[tlhIngan Hol] Marc Okrand answering some questions

Lieven L. Litaer levinius at gmx.de
Sun Dec 2 12:06:20 PST 2018


Here's a summary for those unable to watch the video. Note that these 
are my own words and not a literal transcript of the video.

This can be found in the Klingon Language Wiki.
Eveyone can make corrections and additions:
http://www.klingonwiki.net/En/NewWordsQepHom2018

During qepHom 2018, Marc Okrand made a video interview in which he 
explained some of the new words, answering some questions. His answers 
do not reveal anything really new or surprising, but he elaborates 
things he had said before. In the interview, he talks about the 
following words:

  - {'obray'wal}: When Okrand wrote that its tail is "poisonous", he 
probably meant "venomous".

  - {'onroS} can be used for tears: just say {mIn 'onroS} "eye drop"

  - {voDchuch} is not a general word for spiders, it's a specific 
Klingon animal that somohow resembles a spider. It's a very big animal 
about the size of a hand. When talking about the Terran version of the 
animal, one can add (as usual) {tera'} to it. If it's a small version of 
it, then it's okay to say {voDchughHom} or {tera' voDchuchHom} "small 
Earth version of the animal that looks like a spider".

  - {chuq'a' leghwI'} refers to a very big telescope that consists of a 
lot of technology, such as the Hubble space telescope. It's not the kind 
of telescope you hold in your hand. Saying {chuq leghwI'} also does not 
seem to make sense.

  - {Sach} can be used as an adjective, yes. Basically, {Sach} means to 
expand. If a person works on a book, or a device, and improves it, makes 
it better than before, then they {SachmoH} the thing. The result is, as 
an example, a {paq Sach} an "expanded book".

  - {SImyon} is a unit of measuring temperature, it does not mean 
"degree", that's only the English way of saying it. It works like {'uj}, 
like any unit of measurement.

  - {teSra'} is a piece of a puzzle or a scrabble game and so on. The 
difference to the {'echletHom} is basically that a playing card is 
bendable while a {teSra'} is hard.

  - {nel} is a verb and means to match up. It does not mean that two 
things are identical, it means that they match up, such as two pieces of 
a puzzle match or when you tear off a piece of paper, this is the only 
piece that will match up with the paper.

  - {HID} takes no object. You just say {jIHID} - "I sweat", but not 
anything like "I sweat out something".

  - {lun} is not only restricted to body parts. Wood can also swell when 
it gets wet.

  - {chagh} takes an object, which is the thing falling. The subject is 
the person "dropping something".

  - {tom} means "to be tilted". If you change something's angle, you say 
{vItommoH}.

  - {-Du'} is a suffix for body parts and is generally used for body 
parts. When non-body parts are named after body parts (like the teeth on 
a gear or a cumb) then they are still associated with body parts, so the 
suffix {-Du'} is used. But there are very few words that originally were 
body parts, but the connection to the body part meaning has been lost. 
So now, they use {-mey} for plural suffix.


-- 
Lieven L. Litaer
aka the "Klingon Teacher from Germany"
http://www.klingonisch.de
http://www.klingonwiki.net/En/Maltz



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