The Klingon Language

The Klingon language (tlhIngan Hol, in Klingon) is the language spoken by the warring culture known as the Klingons, who inhabit the virtual realm of the Star Trek universe.  Unlike most languages, which evolve over time by a developing culture, Klingon was intentionally designed by Planet Earth linguist Marc Okrand.  Based heavily on Star Trek/Klingon-related concepts which evolve around spacecraft and warfare, the Klingon language is understandably awkward for everyday use by non-Klingons.  (For instance, while there is a term for the bridge of a ship (meH) there is no word for a bridge that crosses water.)  Purposefully constructed to sound "alien,” Klingon has a number of typologically uncommon linguistic features.  But, while it was Okrand who succeeded in developing the Klingon language into a fully-functioning, grammatically complete language, the language’s basic sound, along with the first few words, was created by Enterprise Chief Engineer Montgomery “Scotty” Scott (James Doohan) for Star Trek: The Motion Picture.  Read more . . .

Quaint Greeting Customs from Around the World

In the now infamous scene from Crocodile Dundee, Paul Hogan’s character “Mick” grabs the genitals of a sexually-ambiguous individual at a socialite party in order to verify his or her gender, to which Mick’s love interest “Sue” responds, “Oh, he’s okay, he’s Australian"–the inference being that his behavior is appropriate for someone from the Land Down Under.  And while this isn’t actually a common greeting custom in Australia, there are a number of customs practiced around the world that while seeming quite appropriate among certain cultures, would seem quite unusual among others.  Read more . . .