tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed Sep 16 10:14:55 2009

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Re: nom*i*nal*ize 2. to convert (an underlying clause) into a noun phrase

David Trimboli ([email protected]) [KLI Member] [Hol po'wI']

Steven Boozer wrote:
> Okrand [HolQeD 3.3:13]:
>>> just as bare stem + {-ghach} is okay, but weird, prefix + verb
>>> (with or without a suffix) + {-ghach} is even weirder. But not
>>> unheard of (...)
> 
> 'ISqu':
>> The conclusion I draw from this is that, say, {qaleghpu'ghach} is
>> not part of the regular use of language but would not be out of
>> place in a context calling for the so-called "nonce word," i.e. "a
>> word coined and used apparently to suit one particular occasion"
>> (Encyclopedia Britannica). This might typically happen when writing
>> or translating a literary work. On encountering
>> 
>> "the wagon beginning to fall into its slow and *mileconsuming* 
>> clatter"  (William Faulkner) or "She gave me a
>> you-can-go-to-hell-for-all-I-care sort of look" (Ira Levin)
>> 
>> the reader might, to use Okrand's words, "look up and say "huh?"
>> but know exactly what was meant. It's following the rules, but it's
>> following them into a place they don't normally go."  [HolQeD
>> 3.3:13]
>> 
>> Granted, Okrand says nothing about {verb-lu'-ghach} forms. However,
>> based on their meaning and form I see no reason why anyone should
>> be precluded from using them for a single specific occasion. Like
>> any nonce word, such words "although [not to be] found in any
>> dictionary, [would be] instantly comprehensible." ("Nonce word,"
>> Wikipedia) at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nonce_word

 > In fact, in Klingon such words are called {mu'mey ru'} and to use them
 > is called {pabHa'}:
> 
> KGT 176:  Sometimes words or phrases are coined for a specific
> occasion, intentionally violating grammatical rules in order to have
> an impact. Usually these are never heard again, though some gain
> currency and might as well be classified as slang. Klingon
> grammarians call such forms {mu'mey ru'} ("temporary words").
> Sometimes, {mu'mey ru'} fill a void--that is, give voice to an idea
> for which there is no standard (or even slang) expression; sometimes,
> like slang, they are just more emphatic ways of expressing an idea. A
> common way to create these constructions is to bend the grammatical
> rules somewhat, violating the norm in a way that is so obvious that
> there is no question that it is being done intentionally. To do this
> is expressed in Klingon as {pabHa'} ("misfollow [the rules], follow
> [the rules] wrongly").
> 
> KGT 181:  No one accepts such constructions as grammatical; their
> inappropriateness, the way they grate on the Klingon ear, is exactly
> what gives them elocutionary clout. A visitor may hear one of these
> odd suffixes occasionally, but, as with other intentionally
> ungrammatical forms, it is best to avoid using them until one is
> extremely comfortable with the nuances of Klingon style.
> 
> HQ 3.3:10:  It's a highly marked form. It's a word you are forming
> for a specific occasion and a specific effect. If you were a poet or
> philosopher or hard scientist and had to describe something very
> specifically these kinds of words might be appropriate but it carries
> the feeling of very technical arcane vocabulary, not normal everyday
> stuff. So can you say it? Yes, but you are saying more, rather than
> less or neutral.
> 
> KGT 180:  Some speakers of Klingon never use such nonconformist
> constructions. Some use a few from a stock set. Others seem to be
> somewhat creative. Among Klingons, there is a fine line between
> creative use of the language and silliness, however, and Klingons are
> rather intolerant of the latter. Accordingly, the visitor to a
> Klingon planet is advised to avoid making such constructions until he
> or she is very well versed in Klingon culture.
> 
> KGT 172:  Agreeing is not a trait typically associated with Klingon
> nature, however, and apparently, at least under certain
> circumstances, this may extend to grammar as well.

Exactly. I'm not saying you can't use the words; I'm saying they not
grammatical, and any use of them is in a wink-wink-nudge-nudge sort of way.

-- 
SuStel
tlhIngan Hol MUSH
http://trimboli.name/mush

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