tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Fri Feb 13 07:16:32 1998

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Re: definitive noun suffix -na'

From: Eduardo Fonseca <[email protected]>


>    Let's see the CK following exemple:
>"- I need to find A doctor"    "Qel vISamnIS".
>
>In this exemple, I want to find any sort of doctor because there
>is nothing especifing what doctor I need. But if I want to
>say: I need to find THE doctor, I need to find an especific doctor.
>In this case I can say:  "Qelna' vISamnIS"

This is not what {-na'} means.  Using {-na'} means that you have absolutely
no doubt that the noun it's attached to is the correct one to describe it.
Thus {Qelna'} means you're absolutely sure that the person you're talking
about is a doctor.  Similarly, if someone was standing before me with a
stethoscope and tongue-depressors, I'd assume he was a doctor, but until I
saw his degree, or at least his office, I wouldn't know for sure.  I could
express this with {QelHey} "apparently a doctor."

Klingon simply does not have definite or indefinite articles ("the," "a,"
"an").  If you don't care which doctor you need to find, you say {Qel
vISamnIS}.  If there's only one doctor in the building, he or she is THE
doctor, and {Qel vISamnIS} becomes completely clear.

There is rarely any time that the type of article used need be terribly
important.  English and Portuguese rely on them, but you could easily spend
the entire day speaking without them.  People would look at you strangely,
but they'd be able to understand you fully.

>Using other exemple.  A person enter in a school and say:
>"- I want to talk with a teacher".  "ghojmoHwI' vIjatlh vIneH."
> Any teacher will serve for the propouse of the person because
>she didn't especify what sort of teacher she wants to talk but if she say:
>"- I want to talk with THE teacher",   "ghojmoHwI'na' vIjalth vIneH"
>it means that she know exatly the teacher she wants to talk or the
>school has only 1 teacher.

First off, the correct way to say this is {ghojmoHwI'vaD jIjatlh vIneH}.

If any teacher will do, then this sentence will work.  If you know exactly
which teacher you want to talk to, then specify.  {ghojmoHwI'wI'vaD jIjatlh
vIneH} "I want to talk to my teacher."  If there is only one, well then,
there's no question who {ghojmoHwI'} is, is there?

> It can sound strange, but I didn't see
>anyone saying: "- where is A captain". Off course there is only 1
>captain managing the ship.  In this case we just say:
>nuqDaq ghaH HoD'e'  or nuqDaq HoD.  But if you are searching
>for an especific crew member, you could say: nuqDaq ghaH beqna''e'.

{beqna'} would mean that you're certain the person you are talking about is
a crewmember.  If you're looking for a specific crew member, tell us exactly
who!

nuqDaq ghaH beq QeH'e'?
Where is the angry crewman?

This *could* be translated "Where is AN angry crewman," but the context will
almost always make it very clear what you mean.

SuStel
Stardate 98120.8

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