[89630] in tlhIngan-Hol
RE: New words
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Steven Boozer)
Mon Sep 12 14:55:42 2011
From: Steven Boozer <sboozer@uchicago.edu>
To: "tlhingan-hol@kli.org" <tlhingan-hol@kli.org>
Date: Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:46:56 -0500
In-Reply-To: <CA+7zAmN7CEGg=U3ajhFuEvx3yRaHeubrGKaAx7QvZ5XjJ8CBQw@mail.gmail.com>
Errors-to: tlhingan-hol-bounce@kli.org
Reply-to: tlhingan-hol@kli.org
De'vID:
> I'm trying to clean up my canon word list.
>
> Is <jIn> "v. brew" (found in the linked page above) a word? The rest of
> this thread seems to indicate that it isn't, and that it's a hypothesised *
> noun*. Or is it a hypothesised word that got canonised (but as a different
> part of speech?!)?
It's not canon though, for a while, some thought it was. There was even talk of an Okrandian pun (i.e. gin). However Mark Shoulson posted to the list:
"I remember [Okrand] and I actually were discussing *raktajino* while he was working on [KGT], as soon as we both found out that it was Klingon coffee... He really hated the *-ino* ending, since it sounded too obviously like cappuccino, and said he'd have to check with Maltz about *raktaj* ... and I had the theory that the Klingon wasn't "raktaj" or whatever, but actually *raktajin* and the *-o* was added by marketers for similarity with Terran brews. Why *raktajin*? Because it was brewed from {raHta'}, making it *{raHta'jIn}."
Okrand discusses raktajino {ra'taj} in KGT (p. 95-96):
"Though not native to the Empire, Klingons have developed a way to make coffee ({qa'vIn}) particularly strong, both in flavor and in its effect as a stimulant, and it is a very popular beverage. As a rule, coffee is consumed plain--that is, black--but some Klingons prefer to mix other ingredients in with the coffee. If some kind of {HIq} (liquor) is added to the coffee, the drink is called {ra'taj}. It is said that the drink was originally nicknamed {ra'wI' taj} ("commander's knife", suggestive of its potency), and that the name was shortened over time. This often repeated story cannot be confirmed.
"In any event, {ra'taj} became one of the few Klingon foods to become popular outside of the Empire, though in an altered form. Instead of containing liquor, as does the genuine Klingon {ra'taj}, the "export" version (which came to be pronounced *raktaj* in Federation Standard) consists of strong Klingon coffee plus a nutlike flavoring. Eventually, a new fashion developed--adding cream to the *raktaj*--and with this innovation came yet another name, *raktajino*, modeled after the name of another popular coffee drink, cappuccino. Raktajino is now served hot or iced, with or without extra cream, and with or without the rind of some fruit to add even more flavor. Though it is sometimes called "Klingon coffee," it is quite different from both plain {qa'vIn} and the alcoholic {ra'taj}."
Use {vut} "cook, prepare food" instead:
KGT 83: Actually, "cook" is a convenient but misleading term. The Klingon verb {vut}, customarily rendered as "cook" in Federation Standard and used in reference to food only, might better be translated simply as "prepare, make, fix, assemble" in order to avoid association of the word with heat. This is not to say that heat never plays a role in Klingon food preparation, but rather that it is not a defining feature of the process. There are specific words for specific activities involved with food preparation, but {vut} is a general term for all of them. In fact, {vut} can also be used in reference to making a beverage, whether simply mixing ingredients together (such a putting cream in coffee) or starting from scratch (such as brewing ale).
BTW, there is a legitimate gin-related pun in {ghIn} "monastery". Plymouth Gin is produced by The Black Friars Distillery, formerly a Dominican monastery in Plymouth, England. "I know that Marc is a fan of gin and tonics, so he's probably familiar with many different gins" (qurgh, 12/22/2010).
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons
