tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Fri Mar 03 08:57:55 2006
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Re: Tattoos
vo'an:
>I'm thinking about getting a tattoo that says something in tlhIngan Hol,
>located on my left bicep.
>I want to get something honorable, but didn't see much for what I wanted
>in The Klingon Way.
>So instead, I've come up with a peice that I would like help on with word
>choice:
>
> batlhwIjvaD yInwIj
> My life for my honor
>
>Now, I've always thought that (batlh) was the only honor, but then I
>remembered (quv), and want to
>hear your guys opinions on this subject.
For years the difference between the two was never explicitly spelled
out. This exchange from DS9 "In Purgatory's Shadow" nicely summed up our
understanding:
GARAK: "It's the honorable thing to do."
WORF: "You use that word, but you have no idea what it means."
GARAK: "Perhaps not, but you do."
But the untranslated line at the beginning of "Power Klingon" (before the
shooting starts)
quvwIj DatIchpu', tera'ngan
[You have insulted my honor, Terran.] PK
led me to translate {batlh} as Honor (with a capital H) and {quv} as honor
(with a small H), "fame", "reputation" or even "face" or "street
cred". IOW {batlh} is the general goal of Klingon society, a Platonic
value if you will, while {quv} is one's personal honor, something more
manageable and under a person's control which can be gained, lost and
regained.
Marc Okrand finally confirmed this basic understanding in 2003 (HolQeD 12.3:9):
All this talk of pseudohonor and nonhonor logically led to a discussion
of honor itself, normally expressed by the nouns {quv} and {batlh}, both
usually defined as simply "honor". When asked to distinguish between the
two, Maltz said, "{tlhIngan Soj 'oH-?not bIyaj}," literally, "It is Klingon
food-you will not understand," using {Soj} "food" in its idiomatic sense
of "matter, concern, affair". Nevertheless, he then went on, though a bit
begrudgingly, to say that {quv} was a sort of personal honor, the kind over
which, by one's behavior, one has some control. This sort of honor is
earned,
can be bestowed on one, and is associated with reputation, dignity, and
respect. {batlh}, on the other hand, is a grander, more general, more phil-
osophical concept, associated with integrity, rectitude, scruples, and
principles. Unfortunately, he didn't give examples or elaborate any further.
He did add, however, that neither {quv} nor {batlh} was the same as {pop},
usually translated "reward" but sometimes translated "[an] honor" in the
sense of "token of esteem", that is, formal recognition of an accomplishment
or accomplishments.
One's {quv} is defended by dueling:
One accepts a challenge ({qab 'ang} [literally, "shows face"]) in order
to prove one's honor ({quv tob} [literally, "test honor conclusively"]).
Though any perceived attack on one's honor may prompt one to issue a
challenge, in one traditional form of duel, the goal is specifically for
a man to "win the favor of a women" ... by competing with another man.
(KGT 67ff)
Other examples of {quv} in canon are:
batlhHa' vanglu'taHvIS quv chavbe'lu'
One does not achieve honor while acting dishonorably. TKW
tlhIngan quv DatIchDI' Seng yIghuH
When you insult a Klingon's honor, prepare for trouble. TKW
quv Hutlh HoHbogh tlhIngan 'ach qabDaj 'angbe'bogh
A Klingon who kills without showing his face has no honor. TKW
'ang'eghQo' quv Hutlhbogh jagh neH ghobtaHvIS ghaH
Only an enemy without honor refuses to show himself in battle. TKW
SuvwI' quvlIj yIqel!
Consider your warrior's honor! (Day of Honor postcard)
quv lughaj Archer HoD beqDaj je.
Captain Archer and his crew are honorable people. (ENT "The Augments")
The noun {batlh} has been used less often:
yIntaHvIS qeylIS'e' lIjlaHbe'bogh vay' batlh 'etlhvam chenmoHlu'pu'
this sword of honor descends from the time of Kahless the Unforgettable. S8
[N.B. {batlh 'etlh} "sword of Honor" > {betleH} "bat'leth"]
batlh potlh law' yIn potlh puS
Honor is more important than life. TKW
batlh qelDI' tlhIngan, lumbe'
A Klingon does not postpone a matter of honor. TKW
>Same with my inclusion of (-vaD). Is it needed? Could I
>just have (batlhwIj yInwIj) as My life _is_ my honor?
First, that's only a phrase meaning "my honor, my life" -- not bad for a
slogan, though I'd use {quv}. The full sentence "My honor is my life"
would be {yInwIj 'oH quvwIj'e'}. Note that the subject is tagged with
{-'e'} and you need the "pronoun as verb" {'oH} to link the two.
Next, you're right that using {-vaD} for "my life for my honor" is
problematic. IIRC we've never seen it used this way in such a fragment. A
fuller version might be:
quvwIjvaD yInwIj vInob.
I (will) give my life for my honor.
quvwIjvaD yInwIj vInobrup.
I'm ready to give my life for my honor.
though you can also use {batlh}:
batlhvaD yInwIj vInob.
I (will) give my life for Honor.
Another approach is to use the dueling idiom to refer to honor indirectly:
[reH] qabwIj vI'angrup
I'm [always] ready to show my face.
Since it's going to be a tattoo, you probably want something brief and
pithy to fit on your arm, but looking back at the examples I would go with
"Honor is more important than life" -- say, surrounding the Klingon trefoil
symbol {tlhIngan wo' Degh}:
batlh potlh law'
[TREFOIL]
yIn potlh puS
This might be too much, but when it comes to tattoos yet another proverb
springs to mind:
loQ 'oy'DI' SuvwI' bepbe'
A warrior does not complain about physical discomfort. TKW
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons