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

[Felix Malmenbeck]

In paq'batlh, there's no talk of reclaiming his father's sword, but it does pick up on the story of Kahless forging the first bat'leth from a strand of his hair, and that it guided his blood on his journey into the netherworld.

________________________________________
From: Steven Boozer [sboozer at uchicago.edu]
Sent: Wednesday, November 07, 2012 20:50
To: tlhingan-hol at kli.org
Subject: Re: [Tlhingan-hol] Klingon Word of the Day: chuH

Aha!  I thought it rang a bell.   So is {qeylIS betleH} a replacement for his lost father's sword, or did Kahless retrieve that from the volcano?  (Winding up with two swords at the end of the story?)


--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Felix Malmenbeck [mailto:felixm at kth.se]
> Sent: Wednesday, November 07, 2012 1:37 PM
> To: Steven Boozer; tlhingan-hol at kli.org
> Subject: RE: [Tlhingan-hol] Klingon Word of the Day: chuH
>
> > BTW which sword was this?  Did Morath fling it into
> > the volcano to keep Kahless from getting it?
>
> It was their father's sword, which Morath had taken. [Not the same as
> qeylIS betleH, which was forged later.]
>
> paq'batlh does not state exactly why he did it, but it appears to be
> based on Worf's retelling of a story in the TNG episode "Birthright,
> Part II": http://www.st-minutiae.com/academy/literature329/243.txt
>
> Worf:
> Kahless held his father's lifeless body in his arms. He could not
> believe what his brother had done. Then his brother threw their
> father's sword into the sea, saying that if he could not possess it,
> neither would Kahless. That was the last time the brothers would speak.
>
> Ba'el:
> What happened to the sword?
>
> Worf:
> Kahless looked into the ocean and wept, for the sword was all he had
> left of his father... and the sea filled with his tears and flooded
> beyond the shore. The people begged Kahless to stop his weeping, and
> he did... and walked into the water to find the lost sword.
> He searched and searched the murky ocean bottom, holding his breath
> for three days and three night...
>
> Toq:
> That is impossible!
>
> Worf:
> For you, perhaps. Not for Kahless. He was a great warrior.
>
> Toq:
> You're making it up.
>
> Worf:
> These are our stories. They tell us who we are.
>
>
> ________________________________________
> From: Steven Boozer [sboozer at uchicago.edu]
> Sent: Wednesday, November 07, 2012 19:07
>
> >>> Klingon word:   chuH
> >>> Part of speech: verb
> >>> Definition:  1) throw (a spear) at, hurl (a spear) at,
>
> Voragh:
> >> Related words:
> >> jaD    throw around,  hurl about (v)
> >> baQ    toss bat'leth from one hand to the other (v)
>
>
> Felix Malmenbeck:
> > paq'batlh contains no uses of chuH, but it does have a relevant
> > passage: [...]
> >
> > ghIq HoSHa'choHpu' moratlh
> > QIStaq qul bIQtIqHomDaq
> > 'etlhDaj vo' nuch
> >
> > And Morath's strength was gone,
> > The coward threw his sword
> > Into the fire streams of Kri'stak.
>
>
> I might have expected {woD} "throw away" or {jaD} "throw around, hurl
> about" but as Okrand writes:
>
> KGT 91:  Food that has decayed ... is food that has become inedible and
> must be thrown away, though it is sometimes given to animals. (Note
> that {Soj woD} ["He/she throws the food away"], which refers to a
> regrettable activity, is very different from {Soj jaD} ["He/she throws
> or hurls the food in the manner of a projectile"], which, under certain
> circumstances, is considered a reasonable pastime.)
>
> Presumably {vo'} "propel" because Morath had to throw the sword out
> into the volcano with some force, but not because he considered it
> garbage to be discarded.  Interestingly, Okrand didn't use {polHa'}
> "discard" either.
>
> BTW which sword was this?  Did Morath fling it into the volcano to keep
> Kahless from getting it?
>
>
> --
> Voragh
> Ca'Non Master of the Klingons
>

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