[Tlhingan-hol] Expressing instrumentality

[Steven Boozer]

vegh      go through (an existing opening) (v) (qep'a' loSDIch). E.g.

  bISuvtaHvIS qarDaS bIghHa' peQ botjan Daveghchu'
  Fight your way beyond magnetic shield of Cardassian
    prison. (MKE)

QIStaq qoD DISDaq tu''egh qeylIS'e' DIS veghlu'chugh pa'
    Heghpu'bogh nuvpu' qa'pu' tu'lu'
  In the heart of Kri'stak, Kahless finds himself in a cave
    leading to the world beyond the living (PB)

lojmItDaj veghta'DI' jubbe'wI' yInqa'meH chegh 'e' botnIS
    qotar qeylIS HoHmeH qotar qeylIS SamnIS
  Still, Kotar cannot let a mortal pass his gates and return
    alive, Kahless must be hunted down and killed. (PB)


  This was the word the winning team at qep'a' loSDIch won from Marc Okrand as their grand prize. "As the leader of the `red team' ... we requested the verb go through, and we provided four sentences to Marc as examples of what we meant. As it turns out, there are at least three different concepts that fit what we use go through for in English, and we had to choose the one we wanted. The choices were the bullet goes through the man's heart, the hunter goes through the forest, and the train goes through the tunnel, with the last one being the same idea as the bird goes through the window. So we asked for the bird goes through the window and we received the verb {vegh}. This does not apply if the window is closed, however; that seems to be yet another concept... Linguistic joke department: Someone quickly complained to Marc Okrand that he had given us a vague answer, and without a pause or blink or even a breath, Marc immediately agreed." (ghunchu'wI')

 "Lawrence asked `Like shit through a goose?' (or some similar example), to which Okrand held up four fingers and replied `Four.' (as in a fourth word for through)." (HetaQ)

  "There has to be a boundary around the path and you have to pass from open to restricted to open in order to {vegh}. At one point, Okrand did use the word successfully in his description." (charghwI')

"I wrote it down as go through (an existing aperture) and that seems to correctly represent the things it can and can't mean." (Qov) When asked about {bav} [orbit], Okrand says "You don't need a {-Daq}. Just use whatever it is that you are orbiting. When subsequently asked about {vegh}, Okrand says "Same thing." (IMO, HQ 7.4)

"… while we were travelling to Fort Mifflin, the topic of the new word {QI} bridge came up in conversation in Lawrence's car, and I took the opportunity to ask Marc an associated question. Since we lack a verb for to go across in the sense of crossing a river, I've wondered for a while now as to whether {vegh} go through might be appropriate. When I asked Marc this, he explained that in order to sensibly talk about {vegh}-ing a bridge, the bridge would have to be covered over - that is, some form of {'och} [tunnel]. So basically, it seems that to {vegh} an object, the object must completely encircle the vector of travel. (Marc did also add that it need not be pedantically exact: a meshwork or cage-like object can also be {vegh}-ed, so long as the object is still essentially ringlike or tunnel-like.)" (QeS, 7/29/2013)


pun:
"vague"(?) –appropriate considering the amount of discussion it generated!


From: Robyn Stewart [mailto:robyn at flyingstart.ca]
Sent: Wednesday, April 20, 2016 5:32 AM

Never vegh.  That describes physical space.  Keep the physical separate.   There is not a specific tool for this in Klingon.  You just translate what you mean.

From: Dillon, Kyle [mailto:kyledi at spu.edu]
Sent: April 19, 2016 19:07

How does one express instrumentality in Klingon? That is, "through," "with," or "by means of"?  Examples:

We succeeded through hard work.
We built the table with a hammer.
We prevented war by means of negotiation.

I'm wondering if it may be some kind of subordinate clause with the verb vegh?

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