[tlhIngan Hol] Multiple question words / markers in a sentence

[De'vID]

On Sun, 17 Feb 2019 at 21:26, Daniel Dadap <daniel at dadap.net> wrote:

>
> > On Feb 17, 2019, at 14:23, Jeffrey Clark <jmclark85 at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > 1: bISaH’a’ — are you here?
> > 2: SaH’a’ ‘Iv? — is who here?
>
> Ah, thanks for helping me remember. I believe bISaH'a'? / SaH'a' 'Iv? was
> precisely how the conversation went.
>

This is a double-question where the expected answer is still a question.
That is, the *real* question word in {SaH'a' 'Iv} in context is {'Iv}.
There's no confusion about whether you're supposed to answer a "yes/no"
question, or a "who" question, because the context determines that the
asker is trying to clarify to whom the first question was asked. The {-'a'}
is actually expected to be part of the answer and so isn't really serving
as a question word here.

As for something like {nuq legh 'Iv}, asking for two pieces of information
simultaneously, I don't see why not. For example, if Horatio is related
excitedly to Hamlet how Marcellus and Bernardo saw his father the king's
ghost, Hamlet may very well excitedly ask {nuq legh 'Iv jay'?!}

I can't say whether Klingon grammarians would approve of either, but both
seem like the sort of thing that might happen naturally in conversation and
be understood, proper grammar be damned.

-- 
De'vID
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