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JRRT

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  1. JRRT
    Nuparu and the Dakhi-Na Vahki / The Six Commandments of the Law


     

    [
    also there]

     
    The Onu-Matoran engineer-inventor Nuparu is well-known as the creator of the last generation of law-enforcement automatons to be implemented in the city of Metru Nui prior to the Great Cataclysm. This was the culmination of a series of attempts to control crime-rates and unrest spanning the period after the tragic events of the Matoran Civil War.
     
    While it is true that Nuparu was primarily responsible for the conception and mechanical design of these automatons, he also played a role in articulating the socio-political philosophy behind their implementation. In the aftermath of the Civil War, many leaders sought to implement safeguards to prevent any future uprisings in the city—not simply because they desired to control the population, but because they also wished to prevent the reoccurrence of a state of affairs where the bloody intervention of the Makuta once again was threatened.
     
    Various schools of thought arose, all centered around the concept of Vahki – "the Law" – and its application. Accordingly, Nuparu named his creations the Vahki. Furthermore, he consulted the Ko-Matoran Scholar and Historian Ihu about the history of Matoran legal systems. The oldest codified set of laws, said to have been transmitted directly from Mata Nui, was the Dakhi-Na Vahki "Six Commandments of the Law" (dakhi "(a) law, rule, commandment"), which articulated many of the basic principles of Matoran ethics.
     
    vahki |n.| (the) Law; lit. "measurement of limitations" [vahki < vahiki < vdahiki < fata-hiki, from fata "restriction, limitation " and hiki "measurement"]
    dakhi |n.| (a) law, rule, commandment; lit. "component of order" [dakhi < dakihi < zdakihi < zata-kihi, from zata "order" (see entry da) and kihi "part, component"]
     
    Each of the six individual laws was eventually characterized by a single lexical compound, which stood as the "name" of the law. Drawing upon this historical material, Nuparu created six variations on the original Vahki-design, each specifically tailored to the enforcement of one of the Dakhi-Na and equipped with corresponding abilities. The laws are as follows:
     
    I - Zadakh: "Thou shalt follow the plan."
    zadakh |n.cmpd.| (the) law of schematic [zadakh < zadakhi < za-zatakhi, from za "schematic, structure, plan" and zatakhi "(a) law, rule, commandment" (see entry dakhi)]
     
    II - Bordakh: "Thou shalt not betray life-integrity."
    bordakh |n.cmpd.| (the) law against decay/failure/betrayal/disloyalty [bordakh < bordakhi < borzdakhi < bor-zatakhi, from bor "decay, failure; lit. 'opposite of growing/living/remaining'" (< bo-ur) and zatakhi "(a) law, rule, commandment" (see entry dakhi)]
     
    III - Vorzakh: "Thou shalt not obstruct movement/vital-energy."
    vorzakh |n.cmpd.| (the) law against obstruction of movement/energy [vorzakh < vorzakhi < vorzdakhi < vor-zatakhi, from vor "obstruction (of movement/energy); lit. 'opposite of movement/transmission'" (< vo-ur) and zatakhi "law, rule, commandment" (see entry dakhi)]
     
    IV - Rorzakh: "Thou shalt not be idle/cease communication."
    rorzakh |n.cmpd.| (the) law against idleness/non-communication [rorzakh < rorzakhi < rorzdakhi < ror-zatakhi, from ror "idleness, non-communication; lit. 'opposite of unit/word'" (< ro-ur) and zatakhi "law, rule, commandment" (see entry dakhi)]
     
    V - Keerakh: "Thou shalt not injure/disassemble."
    keerakh |n.cmpd.| (the) law against injury/disassembly [keerakh < keerzdakhi < keer-zatakhi, from keer "injury, disassembly; lit. 'opposite of unity-of-parts'" (< kee-ur) and zatakhi "law, rule, commandment" (see entry dakhi)]
     
    VI - Nuurakh: "Thou shalt not forget."
    nuurakh |n.cmpd.| (the) law against forgetfulness [nuurakh < nuurzdakhi < nuur-zatakhi, from nuur "forgetfulness; lit. 'opposite of memory'" (< nu-ur) and zatakhi "law, rule, commandment" (see entry dakhi)]
     
    In addition to the choice of name for each Vahki, Nuparu also equipped each Vahki-type with abilities appropriate for the enforcement of the individual laws they represented:
     
    - The Zadakh were equipped with Staffs of Suggestion, allowing them to enforce the commandment that Matoran should follow the plan or programming provided.
     
    - The Bordakh were equipped with Staffs of Loyalty, enforcing the commandment against decay, failure, or betrayal by generating a strong sense of loyalty in the target.
     
    - The Vorzakh were equipped with Staffs of Erasing, which inhibited higher mental function, enforcing the commandment against the obstruction of movement or transmission of energy by causing Matoran-units to revert to base-programming.
     
    - The Rorzakh were equipped with Staffs of Presence, allowing the Vahki to monitor the senses of subversive individuals and enforce the commandment against idleness (not performing a particular labor for some reason) or non-communication (i.e. withholding information).
     
    - The Keerakh were equipped with Staffs of Confusion, allowing them to enforce the commandment against injury (of another unit) or disassembly (of some structure) by disorienting and subduing the offender.
     
    - Lastly, the Nuurakh were equipped with Staffs of Command, allowing them to enforce the commandment against forgetting or abandoning some task or purpose by directly forcing a command-directive upon a target and imposing obedience.
     
    While Nuparu originally intended for the Vahki to represent the Unity of the Law (Vahki Kaita) by working as a whole throughout the city of Metru Nui, they were not implemented as such. Instead, each of the six Vahki-types became separately associated with one Metru and were largely restricted to working within that Metru, subverting Nuparu's original ideal.
     
    Accordingly, as the role of the Vahki became more and more oppressive under the increasingly totalitarian leadership of Turaga Dume, Nuparu came to believe that, in spite of his good intentions for bringing about a final age of peace for his city, he had ultimately failed, and the revelation that Turaga Dume was in fact the Makuta Teridax in disguise only reinforced that belief. Despite the efforts of those who strove to establish the rule of law in Metru Nui, in the end, history repeated itself with the intervention of the Makuta, and the universe suffered the consequences...
     
    Etymological Notes:
     
    Five of the words listed above are derived via a common pattern: stem+ur+zatakhi. After standard processes of phonological reduction have applied – namely -urzata- > -rzada- > -rzda- – this results in a triconsonantal cluster [rzd]. This cluster is further reduced according to the application of three different phonological rules, as follows:
     
    - Rule 1: [rzd] > [rd] / V__
    This means that, when the cluster [rzd] is preceded by a short vowel, it reduces to [rd]. This rule applies in the word bordakh (< borzdakhi).
     
    - Rule 2: [rzd] > [rz] / C[+cont]V__
    This means that, when the cluster [rzd] is preceded by a short vowel and a consonant which is a continuant, it reduces to [rz] (i.e. instead of [rd], as in Rule 1). This rule applies in the words vorzakh (< vorzdakhi, [v] = continuant consonant) and rorzakh (< rorzdakhi, [r] = continuant consonant).
     
    - Rule 3: [rzd] > [r] / V:__
    This means that, when the cluster [rzd] is preceded by a long vowel, it reduces to [r] (most likely with an intermediate stage [rd] or [rz]). This rule applies in the words keerakh (< keerdakhi < keerzdakhi) and nuurakh (< nuurzakhi < nuurzdakhi).
  2. JRRT

    star-spangly

    By JRRT,

    July 4th? Independence Day? This seemed appropriate:
     
    "The Star-Spangled Banner" (first verse)
     
    O say can you see / by the dawn's early light,
    What so proudly we hailed / at the twilight's last gleaming,
    Whose broad stripes and bright stars / through the perilous fight,
    O'er the ramparts we watched, / were so gallantly streaming?
    And the rockets' red glare, / the bombs bursting in air,
    Gave proof through the night / that our flag was still there;
    O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
    O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
     
    Matoran Translation:
     
    "Ni'uma Runa"
     
    Ou avahima / ki i'akuyaka,
    Ki o maui ilo- / -ma'a-ngu akuyanu,
    Wairho ni-avaui / raui-i'azaia
    Akuwi-maikoro, / akakui movyaganu?
    Koradak-toiavka / ile'a krayaga,
    Akramu ki akya / ki runa'o boya,
    'ko-rya, ni'uma-runa ivyaka-lei
    Rokua-miwahi no roaki-mirei?
     
    Time to go eat good food and watch some fireworks with the fam. Happy 4th.
  3. JRRT

    Mask Maker

    By JRRT,

    As a final act in 2016, I've posted an epic entitled Mask Maker. It's a final take on the Bionicle G1 storyline that has been taking shape for a few years now. Here's the main topic and the review topic if you're interested in reading and/or commenting. It'll also be on my tumblr blog. See ya '16.
     
    Updates:
     
    CH 1 Labor
    CH 2 Deadline
    CH 3 Last
    CH 4 Embrace
    CH 5 All Wrong
    CH 6 Ages
    CH 7 Invert
    CH 8 No
    CH 9 Door
    CH 10 Goodbye
    CH 11 Mask Maker (Final)
  4. JRRT

    = Matoran Etymology =

    By JRRT,

    Two entries in one day...isn't that against the rules?!
     
    -------------
     
    Well now, anyways, I've been working on this little project here and there for a long time now, and I think it's starting to come to a complete enough stage that I can post it. As a whole, it's basically my take on the form and history of the "Matoran Language" (in dictionary form). The language itself is called Matoranoro, which is "The Words of Those Who Speak" and also Kuitoronui, which is "The Great Speech".
     
    Right now I plan to post a short series of excerpts from it describing the etymology of certain Matoran words and names, and eventually to post the entire dictionary of it.
     
    Of course, I'm not really expecting many people to be extremely interested in it, since it's mostly just the long-winded and complicated ramblings of a linguistically obsessed geek. But we shall certainly see. I guess I don't care all that much one way or the other--it's my hobby, after all.
     
    And it's really fun to do.
     
    So, first "excerpt": a complete etymology of the word kanohi. Much of this stuff is actually given in a silly little SS I wrote called The Time.
     
    kanohi cmpnd. Mask of Power [Formed from the element ka “power, ability” and from the word nohi “face, mask” (see entries)]
    ka n. power, energy; ability, (creative) potential [Complete etymology uncertain. The word could have theoretically developed from a hypothetical form *kae; also spelled cah or ca (using the old orthographic letter c); also realized as aka, akha, kan, kar, khar and, in very rare cases, as the prefix gah- (separate from the elemental ga-)]
    nohi n. (outer) face, mask [used by mask-makers to refer to the powerless Matoran mask; nohi comes from the ancient form noehii, which, in turn, is formed from the ancient element noe, the elemental word for the substance of Protodermis and from the suffix -hii “thing, object.” Thus, nohi may, historically, be rendered as “thing of Protodermis”]
     
    ------------
     
    And there it is.
     
    JRRT
  5. JRRT
    After four relatively large entries crammed with information on the Matoran language, it strikes me that I still have enough of this stuff to go on for quite a long time. It’s exhausting (yet somehow rewarding) to put these things together, and I hope someone out there derives as much enjoyment from the topic of Matoran linguistics as I have.
     
    With this in mind, I’m considering making this an actual regular thing, possibly weekly or twice-weekly, with smaller, more focused amounts of information per entry, rather than the info-dumps I’ve been doing. Already I know that I have enough content for at least another ten to twelve short(er) entries, possibly twice that, depending on how things are paced. It sounds like a lot. . .but there are a lot of words in Bionicle.
     
    But beyond that, the reason for this interim entry is actually to ask something of you. Yes, you--the reader. I see you there, lurking. Answer me this: What do you think? Are you burnt out yet? I know I’m not, but we’ll see. Do you enjoy these entries? It’s not often that I ask for comments, mostly because I know some people may read, but don’t have much to respond beyond “I (don’t) like X”. That’s the nature of the topic, of course, but even so, I’d certainly like to know. Sometimes I imagine I’m talking to myself. It’s good practice, I suppose. Talking. . .
     
    I’d also like to ask if you, the reader, have any “requests”. Are there any particular Matoran words/names/whatevers that you’d like to see translated? If so, feel free to leave a comment, and I’ll attempt to incorporate any requests into future entries.
     
    Finally, to make sure this entry isn’t entirely self-serving, I’d like to highlight two (not so) recent topics that are also aimed at putting flesh on the bones of the Matoran language:
     
    Conjecture on Matoran (language) morphology, by QuestionMark -- topic (sadly) dead as of Feb.27. (Received bonesiii’s “Key to Nongu” Award)
     
    Dual Matrix's Ultimate Guide to Matoran, by Dual Matrix -- topic still living as of April 7.
     
    I don’t frequent S&T much anymore, but if I did. . .I suppose I would've been more informed. As it is, I only discovered the existence of these topics last week. There are a lot of great and creative ideas here, so take a look! One distinction between the approach to the Matoran language exhibited in these topics and the approach I’ve taken here has to do with “canonicity”: as realistic visions of the Matoran language, these topics attempt to translate words within the fairly strict guidelines of the canon Bionicle storyline. In contrast, in this blog I have been very free in my translations, decomposing words into smaller and smaller units, affected by regular (but completely invented) phonological processes, and heavily paraphrasing “canon” translations in order to derive consistent meanings across words and morphemes that, on the surface, might seem drastically removed from each other (much as is the case in human language). For that reason, posting any of this as an official “theory” was, unfortunately, never really an option. But that’s okay. I applaud the efforts of those represented in the topics above and encourage you to peruse them for your own personal fulfillment (or amusement). It’s fun stuff. Terribly fun, you have to admit. . .And I think I’ll end it on that note. I look forward to your (possible) replies.
     
    JRRT
  6. JRRT

    All Things Come To An End

    By JRRT,

    Well, in light of the recent announcement, I thought it would be appropriate to write an entry about the End of Bionicle. Be careful, I may wax poetic here...
     
     
    As a fan who was there at the beginning, who watched the dawn of Bionicle and reveled in its mythic light, I can say that I am fully satisfied as it comes to an end. Bionicle has had a long and excellent run, and its tenth anniversary is a fitting time to bring things to a close. I look back over the entirety of the universe that Lego has created for us, and I can say that all the little things that irked me in the past cannot shine as bright as the things that enthralled and inspired me.
     
    There was a time when I spent a great deal of effort and energy raging against the great problems and failures and mistakes that I perceived in the storyline of Bionicle. It bugged me. I wrote books of mental criticism in my head about how the storyline should have happened, how it could have been done better, how the magic of the first years of Bionicle could have been preserved! But no! The story team was too callous--they didn't listen. It was all ruined, and I had to just move on.
     
    But as time passed, I realized that all these things that had built up ultimately did not matter. They didn't take away from the underlying themes that drew me to Bionicle and kept me there. In fact, they were mostly all superficial, and even if they were a part of the "official" storyline, they didn't have to be a part of my imagination. That is what has kept me an avid fan for nearly a decade--the fact that, as a fan, I don't have to follow the canon absolutely. This is a pretty simplistic idea, that one can simply ignore those elements of the storyline that one dislikes. But the thing that truly brought this home to me was the realization that the "foundations" of Bionicle that I love were not touched by these "bad things", even if I don't ignore them.
     
    The themes are still there. The same themes of Good vs. Evil, the same cosmic struggle of powers, the same inner struggle within an individual: to give in to the flawed evil within us all, or to follow Morality.
    And, most importantly: the struggle to regain the good that was lost through deception. The Toa strive to awaken their Great Spirit and return their microscosmic universe to its original, if flawed, state and purpose, while in the macrocosmic universe Mata Nui must ultimately seek to repair Paradise: Spherus Magna.
     
    What is the reason for pointing out these things? Perhaps simply to illustrate why I am not one of those fans who will inevitably say "Oh, I'm glad it's finally over." Those who have been jaded by all the "problems" that they perceive. Honestly, I've seen enough of that tripe written here, and it annoys me to no end. As if the people who say such things are so high up on their pedestals as to look down on the thing that they enjoyed so immensely in the past and say "Good riddance!" Really? Is that really what you want? How pathetic. What is your motivation? I don't deny that there are certainly missed opportunities galore in the Bionicle storyline, but these pale in comparison to the bigger picture.
     
    But enough of that. The real reason for this entry was to look back over the entire body of the Bionicle storyline and remember all the aspects that attracted me at the beginning, and to marvel at how I will remember the good far longer than any of the bad. It is remarkable that the truly mythological elements--that mysterious atmosphere that drew me and so many other fans to the line in the first place--is ultimately preserved if one goes over the storyline in summary form, perhaps because that feeling was never actually gone. I suppose it's also fitting, then that this announcement (and thus, this entry) comes at Thanksgiving.
     
    Thanks, Bionicle. Thanks for a decade of memories. I'm glad I'm still here, here at the end of all things...
     
     
     
     
    ...Sorry, I just couldn't resist.
     
    JRRT
  7. JRRT
    A Dictionary and Etymology of the Matoran Language
     
    =l Volume II l=
     
    Compiled by Ihu, Scholar of Metru Nui, k. 79908. This volume continues with entries M through Z.


    -M-
     
    mahri, n. ocean
    m(a)i, adv. up, above, over [From the stem *maeh "up, above, over"]
    maima, v. to rise (base-stem) [From the stem *maeh "up above, over" with addition of the general verbal suffix -ma]
    maita¹, n. brain [From the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the nounal suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning, and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > ai]
    maita², adj. mental, of the mind [Originally maihta, the word eventually merged in form with the earlier maita¹ (see entry). It derives from the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the adjectival suffix -ha, and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > ai]
    mai(h)te, adj. intelligent, mindful, reasoned [From the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the adjectival suffix -he "having" and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > ai]
    Makuta, n. cmpnd. Master of Knowledge [From elements ma- "master, user of" and kuta "knowledge"]
    manas, n. monster, fearful thing
    Mana-ko, n. cmpnd silent monster [From older Manasko]
    manta, v. to create (base-stem) [From the element man (see entry mat) and the general verbal suffix -ta]
    mareno, n. (the) West [Apparently derived from an older stem mairee- (which eventually produces our modern term mirehe "arm"), in conjunction with the ancient elemental stem (o)noi, referencing the element of Protodermis.The term follows a trend in the derivation of "location-words" in which the words for the cardinal points originate from terms for parts of the body. See related entries metiono "north", merhono "east", and wareno "south" for further discussion]
    mat (ma-), n. user, master, creator [etymology uncertain; it is believed that mat first originated as *maa but this is not definitively attested; also appears as man]
    Mata, n. lit. Master of All [used only in reference to the Great Spirit; mata is formed of the element mat "master, user" and the ancient intensive suffix -a]
    matatu, n.cmpnd. master/user of the mind [From the elements mat "master, user" and atu "mind, will"]
    mator(o), n. cmpnd. word master, a master of words [From the two elements ma(t) "master (of)" and oro "word(s)"]
    Matoran, n. lit. word-master-beings, generalized as "speakers", "those who speak" [From the older matoroan, it is formed from the element mator(o) "word master" and the suffix -an "being, individual"]
    matya, v. to master, use (ya-stem) [From the element mat "master, user" and the verbal suffix -ya]
    mau(h)te, adj. changed, altered [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the adjectival suffix -he "having"]
    mautur, n. ruin, distortion [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the negative suffix -uur, denoting an opposite meaning; the term originally meant "idleness" or "stagnation", but later took on the meaning of a similar word mutak "ruin, distortion", eventually supplanting the term and losing the historical meaning]
    mautye, n. change, modification; mutation [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the nounal suffix -hye, denoting a generally universal concept; also found as the more modern muhtye, with development of diphthong au > u]
    merhono, n. (the) East [Apparently derived from an older stem mairee- (which eventually produces our modern term mirehe "arm"), in conjunction with the ancient elemental stem (o)noi, referencing the element of Protodermis. This origin is identical with the related term mareno "west", differing only in the combination of the two elements (merhono showing the gradual prevalence of the onoi element, whereas mareno shows the opposite). The term again demonstrates the usual convention by which the names of the cardinal points all originate from terms for parts of the body. See related entries metiono "north", mareno "west", and wareno "south" for further discussion]
    metii, n. head [From the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the nounal suffix -hii "thing, place" and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > e]
    metineye, n. cmpnd canopy; lit. "tree-head" [Composed of the noun metii "head" and a contracted form of ihneye "tree"]
    metirui, n. neck; lit. "head joint" [Composed of the elements metii "head" and -rui "joint" (see entry)]
    met(i)ono, n. (the) North [Apparently derived from an older form of the stem met-, at the time meaning "mind" or "head", in conjunction with the ancient elemental stem (o)noi, referencing the element of Protodermis. There is still debate over the exact motivation for the derivation of this term, although some have proposed that it is related to the location of the city of Metru Nui in the north of the world, the term metru sharing the same or similar etymology (from the ancient stem maet "mind, thought"); also see related entries mareno "west", merhono "east", and wareno "south", all of which seem to be derived from terms for parts of the body]
    metru, n. city [etymology uncertain; it appears that metru originated from the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with obscure suffix -uu (which may signify a place embodying a concept), eventually becoming -ru with loss of preceding diphthong ae. It is unclear why a term for a city originated from such a stem; however, this could be explained by the fact that maet may have developed from the older hypothetical stem *maa (see entry mat), connecting its meaning with the early construction of a city. There is no considerable consensus on this (or the preceding) interpretation.]
    metye, n. mind, intellect [From the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the nounal suffix -hye and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > e]
    mirehe, n. arm [Historically composed of the adjectival element mai- "up, upper" and the word reehe "limb, appendage"]
    mirehovo, n. cmpnd. wrist [A compound formed from the elements mirehe "arm" and -ovo "end, finish"]
    misso, n. mist, fog [Formed from the stem miis "mysterious, unkown" with addition of the suffix -o denoting a substance or physical concept; also appears as a variant form miswe with alternate suffix -we]
    missu, adj. unknown, mysterious [From the stem miis "mysterious, unkown" with addition of the adjectival suffix -u]
    miswe; see entry misso
    misye, n. mysteriousness, (the) Unknown [From the stem mis "mysterious, hidden, unknown" with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a universal concept; also found as mishe in southern and eastern dialects, with common dialectal shift of sy > sh]
    mo, n. field, plain, country
    moa, n. lit. of the plains; plains-dweller, desert bird [Historically moha, from the elements mo "plain, country" and the adjectival suffix -ha "of the…"]
    mora, n. wilderness, wild country; landscape [From the elements mo "field, plain, country" and ra "wild untamed"]
    motara, n. desert; hot, barren region [Historically a triple-compound formed from the elements mo "field, country", ta "fire, hot", and ra "wild, untamed"]
    mua, n. rahi cat, tiger
    mudra, n. changer (one who changes things) [Historically mutra, it originates from the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the agental suffix -ra and with usual later development of diphthong au > u; complementary to the similar word munna (see entry)]
    muhtye; see entry mautye
    mukai, v. to ruin, distort (ai-stem) [Historically derived from the ya-stem verb mutya through analogy of the archaic stem mutak, forming the hypothetical form *mutakya (with insertion of -ak into the stem), eventually developing into the form mukaya and thence to mukai]
    munna, n. changer (one who changes) [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the agental suffix -na and with usual later development of diphthong au > u; complementary to the similar word mudra (see entry)]
    mutaku, adj. ruined, distorted, disparate [Originally derived from an archaic stem mutak "ruin, distortion" (now unused, supplanted by more recent mautur (see entry)) with addition of the general adjectival suffix -u]
    mutu, adj. different, unlike [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the adjectival suffix -u and with usual later development of diphthong au > u]
    mutya, v. to change (ya-stem) [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the verbal suffix -ya and with usual later development of diphthong au > u]
     
    -N-
     
    neh, n. plant-life element [Originally nei; also realized as the adjectival prefix ne-]
    neto, n. leaf [Derived from a stem (e)net, modified form of the elemental root nei, with addition of the nounal suffix -o "physical concept"]
    nekua, adv. thus, so, in that way [etymology uncertain]
    nenu, n. grass [etymology uncertain]
    nenu-leru, n. cmpnd acid grass [A term for the species of acid grass found in the Northern Continent and in the island of Xia, it is composed of the noun nenu "grass" and the adjective leru "acidic"]
    neo, n. nature; the Green [Originally from the ancient elemental root nei "elemental plant-life" with addition of the nounal suffix -o "physical concept"; also found as ny in southern dialects (with shift of diphthong eo > y). Translation of the term as "the Green" stems from the similarity of the modern form of the word to other color-words derived from elemental stems (cf. leo "green")]
    neto-kaatuhi, n. cmpnd. petal; lit. "flower-leaf" [Composed of the elements neto "leaf" and kaatuhi "flower"]
    neye, n. plant [Modified from the ancient elemental root nei "elemental plant-life"]
    nohi, n. (outer) face, mask [used by mask-makers to refer to the powerless Matoran mask; nohi comes from the ancient form noihii, which, in turn, is formed from the ancient elements -hii "thing, object" and noi, the elemental word for the substance of Protodermis. Thus, nohi may, historically, be rendered as "thing of Protodermis"]
    noiwe; see entry noyo
    noka, n. disk [A more modern addition to the Matoran lexicon, noka is formed from the elements noe "elemental protodermis" and ka "power, ability" to have the historical meaning of "power of protodermis". (see entry kanoka for further historical notes)]
    noyo, n. body [Derived from the ancient stem onoi, with the repurposing of the initial o as a suffix]
    nui, adj. great, powerful
    nuva, adj. new
    nuyorho, n. mountain range [Originates as a conjunction of the word (o)nuyo "mountain" and the suffix/prefix rho "line, edge"]
     
    -O/Y-
     
    ohama, v. to come, move toward (base-stem) [Formed from the older verb kama "to move", with addition of the prefix o(h)-, denoting that the action is turned inward]
    okune, n. (a) silence, pause, rest [From the element koh "elemental ice (also connoting 'silence' and 'calm')" with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem"; the development of the theoretical historical form *okoohi into the modern form okune occurs according to a process by which the -hi suffix, in the presence of a preceding "back" consonant sound (in this case k), is strengthened to -ne, while the historically long vowel oo is raised to u due to the effect of the original -hi]
    onkoro, n. cliff [Derived from the word koro in combination with the elemental earth prefix onu-; also appears as a variant onkorwe with suffix -we "physical concept"]
    onkoro-nui, n. cmpnd. the Great Barrier [composed of the noun onkoro "cliff" and the adjective nui "great, mighty, vast"]
    onkorwe; see entry onkoro
    (o)nuiwe, n. mountain [Originates from the ancient elemental stem onue "elemental earth" with addition of the stem iih "high, high up" and the nounal suffix -we "physical substance/concept" [onue-iih-we > onuih-we > onuiwe]. Synonyms: (o)nuyo, ino-nui]
    (o)nuyo, n. mountain [Originates from the ancient elemental stem onue "elemental earth" with addition of the stem iih "high, high up" and the nounal suffix -o "physical substance/concept" [onue-iih-o > onuih-o > onuio]. Synonyms: (o)nuiwe, ino-nui]
    onne, n. solidness, steadfastness, loyalty; stubbornness [A very ancient word derived from the element onu "elemental earth (also connoting 'solidness' and 'loyalty')" with addition of the general nounal suffix -e]
    on(o)to, n. tool, instrument; weapon [From the older form ono "tool, weapon, implement" (etymology uncertain), with further addition of the suffix -to, also indicating a tool or implement; the stem ono is possibly descended from an older form *hno, similar in shape to the hypothetical stem *hro, see entry oro]
    ono-vawe, n. cmpnd. island [A compound of the elements ono "elemental protodermis" (derived from the ancient stem (o)noi) and vawe "foundation" (see entry). Synonyms: pauhi, pa-nui, vawe]
    (o)nuh, n. elemental earth [Originally (o)nue; also realized as nu, nuu, and as the adjectival prefix onu-]
    onwo, adj. black [Originally from an augmented form of onue "elemental earth" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    opahi, n. (a) stone, rock [From the element pah "elemental stone" with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem"]
    oraha, v. to say, speak (base-stem) [Consists of the verbal stem ora, which is in turn derived from the older stem of oro "word" with addition of the verbal suffix -ha]
    yraha, v. to tell, relate (base-stem) [Originally derived from the older verb oraha "to say, speak", with addition of the prefix e- (forming the archaic eoraha), denoting that the action is turned outward; it then exhibits the development of the diphthong eo > y in initial position]
    oran, n. word being, being(s) who use words (language) [used as a reference to those races throughout the universe who speak with language, Matoran or otherwise; oran (older oroan) is formed from the element oro "word" and the suffix -an "being, individual" with eventual absorption of the -o in oro.]
    oro, n. word [etymology uncertain; possibly descended from a stem *hro]
    oturhe, n. (a) fear, fright [From the word tur " fear, cowardice" (older tuur) with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem"]
    ovahi, n. (a) time, instance, moment [used in reference to a specific point in time; it is formed from the elemental word vae, with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem", so "a specific point within the concept of time"]
    ozahi, n. violent act, crime [From the element zaa "retribution, conflict, violence" with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem"]
     
    -P-
     
    paavelta, n. cmpnd. lit. luminous stone; lightstone [Originates from the elements pao "elemental stone" (see entry poh) and the archaic word aavelta "luminous, shining thing" (itself formed from the element aavel "shining, luminous" and the suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning)]
    pah; see entry poh
    paka, n. strength, hardness [Physically, denotes the strength of a physical object or individual, but metaphorically paka can refer to a hard or stern personality; paka is formed from the elements pa "elemental stone" and aka "power, ability" to have a literal, historical, meaning of "power of stone"]
    palneh, n. trunk; lit. "hard stem" [Contracted from an older compound pal-eneh "hard stem"]
    palnehu, adj. woody [Derived from the older compound pal-eneh "hard stem (trunk)" with addition of the general adjectival suffix -u]
    palnewe, n. wood [Derived from the older compound pal-eneh "hard stem (trunk)" with addition of the nounal suffix -we "substance"]
    pa-nui, n. cmpnd. island [Composed of a variant of the ancient elemental stem pao "elemental stone" and the adjective nui "great, mighty". Synonyms: pauhi, vawe, ono-vawe]
    pauhi, n. island [Derived from the ancient elemental stem pao "elemental stone" with addition of nounal suffix -hii "thing, place". Synonyms: vawe, ono-vawe, pa-nui]
    pawo, adj. brown [Originally from an augmented form of pao "elemental stone" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    piraka, n. cmpnd lit. "agent of evil"; (obscenity) a thief or murderer [Formed from the elements piir "perpetrator, agent of" and -raka "great destruction, evil" (from -rak and older intensifier -a)]
    pire, n. perpetrator, agent; participant [From the stem pir (older piir) with addition of the general nounal suffix -e]
    poh, n. elemental stone [Originally pao, still attested in some rare cases; also realized as pah and as the adjectival prefix po-]
    pura, n. friend, companion [From the stem pu (originally from the elemental po) "friendly, pleasant" with addition of the agental suffix -ra]
     
    -R-
     
    ra, 1 adj. wild, free, untamed; 2 n. wildness, freedom [An extremely ancient word element applied mostly to animate things, it has inherently both nounal and adjectival properties which have never been separated into distinctly different words; historically raa]
    rahi, n. wild thing/creature [Formed from the element ra "wild" and the suffix -hii "thing"; historically raahii.]
    rama, n. flying rahi insect
    rau, n. understanding, translation, decipherment [Originates from the stem oro "word" (see entry)]
    raura, n. teacher; translator, "understander" [Derived from the word rau "understanding, decipherment" (originally from the older oro "word") with addition of the agental suffix -ra]
    reehe, n. limb, branch; appendage [Probably from a stem like *(e)ree (modified from the ancient stem raa "wild, chaotic, deviant"), signifying "divergence" or "branching off", also with addition of the suffix -hii "thing, object, place"]
    rehovo, n. cmpnd. foot; lit. "end of limb" [A compound formed from the elements reehe "limb" and ovo "end, finish"; also found as an alternate form warehe-ovo, with more modern warehe "leg"]
    rhot(t)u, n. ring, wheel [Historically rhoktu, from the stem rho(k) "ring, circle, edge" with addition of the nounal suffix -tu, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning]
    rhovawe, n. shore, shoreline [Composed of the element vawe "foundation, basis, island" and the suffix/prefix rho "line, edge, circle"]
    rho(we)-nuyo, n. cmpnd. mountain range [Composed of the elements rho(we) "line, edge" (with nounal suffix -we "physical concept") and nuyo "mountain"]
    rodye; see entry rohte
    rohte, n. truth, reality [From older rotohye, originally from the older stem rot(o) (augmented from the stem oro, see entry), with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a generally universal concept; also attested as rodye]
    rui(hi), n. joint [etymology uncertain; possibly derived from an earlier modification of the ancient stem form raa "wild, chaotic, deviant", with a reversal of the meaning (thus "together, converging, united, etc.")]
    rui-mirehe, n. cmpnd shoulder [A compound formed from the elements mirehe "arm" and rui "joint"]
    rui-rehovo, n. cmpnd toe-joint [A compound formed from the elements rehovo "foot" and rui "joint"]
    rui-warehe, n. cmpnd hip [A compound formed from the elements warehe "leg" and rui "joint"]
     
    -S-
     
    sa(a), conj. and [A conjunction used to connect words of the same type (noun-noun, verb-verb, etc.)]
    suva, n. shrine, gathering place
     
    -T-
     
    tah, n. elemental fire [Also has connotations of courage, bravery, and leadership; originally tae, still attested in some rare cases; also found as the adjectival prefix ta-]
    tai¹, n. courage, bravery, leadership [From the elemental word tah (older tae) with addition of the general nounal suffix -i; the term merged at an early point with the adjectival form taii (see entry tai²); also see synonomous term aki]
    tai², adj. brave, courageous, bold [From the elemental word tah (older tae) with addition of the adjectival suffix -ii (*taeii > taii > tai)
    taka, n. light, illumination [Can refer more to the light of a fire or a torch, thereby also carrying the connotation of "leading" or "revealing", as the light of a torch reveals the way]
    takea, n. all-king (honorific) [The etymology of this term is at once simple and obscure. This is primarily because of its usage: the term takea can be used as an honorific of great respect, denoting mastery and power, but it is also used as the name of the Rahi Takea Shark. This dual usage has resulted in a double meaning of sorts, since, as the name of a Rahi, it is used to mean "king of sharks". The constructions used for this latter meaning are the elemental prefix ta-, denoting authority and leadership, and the word kea "rahi shark". However, in its primary (or historical) usage, takea can be traced back to the ancient word aki "leader, lord" with the intensive suffix -ea (historically -eaa). This forms the term akea, which, combined again with the prefix ta-, yields the "all-king" honorific. Because of this variety in meaning, it may perhaps be simpler to classify both words as completely separate.]
    tea(-o), adj. red, fiery [Originally from an augmented form of tae "elemental fire" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    ter(e)na, n. keeper, guider [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the agental suffix -na]
    terenhe, adj. purposeful, meaningful [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the adjectival suffix -he "having"]
    terenye, n. guidance, direction, purpose [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a generally universal concept]
    terma, v. to guide (base-stem) [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the general verbal suffix -ma]
    terne, n. intention, goal [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the general nounal suffix -e]
    terya, v. to influence, persuade (ya-stem) [simplified from older tereya; it originates from the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the general verbal suffix -ya (terenya > tereya > terya)]
    tika, n. spirit, form, shape
    tur, n. fear, terror, cowardice [A perversion of the elemental word tae with addition of the negative suffix -uur]
     
    -U-
     
    ua-eneh, n. cmpnd root; lit. "under-stem" [Composed of the adjectival element ua- "down, lower, under" and the word eneh "stem"]
    ua(h), adv. down, beneath, under [etymology uncertain]
    uama, v. to descend, go down; drop (base-stem)
    ussa, n. steed [etymology uncertain]
    usya, v. to ride (ya-stem)
     
    -V-
     
    vah, n. elemental time [Originally vae, still attested in some rare cases]
    vahye, n. Time [used in reference to Time as a universal concept, in contrast to the elemental concept, represented by vah; it is formed originally from the elemental word vae with the addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a universal concept]
    vau, adj. treacherous, dangerous [From the stem bwa "treacherous, trickery" with addition of the adjectival suffix -u and with usual change of bw > v; also found as a place name Fau, with de-voicing of initial consonant characteristic to Le-Matoran dialects]
    vawe, n. foundation, basis; island [From the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" with addition of the nounal suffix -we, denoting a physical substance or concept embodying the stem meaning (vuawe > vaawe > vawe); also see entry ono-vawe "island"]
    vawe-nui, n. cmpnd. continent, large landmass [Composed of the nounal element vawe "foundation, island" and the adjective nui "great, vast, mighty"]
    vike , n. edge, sharp edge [etymology uncertain; possibly related to the adjectival prefix vi- "narrow, fine"]
    vikuino n. cmpnd. ravine, crevasse, narrow valley [Composed of the element ku-ino "valley" and the prefix vi- "narrow"]
    visso, n. venom, poison [From the stem viis "poison, venom" with addition of the nounal suffix -o, denoting a physical substance; also found as viswe with alternate suffix -we]
    vissu, adj. venomous, poisonous, deadly [From the stem viis "poison, venom" with addition of the general adjectival suffix -u]
    viswe; see entry visso
    voake, n. greed, gluttony [From the stem bwo "hunger, need, consumption" with addition of the abstract, negative suffix -ak (with usual development of -ak > -ake in vowel-final, monosyllabic stems); also voage]
    voakhe, adj. greedy, gluttonous [From the original form voak (see entry voake) with addition of the adjectival suffix -he "having"]
    vohye, n. hunger, appetite; desire, need [From the stem bwo "hunger, need, consumption" with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a universal concept]
    voita, n. end, completion, termination [Derived from a stem voe "end, finish, completion" with addition of the nounal suffix -ta "concept embodying stem meaning"]
    vuana, n. founder, beginner [From the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" with addition of the agental suffix -na; synonomous with the term vuara (see entry)]
    vu(a)neye, n. seed, spore; lit. "plant-source" [Contracted from an older compound vua-neye]
    vuara, n. founder, beginner [From the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" with addition of the agental suffix -ra; synonomous with the term vuana (see entry)]
    vuata, n. source, beginning [From the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" with addition of the nounal suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning]
    vuneye-nenu, n. cmpnd. fern; lit. "spore-grass" [Composed of the elements vuneye "seed, spore" and nenu "grass"]
    vurenye, n. Destiny [Historically a compound of the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" and the older word terenye "guidance, purpose" (vuaterenye > vuatrenye > vurenye); also realized as the more archaic compound ter(e)vua]
     
    -W-
     
    wa, adj. wide open, great, large [Historically waa]
    wahi, n. region, place [From the elements wa (historically waa) "wide open, large" and -hii "place, thing"]
    wanoyo, n. chest [From the elements wa "wide" and noyo "body, torso"]
    warehe, n. leg [Historically composed of the adjectival element ua- "down, lower" (eventually contracting to wa-) and the word reehe "limb, appendage"]
    wareh(e)ki, n. shin [Derived historically from the word warehe "leg" with the suffix -ki(i) "part, piece of". The term is more modern than warehe, since at the time of its derivation the -hii suffix in warehe (older wareehii) had already been retracted to -he [ua-ree-hii > wareehii > warehe-kii > wareheki]]
    warehe-ovo; see entry rehovo
    wareno, n. (the) South [Apparently derived from an older stem uaree- (which eventually produces our modern term warehe "leg"), in conjunction with the ancient elemental stem (o)noi, referencing the element of Protodermis, exhibiting the general convention of deriving "location-words" from terms for parts of the body. See related entries metiono "north", merhono "east", and mareno "west" for a more thorough discussion]
     
    -Y-
     
    yehe, n. back, side; surface [Originally a development from an older form ike- (from which is also derived the grammatical particle ihe "before, behind") with addition of the nounal suffix -hii; frequently appears as a prefix ye- in compounds]
    yehonu, n. cmpnd slope, incline, hill-side [Composed of the noun yehe "side" and the ancient stem onu "elemental earth", here used to represent "hill, mountain"]
    yemetii, n. cmpnd back of head [Composed of the initial element ye- "back, rear, side" and the word metii "head" (see entry)]
    yenoyo, n. cmpnd back, spine [Composed of the initial element ye- "back, rear, side" and the word noyo "body" (see entry)]
    yerehovo, n. cmpnd heel [Composed of the initial element ye- "back, rear, side" and the word rehovo "foot" (see entry)]
     
    -Z-
     
    zya, v. (archaic) to attack (ya-stem) [A highly archaic term, usually supplanted by the more modern ezai (see entry); historically it originates from the stem zaa, with a meaning of "violence" or "retribution", and the addition of the verbal suffix -ya (*zaya > zya)]
     
    Here ends the Dictionary.
     
    ...whew.
     
    JRRT
  9. JRRT

    Learning Matoran: Lesson 4

    By JRRT,

    Lhe ke ovahi o,
    gaa kaira teraio’na
    a Taka a Kraa, e’ Arta a Khar.
    Ie te ngie zyo.
    I ava e’ awa ekamo.

    During that time,
    Two brothers ruled
    Light and Dark, Arta and Khar
    They strove against each other
    And the first cast down the second.

    -- From “The Legend of the Bionicle”

    --------------------

    My, folks, it's been a while. Don't worry. I'm not dead or anything. The project continues!

    In fact, it's like...it's like I can't stop.

    ...

    Help me.

    --------------------

    =l Nouns II l=

    Recall again the basic structure of the Matoran Noun System: particles placed before, after, or around the noun which indicate the purpose of the noun in a sentence. Thus far, we have seen the first three of these particles—the Case Particles—dealing with the grammatical roles of Subject, Object, and Possession. Six particles remain, and these are split into two groups: Motion and Time/Location. We'll deal with the first group here.

    Motion Particles:
    The three-fold particle structure is repeated for particles indicating Motion. Otherwise, the Motion particles are rather straightforward.

    “Toward/Into”
    The particle ii, placed before the noun, specifies motion toward, at, or into a noun. The plural form is nii.

    wahi – “region”
    ii wahi – “toward/into (a/the) region”
    nii wahi – “toward/into regions”

    “Through/By”
    Motion through, by/beside, or past a noun is expressed by the particle wo…a, with the plural form mo..a. This type of particle differs from the other particles discussed thus far, in that it consists of two parts—one placed before the noun and one placed after, but both forming a single particle. Therefore:

    wahi – “region”
    wo wahi a – “through/by (a/the) region”
    mo wahi a – “through/by regions”

    Technically, particles such as this would probably be classified as “circumpositions” (think preposition: before the noun; circumposition: around the noun). But, for the sake of simplicity, we will hold to the “particle” definition.

    “From/Out of”
    The last of the Motion particles is ka (plural nga), expressing motion out of, away, or originating from a noun. It is always placed after the noun.

    wahi – “region”
    wahi ka – “from/out of (a/the) region”
    wahi nga – “from/out of regions”

    This concludes the discussion of particles expressing Motion.

    Simple Sentences:

    Lastly in this lesson, I’d like to lay out some simple sentences, using vocabulary referenced in previous lessons.

    Ne matoran ii wahi kamo.
    "Matoran (pl.) went toward (the/a) region"

    First, we have matoran with the nominative plural particle ne. This is, of course, the Subject of the sentence. Next, there's wahi preceded by the singular motion particle ii "to/toward". And lastly, we have the verb kamo, past tense (note the suffix -o) of kama "to move, go".

    Rahi ui matoran wo wahi a kanna.
    "The Matoran’s Rahi goes through the region."

    The subject here is rahi (lacking the optional nominative particle i), and it is modified by matoran with the singular genitive (possessive) particle ui. Again we have wahi, now surrounded by the motion particle wo...a "through/by". This is followed by the verb: kanna (from kama) with gradation to show the present tense.

    Wahi ka rahi kanne.
    "The Rahi will go out of the region."

    This sentence begins with wahi followed by the motion particle ka "out of/away from". Next we have the subject rahi, which in turn performs the action of the verb kanne (future tense, with both gradation and the suffix -e).

    Something to notice in these sentences is the word order—the placement of nouns, verbs, etc. within the structure of a sentence. Matoran word order is less restricted than English word order, and thus we can see in the third sentence that the phrase wahi ka “out of the region” precedes the subject rahi: “Out of the region the Rahi will go.” This is not necessarily a standard structure for English, but in Matoran it is completely permissible, along with a variety of other permutations. For example, one could also say Kanne wahi ka rahi. "Will go out of region Rahi," or even Kanne rahi wahi ka. "Will go Rahi out of region."

    Vocabulary and Exercises:

    Here are some practice exercises focusing on some of the elements in this (and previous) lessons.

    First, try translating these English sentences into Matoran:
    1) "The Matoran spoke words."
    2) "The Turaga's Rahi attacked the village." (<use terya as the verb)
    3) "The Toa went to the city."
    4) "The Matoran went to the Turaga's village."

    Next, try translating these simple Matoran sentences into English:
    1) Rahi kamo koro ka.
    2) Matoran ea kanohi kharmo.
    3) Ohanne toa ii suva.
    4) Turaga orakha na oro.

    And here's some useful (if rather random) vocabulary to help with both tasks.

    Nouns:
    kanohi, n. mask of power
    kanoka, n. disk of power
    koro, n. village
    metii, n. head
    metru, n. city
    mua, n. rahi cat, tiger
    oro, n. word
    suva, n. shrine, gathering place
    ussa, n. steed (< think "Ussal" crab)

    Verbs:
    atuma, v. to think, consider
    kharma, v. to make, form
    ohama, v. to come, move toward (Note: verbs such as ohama usually take particles of Motion on their objects)

    If you happen to be interested in more vocabulary, take a look at the two volumes of the Matoran Dictionary.

    -------

    Probably next on the docket: Lesson 5—Pronouns and Adjectives.

    JRRT
  10. JRRT

    star power

    By JRRT,

    This post, I'm gonna to talk about some ideas related to other potential affixes, one in particular that I think can be quite straightforwardly derived using some comparative evidence centered around the following word:
     
    inika "energies of a star"
     
    Note that the translation we are given for this word is unique in that it is apparently a compound of two semantic units: "energy" and "star". That's different from the single-word definitions we usually get, and it also provides us with an example of what may be a noun+noun compound. Normally, we only get noun+adjective or adjective+noun sequences (e.g. mata+nui, kofo+jaga). In contrast, the word inika is apparently an example of two nominal units combined into a single lexical unit. Fascinating. I think we can take advantage of this.
     
    Alright, let's try to break down inika into its constituent parts (assuming we can). As stated in the previous post, I define ka as "power, energy, ability". This provides us with some immediate insight into the composition of inika: the unit ini must encode the meaning "of (a) star". Now, as it stands, we don't really have a way to separate whatever encodes "star" from whatever encodes "of", if they are even separable at all. We'll have to do some guesswork in order to move forward here.
     
    The first issue to be addressed is whether or not we should even assume that a meaning like "of" is even encoded here. We might easily assume that ini is "star", ka is "energy", and the combination is to be translated straightforwardly as "star-energy". We could do that, of course, and that would be the end of it. Blog post over! However, my purpose here is explicitly to consider places where we might be able to postulate affixes and, by implication, units with functional/grammatical meanings exactly like "of". The word inika provides us with the opportunity to derive just that: a morpheme encoding "of". Because of this, I will choose not to set it aside.
     
    Now that we've got that out of the way, let's try to break ini down further. First off, are there any other words that might provide clues on how to analyze ini? A quick search of the available Matoran lexicon gives a few exact matches – akil-ini, iru-ini, kav-ini-ka, k-ini – although none of these have canon translations except for kini "temple", which certainly doesn't reference stars overtly. Furthermore, if we relax the search parameters a bit, there are also numerous words containing elements like in and ni.
     
    As a side note, we may also observe that the phonetic structure of ini is a little odd in comparison to the overall patterns of Matoran syllable-structure. Most syllables in Matoran are of the form consonant+vowel, CV, but the first syllable of ini (i-ni) violates this pattern. That's interesting, and it's also interesting that this initial i- pattern shows up in a few other places as well: i-carax, i-den, i-dris, i-gnika, and i-hu.
     
    Alright, taking everything into account, does this help us at all? I think it does, actually. Here’s how: Among the various words containing variants of ini, I'd like to draw your attention to one in particular: nixie. Nixie is the name of a Ga-Matoran astrologer – a Matoran who studies the stars and their prophecies. Wouldn’t it make sense for an astrologer's name to reference the stars? I think it would.
     
    This leads me to the following proposal: Based on the fact that nixie clearly shows ni, I propose to analyze ini as a complex i-ni: ni "star" with a prefix i- "of, from".
     
    Are there any further advantages to this analysis? Well, let's consider the status of this newly-postulated affix i- and compare it with the other affix that's been defined thus far, that being the verbal marker -ya. One immediate contrast presents itself: -ya is a derivative affix, meaning that it is used to derive one type of word from another. In this case, -ya would derive verbs from non-verbs (stems, nouns, whatever).
     
    On the other hand, i- is not derivative—it is what might be called a functional or grammatical affix, meaning that it adds on to the meaning of the word to which it is applied, rather than creating a completely new word, as -ya would. In this case, i- is being applied to ni "star", which is presumably a noun, and the affix contributes the meaning "of" to the original meaning of the noun, hence "of (a) star".
     
    So that's one difference right off the bat. Do these affixes have anything in common though? Here are a couple of ideas: Recall from the last post that I've proposed that -ya can technically be dissolved into two units, i-a, and this becomes clear when -ya is split into its circumfixal form a-...-i. So we can say that -ya is to be reconstructed as *-ia. No problem. On a different but related note: elsewhere in Matoran etymology, I've made use of a particular phonological shift whereby a sequence <ai> changes to <i>, <e>, or <a> (presumably with an intermediate <ii> stage). The advantage of this postulated sound-change is that it allows us to tie together elements of words like miru, midak, damek, and madu, as well as even metru and matau.
     
    Alright, back to *-ia: If *-ia is the original verbal marker, we could postulate that there are other affixes constructed from the same building blocks, but simply applied in a different way (e.g. affixes that are applied to nouns as grammatical/functional affixes instead of derivative affixes). Combining this with the phonological rule described above, we may have a plausible origin for the affix i-. Here's the proposal:
     
    The prefix i- "of, from" derives from an older form *ai-, which can also be dissolved into two units a-i.
     
    Okay, I think we've stretched the available data about as far as we can, so here’s a disclaimer: At this point I’m entering the realm of pure speculation and invention. Follow along if you dare!
     
    Ultimately, I would like us to have a few more grammatical/functional affixes at our disposal in order to be able to translate texts into the Matoran Language. I will propose two such affixes based on the known prefix i-, hopefully with as little invention-work as possible.
     
    First off, we already have an affix meaning "of", which, in this case, we could also paraphrase as "from" (as in "originating from") or even "after", if we want to think in temporal terms (originating from a point in time, i.e. after a point in time?). What's the opposite of "of, from"? How about "to, toward"? Alright, what kind of affix could we use to represent this? Since this affix will express a meaning that is opposite to i-, it might make sense for that opposition to be reflected in the form of the affix itself, as follows:
     
    Proposal 1: There is a suffix -i which derives from older *-ai and expresses a meaning "to, toward" or "(temporally) before".
     
    So that's one more grammatical/functional affix to work with, and we've managed to derive it simply as a reversal of i-. Excellent! What else can we do? At this point I'd like to turn your attention to a Matoran narrative device that should be familiar:
     
    "In the time before time..."
     
    This phrase seems to be used to introduce Matoran legends/mythohistory. Note that it makes use of grammatical/functional units like "in" and "before". There's a reason I have proposed that -i expresses a meaning like "to, toward; before". We now have a means of translating part of this phrase. But what about the remaining "in"? My second proposal will provide us with a means of expressing this concept, as follows:
     
    The concept of "in the time" can be more accurately paraphrased as "during the time". This concept of "in, during" seems to fall somewhere between "from" and "to". Based on that observation, we might postulate that a corresponding grammatical/functional affix would reflect this in-between status in the same way that -i "to, toward" reflected its opposition to i- "of, from":
     
    Proposal 2: There is a circumfix i-...-a which is derived as a split variant of the older affixes *-ai and *ai- and expresses a meaning "in" or "(temporally) during".
     
    This leaves us with three grammatical/functional affixes to use on nouns in Matoran, as follows:
     
    1. i-, ai- "of, from; after"
    2. i-...-a "in; during"
    3. -i, -ai "to, toward; before"
     
    To conclude, I'll make use of the second and third affixes in translating the classic phrase "In the time before time...", using vahi as a stand-in for both instances of "time" (even though technically they represent different concepts: period of time vs. time as an abstract concept):
     
    i-vahi-a "in/during (the) time"
    vahi-ai "before time"
     
    Ivaha vahai...
    "In the time before time..."
     
    Notes:
    - I've reduced i-vahi-a to ivaha as a general rule. Technically we could represent it in a different way: ivahia, ivahi'a, etc.
    - For vahai, I've used the older -ai form of the third affix when it's applied to a word already ending in -i and reduced vahi-ai to vahai. This is simply to make it clear which affix is present. Again, this could be represented differently: vahii, vahiai, etc.
     
    end
  11. JRRT

    Naming the Toa Mata

    By JRRT,

    Naming the Toa Mata


     

    [
    over there]

     
    Assumption #1: The names of the Toa Mata were constructed at the very beginning of the Matoran Universe and have preserved their forms throughout history; hence, they provide a window on the form of the Matoran Language in its earliest stages.
     
    Assumption #2: The names of the Toa Mata should be subjected to only the most limited of sound changes (if any), in contrast to other Bionicle names/terms, which are more likely to have been systematically altered in the course of linguistic history.
     
    tahu |n.| fire (substance); combustion; lit. “process/activity of fire” [tahu < ta-hu, from ta “fire” and hu “process, activity”]
     
    gali |n.| water (substance); ocean, tide; lit. “repetition/pervasiveness of water” [gali < ga-li, from ga “water” and li “repetition, habituality, pervasiveness”]
     
    Etymologically, the names given to Tahu and Gali form a natural class in that both indicate relatively straightforward manifestations of their respective elements: the natural activity of fire (with hu “activity, process”) and the natural activity of water or liquid protodermis (with li “repetition, pervasiveness”): ta-hu “fire, combustion” and ga-li “water, ocean”.
     
    lewa |n.| air, wind (substance); atmosphere; lit. “mass/quantity of air” [lewa < le-wa, from le “air” and wa “mass, quantity”]
     
    onua |n.| earth, ground (substance); lit. “mass/quantity of earth” [onua < onu-wa, from onu “earth” and wa “mass, quantity”]
     
    The names given to Lewa and Onua also form a natural class, as they are both derived in an identical manner via the stem wa “mass, quantity”, which is used primarily to form nouns indicating physical/abstract substances: le-wa “air (substance)” and onu-wa “earth (substance)”.
     
    pohatu |n.| stone, rock (substance); foundation; lit. “uniformity/constancy of stone” [pohatu < po-hatu, from po “stone” and hatu “uniformity, constancy, homogeneity”]
     
    kopaka |n.| ice (substance); glacier; lit. “steadfastness/coherence of ice” [kopaka < ko-paka, from ko “ice” and paka “steadfastness”]
     
    The names given to Pohatu and Kopaka likewise form a natural class, but for different reasons than the previous names: They are slightly more complex and abstract, one being derived by compounding with hatu “uniformity, constancy” and the other with paka “steadfastness, coherence”:
     
    hatu |n.| uniformity, constancy, homogeneity; lit. “essence of system-normality” [hatu < ha-atu, from ha “system-normality” and atu “will, intention; essence”]
     
    paka |n.| steadfastness, coherence, solidity; lit. “energy of stone” [paka < pa-ka, from pa “stone” (see entry po) and ka “power, energy, fundamental aspect”]
     
    Semantically, however, both of these words indicate very similar concepts (solidity, steadfastness, reliability, etc.), which serve to characterize the physical manifestations of both of the respective elements: po-hatu “stone, foundation” and ko-paka “ice, glacier”.
  12. JRRT

    TLoO: Chapter 2

    By JRRT,

    The Language of Okoto


     
    Chapter 2
     
    [crosspost]
     
    (Note that the material in this post is basically a culled-down/revised version of this post.)
     
    Now that we’ve collected a dataset, the next step in the project to construct an Okotoan Language is to take a part of that dataset and attempt to break it down into smaller units. The best way to do this is to assign some reasonable meanings to a few of the terms available and then use a bit of comparative methodology and some etymological know-how to decompose the words.
     
    Ekimu is referred to by the title of “Mask Maker”, while Makuta is referred to by the title of “Mask Hoarder”. As suggested in the original topic, these titles could work well as the meanings of the names Ekimu and Makuta, and I will adopt this idea in order to proceed:
     
    Assumption: The names Ekimu and Makuta translate, respectively, to “Mask Maker” and “Mask Hoarder”.
     
    The advantage to this assumption is that it provides us with a basis for comparing the names. Both titles contain a meaning-element (or “morpheme”) signifying “mask”, so by comparing the two Okotoan names, we should be able to identify and isolate the common element.
     
    Observations: There is a common sequence /m+vowel/ in both names, /eki-mu/ and /ma-kuta/. Both names also contain a sequence of /k/ between vowels, /eki-mu/ in the first case and /m-aku-ta/ in the second.
     
    Both of these options could work, although they both come with a different set of assumptions/consequences. In the first case, we’d have to postulate that the sequences /-mu/ and /ma-/ both map to the morpheme “mask”, and the remaining portions of these words—/eki-/ and /-kuta/—map to the meanings “maker” and “hoarder”, respectively. In the second case, “mask” would be signified by the sequences /eki-/ and /-aku-/, with the morphemes for “maker” and “hoarder” represented by the sequences /-mu/ and /m-...-ta/.
     
    I believe the first option is preferable on the following grounds:
     
    First, splitting the names into /eki-mu/ and /ma-kuta/ is, in general, more uniform than splitting them into /eki-mu/ and /m-aku-ta/, because it results in both names being reduced to two clear morphemic elements (/eki+mu/ and /ma+kuta/), matching the assumed English translations (“mask+maker” and “mask+hoarder”) in a straightforward manner. This contrasts with the second option, which would reduce one name to two morphemic units (/eki+mu/), but the second name to (at least) three (/m+aku+ta/), unless we make some further hypotheses about the composition of these names (e.g. /ekimu/ should be divided into /eki+m+u/ to mirror /m+aku+ta/). On grounds of parsimony (i.e. simplicity), therefore, I believe the first option is better.
     
    Second, assuming that the sequences /mu/ and /ma/ are connected requires only one unified phonological rule affecting a single vowel, such that the vowels /u/ (in /mu/) and /a/ (in /ma/) both originate from a common source. In contrast, assuming that /eki/ and /aku/ are etymologically connected requires at least two rules, since two vowels are involved: /e/ and /a/ must trace back to one common source, and /i/ and /u/ trace back to another. Therefore, I believe that the first option wins out once again on grounds of parsimony (i.e. wanting to assume the minimum number of rules).
     
    With that said, here is how the first option would play out:
     
    Proposal 1: The sequence /mu/ in /ekimu/ and the sequence /ma/ in /makuta/ can both be traced back to an older common form *mau “mask” (the asterisk denotes a reconstructed form). Furthermore, the vowel-sequence /au/ is affected by the following phonological rule, which has two subparts:
     
    Phonological Rule 1:
    Subpart 1a: /au/ becomes /u/ at the ends of words (“word-finally”). Example: /ekimau/ > /ekimu/.
    Subpart 1b: /au/ becomes /a/ everywhere else (“elsewhere”). Example: /maukuta/ > /makuta/.
     
    Now that we’ve accounted for the phonological differences between the manifestations of the morpheme *mau “mask” in the two names, one task remains: explaining the syntactic difference between the combination of elements in each name. In the case of /ekimu/, the element *mau is placed second (/eki-mau/), while in the case of /makuta/, *mau is placed first (/mau-kuta/). Why is this? Does it matter? Ideally, I think we should have an explanation available, and towards that end, I’ll put forward a proposal inspired in part by the rules which apply to how adjectives modify nouns in the Matoran Language. First, the proposal; then, an explanation:
     
    Proposal 2: A modifying element placed before the element it modifies receives an indirect/abstract/non-physical interpretation, while a modifying element placed after another element receives a direct/concrete/physical interpretation.
     
    Note that, while this rule of syntactic/semantic composition matches the rules of the Matoran Language in principle (i.e. in that the syntactic position of modifiers influences their interpretation), in application it’s actually the opposite! In Matoran, adjectives received concrete interpretations when placed before nouns and abstract interpretations when placed after. In Okotoan, the situation is reversed: before = abstract, after = concrete. Don’t worry: this decision wasn’t made on a whim, luckily. It was the result of some intense thought as to the appropriate characterization of the meanings of the names Ekimu and Makuta, as well as a few other names/terms (which will be discussed in later posts). Furthermore, this proposal is a reversal of the proposal I made in the original post, which matched up with Matoran exactly. Ideas change. Pay it no mind! =P And anyways, it feels a bit more appropriate to have a distinct difference between Okotoan and Matoran, rather than having Okotoan be an exact replica.
     
    Now, let’s see how these ideas apply to the composition of our two names:
     
    First of all, we need to determine for both names what is the modifying element and what is the “primary” element (the “head”) in order to determine the interpretation (indirect/abstract vs. direct/concrete). In both cases, the elements representing “maker” (eki) and “hoarder” (kuta) are clearly the primary elements, meaning that the element *mau “mask” is the modifier for both terms. Here’s how this plays out:
     
    eki-mau = “maker with concrete/direct relation to masks” (the modifier *mau is placed after the primary element eki)
     
    mau-kuta = “hoarder with abstract/indirect relation to masks” (the modifier *mau is placed before the primary element kuta)
     
    Recap:
     
    - We have assumed that the names Ekimu and Makuta translate to “Mask Maker” and “Mask Hoarder”, respectively.
    - We have decomposed the names Ekimu and Makuta into the elements eki “maker” and kuta “hoarder”, both modified by the reconstructed element *mau “mask”.
    - Along the way, we’ve derived one phonological rule affecting the vowel-sequence /au/ (> /u/ word-finally, /a/ elsewhere), as well as a rule of syntactic/semantic composition (modifiers are interpreted as indirect/abstract when placed before the thing they modify, direct/concrete when placed after).
     
