tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Fri Aug 25 08:17:59 2006

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Re: Klingon WOTD: pong (noun)

Steven Boozer ([email protected])



>This is the Klingon Word Of The Day for Friday, August 25, 2006.
>
>Klingon word:   pong
>Part of Speech: noun
>Definition:     name

Used in canon:

   tlhIngan qorDu' pong potlh law' Hoch potlh puS
   Above all, the Klingon family name is highly valued. S13

   Paramount Pictures malja' permey bIH Star Trek pong'e' Deghmey'e' je
   "Star Trek" and related marks are trademarks of Paramount Pictures.
   (SkyBox Copyright)

Cultural notes:

   Klingon names are frequently mispronounced by non-Klingons. Further-
   more, when written in the writing systems of other languages, they
   usually end up with spellings which only suggest their true pronun-
   ciation. For example, the Klingon sound {tlh} at the beginning of a
   word is almost always written /kl/ by English speakers, presumably
   because the sound /tl/ cannot occur at the beginning of an English
   word. Similarly, Klingon {Q} is often rendered /kr/, and Klingon
   {q} always comes out /k/ ... Names may be used in direct address
   (that is, calling somebody by name) at the beginning or end of the
   sentence. Other words used in direct address (such as {qaH} "sir",
   {joHwI'} "my lord") are used similarly:
      torgh HIghoS
        Torg, come here!
      lu' qaH
        Yes, sir! (TKD 58)

   It is always proper to call somebody by his or her name alone ...
   During formal occasions, it is also not uncommon to refer to someone
   by his or her father's name, such as {mogh puqloD} ("son of Mogh")
   or a combination of given name plus father's name, such as {HuS
   'atrom puqbe'} ("Huss, daughter of A'trom").  (KGT 197)]

At a panel in Huntsville (September 1996), Okrand said that Klingons are 
like some Terran cultures in which people have more than one name, 
including names that are used for outsiders or in public. Those "outsider" 
names needn't even be valid Klingon, because they're not meant for proper 
Klingon speech. (Seqram)

N.B. {pong wa'DIch} "first name" and {pong HochDIch} "last name" [i.e. of a 
list] (HQ 12.2:9); {bang pong} "pet name, endearment" (KGT).

Related nouns:  {Degh} "emblem, symbol, insignia, marking, mark"; {per} "label"

>Homonyms:
>     pong (verb) - name, call

Used in canon:

   roD 'oHvaD juHqo' ponglu' neH
   [Qo'noS] is usually referred to as simply "The Homeworld." S27

   DaHjaj matlh jupna' pIpong
   Today we name you a true friend of Maltz. ("Friend of Maltz" certificate)

Related verbs:  {per} "label, attach or assign a name to; ascertain, 
specify, pin down"



--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons






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