tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed May 21 13:06:13 2003
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Re: Learning
"susan" <[email protected]> asks:
> > I have the tape
> > "Conversational Klingon". I also have TKD. The trouble with the tape
> > is there is no book to follow along. I really need to see what I am
> > hearing. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
I'm assuming that you have read the grammar sections in TKD two or three
times, qar'a' (right)? <g>
DloraH:
>If we can find a way for you to prove that you own it, for copyright reasons,
>then maybe we can get you a text version of the tape.
Eventually perhaps, but Susan should first try to transcribe the tape
herself, using the vocabulary lists in TKD. (Don't forget to check the
second list in the Addendum.) Work through it section by section: i.e.
"arriving on Kronos", "checking into a hotel", "going to a bar", etc. Make
sure that you understand the grammar of each Klingon sentence before you
move on to the next section.
A couple of caveats:
1) Keep in mind that Okrand's translations are sometimes a bit loose (i.e.
colloquial) and don't necessarily reflect the Klingon word-for-word,
affix-by-affix.
2) Okrand did have to use a very few words which aren't listed in
TKD. These new words were eventually included in the glossary in "Klingon
for the Galactic Traveller", but if you don't want to invest in KGT yet,
don't worry about it since you can understand the tape without it.
Be warned: This will take several hours, or even days, and you will have
to re-wind and play the tape over and over again as you get used to
Okrand's pronunciation - learning to hear the glottal stop /'/ and to
distinguish his /H/ from /Q/ or /S/ from /tlh/ takes a little practice -
but the exercise will be well worth it. This is, in fact, how I learned
Klingon; I only had KGT and CK to work with before I had discovered the
Klingon Language Institute and this mailing list.
If you get stuck or have questions, just ask us. Always post what you've
figured out first, of course. We're always happy to help beginners, but
don't expect us to do the work for you. If you don't want to be confused
by too many conflicting opinions, flag your post with "KLBC" for the
attention of the Beginning Grammarian.
Qapla'! (Success!)
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons