tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Jun 09 19:14:37 2003

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Re: Qapla': Noun or Exclamation?



ghItlh SuStel:

>Well, it's not so much that I dislike the slang suffix that much.  I just
>dislike people using slang as if it were an ordinary tool.  "But I meant to
>use slang!"  Yeah, right; that's why it's the only instance of slang in 
>your
>entire working vocabulary . . . .

I agree completely. While we should understand what it means, if we are 
going to use slang, we'd better be prepared for any other slang that "comes 
back atcha". :D This is why I am doing my best to learn Klingon idioms, and 
not translate directly from the English.

That aside, I have found that it's fairly easy to recast in most 
circumstances to <<X-laH vay'>>. This doesn't always work, but there's 
always an alternative.


> > The result was ??{Qapla'} "one is able to succeed"
> >
> > Might this have some etymological value?
>
>I've occasionally wondered this myself.  Unfortunately, we have no
>information about this.
>

ahh, nIteb vItIvbe'... {{:) Klingon etymology has always interested me, but 
unfortunately we only have scant information on such things. {betleH} and 
{qajunpaQ} are about the only ones I can think of off the top of my head for 
which we have some etymology.

>SuStel
>Stardate 3437.5

qavan.

QeS lagh

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