SuStel:

> You're using "fourth year," but to me "fourth year" is counting 

> years as they occur, not counting them backwards.

I see your point. Unfortunately, I can't think of an alternate way of saying it.

Unless we wrote:

{tagh noH, 'ej ghIq -qaSDI' loS DIS- bogh}

the war begun, and then -as soon as four years had happened- he was born

What is your opinion on this approach ?

I like it better, though I wouldn't fiddle with interruptions like that. taghpu' noH; qaSpu' loS DIS; boghpu' ghaH The war began; four years occurred; he was born. You can then refer to that time as ngugh.

-- 
SuStel
http://trimboli.name