J,GoB, Monday Morning 7/7

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

G'Kar snagged one of the larger tables and had a few books and notepads piled up in a stack. He also had a small, black data pad that he'd handwavily gone searching his apartment for last night. It was something he hadn't used in a very long time, and he was relieved to find it still working.

Now however, he was busy writing out the Narn alphabet on a notepad, along with the English equivalent.

(mainly for Hoshi, but open for all your JGoB needs)

Comments

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

Hoshi was in a really good mood when she arrived. She had a notebook and writing implements that were appropriate for the time period, but she also had her own PADD (http://www.memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/PADD).

"Thanks for offering to teach me your language, G'Kar," she said, taking a seat at the table. "I've learned most of the Earth-based languages available to me. The nice thing about being in the past is that it's easier to find some the dead languages, but it's also helpful to find someone who speaks the language."

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

G'Kar looked up from his writing and smiled. "Indeed. It may be possible to find something on the Narn language in the library, as it seems to hold a great variety of things, but otherwise I'd suspect it's a little hard to come by."

"You're most welcome. It has been a while since I've been able to discuss Narn with someone, and perhaps," he smiled a bit more, "knowing the language will help with some of the history as well."

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

"That's why I like to study languages, actually," said Hoshi. "It brings me a little closer to different people with their culture and history."

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

"Very true. And even though translations are useful," he held up the data pad, "they do not always give a truly accurate meaning of the context." He chuckled a bit, "How often have you come across a translation that, while technically correct, did not convey the same message the author had intended?"

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

"It happens quite a bit," said Hoshi. She rattled off a few examples. Okay, more than just a few examples.

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

And G'Kar found them higly amusing. "But of course. Makes for wonderous humor. But..." he handed the pad he'd been writing on over to her, "should we get started?"

"This is the basic alphabet for Narn compared to English." A lot of the characters vaguely resemble a mix of Chinese and Hebrew. Word constructions could vary greatly depending upon one character placement.

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

Hoshi took the time to examine the alphabet. Then, she started recopying it herself. "That sounds fairly typical. There's lots of languages where the same work can have different meanings depending on pronunciation."

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

"Absolutely!" he agreed. "Part of what makes it so fascinating." He began digging through the books he'd brought. "I have a few texts in Narn, ones which were translated from English. There seems to be little the other way around. I have..." he glanced at the titles, "Huckleberry Finn. Seems to be a children's story, but a valuable lesson within. Feel free to borrow whatever you like."

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

"I'm actually familiar with that one in the original English. It should be very helpful, said Hoshi, taking a brief glance through the book. She selected a few others, some originally written in English. "I could always take a stab at translating something from Narn to English, if you have anything that you would suggest."

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

He considered her offer for a moment, thinking of a certain play, but the archaic language would likely be incredibly difficult to translate properly. Especially for one just starting out. "I'd like that. However, I'll leave it up to you to decide on what to translate. Surprise me," he grinned.

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

"Alright then," said Hoshi, picking out a few more books. There were few languages that were too difficult for her to master.

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

"Let me know how much you can handle at one time. I don't wish to overwhelm you with too much right from the start." G'Kar could be a little overeager at times, sometimes forgetting that not everyone shared his enthusiasm for such things.

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

"This should keep me occupied for a while," said Hoshi, taking out her PADD and setting it up for audio recording. "I don't suppose you could say something in Narn? It would help me understand the language structure a bit more."

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

"Of course," he smiled brightly. He took a moment to consider his choice of words.

//We can't be free until we learn to laugh at ourselves. Once you look in the mirror and see just how foolish we can be, laughter is inevitable. And from laughter, comes wisdom.//

He smiled afterward, and leaned back in his chair. "I'm sure you'll enjoy that one."

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

Hoshi listened carefully, then tried to repeat it back, faltering a little bit in the pronunciation. It was still a really good first attempt for someone new to the language.

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

"Very good!" he smiled. "Excellent for a beginner. You certainly must have a way with languagues. Now all you need," he smirked, "is to translate it. Something as simple as this," which really wasn't simple at all, but he was beginning to suspect that Hoshi wasn't so simple a student, "would probably take at least a week. If not longer. Think you can manage it in that time?"

Clearly, it was a challenge of sorts. He was curious to see if she'd go for it.

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

"I think I handle that in a week," said Hoshi with a smirk. She'd probably have it done in a few days. It was an advantage to having hearing that was so sensitive that she could hear subtle variations in the tones.

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

"Really?" G'Kar gave the impression that he was surprised by this. "Are you quite certain? Narn is a difficult language to master." Which he had no doubts Hoshi could do. "Well then," he smiled, "I'll expect to see and hear a translated version when we meet next week. But no worries, if you cannot. I'll understand."

He was teasing her, just a little, and it was quite obvious he meant nothing serious by it.

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

Hoshi was happy with the challenge. "I think you'll be surprised with how much progress I can make in a week," she said.

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

"I look forward to seeing your results. But if you have any questions," he snatched up the pad he'd written on earlier and wrote out a number. "This is my contact line. Feel free to call at anytime. I'm usually at home most of the time."

"Except for Tuesdays. Then you can find me at the store or the theatre."

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

"I'll call if I run into any linguistic emergencies," said Hoshi.

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

He chuckled, "I like that. Linguistic emergencies. Perhaps they should offer a class on that?" he mused lightly.

[itsjustlanguage.livejournal.com]

"Wonder who they would get to teach it," said Hoshi, smiling.

It wouldn't be so funny the first time Hoshi stumbled over, "We come in peace," as a disruptor was pointed at her head.

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

"I'm sure they have many qualified people here," he smiled back.

"It could be a very useful skill," he added. "That and attempting to overcome culture differences in dire situations." Yes, he was thinking of a certain war that started all due to a little misunderstanding. One which nearly annihilated an entire race.