How to Say 'I Love You' in Dothraki — Anha Zhilak Yera

Quick Answer: The literal Dothraki translation of "I love you" is Anha zhilak yera (AHN-ha ZHEE-lahk YEH-rah) — I (anha) + present-tense "love" (zhilak) + you, accusative (yera). David J. Peterson built it directly from the canonical verb zhilat (to love), making it the most word-for-word rendering available.

The straightforward answer is Anha zhilak yera — I love you. But ask any Game of Thrones viewer how Khal Drogo told Daenerys he loved her and they will not quote that line. They will quote Jalan atthirari anni — moon of my life.

That difference is everything you need to know about how Dothraki expresses love.

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The Direct Phrase: Anha Zhilak Yera

Anha zhilak yera is the textbook translation. Pronunciation: AHN-ha ZHEE-lahk YEH-rah.

It parses cleanly:

• Anha — I, the first-person singular pronoun.
• zhilak — love, first-person singular present indicative of the verb zhilak (to love).
• yera — you, second-person singular accusative.

The grammar mirrors English closely: subject, verb, object. Dothraki word order feels natural to an English speaker here. There is no complicated copula to worry about at this level, no gender agreement, no case complications beyond the simple accusative.

This is the phrase you teach a beginner — it is the plain, attested Dothraki verb for love (David J. Peterson's zhilak), and it is, in pure grammatical terms, the correct answer to how do you say I love you in Dothraki?

It is also, culturally, not what a Dothraki would typically choose to say.

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The Famous Line: Jalan Atthirari Anni

Jalan atthirari anni — moon of my life. Pronunciation: jah-LAHN ath-thee-RAH-ree AH-nee.

The structure:

• Jalan — moon.
• Atthirari — of life, a genitive-flavored form built from atthirar (life).
• Anni — my, first-person singular possessive.

Dothraki frequently drops the copula (to be) in simple equational sentences, so Yer jalan atthirari anni — you are the moon of my life — reads as a direct string of nouns: you, moon-of-life, mine. No linking verb is needed for the sentence to stand as a complete declaration.

This is Khal Drogo's endearment for Daenerys throughout Game of Thrones — he calls her the moon that lights his world in darkness. Daenerys answers with her own counterpart endearment: Shekh ma shieraki anni — my sun and stars, built from shekh (sun) + ma (and) + shieraki (stars) + anni (my). Together the two phrases form the canonical Dothraki couple-vocabulary: she is his moon, he is her sun and stars — a complementary pair of cosmological endearments, not a repeated single metaphor.

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Why Dothraki Express Love Through Metaphor

Dothraki culture, as built by George R. R. Martin and developed by David J. Peterson, places action above declaration. A Dothraki rider proves love through devotion — protection in battle, gifts of horses, public acknowledgement before the khalasar. Verbs of feeling are blunt instruments in this culture; endearments and metaphor carry the affective weight.

The structural evidence is in the language. Zhilak (love) is a perfectly good verb and appears in Peterson's published vocabulary. But the expressive register of Dothraki affection clusters in nouns and juxtaposed phrases: jalan (moon), shekh ma shieraki (sun and stars), qoy qoyi (blood of my blood — the oath binding a khal to his bloodriders, and by extension the deepest possible loyalty bond). The beloved is the moon. The beloved is the sun and the stars. The beloved is blood of one's own blood.

This is also why Anha zhilak yera sounds a little plain to an experienced Dothraki speaker. It is correct, but it is the way an outsider would say it. The way Drogo says it — and the way Daenerys learns to say it back — is Jalan atthirari anni and Shekh ma shieraki anni.

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Other Dothraki Phrases for Love and Devotion

A short working glossary, drawn from Peterson's attested Dothraki vocabulary:

• Anha zhilak yera jin — I love you this much — the emphatic, intensified form of the direct declaration.
• Anha ray zhilak yera — I have always loved you — an expression of enduring love.
• Anha vos zhilak — I do not love — the negated form, using the vos negation particle.
• Qoy qoyi — blood of my blood — the bloodrider oath, also used in the show's wedding and bonding scenes as the deepest available pledge of loyalty.
• Shieraki gori ha yeraan — the stars are charging for you — a poetic line from the show's Dothraki dialogue.
• Athchomar chomakea — respect to those who are respectful — the formal, honorific register used for khals, khaleesis, and elders; not romantic on its own, but part of the same vocabulary of high regard.

