Re: THEORY: Natural language change (was Re: Charlie and I)
| From: | Padraic Brown <pbrown@...> |
|---|
| Date: | Wednesday, September 22, 1999, 4:22 |
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On Tue, 21 Sep 1999, Sally Caves wrote:
> Matt Pearson wrote:
> >
> > Steg Belsky wrote:
> >
> > >> It means "If you can understand this, you know too much" :)
> > >>Now *that* sounds like a perfect translation excersize! :)
> > >
> > >Ihkh eza-kaun dhaz, ezoi-yed sha'zid.
> >
> > Finally, a translation exercise I can do without having to look
> > anything up:
> >
> > Tokana: Aun mulhat te, ikoi iona tsuohante
>
> Teonaht:
> Ty aib fy tal pre, ta pre fy bo nwetis.
> If this you can know, then know you over much.
>
> One of the few sentences in Teonaht that has a kind of English
> straightforwardness.
In Kernu:
Si ty cela'sta comprenner ty poz, plu mult ty saz.
If thou this here to get thou can, over-much thou knows.
As for "it is I" etc., the usual response to "la Jowcko?" (there John?, if
John's house happens to have a phone) is, apart from "fa'nt-y mhucces"
(muckin' the stye), "ce parlaz" (he speaks).
In Tallarian (apostrophes preceed accented syllables):
Hos run'aams-cas 'capther;
Who mystery-this for-himself-grasps;
cam 'witer, ham 'witsit 'Paatar Wo'tanas.
this for-himself-sees, what saw Father Wotan.
Perhaps someday I'll sort out how Wotan gets associated with the Christian
godhead and post it to Conculture. But it's too late now; or rather
looking at the clock, too early. :)
Padraic.