[tlhIngan Hol] Klingon Word of the Day: 'Imyagh

[Jeffrey Clark]

Sent from my iPhone

> On Feb 13, 2019, at 21:15, Will Martin <willmartin2 at mac.com> wrote:
> 
> The suggestion is that {‘Imyagh} is a sound. It works in a direct quote and probably is an expletive, like {HIja’} and {ghobe’}. It’s not a verb. It doesn’t belong as part of a sentence. It is effectively a sentence unto itself.

I think this depends on a nuanced definition of {jatlh} that we can’t make without input from matlh. 

Assuming that a vIghro’ vocalisation of ‘Imyagh is produced by a similar mechanism as a Terran cat (which would be odd given the nature of the sound), it follows the same process that Humans (and therefore Klingons). This is why cat’s meows and dog whines can resemble human vowels — because they basically are.

In this case, if we consider the act of speaking as including all vocalisations (which ‘Imyagh would be), then it is something that cat “says”.

But this may not be the case, {jatlh} may require that the “spoken” thing be verbally communicated language. In which case ‘Imyagh and welwelwel (by extension) would not be things vIghro’mey and targhmey “say”.

‘a tera’ vIghrowIj rurchuq matlh vIghro’, jatlhba’.

—jevreH