tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Fri Mar 26 14:46:40 2004

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Re: That's not canon

Steven Boozer ([email protected]) [KLI Member] 

SuStel:
 > /SIS/ is in TKD, but information on how to use it is not.  Okrand's *use*
 > of /SIS/ was canonized by someone's report of it at a convention.

De'vID:
>Oh, I see.  I didn't know this.  What usage information was
>added to the definition of <SIS> (v) "rain" by Okrand's act?
>Was it that <SIS> didn't take a subject?

Exactly.  Many people on the list argued passionately that Klingon verbs do 
not take an indefinite, nonspecific subject like English verbs do; i.e. the 
"it" in statements like "it's raining" or "it's cold".  The insisted that 
you need a subject noun:  e.g. {chal}, {muD}, {'engmey}, etc.  We went 
around and around about this until May 1998 when DloraH and Okrand got to 
talking about the weather at a Trek convention:

   In a way everyone was correct with this one. It rained a few times
   during the weekend, so we were put into the situation to discuss it.
   {SIS. SISqu'. SIStaH. SISchoH.}  All correct. {SISlu'}, although
   grammatically correct, he didn't particularly like... You can also
   give it an object and say things like the clouds rained down cats
   and dogs... or something like that; you get the idea. But when Marc
   and I went outside and drops of water were falling on us, he looked
   up and simply said '{SIS}'.

Presumable other weather verbs (e.g. {peD} "snow") work the same way.


>If <Dajatlhbogh vIyajbe'> is considered canon, how can this be
>reconciled with what we know about <-bogh>?

Well, the usual ways Okrand has handled similar contradictions in the 
past.  He might say that the dropping of {mu'} in {Dajatlhbogh [mu'] 
vIyajbe'} is colloquial or un-educated usage;  or it's standard Klingon, 
but very uncommon;  or it's either old-fashioned or OTOH a youthful 
error;  or it's a regional usage;  or it's the brief, efficient brusque way 
computers speak;  or it's technical jargon (i.e. the programmer's 
computerese);  etc.




-- 
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons

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