tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Sat Dec 20 18:56:19 1997

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Re: KLBC: Basic Toasts

       Greetings Qov!


>Translating the basic expressions of one language into another language
>isn't always effective if the cultures are extremely different.

        I know they are, but there are some usefull expressions that we can
use. 


>}What is it like? - 'oH 'ar
>You are translating words not concepts here, edy.  One of the biggest
>problems with trying to translate these basic exercises is the very reason
>they are there in the first place: they introduce the basic idioms of the
>language, not phrases that can be deduced from simple knowledge of grammar
>and vocabulary.  

        Yesterday I was in a supermarket with my girlfriend and I tried to
speak a bit of klingon with her. Of course she understood nothing, except 
when I told her "qamuSHa' ", but she was curious what I was talking about.
I could use some small sentences as "tugh *supermarket* luSoQmoH ", <Soon
they will close the supermarket> or the PK: " 'IH jaj, qar'a' " and finally
"HISuvQo' ". But it was very interesting and a good exercise, but I carry lots
of the daily expressions. Think, speak the O-V-S and leave idiom concepts
 is very difficult .
        

>}It's my favourite food - Sojvam vIparHa' law' Hoch vIparHa' puS
>}These clothes are too big for me - jIHvaD tInqu'  'oH Sutmeyvam'e'
>
>You're mixing the pronoun as to-be, and the to-be that is part of the
>translation of the verb {tIn}.  {tIn} means "be big."  {tInqu' Sutvam} "this
>clothing is very big"

        The verbs as "adjectives"  .. that's right!!


>}We are a large family - qorDu' tIn maH'e' 
>}There are 6 of us in the family - qorDu'Daq jav maH'e'  
>
>Why did you put the {-'e'} suffix on {maH}?  I don't see that the emphasis
>adds anything.  

            I was trying "We are six in the family". Once again the verb "to be".


>}or qorDu'Daq maHvo' jav tu'lu' 
>
>This sounds more like six of our number went to the family, or something.  I
>don't like the {-vo'} here at all.
>I'm not 100% happy with {-Daq} for "in the family."  I probably would say
>{qorDu'majDaq jav nuv lutu'lu'}, and people would snicker at me for the
>pedantic and never-used-in-canon {lu-} on {tu'lu'}, if not for the {-Daq}.

        I don't know if this issue was discussed before, but there are other
(strange) ways to say the same thing:

nuv jav ghaj qorDu'wIj - My family has 6 persons
qorDu'Daq jav maH'e'  - We are 6 in the family
nuv jav chenmoH qorDu'wIj - My family forms 6 persons
nuv jav ngaS qorDu'wIj - My contains 6 persons.


__
Eduardo Fonseca || Belo Horizonte, Brasil
Pau Brasil: The brazilian's VGA Planets home page
http://www.geocities.com/BourbonStreet/2460
Hovmey DIvan

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