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

[David Trimboli]

On 8/30/2013 11:48 PM, Bellerophon, modeler wrote:

> Back to verb prefixes, I take it {jatlh} is the only verb that uses
> intransitive prefixes when a direct object is specified (in the case
> of {jatlh}, the direct quote).

A direct quotation is never an object. {jatlh} CAN take an object, as in
{SoQ vIjatlh} "I speak the lecture; I give a lecture." The prefix of 
{jatlh} is the same as for any other verb.

> According to mughom.wikia.com <http://mughom.wikia.com> (who started
> that anyway? I see some contributions by Qurgh, but a lot more by
> Anonymous), the object of {ja'} is the addressee rather than the
> direct quote, so one uses it thus: yaS vIja' <direct quote>, rather
> than yaS jIja' <direct quote>.

The possible objects of {ja'} have never been clarified to my 
satisfaction. No examples of {ja'} show an explicit object, but several 
use prefixes that indicate an object (e.g., {qaja'pu'} "I told you"). 
But I think it would be perfectly reasonable to use sentences like {lut 
vIja'pu'} "I told the story" or {Dotlh yIja'} "Report status!" Does 
canon reflect a form of the prefix trick? Is the object of {ja'} broad 
enough to reflect either a direct or indirect object? Or is that wiki 
correct and the object is always the party being told something, and 
that something can only ever be a direct quotation?

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