tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Tue Dec 27 11:49:42 2005

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Re: Klingon WOTD: loSpev (noun)

Steven Boozer ([email protected])



Voragh:
>>In the 23rd century, quadrotriticale is a four-lobed rehybridization of 
>>that parent grain, developed in Russia according to Chekhov. (TOS "The 
>>Trouble with Tribbles" & DS9 "Trials and Tribble-ations")
>>I'm told that there's a 20th century real-world hybrid of the two, known 
>>as triticale, found in Canada.

lay'SIv:
>That's true.  I found many sites about it with a simple search.
>
> 
>http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/agdex127?opendocument

The first three paragraphs are interesting:

     "Triticale (X Triticosecale Wittmack) is a man-made crop developed by 
crossing wheat (Triticum turgidum or Triticum aestivum) with rye (Secale 
cereale).
      "Early attempts to cross wheat and rye produced only sterile 
offspring. It was not until the 1930s that techniques were available to 
produce fertile hybrids. Once this step was accomplished, it was possible 
to develop new combinations between wheat and rye as well as direct 
combinations between triticales with differing wheat and rye parents. 
Consequently, new varieties of winter or spring triticale can be developed 
with the same methods used for breeding other cereal crops.
     "In 1953, the University of Manitoba began the first North American 
triticale breeding program. Early breeding efforts concentrated on 
developing a high yielding, drought tolerant human food crop species 
suitable for marginal wheat producing areas. In contrast, more recent 
programs concentrate on developing improved animal feed and fodder 
varieties for production under a number of diverse environmental conditions."

>Would that make triticale *{pev} or *{wa'pev}?

Well, if it's a one-lobed hybrid -- anyone actually know? -- I'd imagine it 
would be *{wa'pev}, assuming of course that *{pev} means something like 
"lobe (of grain), kernel" or the like.

Klingon seems to always specify the number element in compounds:  {wa'Hu'} 
"yesterday (i.e. one day ago)", {wa'leS} "tomorrow (i.e. one day from 
now)", {wa'logh} "once", {wa'DIch} "first" in addition to the predictable 
compound numbers {wa'maH} ten, {wa'vatlh} one hundred, {wa'SaD} one 
thousand, {wa''uy'} one million, etc.

Other number compounds may include {cha'nob} "ritual gifts given at a 
{lopno'}" (does one traditionally give two gifts I wonder?) and {cha'puj} 
"dilithium" (maybe a sort of flat, two-faced or maybe paired crystals?).

And then there are those intriguing birds formed with what appears to be 
{cha'} "two" from HolQeD 10.4:  {cha'bIp}, {cha'Do'}, {cha'naS}, {cha'par} 
and {cha'qu'}.  That these are puns - "beep beep", "dodo",  "parpar" 
("quack" in Spanish) and "cuckoo" - doesn't detract from the manner Okrand 
used when creating them.  (BTW, has anybody figured out the pun for {cha'naS}?}



--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons






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