Dwarfs (Discworld) - Culture and Society

Culture and Society

Dwarfs tend to be miners. They have a natural fascination with minerals (especially iron and gold) and feel more comfortable underground. Their mining has led to a longstanding enmity with trolls, who are made of rock, and have a tendency to remain motionless for long periods, and dislike the fact that when they sleep they can wake up finding themselves as an ornamental fireplace whilst Dwarfs dislike the fact that there is rock that can wrench their arms out when they have found it. The most famous troll/dwarf fight was the Battle of Koom Valley, in which both sides are traditionally said to have ambushed the other, on several occasions, each time shouting "Remember Koom Valley!" The dwarfish board game of Thud commemorates this/these battle(s). The full history of the battle is revealed in Thud!.

Dwarfish society is Anarchistic. Decisions are made and information is spread by different groups of miners exchanging representatives. The closest thing to a leader dwarfs have is a dezka-knik or chief mining engineer, a title loosely translated into Morporkian as "king". All dwarfs owe allegiance to the Low King, (a parody of high king) who is selected by council in the Überwald dwarf city of Schmaltzberg. The current Low King is Rhys Rhysson, son of a small coal-mining clan in Llamedos. He got the job largely because he wasn't from a significant Ramtop or Überwald family (see below). The Low King acts as a final court of appeal in disputes. Pratchett also states that dwarfs love to argue, especially with their Low King.

The primary weapon other than bread products (see below) in dwarf culture is the axe, which is often used even when the frequently confined spaces of underground tunnels make them impractical. A traditional dwarfish axe is multifunctional; one side is a pickaxe used for prospecting, and the other side is a battle axe used if someone tries to stop them. Axes are so important culturally that dwarfish Ankh-Morpork City Watch members are allowed to use them instead of the regulation swords, and both male and female dwarfs typically carry a (decorative) axe to social functions. Cheery Littlebottom's attempts to feminise this tradition have not been met with great success, at least by human standards.

There is a tendency among dwarfs, who in their native mines are often soft-spoken, filial and respectful, to suddenly transform into beer-swilling, brawling, axe-waving clichés when they go abroad. It's noted that a lot of (that is to say, all of them except "hi-ho") dwarf drinking songs seem to comprise the single word "gold" repeated in singsong. Some dwarfs attempt to project greater machismo by carrying more and larger axes, and wearing heavier and more elaborate armour than standard. This is known as "clang" (a play on bling).

When dwarfs are married, it is customary for the debts to their parents (consisting of all the money spent on them before they married, such as for food and lodgings) to be paid off by their partner. However, it is then common for the new couple's parents to turn around and present them with a wedding gift even larger than the debt, so this may be seen as ceremonial—though still necessary.