The Alu

The sea elf dialect is rather difficult to understand if one speaks the standardized Sel dialect. Its use has waned in recent centuries, and groups have sprung up to attempt to preserve the language. In the past, it was seen as the "dock worker's dialect" in major Sel-dominated cities, as the Alu tended to work and live on ships or along the coast. This led to a perception of the dialect as unprofessional by non-Alu-- something the Alu have contested goes against the unity of the Tsia.

Sea elves are known for their impressive mandalas and sailing tunes. Sea elf art is different from Sel and Vandor art as it tends to be a lot less representational. In addition, modern sea elf art is largely electronic, while other elves remain tied to the tradition of non-electronic art.

Sea elf visual art began with the creation of impressive patterns in the sand on the beaches of the many islands they explored. This eventually lead to the patterns being replicated in different mediums, largely with ink on a form of paper made from a common coastal plant. Nowadays, much of sea elf art has become digital, allowing their art to involve complex algorithms to depict the precise emotional impact they intend to draw from their work. Much art is displayed by use of hologram emitter. This allows for 3 dimensional pieces that would otherwise not be possible in a physical form.

Sea elf music was largely used to pass time while sailing between islands in times past. This lead to their music being mostly solo or duet based. One or two musicians would play their pieces while the rest of the crew would man the ship. In the past, the instruments used were largely string instruments and some drums. Nowadays, electronic versions of these string instruments and drums have been invented and have replaced all but the most traditional musicians' instruments. The most commonly used instrument is one that resembles a violin that is played off the shoulder. It has been altered into a sort of mix of violin and theremin, where the left hand controls the note placement, and the right controls the articulation and length of notes.