tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Tue Jan 30 11:33:31 1996
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Re: KLBC: Re: *romangan*Daq mu'thleghmey val
- From: "William H. Martin" <[email protected]>
- Subject: Re: KLBC: Re: *romangan*Daq mu'thleghmey val
- Date: Tue, 30 Jan 1996 14:33:23 -0500 (EST)
- In-Reply-To: <[email protected]> from "Michael Rhodes" at Jan 27, 96 03:33:58 pm
According to Michael Rhodes:
>
>
> >>*romangan*Daq mu'tlheghmey val puS vImugh
> >>vIneHpu'. jiHvaD yIja' jIQaghchugh. Satlho'neS.
> >
> >Hmm.. I can't quite tell if you are trying to use the verb suffix {-pu'}
> >correctly. It looks like you intend for it to indicate simple past tense,
...
> Although I am new to Klingon, I have considerable experience (over 25 years)
> with Biblical Hebrew, which also uses aspect rather than tense with its
> verbs. Nevertheless, since an English simple past almost always describes
> something that is completed, it seems to me that the use of the perfective
> suffix -pu' is appropriate. Okrand's own examples in TKD 4.2.7, p. 41
> support this:
>
> vIneHpu'- I wanted them.
> qaja'pu' - I told you.
Unfortunately, Okrand is not following his own description with
these examples. Just above them, he says, "This suffix
indicates that an action is completed. It is often translated
by the English present perfect..." Were he translating those
examples into present perfect, they would have been, "I have
wanted them," and "I have told you." He has done a better job
of describing this in the audio tapes.
> Okrand also states that "Verbs with no Type 7 suffix are translated by the
> English simple present tense," (TKD 4.2.7, p. 40) but that "when context is
> appropriate, verbs without a Type 7 suffix may be translated by the English
> future tense." (TKD 4.2.7, 0. 40) Nowhere does he state that it is
> appropriate to translate verbs with no Type 7 suffix as past tense.
Meanwhile, if you listen to the examples on the audio tapes, he
clearly states something like:
wa'Hu' jI'oj. Yesterday, I was thirsty.
DaHjaj jIghung. Today, I am hungry.
wa'leS jIDoy. Tomorrow, I will be tired.
It is QUITE normal to translate unsuffixed verbs into the
simple past tense.
> Qapla'
>
> Mike
charghwI'
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