tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Thu Mar 02 17:10:33 2006

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Re: ben vs. ben

Alan Anderson ([email protected]) [KLI Member] [Hol po'wI']

ja' Voragh:
> I was cataloging a reprint of Shabbetai Sheftel ben Akiva  
> Horowitz's _Sefer
> Shefa' tal_ (Hanau [Germany], 1611) today when I saw the running
> title:  *haqdamah ben me'ah shanah* ("hundred year-old  
> introduction") and
> was reminded that in Hebrew *ben* can also be used for dates of non- 
> human
> things.  A (very) quick search of the Internet found:
>
>    Leviticus 12:6 -  *tavi' kevesh ben-shenato le-'olah*
>    "she shall bring a lamb of the FIRST YEAR for a burnt offering."
>    The NASB reads "a ONE year old lamb" while the NIV has "A year old
>    lamb."
>
>    Exodus 29:38 -  *kevashim benei-shanah shenayim la-yom tamid*
>    "two lambs of the FIRST YEAR day by day continually."  The NASB  
> reads
>    "a lamb of the FIRST year" while the NIV has "she is to bring A  
> year
>    old lamb."
>
> This usage parallels {cha'vatlh ben HIq} "Two Century Old Ale/Wine"  
> nicely.

No, it actually doesn't parallel it at all.

The Hebrew "ben" means "son".  The "ben-shenato" and "benei-shanah"  
are literally "[male] offspring of a year".  The idea of age is in  
the word "shanah".  To parallel the Klingon, one would replace the  
Hebrew "ben" with "yayin" and add "matayim" to get something like  
"yayin matayim shanim", "wine of two hundred years".  (Leaving in the  
"ben" would result in the phrase "ben yayin", literally "son of  
wine", which I think refers to vinegar.)

-- ghunchu'wI'

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