before I could even speak, Grandserjo, like lightning took hold of me and laid me over his knee. "I do this for your own good, beloved" he said with compassion" since you simply must remember to utilize The Bar Of Inquiry - so graciously provided by Blessed ALMSIVI - before you bother us old-folk with questions unending." Then he beat me like an unbroken ash-guar 'till my ashy hind-quarters turned ten shades of red."

Nice bit of story, thank you. I'm a bit disappointed to hear that dark elves's lifespan is only 60 though.

A score is 20 years.

Holy crap, is there any explanation to why? Especially if compared to Altmers' 200 years, and the fact that they are of the same origin? Or is life in Morrowind really that harsh? XD

6 score= 120 years (6*20=120).

There is a lovely thread on this subject here: http://tesheroes.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=lore&action=display&thread=206

But I'll quote it here:

I. On the age and lifespans of characters of different races.

A. The elven races (Altmer, Bosmer and Dunmer):
Elves live ten times longer than humans. Unless they are using some kind of magic to prolong their lifespans they will naturally expire somewhere between 700-1000. Their life phases look more or less like this:

1. Up to 25: more or less like humans, with the exception of children bearing, which starts to be a possibility for the elves around 50+
2. 25-100: young advlt
3. 100 - 400: advlt
4. 400+: middle-aged, they lose the ability to procreate somewhere in this period, unless special circumstances apply (lifespan and capabilities prolonged for some reasons)
5. About century before natural death they become the physical equivalent of a human elder
6. Before 1000: natural death; the actual age of death depends on the individual

NOTES:
* an elf's lifespan, can be affected negatively by strong emotions: grief, a 'broken heart', loss of will to live, etc.
* of course, the above chart does not apply to mages, like the Telvanni, in the same manner as it does to other elves. On Tamriel you can cheat death... if you have the right tools.
* elves are able to have children with humans earlier (and more often) than with other elves.

B. Human races:
All humans have a much shorter lifespawn, as compared to the elven but they also differ among themselves.

Bretons: Live longer than their human brethren because of the elven blood that runs in their veins. The oldest of them can remember Tamriel from 200 ago.

This is from research and pseudo science by an expert

I missed where it says that. I suppose it's critical time to go to bed instead of doing a night crawl on the forum. Or I should hone up my english.


Ah, that's perfect, thanks a lot!

What about beast races?

Some people consider the khajiit to be like elves but that's even more speculation.
The argonians are weird, because the hist can sort of "re-make" them.

Khajiit can not be elves, they have been in Tamriel longer than men and elves.

You're thinking of the Hist.

Also, There's some evidence that Bretons actually age faster than other men.

Wonder how long the Dragonborn will live. Unless he becomes a god, they're gonna have some trouble writing him off. If he's a High Elf Arch Mage, they're gonna have to place the next game a few thousand years ahead.

If the dragonborn is an argonian wouldn't the hist want to keep him alive ~ forever?

It doesn't matter what the Hist want. He has the soul of a Dragon, not an Argonian.

Aren't the Hist the ones who give souls to Argonians or whatever? They probably knew that an Argonian Dragonborn was different from the day he was born.

Akatosh is the one who gives souls to Dragonborn. The Hist wouldn't have much power over a Dragonborn Argonian.

What about the ''abnormalities''? Like Divayth Fyr, being over 4000 years old. How do we account for that?

Hes a powerfull mage.

I don't think Akatosh gave the "Last Dragonborn" a dragon's soul. I think his/her soul could come from Lorkhan/Talos, being a shezzarine and all that. I mean, why would Akatosh create a man, to kill his own creation and effectively, destroy much of his power?

I am most interested in the Orcish lifespan. They usually die younger than other races, because they want to die while in their best years (if they have the mentality and honor-ideal as a warrior)

Hard livin' and drinkin' in besieged scrap-iron forts doesn't do wonders fer yer lifespan either.

Of course all that can be overlooked, if an Orc lives outside the forts, doesn't drink nor live such a hard life. How old could an Orc potential become?

I've always been curious about the lifespan of elves. We all know they live much longer than all other races, is this true for the Dunmer as well? How many years would it take for you to be considered 'old'?
Alvur Relds: Well, I'm fifty, done my twenty years in the Service, and I'm in the prime of life. I expect another fifty good years, and then I'll be old, and slow, chatting with gaffers around the hearth for another twenty, thirty years. I've known mer still mind-sharp in their late hundreds, and heard of folk 200 and older. My family usually makes it to 120-130, providing we don't get sick or poked in the eye.

From http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Morrowind:Interview_with_a_Dark_Elf

Well, they still are mer, so they should behave like the "real" elven races in terms of aging. But since they changed together with Trinimac it depends if Malacath wants them to live longer/shorter and if Boethia has influenced them as well. I personally think they may age like the Altmer.