5 Jan
2017
5 Jan
'17
5:07 a.m.
On Thu, Jan 5, 2017 at 1:01 AM, Anthony Appleyard < a.appleyard@btinternet.com> wrote:
Does Klingon language allow bahuvrihi compounds?
I don't see why that sort of metaphor would be forbidden in general. The Klingon Christmas Carol play opens with a passage including the phrase "dead as a {HIp Doq}", (it's translated as "red shirt"), which is exactly the kind of usage you're talking about. But I also don't see how {paq'batlh} fits the idea. The in-universe explanation of the anomalous apostrophe is that it's a remnant of the older pronunciation/spelling seen in the first part of the book. Decoding that "ancient" text gives a lot of insight into the "ancient" word order and affixes. -- ghunchu'wI'