tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Sun Jan 12 04:50:27 1997
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Re: nuqneH
- From: Ivan A Derzhanski <[email protected]>
- Subject: Re: nuqneH
- Date: Sun, 12 Jan 1997 14:49:27 -0800
- Organization: Institute for Mathematics and Computer Science
- References: <[email protected]>
David Trimboli wrote:
> January 11, 1997 11:10 PM EST, jatlh Jajlo':
> > However, the English word "dawn" is also spelled with a lowercase,
> > but the name "Dawn" is uppercase.
>
> Yes, but English capitalizes proper nouns. We have no idea how Klingons
> do it in {pIqaD}, [...]
Most likely they don't. Look at the Earth. Hundreds of writing
systems have been devised here, but only half a dozen or so have
such a technique as capitalisation for proper nouns. Most often
they are not marked at all; sometimes there is a special sign to
mark them as names (akin to the asterisks occasionally used here).
Klingons would probably recognise a name-initial {J} or the like
as a concession to Terran habits.
[re "Don't Forget to Write!"]
> In Klingon, I'd accept the idea that Klingons "record" both messages
> and stories. [...] Assuming that, to preserve your joke you'd have
> to say, {bIqon 'e' yIlIjQo'}. But somehow, this doesn't really work.
No, it doesn't. I might end a letter to a writer by
Duqonqu'meH qun, yIqon!
bIQumbe'chugh vaj bIQom
--but that's probably too heavy to quote at the end of every note.
--'Iwvan
--
"mIw'e' lo'lu'ta'bogh batlh tlhIHvaD vIlIH [...]
poH vIghajchugh neH jIH, yab boghajchugh neH tlhIH"
(Lewis Carroll, "_Snark_ wamlu'")
Ivan A Derzhanski <[email protected], [email protected]>
Dept for Math Lx, Inst for Maths & CompSci, Bulg Acad of Sciences
Home: cplx Iztok bl 91, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria