tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Mar 08 07:27:19 2004

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Re: possible proverb

QuljIb ([email protected])



vIghItlh quljIb:
>{letlh bIchenmoHchugh, mIwmey bIghojnIS.}
>lit. "If you build a staircase, you must have steps."

nabwI' jang; ghItlth:
>This reminds me of the English translation of the Klingon joke:
>{Doq'a' SuvwI'pu'? ghobe'. SuD} "Are warriors red? No, they are green."
>mentions nothing about gambling or taking a risk, something that is
>present in the Klingon.
>
>Likewise:
>"Two Ferengi walk into a bar. Ouch." could be translated as:
>{tach lu'el cha' verengan. 'oy'} "Two Ferengi enter a pub. It hurts."
>But that translation does not give the double entendre necessary to the
>joke.
>
>The cleverness of the original English is utterly lost in the translation.
>Full marks for effort, though. }}: )

I see your point.  I suppose the meaning could be better conveyed thusly:

{bItoS(laH)pa' yIghojnIS}
"Before you (can) climb, you must walk."

-quljIb





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