[tlhIngan Hol] what is the opposite of {vItlh}
Steven Boozer
sboozer at uchicago.edu
Tue Sep 7 12:18:54 PDT 2021
FYI we do have one example of {‘ul law’} from SkyBox S32:
chIch vay' 'oy'moHmeH 'oy'naQ 'ul law' tlhuD 'oH
Painstiks... emit a highly-charged shock for the express purpose
of inflicting pain. (S32)
Compare this with how Okrand used {HoS law’qu’}:
HoS law'qu' luch law'qu' je lo' Duj nuH pat Hub pat je
A huge amount of the ship's power and technology is devoted
to its weapons grid and defensive systems. (SP3)
HoS law'qu' natlhmo' So'wI'
Due to the tremendous energy drain of a cloaking device... (S33)
Here is how {vItlh} was described at qepHom 2017:
(qepHom 2017): {vItlh} means “be high, great (in quantity, size, intensity)”. It's used for things that are measurable or quantifiable but not necessarily countable. So you'd use it for things like speed or distance or the price of something: {Do vItlh} “high velocity”, “chuq vItlh} “great range, great distance”. You wouldn't use {law'} in these instances. For things you can count (like people) (as opposed to things you can measure using units of measure, like length or speed), you'd use {law'} almost all the time. But you'd use {vItlh} if the number of whatever it is you're talking about is higher than normal or greater than before or greater than what was expected.
So if you were referring to a lot of warriors, you'd most likely say {SuvwI'pu' law'}. But if the high number of warriors is somehow important, if it's the point you're trying to make and not just an added fact, you'd use {vItlh}. You'd use it if you're not saying merely that there are a lot of warriors, but that the quantity of warriors is particularly high (higher than usual, higher than expected, higher than some other similar group of warriors, etc.). So it sounds like L'Rell used {vItlh} correctly in referring to the large number of people who died in battle (more than expected, more than before, etc.). Note that the exact number of warriors (or whatever) doesn't matter (and doesn't have to be stated). The idea is that the high number of warriors you're talking about is somehow noteworthy (the number of warriors who died is greater than the norm for this sort of military unit, for example).
L’Rell’s line from DISCOVERY:
Heghmey DISIQpu'. 'a DIvI' Hegh vItlh law' Heghmaj vItlh puS.
We have suffered losses but the Federation has suffered far more.
(DSC/Qov "Battle At the Binary Stars")
{vItlh} was used three times in the NASM Bell X-1 text:
tera' jaj wa'maH loS, jar wa'maH, DIS wa' Hut loS Soch, puvDI' BELL X-wa', DoDaj vItlh law' wab Do vItlh puS. Do patlhvam chavta'bogh muD Duj wa'DIch moj 'oH. X-wa' 'or SepjIjQa' muD beq CHARLES E. "CHUCK" YEAGER HoD. Do patlh vItlhqu' chavta'. qaStaHvIS wa' rep, vaghvatlh javmaH loS qelI'qam lenglaH, wabDo wa' vI' pagh jav. YEAGER be'nal vanmeH, muD DujvaD "GLENNIS 'IH" pong YEAGER.
"On October 14, 1947, the Bell X-1 became the first airplane to fly faster than the speed of sound. It was piloted by U.S. Air Force Capt. Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager who named the aircraft Glamorous Glennis in tribute to his wife. [...] He reached a speed of 1127 kilometers per hour (700 miles per hour), or Mach 1.06 at an altitude of 13,000 meters (43,000 feet)."
[I’m missing a bit of text. If anyone can supply it I’d be obliged.]
--
Voragh
_____________________________________________________________________
From: tlhIngan-Hol <tlhingan-hol-bounces at lists.kli.org> On Behalf Of Ed Bailey
As an aside, seeing 'ul law' alongside 'ul vItlh, my immediate reaction is to interpret the former as "high current/amperage" (or "a big charge" if, say, a capacitor is being discussed) and the latter as "high voltage." What the actual Klingon terminology is, I can't say.
~mIp'av
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