tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Jul 28 14:04:31 1997

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Re: cheghta' muHwI' !



[email protected] on behalf of Neal Schermerhorn wrote:
> OK - Theory Time - everyone can feel free to rip this to shreds...
> 
> If -be' negates the element it follows, then tu'lu'be' and tu'be'lu' would 
> both be translatable as There aren't. But the 'actual' meanings are still:
> 
> DujwIjDaq yIHmey lutu'be'lu' = Someone does not find tribbles on my ship.
> DujwIjDaq yIHmey lutu'lu'be' = No one finds tribbles on my ship.
> 
> The examples of tu'lu' above yield to this analysis well.
> 
> QuvlIjDaq yIH tu'be'lu'jaj = May someone not find tribbles at your 
> coordinates.
> SuvwI' qan tu'lu'be' = No one finds old warriors.
> 
> The first expresses a hope that tribbles will not be encountered, not that a 

> search will be undertaken or anything - one simply won't come across any. 
The 
> second implies that no matter how hard you look, you cannot find an old 
> warrior. 
> 
> "Someone doesn't find" (tu'be'lu') seems to mean that in the regular course
> of 
> events, the object will not be encountered. "No one finds" (tu'lu'be') 
> expresses conviction that even when scrutiny is used, the object will not be 

> found.

What's the negative of an indefinite subject?

No, I think what's happening here is that {tu'lu'} has become a special form 
all by itself (which would explain its special treatment in TKD), and that 
{-be'} is negating this special form.

tu'be'lu'
{-be'} is negating {tu'}

tu'lu'be'
{-be'} is negating {tu'lu'} -- the whole thing.

I can think of no good reason that {-lu'} itself should ever need to be 
negated.  {-lu'} is often translated "someone," but it's not a specific 
someone.  That's {vay'}, the negation of which is {pagh}.

{QuvlIjDaq yIH tu'be'lu'jaj} "May someone not find tribbles at your 
coordinates."  This doesn't mean that someone else should, it is a wish that 
any subject, the general subject, not find tribbles there.

-- 
SuStel
Beginners' Grammarian
Stardate 97571.6


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