tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Fri Jun 26 14:46:36 1998

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Re: SuvwI'bom




In message <l03020903b1afa4bd3dda@[206.150.217.239]> Alan Anderson writes:
> 
> In Klingon, I am compelled to treat the questions {nuq 'oH ponglIj'e'}
> and {ponglIj 'oH nuq'e'} differently.  The first question asks me what
> my name is, in the sense of asking for a description of it.  The second
> asks me what my is, in the sense of asking what can be described as my
> name.  I rarely dwell on this distinction, but I am always aware of it
> when someone asks a question in the order opposite the way I "want" it.
> 
jIyajchu'be'.

<<ponglIj nuq?>> DamaS qar'a'?

<<nuq 'oH targh'e'?>> jItlhobchugh, 'ej <<Ha'DIbaH 'oH.>> vIjanglu'chugh, 
SoHvaD lugh'a' mu'tlheghvam?

<<targh nuq?>> jItlhobchugh, 'ej <<targh 'oH targh be'>> vIjanglu'chugh,
SoHvaD lugh'a' je mu'tlheghvam?

vaj SoHvaD lughbogh mu'tlhegh yIwIv:

1: ghom'e' Delbogh wot nungbogh DIp tIn law' 
   ghom'e' Delbogh DIp nungbogh wot tIn puS.
(SoHvaD lughlaw' mu'tlheghvam.)

2: ghom'e' Delbogh DIp nungbogh wot tIn law'
   ghom'e' Delbogh wot nungbogh DIp tIn puS.

...have to switch now...(both lang and topic(sic))

what I don't like about putting nuq and 'Iv in subject position
is that Okrand describes the subject as being the topic "as for"
(TKD p. 68)

thus <<ponglIj 'oH nuq'e'?>> sounds like "As for the what, it is
your name." to me... or "WHAT is your name."

                                           Marc Ruehlaender
                                           aka HomDoq
                                           [email protected]



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