[Tlhingan-hol] do {vIttlhegh} become {ngo'} or {qan}?

[Steven Boozer]

De'vID:
>> In Chinese, a time-worn proverb is described as old with age (老), not
>> old due to lack or fading of novelty (which is what 舊 would imply).

ghunchu'wI':
> Chinese culture arguably places more value on people of advanced age than
> does Klingon culture. If an "old proverb" is to be venerated, then I would
> expect the appropriate translation to reflect that difference. 

  SuvwI'pu' qan tu'lu'be' 
  There are no old warriors. TKW

HQ 10.2:9:  In addition to {qan} "use the little finger, use the pinkie", there is another verb {qan} meaning "be old (not young)". No doubt because of this resemblance, when one points at someone using the little finger, or when one remarks on this pointing, the pointer is making a comment on the age of the person being pointed to. 

> My intuition is that {qan} applies to beings, and perhaps to other
> living things, but not to inanimate objects or intangible concepts.

Okrand says as much WRT {ngo'; QI'tu' rur} "old as Qui'Tu":

KGT 130:  The word {ngo'} in the phrase above means old as opposed to new. Thus, it would be applied to objects or ideas, but not to animals or people. To say that a person is extremely old, the phrase would be {qan; QI'tu' rur} ("He/she is as old as Qui'Tu").


--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons