how to speak english? where did the transition take place from ancient language to what we all operate with in games of elder scrolls

English is called Cyrodiilic in TES. The Imperials first started speaking it and as they expanded their empire, the provinces also started speaking it. Other provinces such as Hammerfell learnt it earlier to make trade with the other areas on Tamriel easier.

I think its Elven. humans speak it because Ysgramor... I think.

They aren't speaking English (or French, Japanese, Russian, Polish, German, Spanish, Mandarin, et al), it's being translated so that we Earthlings can understand what those on Nirn are saying and writing. Certain words aren't translated due to there being no exact translation possible (Daedroth and Daedra for example), but they have been written down with alphabets we are familiar with.

this

The same place the people of the Star Wars universe learned to speak English. No one would play a game told entirely in a fictional language. How frustrating would it be to read all those books, listen to hundreds of conversations? And then wouldn't your character's dialogue options have to be in that fictional language too?

Basically you can assume the Cyrodiilic is co\mpletely different but the entire game (at least parts of it that are in that language) has been translated for your convinence.

Daedra and daedroth are foreign to the common tongue of Tamriel. They're Aldmeri words and that is why they're untranslated, just like all Dwemer or Ayleid words as well.

Words aren't kept untranslated just because they are 'foreign', but because they might sound more clunky in another language, or the translation detracts from their meaning. Word walls wouldn't look as impressive if they were romanised and I doubt calling Daedra 'demons' would be as unique, it misses the mark of what Daedra really are. The words aren't really foreign as language has an incredible facility for the assimilation of words from other languages - many English words such as alchemy or karate are not English in origin, they were introduced from other languages. 'Daedroth' and 'Daedra' have been absorbed into the common tongue and have become a part of it.

The common tongue of Tamriel is a direct descendant of Altmeri.

It is the High Elves, the cultured people, who taught everyone else how to speak, read and write and live in houses instead of caves.

so if the game is in a 'secret' translation or presentation to us. bethesda is the almighty mediator of the worlds?

Well, we need to be able to understand the speech and written word in any game we play, so most words are translated to whatever language is most appropriate (for me it is English). Just think about the Lord of the Rings - they weren't really speaking English, it was [mostly] translated so we could understand. Some may be kept untranslated for special effect, such as when a translation actually detracts from the meaning.

It would be the most hardcoe thing ever.

This is also what i thought as well. They aren't really speaking English, but for us the players to have any idea of whats going on..they are

Your thinking way to deep into this bro.

I do find it strange how pretty much every member of a playable race is fluent in Cyrodiilic. There were a few Velothi who spoke in broken Cyrodiilic in TESIII, but I think those characters were written early in development.

derp.. they are speaking english so we can understand them.

The beast races have unusual speech patterns (Argonians saying "this one" or "it" instead of "you," Khajiit referring to themselves in the third person). The Dunmer also have a couple words they use (n'wah, sera). I don't think it's that unusual for there to be a common language, but it would be fun to hear some local dialect, perhaps between two NPCs of the same race.

I think this is a big assumption. Humans and elves all descended from the Ehlnofey. The Wanderers may have "degraded" in culture some, but they all started from the same place. Just because a cultural feature becomes dominant doesn't meant it's superior objectively.

No, it's what the PGE's state.

Linguistic drift is not a complicated mechanism and would not take a genius to recognise which common tongue words and grammar are of Altmer origin.

The cultured people brought culture to Tamriel, the starry heart, the cradle of life.

All races come from Tamriel, it is the very centre of the universe.

I vote Hermaeus Mora.

There's a trope called http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TranslationConvention, problem solved.

Nords are said to have had their own language going along with draconic before they started speaking Tamrielic. They may have adopted that language later, probably around Ysgramor's first recordings of history, but its unlikely to me that other races had zero culture of their own. Nords pretty much prove that not to be true. And the Redguards who werent even on the same continent.

edit: My bad I misunderstood what you were saying. Yes Tamrielic is from them. But they brought culture to the Empire. The world didnt start with the Empire. So that point remains.

http://images.uesp.net/4/47/SR-interior-Saarthal_01.jpg

http://images.uesp.net/9/9a/SR-interior-Saarthal_02.jpg

"caves"

yep Ysgramor was the first to transcribe Nordic speech from the Elven writings or something along those lines...I remember reading it in a lore book.

What parts of PGE are you citing?

Linguistic shifts happen because of all kinds of reasons and the reason for it is not always apparent. It is not always because the "barbarians" didn't have writing and culture of their own.

I'm aware that everyone came from Tamriel- that's what I was also saying, so I'm confused how that applies.