tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Feb 22 12:16:56 1999
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Re: KLBC : revised bang bom mu'
Nic Rutherford wrote:
: I ran into a problem with describing "falling in love", therefore I have
: decided to try and put something together which is more klingon :
: [snip]
: I couldn't find a klingon verb for love - what does that tell me about
klingon
: society, they have verbs for most other emotions : muS, QeH, meQ, par.
You're right: there is no known Klingon verb for "love". Many people here
use *{muSHa'} "un-hate". The suffix {-choH} to mark transitions or changes
is state is ideal for what you want: *{muSHa'choH}. It works if you
prefer to use *{parHa'} etc.
FYI, we do know of the noun {parmaq} *par'Mach* "love, romance" which
refers in general to the human emotion, and the nouns {bang} "love, lover"
and {parmaqqay} *par'Machkai* "romantic companion, romantic partner" which
refer to the person being loved. We're not yet certain how *par'Mach* is
used in Klingon though.
: tIqwIj moj batlh 'etlhwI
: My batleth [or sword of honour etc;] becomes my heart
The normal word for bat'leth is {betleH}. "Sword (blade) of Honor" {batlh
'etlhwI'} is a little more historic or formal, not to mention that it
sounds a little risquee. But maybe your sweatheart goes in for that kind
of double entendre.
: tIqwIjtaH 'ethlhwIjDaq
: In my blade my heart goes on
You don't have a verb. What does this mean?
'ethlhwIjDaq taH tIqwIj'e'.
In my blade, my blade continues.
tIqwIjDaq taH 'ethlhwIj'e'.
In my heart, my blade continues.
: tIqwIj quDuq
: With my heart I stab you
Klingon doesn't have an instrumental, i.e. "I stab you *with my heart*,
*with my blade*, etc. You can either turn it around to the straightforward:
DuDuq tIqwIj.
My heart stabs you.
or phrase it with the useful, if over-used, dependent clause {X lo'taHvIS}
"while using X":
tIqwIj lo'taHvIS, qaDuq.
I stab you, (using) my heart.
: p.p.s
: has anyone actually worked out what *?!#@, *@$% and #*@! mean in section 5.5
: of the KD ? or is that the sort of question i shouldn't ask :-), but
: seriously, can they just be yelled in a klingon's general direction if you
: can't think of sutble insult (comparing their mothers ridges the flat plains
: of Xuno 3 or something ...)
Expletives and obscenities are never 100% equivalent between languages. A
curse which sounds fairly inoffensive in the grammar book may actually be a
deadly insult in another... or total nonsense if used in the wrong context.
IOW, the Klingon may kill you, or break out laughing - neither of which
probably being the effect you intended. As with any foreign culture, the
best way to learn to curse is by long observation. Don't try to learn "on
the job" as it were; you may not survive the attempt. Fortunately for the
tourist, one can frequently witness {mu'qaD veS} "curse warfare" in most
Klingon bars. Since Klingons consider cursing an art form, they may not
object to discussing the finer points with you over a few {HIvje'mey} of
bloodwine - particularly if you're buying. But be VERY careful how and
whom you ask.
If there are no Klingon bars in your neighborhood, Marc Okrand discusses a
few of the more common curses on Side One of the "Conversational Klingon"
audiotape.
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons