Introduction
D'ni is the constructed language of the D'ni civilization in the Myst franchise of puzzle adventure games, created by brothers Rand and Robyn Miller at Cyan Worlds. Myst shipped in 1993 and was the best-selling PC game for approximately 10 years. Type a message above and the tool looks up each English word in a D'ni vocabulary dictionary, outputting the D'ni equivalent. Toggle the script option to render the result in the D'ni writing system, where each of the 24 letters maps to a Private Use Area glyph at U+E830 through U+E847. Unknown words pass through unchanged. All processing runs in your browser.
What this tool does
- Word-level translation between English and D'ni using a dictionary of attested vocabulary from the Myst games and novels.
- D'ni script rendering: toggle the script option to convert each letter of the translated output into its PUA glyph (U+E830-U+E847), rendered with var(--font-dni).
- Bidirectional: switch between English-to-D'ni and D'ni-to-English modes with one click.
- The settings panel shows the full vocabulary table and the 24-letter alphabet mapping with code points.
- Unknown words pass through unchanged in both directions. Punctuation and whitespace are preserved.
- All translation runs client-side. No text is sent to any server.
How this tool works
The translator splits your input into tokens using a regex that separates letter sequences (including apostrophes, common in D'ni words) from non-letter characters. Each word token is lowercased and looked up in a dictionary. In English-to-D'ni mode, the dictionary maps English words like "book" to "rehv" and "water" to "meh". In D'ni-to-English mode, the reverse lookup runs. Words not found in the dictionary pass through unchanged. Non-word tokens (spaces, punctuation, line breaks) are preserved exactly. When the script option is enabled, each letter of the translated output is converted to its D'ni PUA code point: A becomes U+E830, B becomes U+E831, through X at U+E847. The mode and script settings sync to URL query parameters, so you can share a link that preserves your configuration.
How the D'ni language and script work
The D'ni language was developed by Richard A. Watson, known as RAWA, the official D'ni historian at Cyan Worlds. Watson built the language over decades alongside the Myst franchise. According to the Wikipedia article on the D'ni language, D'ni has its own alphabet of 24 letters, a base-25 numbering system, and a full grammar with verbs, nouns, and adjectives.
The language appears throughout the Myst series: Myst (1993), Riven (1997), Exile (2001), Revelation (2004), and End of Ages (2005). It also appears in the novels: The Book of Atrus, The Book of Ti'ana, and The Book of D'ni. The Myst Wiki at mystarchive.com documents the vocabulary, grammar, and numbering system in detail.
Myst and Riven remakes launched on PS5 and PS VR2 on May 19, 2026. A new game codenamed "Mudfish," set in the Myst universe, is in early development at Cyan. Project Anglerfish, a Myst universe prototype, was canceled.
The D'ni alphabet has 24 letters, mapped here to the Latin letters A through X. Letters Y and Z are not part of the D'ni alphabet. This tool maps A-X to PUA code points U+E830 through U+E847. A font covering this range renders the D'ni glyphs. Without such a font, you may see blank boxes.
How to use this tool
- Select the mode: "English to D'ni" to translate English words into D'ni, or "D'ni to English" to reverse the lookup.
- Toggle the script option to "D'ni script" if you want the output rendered in PUA glyphs instead of Latin text.
- Type or paste your text in the input field. The output updates instantly as you type.
- Each word is looked up in the vocabulary dictionary. Unknown words pass through unchanged. Punctuation and whitespace are preserved.
- Use the swap button to quickly switch translation direction without retyping.
- Copy the result using the "Copy result" button. Install a D'ni font to see the script glyphs render.
Real-world examples
Translating a simple phrase
A user types "deep water" in English-to-D'ni mode. The tool looks up "deep" and finds "gahro", then looks up "water" and finds "meh". The output reads "gahro meh". With the script option enabled, each letter of "gahro meh" converts to its PUA glyph. The letter G becomes U+E836, A becomes U+E830, and so on. The result renders as D'ni script when a font covering U+E830-U+E847 is installed.
