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INTRODUCTION
You will need to purchase either Conversational Klingon or Klingon: The CD "Language Lab," or both, in order to learn the proper way to pronounce each sound of the Klingon language. These are produced by Simon and Schuster
International under the auspices of Paramount Studios, the owners of Star Trek. This page is a help in learning the Imperial Klingon language created by Marc Okrand for Paramount Studios. This page is not intended to replace The Klingon Dictionary
by Marc Okrand. This online Klingon language course is designed to help students learn the Klingon language. You should still buy The Klingon Dictionary by Marc Okrand, and also join the Klingon Language Institute at www.kli.org.
Conventions:
This color text is Klingon;
This color text is English which is translatable into or has been translated from Klingon;
normal text is explanations in English.
Layout of the lessons: The first section is a dialogue with the Klingon on the left side and the Federation Standard (hereafter called English in this web page) on the right side. Read this section aloud, then proceed to understanding the
notes. The second section is grammar notes, i.e., explanations in English of what grammar concepts you are encountering in the lesson. The third section is a vocabulary list with the Klingon word in the left-most column, the English meaning of that
word in the second column, followed by the part of speech in parentheses. The fourth section is drill in correct Klingon. Practice these drills well! The fifth section is drill translating from English into Klingon. The final section is exercises
such as role playing.
Be sure to read introduction to the first chapter.
Klingon is a single-syllable language with agglutinative features. When you do encounter polysyllabic words, do not attempt to break apart the components and use them separately. Learn the whole word as is. Usually the individual syllables
cannot be translated correctly.
Klingon has only three parts of speech: verbs, nouns, and leftovers. Leftovers include what English calls question words, conjunctions, adverbs, time words and exclamations. Question words usually act like nouns. Time words are essentially
adverbs. Exclamations include epithets (curses), which Klingons are quite fond of employing.
Klingon has two types of verbs: transitive and intransitive. Transitive verbs are those which take an object (predicate). Intransitive verbs are those which do not take an object. Intransitive verbs may be divided into two types: Action
verbs which do not have a predicate---temporarily or permanently---and descriptive verbs (stative verbs), often called adjectives in other languages.
Klingon does not have prepositions, per sè. Some Klingon verbs include prepositional concepts. Others must be accompanied by syntactic markers on appropriate nouns.
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