tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Thu Aug 24 14:23:25 2006
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Re: omission of possessive suffixes?
Thorwald Peeters wrote:
> >with the above sentence, is the possesional suffix {-Daj} *never*
> >required, or just required in some cases?
Voragh:
>I've wondered myself whether using these suffixes is always required. In
>Latin and Russian for example, possessive pronouns are usually omitted when
>their use is - in the words of the grammar books - "obvious and
>unremarkable": e.g. "the student raised (his) hand", "the woman stubbed
>(her) toe", "I scratched (my) head", etc. Okrand almost always adds the
>suffix (following English practice), but IIRC there are a few cases where
>he doesn't.
>
>These examples use a different construction:
>
> butlh ghajbogh nuv'e' yIHo'.
> Admire the person with dirt under his fingernails. [TKW]
> (relative clause: "the person who has dirt-under-fingernails")
>
> HeghDI' SuvwI' nargh SuvwI' qa'.
> When a warrior dies, his spirit escapes. [TKW]
> (repeats the noun {SuvwI'})
>
> jonlu'meH wo'maj pop tIn law' Hoch tIn puS
> Our Empire's highest bounty has been placed on his head. [ST5 notes]
> (purpose clause "[in order] to capture [him]" followed by a law'/puS
> formula"
>
> loDHom jIHDI' qIrq qun vIqImchoH.
> I've followed his history since I was a boy. [ST5 notes]
> (uses the name: "Kirk's history")
>
>But in this example the possessive pronoun is simply omitted:
>
> 'oy'naQ Dalo'be'chugh not nenghep lop puq.
> If you don't use the painstik, the child will never celebrate
> his Age of Ascension. [TKW]
> (i.e. "the child will never celebrate the Age of Ascension")
>
>Now this may be what we're talking about, or it may just be a case of not
>being able to use possessive pronouns on something intangible - the Age of
>Ascension {nenghep} is a ceremony (or time of life), not an object.
For those interested, I found some more examples using other constructions:
tlhIngan ngoQmey chavmeH HoH tlhInganpu'.
Klingons kill for their own purposes. [TKW]
("Klingons kill to achieve Klingon goals")
pIch vIghajbe'
It's not my fault. [TKD]
("I don't have [the/any] blame.")
ghItlh vIghItlhta'bogh DalaD'a'
Will you read my manuscript? [TKD]
("... the manuscript which I have written")
vISeHmeH Hoch nuHmey Qay!
All weapons to my control. [ST5 (clipped)]
("Transfer all weapons in-order-for-me-to-control-them")
vImuHlu' net wuqHa'!
My death sentence was commuted! [ENT "Affliction']
("It was un-decided that I'm to be executed")
and some more true omissions:
DungDaq legh 'ej QotnIStaH romuluSngan be'pu'!
Romulan women belong on their backs! [ST5 notes]
juHqo' Qo'noSvo' loghDaq lengtaHvIS tlhInganpu'
During the (aggressive) expansion of the Klingon people from their
homeworld of Kronos into space... [SP1]
qogh vItuQmoHHa'pu'
I've taken off my belt. [HQ 2.4]
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons