tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Tue Feb 23 18:17:01 1999
[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]
RE: KLBC: double -bogh verbs
- From: "Andeen, Eric" <[email protected]>
- Subject: RE: KLBC: double -bogh verbs
- Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 19:19:32 -0700
jatlh T'Lod:
> I have seen an example of two verbs suffixed with -bogh, connected
> with je at the end, most notably in the Klingon Anthem: yoHbogh
> matlhbogh je SuvwI'. Could someone explain this usage to me and
> how a noun conjunction is used with verb clauses?
jIjatlh:
> Simple - it's not. This example comes from a song, and is a good
> example of Okrand taking poetic license. Poetry and song lyrics
> often break grammatical conventions to achieve some other aesthetic
> objective, and that's what's going on here. I believe (although I
> am not sure) that Okrand himself has said that this is not grammatical,
> and was done solely to sound good in the song. The normal way to
> combine multiple <-bogh> clauses is with <'ej>.
jatlh T'Lod:
> So if this were a proper Klingon phrase, it would be yoHbogh 'ej
> matlhbogh SuvwI', qar'a'?
In general, when a subject is repeated between two different
sentences/clauses, it's better to state it in the *first* one and leave it
out in the second. This is a bit hard to get used to, but it is important.
<yoHbogh SuvwI' 'ej matlhbogh>
pagh
Beginners' Grammarian