For more in this register, see our complete guide to Dothraki love phrases.

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A Brief Preview of Dothraki Wedding Vocabulary

If you are learning these phrases for a wedding — and at least a few couples each year do hold Dothraki-themed ceremonies — these are the words you will want:

• Khaleesi — queen; wife of a khal.
• Chiorikem — wife.
• Mahrazhkem — husband.
• Khalasar — the riding clan a marriage joins.
• Qoy qoyi — blood of my blood, sworn between bloodriders and, by extension, between bonded partners.
• Dosh khaleen — the council of widowed khaleesis at Vaes Dothrak, joined when a khal dies.

A Dothraki wedding in canon is a public, intense affair — Daenerys's wedding in Game of Thrones episode one is the dramatized version, complete with ritual combat and a public consummation. The vows themselves, however, are spoken as compact, declaration-light constructions, consistent with how Dothraki express devotion everywhere else in the language. For the full breakdown, see our guide to Dothraki wedding blessings and ceremonial phrases.

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Khal Drogo's Actual Words

The dialogue most viewers remember is the moment Drogo speaks Common (English) for the only time in the series: Moon of my life, I am hurt. By that point Daenerys has been teaching him her language for months, and he answers her in it as a gift — echoing back the very endearment she taught him for herself. The Dothraki original of the relationship, however, is what carries:

• Drogo to Daenerys: Jalan atthirari anni — moon of my life.
• Daenerys to Drogo: Shekh ma shieraki anni — my sun and stars.
• Both, as an oath of shared loyalty: Qoy qoyi — blood of my blood.

The pairing of a moon-endearment and a sun-and-stars-endearment — one for each partner, never swapped — is one of the more elegant pieces of worldbuilding in Peterson's Dothraki corpus. It is also a clean example of how Dothraki affection works: cosmological metaphor standing in for a plain declaration of love.

For thirty more from the Great Khal, see our 50 best Khal Drogo quotes guide.

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People Also Ask

How do you say 'I love you' in Dothraki? Anha zhilak yera. Pronounced 'AHN-ha ZHEE-lahk YEH-rah,' it parses as I (anha) + love, first-person singular present (zhilak) + you, accusative (yera). It is the most direct Dothraki equivalent of the English phrase, built by David J. Peterson from the canonical Dothraki verb zhilat (to love).

What does 'Jalan atthirari anni' mean? Jalan atthirari anni translates as 'moon of my life' — the famous endearment Khal Drogo uses for Daenerys in Game of Thrones. It parses as moon (jalan) + of life, genitive (atthirari, from atthirar, life) + my (anni). Daenerys's reply, shekh ma shieraki anni ('my sun and stars'), is the reciprocal endearment she uses for him.

Is Anha zhilak yera or Jalan atthirari anni more romantic? Jalan atthirari anni carries more cultural weight in the Dothraki world because endearments and metaphor are how Dothraki traditionally express affection — verbs of feeling are blunt by comparison. Anha zhilak yera is the more direct, literal translation of the English phrase. In a real Dothraki romantic context, the endearment is the warmer choice.

Related Reading

• Dothraki Phrases for Love and Loyalty
• The 50 Best Khal Drogo Quotes in Dothraki (With Translations)
• Dothraki Wedding Blessings and Ceremonial Phrases
• the best app for learning romantic Dothraki phrases and beyond

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Learn the Language Behind the Phrases

If you want to do more than memorize four words, the next step is structured study — the grammar that makes Jalan atthirari anni parse, the vocabulary that lets you build new endearments of your own.

Tengwar's free Dothraki lessons cover the first five units (including the love-phrases module) at no cost, with the Mithrandir AI tutor available to answer grammar questions. For the full breakdown of Dothraki learning resources, see our guide to choosing a Dothraki learning app.

Anha zhilak yera.