tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Thu Sep 03 15:27:37 1998

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RE: KLBC - jIlugh'eghmoH 'ej mu'tlheghmey chu' vIqonqa'

lab tuv'el:
> 
> KLBC - jIlugh'eghmoH 'ej mu'tlheghmey chu' vIqonqa'
> 
> ja' pagh:
> > I actually meant "stop understating your abilities". When 
> > speaking Klingon, speak boldly! In Klingon culture, excessive 
> > modesty is just as inappropriate as excessive arrogance. Your 
> > skills are coming along nicely, and you shouldn't minimize them.
> 
> nI'qu'meH tera'Daq jIyIntaHmo' jItunchoHtaH; reghuluS 'Iwghargh 
> vIrur jay'.
> "I have been living on Earth so long, I am becoming as soft as a
> freakin' Regulan bloodworm."

The second bit of the sentence is fine, but the first bit <nI'qu'meH
tera'Daq jIyIntaHmo' ...> just doesn't work too well. Let's try to
figure out how to say this more easily. The usual way of English
speakers to say "for a long time" is to simply drop a <qaStaHvIS poH
nI'...> at the beginning of a sentence and go on, but that is not very
original. 

Here's what I suggest: <nI'qu'mo' tera' vIDabmeH poH ...>. The main verb
here is <nI'>, and there is obviously no object. The subject is the
interesting part: <tera' vIDabmeH poH> - "the period in order that I
dwell on Earth". This is yet another case of a <-meH> clause modifying a
noun, and the English translation does sound odd. The Klingon is quite
natural though.

> > reH latlh qabDaq qul tuj law' Hoch tuj puS. jIghItlhtaHvIS, 
> > jIjeHlaw' jIH'e'.
> TRANS: The fire on someone else's face is always hottest of all.
> *I* was apparently absentminded while writing.

maj. The first bit is, of course, a replacement proverb.

> > > qarDaSngan Duy'a'vaD cha'nob lungeHDI' qeng je loH lulobHa'.
> > > "When Torg and Kang sent ritual gifts to the Cardassian
> > > ambassador they disobeyed the administration."
> 
> > Well, you left out poor Torg, but other than that, this is correct.
> 
> valqu'mo' torgh'e' mu'tlheghvetlh qoDDaq So'taHvIS leghlaH pagh.
> "No one could see Torg hiding inside the sentence because he is so
> clever."

maj.

> > The phrase <qarDaSngan Duy'a'> is a bit odd, though - "The 
> > Cardassian people's ambassador". I suspect the ambassador is 
> > representing the Cardassian government, or Cardassia as a 
> > whole, rather than the people, so <qarDaS Duy'a'> would 
> > probably be better here.
> 
> The ambassador IS a Cardassian, by race.  That's what I was 
> thinking when I wrote /qarDaSngan Duy'a'/ instead of /qarDaS 
> Duy'a'/.  Maybe he's representing the Dominion!

My point is that the defining quality of an amabassador is usually who
he represents.

> > > van'a'Daj parHa''a' SoSlI'?
> > > "Does your mother like her award?"
> 
> > HIja'. raSDaj DungDaq HuSmoHpu'. (lughba' mu'tlheghlIj).
> TRANS: Yes.  She has hung it above her table.
> jIHagh!
> 
> > > ghoSolQo'!
> > > "Don't quarrel with us!"
> 
> > <Sol> is defined as "quarrel", not "quarrel with", so this 
> > doesn't quite work. If Kang and Torg were quarreling, for 
> > example, you would need to say <Sol qeng torgh je>. See if 
> > you can find another phrase to express your meaning.
> 
> jISol vIneHbe'.

maj.

> > > > >> maj. This meaning of <SaS> is slang, of course, but if
> > > > >> you would use "cool" in normal speech, this is no
> > > > >> different.
> > >
> > > > > chong >;-)
> > >
> > > > 'ach SaSbej qabqoqlIj...
> > > TRANS: but your so-called face is certainly horizontal...
> > >
> > > 'ach chongba' botlh nItlhwIj...  qablIj HI'ang!
> 
> > jIjangQo' jay'!
> 
> "jIjangbe' jay'!"  I won't freakin' answer!
> "yIjangQo' jay'!"  Don't friggin' answer!

Time for a little explanation of <-be'> and <-Qo'>. <-be'> is simple
negation. <jIjangbe'> could mean "I didn't answer", "I do not answer",
or "I will not answer", but these are all just statements of fact. If I
want to say that I *refuse* to answer, I say <jIjangQo'>. 

Note that often non-imperative verbs with <-Qo'> get translated with
"won't", and "won't" is a bit funny in English. Sometimes it's used in a
simple future tense statement of fact, but it often means that the
subject refuses to do whatever it is. Klingon does not have this
problem. The following two sentences, which can both be translated "I
won't sleep tonight", are quite distinct.

DaHjaj ram jIQongbe'.
DaHjaj ram jIQongQo'.


> > > qoDDaq qamer'a'?
> > > "Did I surprise you inside?"
> 
> > This doesn't make much sense to me. Inside what?
> 
> I was trying to be funny.  Kodak camera.  :-)
> 
> > > naHlet vISuqmeH Sormey vItlhIl.
> > > "I mine trees in order to obtain nuts."
> 
> > I don't know if <tlhIl> can be used like this, but other 
> > than that, this is good.
> 
> My random sentence challenger threw me a nasty word pair.  How am I
> going to use /tlhIl/ and /naHlet/ in the same sentence?

jItlhIltaHvIS, naHlet vISop.


pagh
Beginners' Grammarian

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