[tlhIngan Hol] Klingon Word of the Day: bom mu'

[Steven Boozer]

Klingon Word of the Day for Monday, July 01, 2019

Klingon word: bom mu'
Part of speech: noun
Definition: lyric, lyrics
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(KGT 71):  The set of lyrics to a song is termed {bom mu'} (literally, "song word" or "song words").

(KGT 73):  Perhaps more significant, however, is that with rare exception, the libretto of a Klingon opera ({bom mu'}, the words) is in an ancient tongue heard now only in the operas and certain classic theatrical works. From time to time, a famous opera has been translated into contemporary Klingon, but this is generally considered a learning tool, hardly {ghe'naQ nIt}. True devotees will study the original libretto, often learning to sing the arias themselves.

(QeS < MO, 3/05/2017):  A {bom}'s lyrics ({bom mu'mey}) need not rhyme, though they can and often do. (The libretto to the opera {'u'} has very little if any rhyming. […] Sometimes someone will write music for which an already-existing {ghuQ} [poem] is the words. Then a {ghuQ} has become a {bom}. Or, more accurately, there is a {bom} version or adaptation of the {ghuQ}. If someone recites the words of a {bom} but does not sing it (someone like Shatner, maybe), that's a recitation of the {bom mu'mey}; it's not a {ghuQ}.

--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons