Nimbi

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Nimbi
A Nimbi ladyA male Nimbi sprite from Super Paper Mario.Female (left) and male (right) Nimbis
First appearance Super Paper Mario (2007)
Comparable
Notable members

Nimbis are the angel-like citizens of The Overthere in Super Paper Mario. Their species name appears to be derived from the word nimbus, a type of cloud. The word additionally references their appearance and habitat. "Nimbi" is also reminiscent of the acronym "NIMBY," which stands for "Not In My Back Yard," referring to people who object to seeing unpleasant or illegal (i.e. "evil") activities, which fits the general theme and tone of The Overthere.

The Nimbis' speech is based on Elizabethan English, such as that used in the King James Bible. There are notable differences between actual Elizabethan English and the dialect the Nimbis speak. For example, the Nimbis seem to freely use "thou" (as a subject) and "thee" (as an object) in place of "you", but in Elizabeth English, "thou" and "thee" were strictly singular and informal/familiar, and were only used to address family members or friends, or people considered inferior by the speaker; rulers would take offense to being addressed with those pronouns. Furthermore, the suffix -est is used excessively. In proper Elizabethan era grammar, "est" is the 2nd person singular familiar (therefore going with "thou") verb ending, which has no successor in Modern English, but can be likened to the "s" added in the 3rd person singular. Thus, "thou-knowest-what", as Fallbi says, is correct, but "tellest me, now, Mother," as Luvbi says, is incorrect, as a verb takes its base form when used to give a command; it would be like saying "Are there!" to mean "Be there!"

In terms of appearance, most of the Nimbis look nearly identical to each other except that females have hairstyles, and many of their names are based on days, colors, seasons, or months.

Names in other languages

Language Name Meaning
Japanese エルエル人
Erueru Jin
「エルエル」is likely derived from "elf" and/or "El" (a Hebrew word meaning "god"), and「人」means "people"

Italian Nimbì
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Spanish Nimbí
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