[2605] in tlhIngan-Hol
Re: One more reason why petaQ...
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU)
Tue Jan 18 09:00:53 1994
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Reply-To: "Klingon Language List" <tlhIngan-Hol@klingon.East.Sun.COM>
From: dls9@aol.com
To: "Klingon Language List" <tlhIngan-Hol@klingon.East.Sun.COM>
Date: Tue, 18 Jan 94 08:55:28 EST
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> Why do you transliterate Marc Okrand as *maq 'oQaD*? Do the rules
> tlhIngan-Hol phonology rule out *marq 'oQranD*, or do you actually
> not
> pronounce the r's and the n? And why the distinction between q and
> Q?
I believe that the rules of Klingon phonology (which we can derive only from
the available lexicon) indicate that consecutive consonants simply do not
occur, with the (known) exceptions of {rgh}, {w'}, and {y'}.
I believe that {marq} might have been allowed but merely wouldn't have fit in
with the rest of Klingon words, which is imesho alright since it IS a foreign
word to Klingon.
"Okrand" comes out as {'oQaD] because the {Q} is usually considered a
(corrupted) neighbor sound of "kr", as in {HoD Qanqor}.
The {D}, we are told in TKD, is sometimes dialectically pre-nasalized, so it
would sound like *{ND}. This all works fine for me. When I try to pronounce
{'oQranD}, my mouth gets thoroughly confused. {Q} and {r} don't go along well
together, and {n} and {D} don't even have the same tongue position.
Any further arguments will have to be taken up with the original writer of
{maq 'oQaD}.
I would venture to speculate that pronouncing such consecutive consonants
would be a chore for Klingons because their own language doesn't include them
(mostly), and therefore they are not accustomed to articulating them.
This is understandable. English speakers, who have spent all their lives
adjusting their mouths to English, experience trouble at first when
confronted with the "kv" or "dn" combinations of other languages.
Maybe differences in Klingon oral anatomy adds to their difficulty of
pronouncing consecutive consonants.
Maybe not... maybe I'm just rambling on....
Guido#1, Leader of All Guidos