Counting in D'ni
Someone wants to write the numbers one through five in D'ni. They type "one two three four five" in the input. The dictionary returns "voo bree sen tor fah". Each number maps to a distinct D'ni word. The D'ni numbering system is base-25, so these foundational number words combine to form larger values. The user copies the output for a fan-made D'ni counting guide.
Decoding D'ni text
A fan has a passage of D'ni text from a supplementary source: "khen meh". They paste it into D'ni-to-English mode. The tool looks up "khen" and finds "city", then "meh" and finds "water". The output reads "city water". Words not in the dictionary, such as proper nouns from the novels, pass through unchanged so the reader can identify them manually.
Comparison with similar methods
| Method | Complexity | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| D'ni (word-level) | Medium | Myst fan writing, roleplay, decorative text |
| Standard Galactic Alphabet | Low | Minecraft enchanting table, one glyph per letter |
| Atlantean | Medium | Disney Atlantis fan writing, word-level dictionary |
| Tengwar / Cirth | Medium | Tolkien Elvish and Dwarvish writing, phonetic mapping |
Limitations or considerations
This tool performs word-level dictionary lookup, not full grammatical translation. D'ni has a base-25 numbering system and a full grammar with verbs, nouns, and adjectives, none of which this tool models. The vocabulary covers attested words from the games and novels, roughly 30 entries. Words outside the dictionary pass through unchanged. The script rendering maps A-X to PUA code points U+E830-U+E847. Letters Y and Z are not in the D'ni alphabet and are not mapped. You need a font covering this PUA range to see the glyphs. Without one, browsers show blank boxes. This is not encryption. For other constructed languages, try the Standard Galactic Alphabet translator, the Hieroglyphics translator, the Tengwar and Cirth translator, or the Atlantean translator.
Frequently asked questions
Who created the D'ni language?
Richard A. Watson, known as RAWA, developed the D'ni language as the official D'ni historian at Cyan Worlds. He built the language over decades alongside the Myst franchise. D'ni has its own 24-letter alphabet, a base-25 numbering system, and a full grammar. The language appears throughout the Myst games and the companion novels.
Does this tool translate full D'ni sentences?
No. This tool performs word-level dictionary lookup. It matches each English word to its D'ni equivalent from a fixed vocabulary list. D'ni has a full grammar with verbs, nouns, and adjectives, plus a base-25 numbering system. The tool does not handle D'ni grammar, morphology, or syntax. It is a vocabulary reference and script renderer, not a full machine translation system.
Why do I see blank boxes when I enable the script option?
The D'ni script glyphs live in the Unicode Private Use Area at U+E830 through U+E847. Standard system fonts do not cover this range. You need a font that maps these PUA code points to D'ni glyphs. Without one, browsers display blank boxes or fallback characters. The CSS variable var(--font-dni) controls which font is used for rendering.
How many letters are in the D'ni alphabet?
The D'ni alphabet has 24 letters. This tool maps them to the Latin letters A through X and to PUA code points U+E830 through U+E847. Letters Y and Z are not part of the D'ni alphabet. If your text contains Y or Z, those letters pass through unchanged when the script option is enabled.
What is the current status of the Myst franchise?
Myst was released in 1993 by Cyan Worlds. Myst and Riven remakes launched on PS5 and PS VR2 on May 19, 2026. A new game codenamed Mudfish, set in the Myst universe, is in early development at Cyan. Project Anglerfish, a Myst universe prototype, was canceled. The Myst Wiki at mystarchive.com documents the franchise's lore and languages.
Conclusion
The D'ni translator converts English text to and from the constructed language Richard A. Watson built for the Myst franchise at Cyan Worlds. Type your message, toggle the script option for PUA glyph rendering, and copy the output. For more constructed language tools, try the Standard Galactic Alphabet translator, the Hieroglyphics translator, the Tengwar and Cirth translator, or the Atlantean translator.