tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Thu Feb 08 08:47:26 2001
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Re: -oy
De'vID wrote:
: How would I add {-oy} to a word that ends in a vowel. e.g. {ghu} "baby"?
: *{ghuoy}?
: {ghu'oy}? (But this sounds like "dear situation"! {{=) )
{ghu'oy} 'oH. Marc Okrand on {-oy} in the TKD Addendum:
"It is a very peculiar suffix because it is the only suffix that
begins with a vowel rather than a consonant. (Though there are
no examples, it is suspected that for those few nouns which end
in a vowel, /'/ is inserted before this suffix.)" (TKD 174)
Indeed, most native speakers of English can not avoid inserting /'/ between two
distinct vowels in succession. Apparently, neither can speakers of {tlhIngan
Hol}.
: (I'm just translating some phrases from Austin Powers for my girlfriend.)
WARNING: If you're using {ghu'oy} to refer to your {parmaqqay} and not your
infant child, then it is a private {bang pong} and thus quite different from
Austin Powers' casual epithet "baby". Be *very* careful never to call her this
in public if you value your relationship. Okrand again:
"Pet names are almost never uttered unless the two members of the
couple are alone and, therefore, are seldom known by anyone else.
Indeed, one of the defining characteristics of a {bang pong} is
that it be secret, known only by the two members of the couple.
... Because of the nature of the {parmaq} relationship, misusing a
{bang pong} is a serious cultural offense. This could mean, among
other things, revealing a {bang pong} to someone other than one's
{parmaqqay}, revealing a third party's {bang pong} (regardless of
how this information was acquired), addressing one's {parmaqqay}
by the wrong pet name, or using a {bang pong} in a public setting."
(KGT 199ff)
Considering how differently the two societies use pet names, I imagine this is
one of the major sources of misunderstanding between Terran-Klingon couples.
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons