Kaltxì ta Kopenhan–Hi from Copenhagen

Kaltxì, ma eylan. And hello from Copenhagen, where we’ve spent 4 rainy but very interesting days.

My talk in Stockholm at the Bonnier GRID 2010 conference is already online: if you’re interested, you can find it here. I’m afraid it’s nothing you haven’t already seen. I went way over the time limit, but so did a lot of other presenters, so I don’t feel too bad about that. And I got some nice comments from several attendees.

On another note, I know several of you have already seen this article on how language shapes thought that appeared in the New York Times a few weeks ago. If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend it. There’s a lot there that’s relevant to Na’vi.

We’re off to Paris in a little while, where hopefully I’ll have more time to stay in closer touch.

Makto zong!

ta Pawl

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9 Responses to Kaltxì ta Kopenhan–Hi from Copenhagen

  1. okrìsti says:

    Oh, a very interesting article, thank you for linking.
    Livu tì’usì’awn Parimì tìprrte’hu.
    🙂

  2. Plumps says:

    Indeed, the article is very interesting. I especially like the concept of direction in the Guugu Yimithirr Language. It seems so ›weird‹ to me but is so fascinating and lets you start to think outside of the box…
    Thank you for the link and keeping us up to date 😉

    Mivakto nìzawnong, ma Karyu.

  3. Kì'eyawn says:

    Txantsan! Ngeyä “tìplltxe”ru oe tìlmìng nari txonam, ulte tsat wolìntxu a’awa eylanur.

    Thank you for sharing, and i hope your Europe trip is proving enjoyable. Eywa ngahu, ma Karyu.

    ta Kì’eyawn (alu Lawren)

  4. Prrton says:

    Ma Pawl,

    I very much enjoyed the video of your talk and am looking forward to peeking in on some of the others as well. Marian Bantjes’ presentation looks like it would be particularly interesting to me, and timely for some of the activities Kemaweyan and I are engaged in ‘on the sidelines’ of late.

    The NYT article is also excellent. I am quite a fan of Guy Deutscher and very much enjoyed his book The Unfolding of Language. He even tackles the evolution of the Semitic verb in it. Many months ago (even before we had skien and ftär for ‘right’ and ‘left’), several of us discussed online what the Na’vi spacial system might look like. I’m not a pilot (and always fail miserably even at games that involve flight simulation), but it seems to me that because they fly with ikran, that they may have *something* in their everyday vocabulary that approximates our rather technical concepts of ‘pitch, roll, and yaw’. I was intrigued by Jake’s use of the verb ‘bank’ in the film and wonder how it might relate to or differ from mìn.

    I hope the weather is better for you in Paris. Wunderground shows more promising things for the weekend coming up.

    Sivop mengaru nìzawnong nìwotx. 🙂

  5. Ftiafpi says:

    Kaltxì ma Karyu Pawl,

    I’m glad you’re enjoying your time across the pond, shame about the weather but such is the season I suppose. I really enjoyed your GRID talk, even though it was nothing new, it’s still wonderful to hear you speak regarding the Na’vi language and I believe your talks give people an excellent and concise peek into what makes linguistics and the Na’vi Language such a fun and uniquely educational pastime.

    I also enjoyed the NYT article very much (hah! I normally would have written “a lot”, I guess my Na’vi is creeping into my English). Many fascinating concepts, especially about the directions. I myself have been told I have an innate sense of direction and usually can tell instantly which direction is north with no visual clues, so I can understand a little how this would work in daily life. It’s quite useful for my work too, large industrial facilities can be very confusing if you get turned around. I also enjoyed how the article discussed “evidentiality” and how it’s mandatory in some languages. It made me wonder how mandatory that is in Na’vi since we do have ways to denote evidentiality?

    In any case, thanks for the update, it’s good to see that the Na’vi language is still getting attention outside of the inner circles of the film and it’s fans. We look forward to seeing you in a few weeks.

    Also, ma Prrton, being a pilot you bring up some interesting points. Pilots do tend to view the world slightly differently and I know we have specialized vocabulary to describe various things that would have limited use outside of flying. Maneuvers such as stalls, turns, spins, dives, rolls, loops, flares, etc. could all have specialized vocabulary that would be exclusive to flying.

    In addition, various terms, measurements, and motions would require specialized vocabulary. Pitch, yaw, roll, airspeed, lift, drag, etc. All those would be important and useful terms for a culture capable of flight, even without understanding the basic physics behind the concept of heavier than air flight.

    Finally, I think that being a pilot has slightly altered my perspective and view of the world. I know I spend just as much time looking up as looking down since becoming a pilot. I also focus on tiny details in the sky a lot more than before (because, while flying, is that speck of black against the sky a bit of dirt on the windshield or a bird you’re about to hit, such observations become critical). Also, I know that I understand topography a lot better. I know that certain things may seem completely different from the air, suddenly walls of trees or forests do not obscure your vision, neither does terrain if you get high enough.

    In any case, I think that it would be interesting to explore how the Na’vi and they’re ability to fly may influence their language.

  6. Txur'Itan says:

    I heard through the grape vine, it is Dr Frommer’s birthday.

    ftxozä lefpom Ma Karyu Pawl!

  7. Taronyu says:

    Thanks.

    If anyone has the chance, pick up Guy Deutschers new book, Through the Language Glass. I find it just as illuminating and entertaining as The Unfolding of Language, which I also enjoyed. He’s very good at pop-Linguistics.

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