tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Sep 09 18:35:11 2002
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Re: ghomqa'ghach
Am 09.09.2002 16:11:18, schrieb "Agnieszka Solska" <[email protected]>:
>What makes me suspicious is the proverb which is glossed as:
>
>"Klingons kill for their own purposes"
>
>Yet the tlhIngan Hol version is not
>{ngoQmey*chaj* chavmeH HoH tlhInganpu'}
>but it is phrased quite differently, namely:
>{tlhIngan ngoQmey chavmeH HoH tlhInganpu'}
I think it's just the neglish translation which is not so accurate. Most of the translations in TKW are
very roughly, to make them sound more "poetic" or just "normal" in english (you know what I mean).
{tlhIngan ngoQmey chavmeH HoH tlhInganpu'}
a more literal translation is
"Klingons kill for klingon purposes" (not for terran, for instance)
----
> we don't know if a possessive suffix ,
> such as {-chaj} can precede the noun it refers to, i.e. {pab po'wI'pu').
Really? In TKW we have enough examples:
To die in the line of duty is the hope of every Klingon.
Qu'Daj ta'taHvIS Hegh 'e' tul Hoch tlhIngan
To die defending his ship is the hope of every Klingon.
DujDaj HubtaHvIS Hegh 'e' tul Hoch tlhIngan
A Klingon does not run away from his battles.
may'meyDajvo' Haw'be' tlhIngan
vangDI' tlhIngan SuvwI' ngoy' qorDu'Daj; vangDI' qorDu'Daj ngoy' tlhIngan SuvwI'.
The family of a Klingon warrior is responsible for his actions, and he is responsible for theirs.
So the difference is
{ngoQmeychaj chavmeH HoH tlhInganpu'}
"The Klingons kill for their purposes"
(i.e. the two klingons you see there do what they want)
{tlhIngan ngoQmey chavmeH HoH tlhInganpu'}
"Klingons kill for their own purposes"
(i.e. all klingons kill only for the klingon empire)
TKW p. 165 also explains this:
"[...] Kang refused to go on fighting, citing a proverb that expresses the klingon aversion to being
dominated by others. More important than following the instinct to be a warrior is the ability to
maintain control over one's own actions."
Quvar.