tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Sun Oct 20 21:20:23 1996

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Unspecified head nouns

You guys aren't going to believe this.  Well, maybe you will.  Just in case 
you want proof, listen to the Star Trek: Klingon CD-Rom, Disk 3 (Language 
Lab), "\wav\3k.wav".  Listen VERY carefully to what you hear.  I was just 
putzing around in the 849 sound files in that directory (only listening to a 
few, just for fun), and I just happened to run this sound file.  I was 
astounded.  Apparently, the file is not used in the Language Lab.

For those of you without this CD-Rom, I'll transcribe what Marc Okrand says in 
the file: {Dajatlhbogh vIyajbe'.  yIjatlhqa'.}  Neat, huh?

With one stone, Okrand has answered two very important questions.  First, the 
obvious one.  With each file (less one) ending in "k", in this case "3k", 
there is a corresponding file ending with "e", and with a rough English 
translation.  In fact, they are very rough.  3e is Marc Okrand saying "I find 
no match for what you have just said.  Please say it again."

But all of these files end in either {yIjatlhqa'} or "Please say it again."  
Here we have a new, and this time very sure, proof that {-qa'} can, in fact, 
be used to mean "do again," and not just "resume."

But this is nothing compared to the second item.  Here, Okrand has very 
specifically used {Dajatlhbogh} as a relative clause without a head noun!  He 
did not say something like {Doch Dajatlhbogh vIyajbe'}.

Sorry for the roundabout explanation; I'm a bit excited!  Whaddya think?  
{Dajatlhbogh vIyajbe'.  yIjatlhqa'.}

SuStel
Stardate 96805.4

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