[Tlhingan-hol] Klingon Word of the Day: rIQ

[David Trimboli]

On 2/2/2012 4:50 PM, Brent Kesler wrote:
>
> 1. veng ghoStaH ghotpu'.
> 2. veng ghoSlI' ghotpu'.
>
> 3. Duj tI'taH jonpIn.
> 4. Duj tI'lI' jonpIn.
>
> I interpret #1 as meaning that people are always coming to the city.
> Maybe it's New York or veng wa'DIch--a big city that always has people
> going in and out.

veng lughoStaH ghot[pu']
veng lughoSlI' ghot[pu']

(Unless you're talking about {vengpu'}...)

While that's one interpretation, it's not the only one. It can also mean 
that some people, whatever group is appropriate to the context, are on a 
continuing trip to a city, but the sentence only describes an ongoing 
trip, not a trip progressing to a goal. {-taH} doesn't really mean 
"always" or "habitually"; it just means "ongoing."

> In interpet #2 as meaning that some people are on their way to the city.
> They left some time ago, and they're haven't arrived yet, but they will
> eventually.
>
> In #3, the engineer is always fixing the ship. There's always something
> broken on the ship, so the engineer is always fixing something. That's
> his job--it doesn't end. In #4, there is some damage he is fixing and
> eventually he will finish. Maybe he's repairing the warp core and the
> ship can't move until he's done.

And similarly here, the first sentence can mean the engineer is 
currently fixing a single problem on the ship, but with no reference to 
its being finally finished later.

> In other words, the progressive (-lI') is used for an action that
> *unfolds* over a period of time with a definite beginning and a definite
> end. The continuous (-taH) is used for an action that happens over a
> period of time without a definite beginning or end.

It's not that the action doesn't have a definite beginning or end; it's 
that progress toward completion if there is such a thing, is left 
unstated. Either there is no kind of progress associated with the 
action, or the progress there is is simply not mentioned by the speaker.

-- 
SuStel
http://www.trimboli.name/