tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Tue Oct 31 12:57:28 2006
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Re: SoSlI': tera'ngan mu'qaD veS
De'vID wrote:
>>The basic formula for a "yo mamma" insult is: "yo mamma's so (adjective)
>>[that] (...)". Some examples:
>>
>> Yo mamma's so fat, when she gets sick a cargo lift is needed to get
>> her to the infirmary.
>> pI'qu'mo' SoSlI', ropchoHDI', ropyaHDaq HIjlu' tepqengwI' lo'nISlu'.
>>
>> Yo mamma's so old, she owes Kahless a darsek.
>> qanqu' SoSlI', ghaHvaD wa' DarSeQ nojpu' qeylIS 'ej wej nobHa'.
>>
>>(What's the difference between <tatlh> or <nobHa'>? Which one is
>>appropriate for returning something borrowed?)
Okrand discussed {tatlh} st.klingon:
>From: Marc Okrand <...>
>Newsgroups: startrek.klingon
>Date: Sun, 18 Jul 1999
>
> [snip]
>
>A different verb, {tatlh}, is used for "return" in the sense of returning
>a library book or returning a weapon to the weapons rack. If someone were
>to say something like "I return the plate to the table," the appropriate
>verb would be {tatlh}:
>
> {raSDaq jengva' vItatlh}
>
>Though not common, it is also possible to use {tatlh} with the reflexive
>suffix {-'egh} ("do something to oneself") to convey a meaning similar to
>that of {chegh}:
>
> {pa'Daq jItatlh'egh}
> "I return to the room"
>
>The {tatlh'egh} form seems to suggest that the doer of the action is
>forcing himself/herself to do something, perhaps because it is difficult
>or not desirable.
{nobHa'} "give back, return" has been used in only one example:
Huch nobHa'bogh verenganpu''e' yIvoqQo'
Don't trust Ferengi who give back money. TKW
I'm guessing that {nobHa'} "give back, return" is used if you're returning
something which someone gave {nob} originally you. E.g. You gave your
money to the Ferengi, he gave it back to you. {tatlh} seems to be used for
returning an object to its original location; the fact that someone may
have handed the object to you may not be relevant. Conceivably you could
use both: E.g. I lent one of my library books to a friend; he gave it back
(nobHa'} to me and then I returned it {tatlh} to the library.
We also have the verbs {noj} "lend" and {ngIp} "borrow", so *{nojHa'} and
*{ngIpHa'} are theoretically possible.
>>I noticed that the Terran formula doesn't translate to one thing in
>>Klingon. "yo mamma's so (adjective) [that] (...)" can mean either:
>>
>>1) (...) because your mother is so (adjective); or
>>2) your mother is very (adjective), and as evidence of that, (...).
>>
>>In the first case, it translate to <(adjectival-verb)qu'mo' SoSlI',
>>(...)>, and in the second, the suffix <-mo'> doesn't belong. That is,
>>in the first example, a cargo lift is needed to transport your mother
>>*because* she is so fat. In the second, your mother owes Kahless a
>>darsek, but it isn't *because* she is so old. Rather, the fact that she
>>owes Kahless a darsek is a demonstration of her age.
You're being overly analytical; you don't really need to translate them by
different formulae. You can simply preface {ADJECTIVE-qu' SoSlI'} to the
comment. E.g.
pI'qu' SoSlI'; ropchoHDI'...
qanqu' SoSlI'; ghaHvaD wa'...
YOu could also use {net Sov} to imply that the comment's a well known fact:
pI'qu' SoSlI' net Sov: ropchoHDI'...
qanqu' SoSlI' net Sov: ghaHvaD ...
>>One can also deviate from the above formula. The following, for
>>example, resembles a Klingon proverb:
>>
>> Yo momma's like Ferenginar: wet and slimy and filled with Ferengis.
>> verengan juHqo' rur SoSlI'; yIQ 'ej char 'ej verenganpu'mo' buy'.
Also consider the transitive verb {teb} "fill":
... 'ej luteb verenganpu'
... and Ferengi fill it (with themselves?)
or, better, {ngaS} "contain":
... 'ej verenganpu' ngaS.
... and it contains Ferengi.
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons