tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Tue Jul 30 11:01:57 2002

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RE: Wales-vo' jIcheghpu'



DloraH, BG:
> > pIghDaq Dochmey law' leghlaHlu'.
>
>-laH and -lu' are both type 5 suffixes.

An accepted work-around is to substitute {vay'} "somebody, anybody" instead 
of {-lu'}:

   pIghDaq Dochmey law' leghlaH vay'.

> > naghvam Hotlu'laHbe', 'ach naghmey HochHom Hotlu'laH.
>
>Again, two type 5 suffixes.

   naghvam HotlaH vay' ...

Cf. "Klingon for the Galactic Traveller" (p. 181):

   Among those suffixes that can never occur together are {-lu'} (indefinite
   subject indicator) and {-laH} ("can, able"). The former is used when the
   subject is unknown or indefinite, often translated into Federation Standard
   by means of the passive voice: {jagh jonlu'} ("One captures the enemy," or
   "The enemy is captured"). The latter is used to express ability: {jagh 
jonlaH}
   ("He/she can capture the enemy"). If it is desirable to express the ideas of
   "indefinite subject" and "ability" at the same time, such as in the 
sentences
   "One can capture the enemy" or "The enemy can be captured," it is not 
uncommon
   to use the noun {vay'} ("somebody, anybody") as the subject of the sentence:
   {jagh jonlaH vay'} ("Somebody can capture the enemy," or "Anybody can 
capture
   the enemy"). Nevertheless, some speakers seem to want to put the two 
concepts
   into a single word, and, on rare occasion, they will do so. Rather than
   violating the rules by using the two suffixes sequentially (that is, 
{-lu'laH}
   or {-laHlu'}), however, these speakers will say either {-luH} or {-la'},
   employing totally artificial, made-up suffixes formed by fusing {-lu'} and
   {-laH}, as in {jagh jonluH} or {jagh jonla'} ("The enemy can be captured").
   No one accepts such constructions as grammatical; their 
inappropriateness, the
   way they grate on the Klingon ear, is exactly what gives them elocutionary
   clout. A visitor may hear one of these odd suffixes occasionally, but, 
as with
   other intentionally ungrammatical forms, it is best to avoid using them 
until
   one is extremely comfortable with the nuances of Klingon style.



-- 
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons



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