tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Nov 19 16:42:02 2001
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Re: *Halloween* rurbogh QI'lop'e'
Sean Healey wrote:
: *Halloween* *Mardi Gras/Carnival* joq rurbogh QI'lop'e' tu'lu''a'?
"Is there a {QI'lop} resembling Halloween or Mardi Gras/Carnival?"
Are you asking whether Klingons wear costumes during QI'lop, like the Terran
Halloween, etc.
Halloween Mardi Gras/Carnival joq rur'a' QI'lop?
or are you asking if there is a Klingon holiday similar to Halloween etc.?
Halloween Mardi Gras/Carnival joq rurbogh tlhIngan yupma' tu'lu''a'?
If the former, according to PK, QI'lop is a specific holiday honoring the
Klingon military. In fandom Ke'Plak as it's sometimes called, occurs on
October 15. The closest American holidays would be Armed Forces Day, Veteran's
Day or Memorial Day.
A vocabulary note: There's no known word corresponding exactly to the English
"holiday", but you can say {yupma'} "festival", {lop} "celebration" or even
{lopno'} "party, celebration" (as it's glossed in KGT). There's also the verb
{lop} "observe, celebrate (a ritual)". Of these, {yupma'} is probably the most
general.
: tlhInganpu' jech'eghmoHbogh QI'lop'e' vIHech.
"I mean a {QI'lop} which causes Klingons to disguise themselves."
: I was a little shaky about using {-moH} like this (i.e., an intangible
: concept that causes a Klingon to do something) - I thought perhaps it would
: be taboo, but it was the best I could come up with.
You're right. It feels off, although I understand what you meant right away.
I'll let the BG try to fix this, but in the interim you can rephrase this,
again substituting {yupma'}:
qaStaHvIS yupma'vam jech'egh tlhInganpu' 'e' vIHech.
I mean that Klingons disguise themselves during this festival.
yupma'vam loptaHvIS jech'egh tlhInganpu' 'e' vIHech.
I mean: Klingons disguise themselves when celebrating this festival.
Finally to answer you question: I don't know. Although we've seen Worf wear
costumes on the holodeck occasionally (cowboys from the Ancient West, an 18th
century British officer, etc.), I don't think we've ever seen him wear a mask.
I would actually be surprised if he did, considering that "showing one's face"
{qab 'ang} is closely tied to Klingon ideas of honor:
A duel is preceded by one party issuing a challenge to the other.
This is expressed by using the phrase {qabDaj 'ang} (literally,
"He/she shows his/her face," referring to the Klingon tenet that
a warrior always shows his or her face in battle). (KGT 68f.)
quv Hutlh HoHbogh tlhIngan 'ach qabDaj 'angbe'bogh
A Klingon who kills without showing his face has no honor. TKW
'ang'eghQo' quv Hutlhbogh jagh neH ghobtaHvIS ghaH
Only an enemy without honor refuses to show himself in battle. TKW
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons