tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Jul 14 19:39:59 1997

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Re: KLBC a story

[email protected] on behalf of [email protected] wrote:
> >>Here is a little story..
> >>
> >>"The story - "Nuch" the running targ"
> >>
> >>Kargan was awoken by some strange noices from the livingroom. 
> >> "Qu'vatlh" thought Kargan.
> >>- Is that you "Nuch"?
> >>Yelled Kargan, with a Klingon morning voice. 
> >>- Come here, I'll rip your head off.
> >>"Nuch" the targ, Kargans pet, heard his master and trembeled with fear. He
> had seen  the same thing happen to his mother and brother.
> >>Kargan loved to rip the heads off his pets.
> >>- I must run, thought "Nuch".
> >>There was a reason "Nuch" got his name. His mother and brother had faced
> death with honor, unlike "Nuch" who always escaped danger.
> >>
> >>So "Nuch" ran. Ran and ran. Suddenly he fell into Kargans pool and 
drowned.
> >>Instead of fighting for his life, like his mother and brother had, "Nuch"
> died a shameful death. But his heart had the same fate his mothers had.
> >>That morning Kargan ate a shameful breakfast.
> >>
> >>
> >>"lut - targh qettaH "Nuch""

Whether or not non-qualitative verbs can be used adjectivally, this one cannot 
because it's got {-taH} attached to it.  Adjectivally acting verbs can only 
use {-be'} and {-qu'} (and, in my opinion, {-Ha'}), as far as we know.

qettaHbogh targh, "Nuch"

> >>Huj chuSmeymo' yInpa'vo' vemmoHpu' Kargan.

{chuS} is only a verb, not a noun.  You cannot say {chuSmey}.

You cannot make up a word like {yInpa'}.  We are not permitted to make this 
sort of verb-noun construction on our own.  Rather, you should use another 
method of saying this:  {yInmeH pa'} "room for living."  However, I believe a 
Klingon would take this phrase literally, and would wonder why humans 
differentiate between a room for living, and some other room.  Essentially, 
this English phrase probably wouldn't translate into Klingon.

Also, when using a noun with {-vo'} or any other Type 5 suffix on it (except 
for {-'e'}), it comes *before* the phrase, not after.

{vem} means "wake up."  {vemmoH} (see TKD sectino 4.2.4 for {-moH}) means 
"cause (someone) to wake up."

We have a correct Klingon pronunciation of Kargan.  It is {qarghan}.

chuSmo' "yInmeH pa'," vem qarghan.  vay' Huj tu'lu'law'.
Because the "living room" is noisy, Kargan wakes up.  There seems to be 
something strange.

> >>Qu'vatlh! Qobpu' Kargan.

"Think" is {Qub}.  I don't know if {Qub} can be used as a verb of saying like 
this, but it's probably understandable to a Klingon.

> >>- nuq SoH, "Nuch"

This is "What are you?"  For "Is that you?" you're going to have to be a 
little more specific.  For example,

SoH qaQoypu', *Nuch*?
Did I hear you, Nuch?

> >>jachpu' Kargan, tlhIngan poghoghna' lo'taH.

Since he's yelling now, you don't want to use {-pu'}.  This represents the 
fact that the yelling is complete, but at this moment it *isn't* complete.  
He's doing it.  Just say {jach}.

Since this is all one sentence, you cannot have more than one main verb like 
that.  The second part is really a relative clause:

jach qarghan, tlhIngan poghoghna' lo'taHvIS
yelled Kargan, while he was using a Klingon morning-voice.

(I love that word, {poghogh}!)

> >>-yIghoS, nachlIj vIpe'

{yIghoS} is a little too vague; it could mean "Go away," as well as "come 
here."  You could say {naDev yIghoS} "come here" or {yIchol} "come closer."

{nachlIj vIpe'} only means "I will cut your head."  Perhaps you want to say

porghvo' nachlIj vIchev
I will separate your head from your body.

> >>"Nuch" targh, Kargan Saj, joHlI' Qoyta' 'ej Suppu' ghIjghach.

Note that the appositive stuff here is not in the correct position.  It is the 
subject, and should go after the verb.

{joHDaj}.  {joHlI'} is "your lord," but the targ is in the third-person.

This is not the sort of thing the targ would have set out to listen to, so 
{-ta'} really isn't appropriate here.  In fact, making the point that the 
action has been completed is rather pointless here; I recommend that you leave 
it out.

"Trembled with fear."  Well, {ghIjghach} is not the sort of word you want to 
say to a Klingon, if you want to keep his respect.  Using {ghach} without any 
intervening suffix means the word sounds very silly to a Klingon.

I don't know if you'd want to use {Qom} "experience an earthquake"; that seems 
a little too figurative for what you're going after.  You can keep {Sup}, I 
suppose, if you recast the sentence.

joHDaj Qoy "Nuch" targh, qarghan Saj, 'ej ghIjlu'mo' SuptaH
Nuch the targh, Kargan's pet, heard his lord and he was jumping because he was 
scared.

> >>SajmeylIj nachmey pe' vIbangpu' Kargan.

You missed the mother and brother sentence.

SoSDajvo' loDnI'Dajvo' je nachmey chevpu' qarghan 'e' legh "Nuch."

(Note that the Klingon is a little more detailed than the English.  "Saw the 
same thing happen" in English isn't so easy in Klingon, and you really have to 
specify *what* you saw happen.)

{bang} is a noun meaning "beloved," not a verb.  If you love to do something, 
consider another verb.  In this case, {tIv} "enjoy" is a good one.

Also, remember that {-lI'} and {-lIj} are second-person, and {-Daj} is 
third-person.

SajmeyDajvo' nachmey chev qarghan 'e' tIv
Karghan enjoys separating the heads from his pets.

> >>- jIqetbej, Qubpu' "Nuch".

"I must run" would come out as {jIqetnIS}.  See TKD 4.2.2 on the verb suffix 
{-nIS} "need."

> >>meq 'oH ponglIj Suq "Nuch"

This doesn't work.  You're trying to combine a "to be" sentence with a normal 
one.  They don't do that.

meqmo' pongDaj Suq "Nuch"
Nuch obtained his name because of a reason.

> >>batlh Heghghach luqabpu' SoSlIj loDlIj je,

There is a noun, {Hegh} "death", which will prevent you from dishonoring 
yourself by using {-ghach} like this.

{qab} "face" is a noun, not a verb.  If it were a verb, you would have had an 
excellent sentence. A substitute might be

batlh Heghpu' SoSDaj loDnI'Daj je.
His mother and his brother had died with honor.

(Note the word for "brother" {loDnI'}.)  This time, I've used {Hegh} as a 
verb.

> par "Nuch", reH Qob narghpu'.

I'm not sure what you're trying to do with {par} "dislike."  I'd have said

'ach reH Qobvo' Haw'pu' "Nuch"
But Nuch had always fled from danger.

> >>qetpu' "Nuch".

Your original has "So Nuch ran."  I'd add {vaj} "therefore, so" to this.

Also, Unless Nuch is finished running, you cannot use {-pu'}.  Again, {-pu'} 
is only used to indicate that an action has been completed.

vaj qetchoH "Nuch."
Therefore, Nuch begins to run.

> qetpu' qetpu' je.

By the same token, this should be

qettaH.  qettaH.

Don't add {je}.  This is a noun conjunction, not a verb conjunction.

> pay' Kargan boQboSghachDaq pumpu' 'ej

Ack!  What's {boQboSghach} supposed to be?  Even if this sort of word were 
allowed (it's not), I don't see how "aide-collect" means anything.  Ah, you 
probably meant {bIQboS}, though that's also an illegal noun-verb construction.

Let's just admit that we don't know the Klingon word for "swimming pool."  I 
doubt they even have them.  "Swimming is too much like bathing."

pay' qarghan "swimming pool"Daq pum

Notice the lack of {-pu'} here as well.  By now I'm sure you're well aware of 
what I'm talking about, so I'll stop pointing that sort of thing out in such 
detail.

> Heghpu'.

Hegh.

> yInlIjmeH taghhgachHa' Suvbe'pu' "Nurgh", yInchajmeH luSuvbejpu'
> SoSlIj loDlIj je.

I don't get this one.  You really need to break this down into bite-sized 
pieces.  Klingon does well with small sentences, not with monstrous ones.

Heghpu' SoSDaj loDnI'Daj je Qan'eghtaHvIS.  'ach batlhHa' Hegh "Nuch."
His mother and his brother had died while protecting themselves.  However, 
Nuch died dishonorably.

> >>Heghghach tuHmoH HoHpu' "Nuch"

Huh?  I don't get this at all, and it seems not to have an English 
translation.

> >>SoSlIj tIq San rap ghajpu' tIqlIj.

Ick.  This one is too highly based on the English to work properly.  It comes 
out like (fixing {-lIj} to {-Daj}), "His heard had had his mother's heart's 
same fate."

Let's rewrite this into a Klingon mold.

rap SoSDaj tIq San tIqDaj San je
His mother's heart's fate and his heart's fate were the same.

> >>nIQ tuHmoH Sop Kargan povetlh.

{tuHmoH} does not mean "shameful."  It means "cause to be ashamed."  You can 
use {quvHa'} for "dishonored," (or {quvbe'} if you don't believe in using 
{-Ha'} on an adjectival verb).

The time context, {povetlh} has to go at the beginning of the sentence.

povetlh nIQ quvHa' Sop qarghan.

majQa'!  tlhIngan puq lutHomna' Daqonpu'.

-- 
SuStel
Beginners' Grammarian
Stardate 97533.6

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