On 7/27/2017 12:02 AM, Jesse Manoogian wrote:
be blonde: SuD (be yellow) works fine
I would accept a phrase like *jIb SuD, *but not *Human SuD.* In English a person can be blond, but Klingon *SuD* isn't specifically for describing hair color, so *Human SuD* would be like saying /yellow human/ in English. By the way, *SuD* means /be blue, green, yellow,/ not just /be yellow. /By describing hair as *SuD,* you're also describing people who dye their hair those colors (or maybe aliens with green or blue hair). This is fine, but if you ever want to make a distinction between the yellow sort of *SuD* and the blue or green sorts of *SuD,* you'll want to say *SuD 'ej wov*/*SuD* and light, yellow./ *SuD jIb 'ej wov*/the hair is yellow;/*SuDbogh jIb 'ej wovbogh / SuDbogh 'ej wovbogh jIb*/hair which is yellow./
be straight (of hair): beQ (be flat)
We have the word *wan* which means /be straight./ I don't see why this can't be applied to hair.
be curly: gho rur (resemble a circle)
If someone said *gho rur jIbDaj*/his hair resembles a circle,/ I wouldn't understand. I don't have a good alternative, though.
be wavy: yu'eghmey rur (resemble waves) be bald: jIb ghajbe' (to not have hair) be hazel: SuD 'ej wovbe' (be yellow/green and non-bright -- I thought "SuD 'ej Doq 'ej wovbe'" was too unwieldy)
I would consider *SuD 'ej wovbe'* to be blue. Hazel, the color, is light golden brown. /Brown/ is *Doq 'ej wovbe'* (so how to say /light brown/ is unclear to me... maybe *Doq 'ej loQ wovbe'*?).//The color /gold/ is a sort of yellow-orange, which would be somewhere between *Doq* and *SuD 'ej wov.* Hazel eyes shift between brown and light gold, sometimes with blue in them. There's no way you're going to get Klingon colors to describe them simply. Even in English, /hazel/ is just a way of saying, "it depends."
freckles: DIrvemmey (skin-mark-PL)
You should put spaces between nouns. *vem* seems to me to be tracks or marks left behind by something making them, not naturally occurring features. I don't have an alternative.
wrinkle: bentlhegh (age-line)
This is an interesting construction, but I don't know if *ben* can refer to /age/ like that.
glasses: mIn'al'onmey (eye-glass-PL)
I would figure that out, but I highly doubt that would be the real term. Maybe *mIn laH tI'wI'* or something similar.
braces: Ho'baS (tooth-metal -- it's singular -- as I understand, they say the singular "brace" in British English, so this has precedent)
I would understand this, but as with glasses I don't know if this would be the way to say it. I would imagine *Ho' wanmoHwI' *or *Ho' wanmoHmeH baS* or something like that. In Klingon, in most cases, all nouns are inherently both singular and plural. That is, if I say the word *Ho'* it means both /tooth/ and /teeth./ Context or grammar may make it explicit, but you can't just take the word *Ho'* and force people to interpret it as singular.
tattoo: DIrmIllogh (skin-picture) jeans: yopwaH ghegh (rough pants) -- and I also notice "yopwaH buq" for "pants pouch; trouser pocket" -- how about buq yopwaH for cargo pants?
I have no problem with these as descriptions of these things, though I wouldn't expect them to be THE terms for them.
polo shirt: wep yor poSmoH ([sleeved] shirt with open top)
This says /jacket it causes the top to open./ Notice that *wep* is a regional-only term for /sleeved shirt;/ outside of whichever region on Kronos it means that people will assume you're talking about a jacket. There is no standard term for /shirt, /but there is a description of a t-shirt, which is *yIvbeH SeQHa'*/informal tunic./ Now, a polo shirt isn't as informal as a t-shirt, but it's not exactly a tunic either. Its defining characteristics are that it is short-sleeved, heavier than a t-shirt, and has a collar. Given all that, I might compromise with *mongDech ghajbogh yIvbeH SeQHa'.* Not perfect, but that's what you get trying to translate between cultures.
tank top: be'nalmoqwI' (a calque of the English wifebeater)
NONONONONO! Ugh! The term is bad enough in English without porting it to Klingon. Just say *tlhay ghajbe'bogh yIvbeH*/tunic without sleeves./
headphones: nachQoywI' (head-hearer . . . a calque from the German Kopfhörer)
Another one I would figure out which I wouldn't use. I'd say *qoghDaq QoymeH jan*//*tu**Qbogh*/hearing device which one wears on/in the ears./
skateboard: rutlh'echlet (wheel-board)
I'd get it.
guitar: javHurDagh (six + stringed instrument)
I wouldn't get it. If you don't want to approximate by just saying *HurDagh,* be explicit and say *jav SIrgh ghajbogh HurDagh.* Or use a foreign term and say /guitar./
bass: javHurDagh jaQ (deep guitar)
I don't think *jaQ* means that kind of /deep./
be teenage, be adolescent: nenchoH (become adult)
Your translation of *nenchoH *as /become adult/ is correct, but /become adult/ doesn't mean /be teenage; be adolescent./ *nenbe'* /not mature;/ *nenHa'*/immature;/*wej nen*/not yet mature./ I don't have any simple translation for /teenage/ that isn't literally just /more than twelve, less than twenty./
teen, adolescent, youth, young adult: nuv nenchoH (person becoming adult)
*nuv nenchoH* is a nonsensical phrase saying /he/she/it becomes mature, person./ If you want to say /the //person is becoming an adult,/ say *nenchoH nuv.* If you want /the person who is becoming an adult, /say *nenchoHbogh nuv.* -- SuStel http://trimboli.name