tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed Jul 08 11:13:50 1998
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Re: -Curses
- From: Steven Boozer <[email protected]>
- Subject: Re: -Curses
- Date: Wed, 8 Jul 1998 13:12:04 -0500 (CDT)
Marc Ruehlaender answers ghunchu'wI':
:> Seriously, Okrand labeled them as "Epithets" on page 178. That's a term
:> with a specific grammatical meaning, and I'm going to use them that way.
:
: it is an ENGLISH term, however. Klingon "epithets" are exclamations.
No, the "general invectives" -- baQa', ghay'cha', Hu'tegh, Qu'vatlh, va,
QI'yaH, etc. -- are exclamations.
in.vec.tive adj [ME invectif, fr. MF, fr. L invectivus, fr.
invectus, pp. of invehere] (15c): of, relating to, or characterized
by insult or abuse -- in.vec.tive.ly adv -- in.vec.tive.ness n
invective n (1523) 1: an abusive expression or speech 2:
insulting or abusive language: vituperation syn see abuse
These are also called "expletives" in TKD. Merriam Webster's again:
ex.ple.tive n (1612) 1 a: a syllable, word, or phrase inserted to
fill a vacancy (as in a sentence or a metrical line) without adding to
the sense; esp: a word (as it in "make it clear which you prefer")
that occupies the position of the subject or object of a verb in
normal English word order and anticipates a subsequent word or
phrase that supplies the needed meaningful content b: an
exclamatory word or phrase; esp: one that is obscene or profane
2: one that serves to fill out or as a filling
Expletives (according to (b)) also include such non-swear exclamations as
toH, maj, majQa' and so on. But we were speaking about epithets, which are
not the same thing.
Marc Ruehlaender then answers Voragh:
:> The SIL online glossary of linguistics terms (which Holtej referred us
:> to a couple of weeks ago) doesn't have an entry for "epithet, but
:> Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary does:
:
: Merriam Webster's doesn't have any authority on Klingon curses
Perhaps not, but for two centuries Webster's dictionary does have authority
on American English -- the language Marc Okrand speaks natively, studied
linguistics in university in, and chose to write his dissertation on Mutsun
grammar and his several books and tapes on Klingon grammar in. Presumably,
a Ph.D. in linguistics will use common grammatical terms in their generally
accepted usage, particularly when explaining things for a lay audience,
unless he states otherwise and redefines his terms.
Has Okrand done this, even in a private communication with you? If so,
would you care to share it with the rest of us? I'm always on the lookout
for new insights from the language's creator for my files. If you're going
to attend qep'a' vaghDIch, perhaps you could ask him yourself and let us all
know what he says. Since mu'qaD veS is a time-honored qep'a' tradition,
your questions won't seem out of place; they may even inspire Okrand to come
up with something new. But watch out for his nuQ naQ.
Voragh
_____________________________________________________________________
Steven Boozer University of Chicago Library [email protected]