    Current Glossary:
     
    eki “maker”
    ekimu “mask maker”
    kuta “hoarder”
    makuta “mask hoarder”
    *mau “mask” (would become mu in the modern form of Okotoan)
  14. JRRT
    [boo]
     
    rakha-su-hakha |idm.| trick or treat [From rakha "to trick; lit. 'make smthg. system-abnormal'", su "or (conj.)", and hakha "to treat; lit. 'make smthg. system-normal"]
     
    ======================
     
    The origin of this phrase can be found in the development of a relatively recent Matoran holiday, originally celebrated in Metru Nui and later transplanted into the Matoran-Agori culture of Spherus Magna. The holiday began as a memorial marking one of the greatest losses of life that occurred during the Toa-Dark Hunter War in Metru Nui: "The Night of Life and Death", popularly termed the Ikukravai or alternately Ikhukravai.
     
    The variation in the name of the holiday is actually an intentional pun: i-ku-kravai translates as "night of life/living-things" (i- "of, from", ku "life(-process), spirit", kravai < kravahi "night"), whereas i-khu-kravai translates as "night of death/dead-things" (khu "separation", related to kaukhu "death; lit. 'separation from life'").
     
    The phrase rakha-su-hakha is connected to the events of Ik(h)ukravai as follows: During the various nighttime ceasefires that were established throughout the course of the war, the sentries guarding Toa-controlled portions of Metru Nui would routinely use the phrase rakha-su-hakha as a watch-word, equivalent to "Are you friend or foe?" or "Do you intend us good (hakha) or ill (rakha)?"
     
    On the night of the Ik(h)ukravai, a substantial force of Dark Hunters broke the ceasefire by ambushing sentries along the western edge of Ta-Metru and making an incursion toward the Colisseum. Initially caught off-guard, the forces of the Toa eventually rallied and managed to repel the invaders, but not without sustaining massive casualties, including many Matoran. According to legend, the twin moons of Metru Nui – referred to superstitiously as "the eyes of Mata Nui" – dimmed to blackness in the aftermath of the carnage, and it is said that the spirits of slain Toa and Matoran wandered the ruined streets for a time, clutching their broken masks, until an ominous Red Star appeared briefly in the sky where the moons had shone.
     
    Historians count the Ik(h)ukravai as one of the culminating battles of the war, which precipitated the final resolution of the conflict. In modern times, however, the holiday has shifted to become a festival celebrating spiritual horror and the Matoran concept of the macabre, as well as the mystery of Matoran death. Participants traditionally wear specially-crafted Kanohi which are forged to appear broken or ruined in some way, and continue to greet each other with the phrase rakha-su-hakha. Tradition prescribes that if someone you do not know greets you with rakha-su-hakha, you must exchange masks with them temporarily, in order to "ward off the Red Star" ("initoi hauya")...
  15. JRRT

    Down Memory Lane.

    By JRRT,

    This week, being BZP's sixth Anniv., everyone gets a blog. This can be viewed as both a good and bad thing, since although it gives every member the ability to express their personal thoughts on things, it also multiplies the number blogs into the thousands.
     
    So for my blog, if anyone is fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of it in the rushing torrent, I thought I'd go back and take a look at how my spriting has developed over the approx. 3.5 years I've been a part of BZP. Here are the results:
     

    Tolkien's History of Spriting
     
    -------------------------------
     

     
    Alright, here we have basically my first ever kit attempt. Quite bad really, but I was only just starting back then, so maybe I can be forgiven. There's obviously some RZ influence in there, particularly in the eyes and masks. But truth to be told, this is not actually my first Bionicle kit. The real first one is unfortunately locked away on the hardrive of an ancient Windows 95 computer. I'll recover it someday hopefully. It was truly massive.
     
     

     
    Next up, the second incursion into the spriting world. Pretty simple, though much better than the last, I think. I quite like this one actually , not too complicated. Yep, nothing much more to say.
     
     

     
    Ah, my favorite old kit. In my opinion, this is the first real kit I completed. It's got masks and some weapons, plus materials for building poses, and some pretty bad looking elemental effects too. Also, my shading skillz were a bit more improved, it would seem. Perhaps someday I'll revamp this one.
     
     

     
    I just wanted to throw this one in here. It's been sitting on my Brickshelf since I made the account, and I don't know why.
     
     

     
    The first kit I tried posting on BZP. It's kind of bland, there's not all that much resemblance to the Rahaga anyway. But, this was also my first try at making animations with sprites. Needless to say, the topic didn't last too long.
     
     

     
    An in-between kit. The first appearance of the Toa Metru in sprite form (check out their massive weaponry!). These were expressly made to be gamesprites (since I was making attempts at game programming), but they fell far short of what I was wanting. Don't animate the running sequence, it's horrid.
     
     

     
    Aha! Here we go, the first whispers of TGS. Left to right, this goes from the earliest form of the Vakama gamesprites to the finished form, and...beyond?
     
     

     
    The sprites for Piraka: Infight. Yes, the full sheets will be released very soon. Stop PMing me about it, I beg you.
     
     
    And that's all for the most BZP related kits, but what about the others? What about the kits that were never posted or completed? Well, here's a tribute to some of those lost kits.
     
    ------------------------
     
    Hope you enjoyed this entry, only made possible by BZP's VI Anniversary.
     

     
    JRRT
  16. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME VII :: T-U


     
    -T-
     
    ta |n./stm.| 1. elemental fire; 2. spirit, being, essence; 3. courage, ability, leadership; 4. fierce, rash, brash [ta < tā, from the elemental stem tā “elemental fire”. Variant forms: ta-, tal (l-modified), tau (u-modified, see entry tu), tah, tō (ā > ō / __# )]
    tahnok |n.| fire-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    tahtorak |n.cmpd.| very fierce speaker/orator [tahtorak < tah-toro-ak, from tah (variant of ta, see entry) “elemental fire; fierce, rash, brash”, toro “speaker, orator”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    tahu¹ |adj.| fiery, flaming [etymology uncertain; possibly tahu < tah-u, from tah (variant of ta, see entry) “elemental fire” and the adjectival particle u]
    tahu² |n.| play of flame; lit. “sport/activity of fire” [etymology uncertain; possible tahu < ta-huw, from ta “elemental fire” and the stem huw “sport, activity”]
    tai |n.| spirit, being, essence [tai < ta-ī, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and the nounal particle ī]
    taiki |n.cmpd.| lit. “spirit of (a) high place” [taiki < ta-ikhi, from the elemental stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and ikhi “high-place” (variant of inikhi, see entry)]
    taipu |n.cmpd.| friendly spirit [taipu < tai-pu, from tai “spirit, being, essence” and pu “friend(ly), ally”]
    taka |n.| firelight, torchlight, illumination; heat [taka < ta-ka, from ta “elemental fire” and ka “power, force, ability”, yielding a sense of “light cast by fire/torch; light that leads the way”]
    takado |n.cmpd.| lit. “order through enlightenment/illumination” [takado < taka-dā, from taka “illumination” (see entry) and dā “authority, order” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    takadox |n.cmpd.| lit. “greater order through enlightenment/illumination” [takadox < takado-ak-si, from takado “lit. ‘order through enlightenment/illumination’”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    takanuva |n.cmpd.| new illumination [takanuva < taka-nuva, from taka “illumination” (see entry) and nuva “new, original”]
    takea |n.| king of sharks [takea < ta-kea, from ta “elemental fire; courage, ability, leadership” and kea “Rahi-shark”]
    takha |vn.| crafting, craft [takha < ta-ha, nominalized from the verbal complex ta-ha “to heat, forge, weld; to craft (smthg); lit. make-with-fire” - FD: MN#6]
    taku |n.| Rahi-bird; flying spirit [taku < ta-kua, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and kua “bird, flying thing” (see entry). Applied to the taku subspecies of gukko-bird]
    takua |n.cmpd.| 1. bird of fire; 2. free/independent spirit; 3. broad illumination; great illuminator [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology, encompassing meanings 1. and 2., is takua < ta-kua, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and kua “bird; free, free-flying” (see entry); another proposed etymology is takua < taka-wa, from taka “firelight, torchlight, illumination” and the stem wa “wide, great, large”]
    talvi |n.| subtle flame [talvi < tal-fi, from the l-modified elemental stem tal “elemental fire” and fi “subtle, fine, cunning; web, silk”]
    tamaru |n.cmpd.| imagination, dream; lit. “flight of spirit” [tamaru < ta-mairu, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and mairu “levitation, floating” (variant of miru, see entry). Variant form: tamairu]
    tanma |n.cmpd.| soaring/uplifted spirit [tanma < ta-ān-mai, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”, ān “being, individual”, and mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry)]
    tara |n.| wild spirit; spirit of wildness [tara < ta-ra, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    tarakava |n.cmpd.| rapid/rushing spirit of wildness [tarakava < tara-kava, from tara “spirit of wildness” and kava “rapid, rushing, breathless”]
    te |stm.| vessel, contained space [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the stem ti “space, area” (see entry); one proposed etymology derives both stems from the elemental stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (see entry)]
    tehu |n.| archiving; archivist [tehu < te-huw, from the stems te “vessel, contained space” and huw “activity, sport”]
    tehutti |n.cmpd.| willful archivist [tehutti < tehu-atti, from tehu “archiving; archivist” and atti “willful” (variant of atui, see entry)]
    ter |stm./n.| 1. guidance, guiding-force; lit. “application of leadership” [ter < tēr < ta-ār, from ta “elemental fire; bravery, ability, leadership” and the particle ār “applied, application of; applied against, resistance, hindering”. Variant forms: -tar, tre, tra]
    teridax |n.cmpd.| lit. “guide toward greater order/greater execution of the Plan” [teridax < ter-īda-ak-si, from ter “guidance, guiding-force”, the nounal complex ī-da “toward order”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si - FD: MN#6]
    thok |adj.| extremely fierce [thok < tho-ak, from tho “fierce” (Skakdi dialectal variant of toi, see entry) and the intensive particle -ak]
    thulo |n.| obedience; lit. “excitement (about one’s) duty” [thulo < thou-lho, from thou “red; fiery, lively” (< tou, variant of toi, see entry) and lho “duty, function, assigned purpose”]
    thulox |n.| greater obedience [thulox < thulo-ak-si, from thulo “obedience”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    ti |stm.| space, area [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the stem te “vessel, contained space” (see entry); one proposed etymology derives both stems from the elemental stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (see entry)]
    tiki |n.| airspace; lit. “part of space” [tiki < ti-kī, from the stem ti “space, area” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    tikko |n.| icy wind [tikko < tiki-ko, from tiki “airspace; lit. ‘part of space’” and ko “elemental ice”]
    tiri |n.| wing, flat appendage [etymology uncertain; possibly tiri < ti-rui, from ti “space, area”] and rui “joint”]
    tiribomba |n.cmpd.| jungle-leaf; lit. “wing of branch/tree” [tiribomba < tiri-bomba, from tiri “wing, flat appendage” and bomba “trunk, branch, limb of plant”. Used as a term for the broad, spade-like leaves of the common gamadu tree]
    tiro |n.| narrow canyon/ravine; lit. “narrow/bounded space” [tiro < ti-ro, from ti “space, area” and ro “line, edge, boundary” (variant of rho, see entry)]
    toa |n.| hero, protector; lit. “spirit of protection” [toa < tau-hā, from the u-modified elemental stem tau “elemental fire; essence/spirit, result-of-process” and hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”. Variant forms: toua, tua]
    tobdu |n.cmpd.| iron will; lit. “will of (a) fiery being/creature” [tobdu < toubatu < tou-pi-atu, from tou “red; fiery, lively” (variant of toi, see entry), pi “agent, perpetrator; creature”, and atu “mind, will”]
    tobduk |n.| survivor, fighter [tobduk < tobdu-ak, from tobdu “iron will” and the intensive particle -ak]
    toi |adj.| red; fiery, lively [toi < ta-ui, from ta “elemental fire” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: taui, toui, tou, tuy, tho (Skakdi variant)]
    toro |n.| speaker, orator [toro < ta-oro, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and oro “word, unit(s) of communication”]
    toudo |n.| energetic/eccentric spirit [toudo < tou-tā, from tou “red; fiery, lively” (variant of toi, see entry) and tā “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    trali |adj.| guided, controlled [trali < tra-li, from tra “guidance, guiding force” (variant of tre < ter) and the primeval modifying particle li]
    trei |stm.| guiding together [trei < tre-yi, from the stem tre “guidance, guiding-force” (variant of ter, see entry) and yi “together, combined”]
    tren |n.| guide; lit. “guide-being” [tren < tre-ān, from the stem tre “guidance, guiding-force” (variant of ter, see entry) and ān “being, individual” - FD: MN#6]
    tridax |n.cmpd.| lit. “organizer of greater order/authority” [tridax < trei-da-ak-si, from the stem trei “guiding together”, da “order, authority”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    tryna |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) lit. “guiding together a great host” [tryna < trei-ana, from the stem trei “guiding together” and ana “group, host; many beings”. Variant forms: traina, treina]
    -tu |p.| spirit/essence; result of process [tu < tau, from the u-modified elemental stem tau “spirit/essence; result of process” (see entry ta). Variant forms: to-, -ta, -tau]
    tūli |adj.| animated, excited, energetic [tūli < tou-li, from tou “red; fiery, lively” (variant of toi, see entry) and the primeval modifying particle li]
    tur |n.| fear, terror [tur < ta-ūr, from ta “elemental fire; leadership, courage” and ūr(u) “un-, negative, not”]
    turaga |n.cmpd.| 1. courageous/leading elder; 2. elder-Toa [turaga < toa-raga, from toa “hero; protector” and raga “elder”]
    turahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “terrifying wild thing” [turahk < tur-rahk, from tur “fear, terror” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    turu-ha |v.| to fear, be fearful [From the stem tūr(u) “fear, terror” and the verbal particle ha]†
    tuyet |n.| fiery will [tuyet < toui-et, from toui “red, fiery” (variant of toi, see entry) and et “mind, will” (a heavily reduced form of atu, see entry)]
     
    -U-
     
    ua |pro.| one, they (impersonal) [4th pers., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    udui |n.| leg; lit. “lower-limb” [udui < uw-dui, from the stem uw “under, lower, below” and dui “limb, appendage; extension”. Variant forms: odui, oduhi, oduh]†
    uduno |n.cmpd.| south (cardinal direction) [uduno < udui-ono, from udui “leg” and ono “protodermis”. This term patterns traditionally with terms for cardinal directions in that such terms appear to be derived from parts of the body (see entries maiduno, meno, midouno). Variant form: udouno]†
    uhu-ya |v.| to practice; imitate [From the stem uhu “practice, activity; imitation” (variant of huw “sport, activity”) and the verbal particle ya]
    -ui |p.| possessive particle [ui < *uai, originally denoting an object that possesses something. Variant form: wai- (see entry) - FD: MN#7]†
    uko |p.| outside, external (locative particle) [Variant form: ko...u (splitting+displacement)]
    ukua |n.| diving-bird [ukua < uw-kua, from uw “under, lower, below” and kua “bird, flying thing” (see entry)]
    (u)kuta |n.| lesser spirit, being of lesser rank [ukuta < uku-ta, from the particle (u)ku “middle, in the midst of” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    us |n.| steed; lit. “under-thing” [us < uw-s, from the stem uw “under, lower, below” and the Rahi-designation affix -s]
    us-ha |v.| to ride [From us “steed” and the verbal particle ha]
    ussa |n.| steed, mount, vehicle [ussa < us-ha, from the verbal complex us-ha “to ride”. Variant form: usha]
    ussal |n.| Rahi-crab; lit. “ridden/riding-thing” [ussal < ussa-li, from ussa “steed, mount, vehicle” and the primeval modifying particle li. Variant form: ushal]
    ussanui |n.cmpd.| great steed/vehicle [ussanui < ussa-nui, from ussa “steed, mount, vehicle” and nui “great, significant”]
    uw |adv./stm.| under, lower, below [Variant forms: u-, ū, au]
     
    ----------------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| - Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
     
  17. JRRT
    [should've posted a reference-list like this a long time ago. Better late than never!]







    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    LIST OF VOLUMES


     

    =||=


     


    Volume I :: A-D







    Volume II :: E-J







    Volume III :: K







    Volume IV :: L-M







    Volume V :: N-P







    Volume VI :: R-S







    Volume VII :: T-U







    Volume VIII :: V-Z






    =||=


  19. JRRT

    The Prophecy

    By JRRT,

    TOAVAKAMAJAI



    -



    THE PROPHECY







    I'akua, taka-kui rayaku.



    Amaja lhikai-na rokha:



    Toa Mata Nui haya.



    Ivaha, nga roraga-rhui.







    Still, all hope was not lost.



    Legends tell of six mighty heroes, the Toa,



    Who would arrive to save Mata Nui.



    Time would reveal that these were not simply myths...







    --







    Toa imahra voya, kouya,



    Ceura, aku-rhui.



    Mata Nui'ai Matoroi



    Ikraaka hau takaya.







    For the Toa would appear on the shores of the island, it was said.



    They would arrive with no memory, no knowledge of one another –



    But they would pledge to defend Mata Nui



    And its people against the darkness.







    --







    Tahuwaha, Onuwaha,



    Galuwaha, Lewaha,



    Puahatau, Kuahapaka,



    Wahata ika'a-nui, inaka voya.







    Tahu, Toa of Fire. Onua, Toa of Earth.



    Gali, Toa of Water. Lewa, Toa of Air.



    Pohatu, Toa of Stone. And Kopaka, Toa of Ice.



    Great warriors with great power, drawn from the very elements themselves.







    --







    Ikaita'a, maita-na



    Ivaita-nga: Makuta zya,



    Mata Nui haya.



    Nga ro amaja.







    Together, they were six heroes with one destiny:



    To defeat Makuta,



    And save Mata Nui.



    This is their story.







    --







    Na suvaha



    Bionicle.







    This is the way



    Of the Bionicle.


  20. JRRT
    [
    tumblr ya]


    Treatise: Translating the Avohkii



    : Part 4 :


     
    Whoa, hold on! It’s dangerous to go alone! First, read this, then this, then this. All done? Good – let’s get moving. Here’s the full transcription of the Avohkii-text once again:

     
    The bolded part of the transcription has already been translated in the previous posts. To recap:
     
    Mapaku ke-whenu-ka kitu ak-ila ...
    “Reader, seek out an individual originating from within a secret underground (place)”
     
    This portion of the passage seems reasonably self-sufficient, and I have chosen to analyze it as an independent clause: it contains a verb, its arguments, and their modifiers. If we start from that assumption, it stands to reason that the rest of the passage will form its own unit/clause, separate from the first clause but presumably still related in meaning.
     
    We can start by identifying already-familiar terms in this portion of the inscription. We actually have an easier time of it than before. Makuta is pretty self-evident, as is taka. The relevant entries are as follows:
     
    makuta |n.cmpd.| 1. master of knowledge; 2. higher knowledge [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is makuta < ma-akuta, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and akuta “knowledge”; another proposed etymology is makuta < mai-akuta, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and akuta “knowledge”]
     
    taka |n.| firelight, torchlight, illumination; heat [taka < ta-ka, from ta “elemental fire” and ka “power, force, ability”, yielding a sense of “light cast by fire/torch; light that leads the way”]
     
    Alright, now that we’ve identified some familiar terms, let’s continue with the same line of reasoning we used for the first clause: if this section of the passage is a clause in itself, we’d expect there to be a verb and some individual(s) involved in the action of the verb (subject, object, etc.).
     
    How do we go about identifying the verb? Well, one aspect of Matoran syntax that hasn’t come up much yet in this discussion (but probably should) is the fact that, according to the only example of a clausal-unit that we have, it appears that verbs in Matoran stand as the final element in a sentence. The example that we have is the phrase Manas zya, translating to "Attack the monster!" The verb is zya "(to) attack", while the object is manas "monster". This is an imperative (command) clause, so technically we can only determine that verbs appear in final position in simple imperative constructions – other clause-types might be different for all we know. Then again, for all we know, the verb-final pattern might be a strict rule for independent clauses in Matoran. For what it’s worth, verb-final patterns show up in ~40% of human languages, so Matoran wouldn’t be all that strange as a non-human language. Well...let’s see where the verb-final logic leads us:
     
    Based on its clause-final position, we might assume that taka is the verb. Does this make sense? Hm...taka doesn’t necessarily look like the only example of an actual verb that we have – zya "attack" – but of course morphophonological similarity isn’t a requirement, even if that’s pretty much the only thing we have to go on. It really depends on the categorial status of taka. Do we know anything about that? Possibly, yes. Taka shows up in Takanuva. Nuva means "new". It’s clearly an adjective in its other uses (Tahu Nuva, Gali Nuva, etc.). If we assume that nuva is generally an adjective, that would imply that taka is not verbal, but nounal. Then again, an argument could be made that nuva can modify nouns or verbs, or that Takanuva is an exception based on the fact that nuva appears to be morphologically incorporated into taka, rather than a syntactic modifier as in the other cases. All of these arguments are equally legitimate.
     
    This is kind of a sticky situation. On one hand, we’d rather not violate the only potential syntactic rule we know of by looking elsewhere for the verb. On the other hand, it’s iffy to just define taka as a verb. How to decide?
     
    Ultimately, the decision should be made based on its overall consequences. If we decide to redefine taka as a verb, that will entail making a variety of alterations to our understanding of Matoran etymology (how modifiers work, the categorial status of nouns and verbs, etc.). These are things that, to some extent, are already "established". In contrast, if we assume that Matoran is not strictly verb-final, we aren’t actually violating any established rule, since we’re simply postulating that there’s more syntactic variation than the single piece of evidence we have suggests. The second option is far more appealing to me, so I’ll run with it. Taka is not the verb – something else is.
     
    Where do we go from here? Let’s look at the other candidates for verbhood: We can probably cross out makuta, since that has a pretty well-established nounal status. That leaves ahano, nano, and atuana. Previously, I’ve already hinted that I think atuana contains a variant of toa, so I’ll cross that off as well. That leaves nano and ahano. Hm...time for some more educated guesswork.
     
    If Matoran is not verb-final, are there any syntactic patterns that we can observe at all? I’d rather not jump to the conclusion that Matoran word-order is completely free, since that would leave us without any direction whatsoever. Instead, we might come to the more conservative position that Matoran is verb-final in independent imperative clauses. Think about it: Manas zya is an independent imperative clause and the verb is in final position. Furthermore, I’ve also translated the first part of the Avohkii passage as an independent imperative clause, and the verb happens to be in final position there. That’s a convenient match, go figure!
     
    So if we say that the verb-final syntactic pattern is restricted (at the very least) to these types of clauses, we are free to postulate a different pattern for other clause-types. Specifically, I will propose that the clause under discussion (the second half of the passage) is not independent, but is instead dependent upon (or "subordinate to") the first clause. This is because of the status of the first clause as a command or instruction: do X. If the first clause is defined in this way, what is its relationship to the second clause? It makes sense that the second clause would describe something about how/why the command of the first clause must be performed. For example, we might interpret the relation as cause-effect: do X so that Y.
     
    Alright, so the second clause is subordinate. How do we apply this to the translation? Well, if Matoran is verb-final in independent imperative clauses, a simple pattern that could be used to mark dependency is to reverse the standard order, i.e. to place the verb at the beginning of the clause: verb-initial. This is actually pretty milquetoast when it comes to human languages – different syntactic patterns are used to mark dependency-status all the time, so I don’t have many qualms about postulating it for Matoran.
     
    However, this does lead us to a specific conclusion with respect to choosing between candidates for the verb: ahano is the first word in the clause. If we adopt the assumption about syntactic patterns above, ahano would be the verb. This is progress! Very small progress, but progress nonetheless.
     
    Even so, this post has been really wordy, and it’s getting a bit too long at this point, so for now, I’ll leave you with a recap of the translation. It’s a slow crawl, but hopefully worth it by the end:
     
    Mapaku, ke-whenu-ka kitu ak-ila ...
    “Reader, seek out an individual originating from within a secret underground (place)”
     
    ... ahano nano atuana makuta taka.
    "(so that) VERB ... [smthg. related to Toa] Makuta light/illumination."
     
    Still on the to-do list is determining a translation for ahano, as well as nano and atuana, and we also have to flesh out the relations between these elements and makuta and taka. It’s a daunting task, but I think we’ll make it.
     
    Next time.
  22. JRRT

    breaking up

    By JRRT,

    [tumblr it up]
     
    If you've ever browsed through the entries of the Matoran Dictionary or been brave enough to delve into those old Learning Matoran lessons, you may have run into a concept that goes under the (pretty obtuse) name of "splitting+displacement" or (even worse) "variable placement". It's usually applied to things called "particles" or "affixes", and usually very little explanation is provided for what it is and where it comes from. Sorry.
     
    In this post, I’ll attempt to add some flesh to the bones of this concept, which applies to grammatical affixes in the etymologies of Matoran words and involves breaking these units apart and moving them around for various purposes. The idea itself is of my own fabrication, and therefore has no real basis in the canon, so I won't really spend much time making a case that it "exists". However, I will make a case that the concept, even if non-canon, is really, really useful if applied systematically, so why not use it?
     
    First, some terminology: I will for the most part dispense with the "splitting+displacement" label. The right word is actually circumfix. What is a circumfix? It's basically just another kind of affix, alongside prefixes (affixes attached at the beginning of a word), suffixes (affixes attached at the end of a word), and even infixes (affixes attached inside of a word).
     
    Circumfixes are attached "around" a word, so they are technically like a prefix that is added along with a suffix. We clear? Great.
     
    Jumping right in, here's my proposal for affixes in Matoran: I have found that it is useful to assume that some of the prefixes and suffixes postulated in Matoran etymology can be converted into a circumfix-form for various reasons--mostly deriving new words from old ones. This would look something like the following, using a postulated verb kya (Recall from the last post that -ya is assumed to be an affix in this case, so that's what will be undergoing modification):
     
    Step 1: kya = kia (ya consists of two units, -i- and -a)
    Step 2: k-i-a > a-k-i (the -a unit is displaced as a prefix before the stem k-, leaving -i behind as a suffix)
    Step 3: aki
     
    Pretty simple, no? The same process can easily be applied to other affixes/particles: as long as we can split the original affix/particle into two discrete units (in this case, -ya > i-, -a), we can displace the second unit as a prefix on the stem. And there are a couple of further variations that might be possible as well. We'll stick to the basics for now though.
     
    Anyways, what could this kind of circumfixal variant be used for? Well, think about it: The splitting and displacement of the original affix technically obliterates the affix as a discrete unit. We could easily associate this kind of change with, say, a change in meaning—perhaps a change in word category? I have done just this: When the verbal affix -ya is split into a circumfixal variant, this corresponds to a change in the category of the stem from verb to (deverbal) noun.
     
    At this point, you may be able to glimpse some possible applications of this system. Consider this: We just derived a word aki, presumably a noun, from a postulated verb kya. Aki happens to be the name of the Kanohi Mask of Valor. Technically, this is backwards: When I first came up with this system, I started with aki and reverse-engineered it to kya. Either way, it works. Let's see how else we can apply this.
     
    Sticking with aki for the moment, there's another word that is closely associated with it: Akamai, the name of the Toa Kaita (the "Spirit of Valor") who is the wearer of the Kanohi Aki. In-universe, there is clearly a relationship between Akamai and Aki, and the nature of this relationship is further strengthened if we look at another example of a Toa Kaita: Wairuha, the "Spirit of Wisdom" who wears the Kanohi Rua. Even more parallels? So the names of the Toa Kaita are related in some way to the names of their Kanohi masks. Focusing on aki/akamai, let's do some more reverse-engineering:
     
    Note that akamai exhibits the same a-...-i pattern that results from the splitting+displacement of -ya, as already exemplified by a-k-i. If we assume that akamai is derived via the same verb > noun process as aki, we can easily trace back through the steps:
     
    Step 3: akamai
    Step 2: a-kama-i > kama-i-a
    Step 1: kamaia = kamaya
     
    Presto! We have derived akamai from an original verb kamaya. What could this verb mean? In order to find out, let's return to aki for a moment. According to canon, aki means "valor". Thus far, I have postulated that aki is derived from a verb kya, which I would further derive from an older form *ka-ya. For numerous reasons, I define ka as "power, energy, ability", hence, I translate kya (roughly) as "to do, act, take initiative", and based on these assumptions, aki could easily be translated as "(taking) action, initiative", later construed as "courage, valor".
     
    That takes care of aki. Now on to akamai: If kya originates from ka, according to the same pattern, kamaya would clearly originate from kama. I define ma as "mastery, control". Keeping with the definition of ka above, ka-ma would mean roughly "mastery of power/energy/ability", while the verbal form kamaya would end up as "to master doing/acting/taking initiative". According to the same process of construal applied to aki above, this means that akamai could eventually be translated "master of courage/valor". In all, I think that fits pretty darn well.
     
    So the upshot of this post is that I've (hopefully) illustrated some of the potential applications of the "circumfix-variant" idea in the form of providing some (I think) very appropriate, interrelated etymologies for the words Aki and Akamai. All in a day's work.
  23. JRRT

    CHIKTCHIKTCHIKT

    By JRRT,

    [it must be cleaned]
     
    The Bohrok have remained shrouded in mystery since the earliest stages of Matoran history, their origin and purpose the subject of much superstition. The first Bohrok nests were discovered by Onu-Matoran mining beneath the city of Metru Nui in the period shortly after the Coming of Mata Nui . The nests were already quite ancient and were at first assumed to be the tombs of the original founders of the City of Legends (It would be another hundred thousand years before this initial hypothesis was shown to be much closer to the truth than anyone suspected).
     
    During the initial phases of exploration, the nests were mapped extensively and a wealth of archaeological information was recovered, including the distinctions between the six Bohrok-types and various revealing inscriptions, such as the original engraving b-h-r-k (reconstructed variously as as bo-ha-ro-k or ba-ha-ro-k "unit of system-normality of life/balance", construed by historical linguists as "life-cleansing unit" or "unit of restoring balance”.
     
    Investigation of the nests continued for several centuries, until the discovery of even deeper vaults containing what appeared to be purely organic protodermic organisms, all held in stasis. The revelation that organic protodermic life could exist independent of a mechanical component changed the Matoran understanding of biology significantly, and the similarity that the organisms bore to Kanohi masks generated questions about the origins of these creatures, especially in light of the inscriptions which labelled the stasis chambers: k-r-n-h, reconstructed as ka-r-no-hu "hidden/internal application of power", construed as "internal controller; brain" (later kranohu > kranau > krana), paralleling the oldest inscribed forms of the word kanohi itself, (k-n-h).
     
    Researchers managed to successfully exhume many of the Bohrok-units from their pods, and they made similar progress with freeing Krana from stasis. Unfortunately, in the ensuing period of experimentation, a series of incidents occurred which eventually led to the nests being declared off-limits and sealed by the authorities of Metru Nui. Among these incidents were several occasions where artificially-powered Bohrok were united with Krana and responded with violent and erratic behavior, some reacting by flinging their Krana at nearby researchers. In two cases, the Bohrok managed to dislodge a researcher’s Kanohi and replace it with a Krana. In these instances, before the Krana could be removed, the victims became completely unresponsive and instead began to compulsively repeat a distinctive set of phrases: "ta-hya. Hya-ta." The phrases were clearly archaic, but could be translated as "clean (the) essence (of smthg.)" (ta hya) and "make (it) clean" (hya-ta).
     
    Afterward, the victims suffered debilitating psychological effects and obsessive behavior, many times carving the phrase ta-hya hya-ta into walls and surfaces. It was for these and other reasons that active experimentation on Bohrok and Krana was shut down and the nests were sealed off. Nevertheless, some researchers persisted. Most notably, a Ce-Matoran linguist named Roaku became interested in studying the vocal systems of the Bohrok-specimens that had since been transferred to the Onu-Metru Archives. Roaku noted that, when active, Bohrok made a particular repetitive utterance, which was originally thought to be simply a meaningless mechanical reflex (transcribed as chikt or chkt in the literature).
     
    She hypothesized, however, that this utterance might in fact bear meaning and also that there might be a connection between this repetitive Bohrok-utterance and the utterances made by Matoran under the influence of Krana. After extensive study of Bohrok anatomy, she concluded that the Bohrok vocal tract reflected a design similar to that of the Matoran, but with a much smaller articulatory range.
     
    Roaku then performed a series of experiments: She meticulously replicated Bohrok vocal organs and fed streams of recorded Matoran speech through the fabricated system. Results were inconclusive initially, until Roaku finally perfected the design. The culminating experiment occurred when Roaku fed the original utterance made by Krana-controlled Matoran – ta-hya hya-ta – through the system. The result astounded her: The translation through the Bohrok vocal-tract had the effect of applying a series of phonological reduction-rules whereby the input speech was heavily (but systematically) modified and truncated. The input and output speech is represented informally as follows:
     
    Input: ta-hya hya-ta
    Reduction: tahyahyata > tǝhyǝhyǝt > tǝkshǝkshǝt > t'kshǝksh't > tshǝkt
    Output: chikt, chkt
     
    Roaku formalized the following set of rules to describe the phonological reduction from Matoran to Bohrok:
     
    Original Matoran: ta-hya hya-ta
    Phonetic transcription: [ta.hya.hya.ta]*
    Rule 1: Vowel reduction of [a] > [ǝ] and final vowel deletion: [ta.hya.hya.ta] > [tǝ.hyǝ.hyǝt]
    Rule 2: Frication/phonetic reinforcement of [hy] to [kS]**: [tǝ.hyǝ.hyǝt] > [tǝ.kSǝ.kSǝt]
    Rule 3: Deletion of unstressed vowels: [tǝ.'kSǝ.kSǝt] > [tkSǝkSt]
    Rule 4a: Reduction of [kS] to after [t]: [tkSǝkSt] > [tSǝkSt]
    Rule 4b: Reduction of [kS] to [k] before [t]: [tSǝkSt] > [tSǝkt]
    Spelling: [tS] = <ch>, [ǝ] = <i>
    Final form: chikt, ch'kt/chkt
     
    *[y] here signifies the equivalent of [j], i.e. a palatal glide or approximant in human articulatory terms.
    ** signifies the equivalent of a palatal fricative in human articulatory terms, while [tS] is the equivalent of an alveopalatal affricate.
     
    Roaku brought her results before the leading council of Metru Nui: the Bohrok were somehow connected to the Matoran, not only anatomically, but also in that the Krana which served as the minds of the Bohrok were clearly imbued with some communicative ability, in particular an ancient form of the Matoran Language which was conveyed (though imperfectly) through Bohrok vocalizations.
     
    She implored the council to lift the ban on further archaeological research, arguing that the Bohrok might shed light on areas of Matoran history that had long been forgotten, including the origins of Matoran prior to the Coming of Mata Nui. Sadly, the council rejected Roaku's request, and much of her work was deemed classified.
     
    However, one quote remains from Roaku’s initial public appeal to the council, in which she condemned plans that had been put forward by others to destroy or otherwise interfere with the Bohrok nests. After denouncing these intentions as immoral, she concluded her speech with the following phrase:
     
    Ai ro'o-pa . . . no o akai zakihukya-su-rhu ki o akai urhaya!
     
    Translated: “They are our brothers (ro’o, lit. ‘our comrades/sisters/brothers’) . . . and we dare not oppose them! (akai urhaya (> Modern raya), lit. ‘cause them system-abnormality’)”
     
    Although her primary appeal to the council was rejected, Roaku’s initial condemnation of any destructive interference with the Bohrok was instrumental in the council’s decision to reject such plans. Instead, the nests were simply sealed off to the public, and information about them was restricted.
     
    Little did Roaku know that her words would echo the sentiments expressed by the Bahrag Queens themselves nearly 70 millenia later in their initial battle with the Toa Mata (as recounted by Toa Gali):
     
    Bahrag: Ou akai zakihukya-nu ki ou ro'ou urhaya!
     
    Translated:
     

    “You dared to oppose your brothers!”


  24. JRRT
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0mhtDAJjqs


    (starts at ~0:47)


     

    "Battle Chant of the Toa (Prayer to Mata Nui)"







    O’I HIKI HOIHA



    OU IHIKI HAHKO ... HAHKO!



    O’I HIKI HAUIHA



    OU IHIKI HAHI


     
     
     
     
     
    ======================
     
    Literal Translation:
    1. Protect us from deception;
    2. You will save us from deception.
    3. Make us safe from deception;
    4. You are a protector against deception.
     
    ======================
     
    Note: I've been a bit fast-and-loose with constructing vocabulary here--you won't find most of these words in the Dictionary.
     
    Wordlist:
    o |pron.| I, we (first person)
    ou |pron.| you, you-all (2nd person)
    hiki |n.| deception
    hahi |n.| protector
    -i |aff.| to, toward
    i- |aff.| from, against
    hoi-ha |v.| to protect, defend against [hoiha < ha-yi-ha, from ha "protection", yi "together, unified", and the verbal affix -ha]
    ha-ha |v.| to protect, save, cleanse [ha-ha, from ha "protection" and the verbal affix -ha]
    haui-ha |v.| to defend, make safe [haui-ha, from haui "safe, protected" and the verbal affix -ha]
     
    ======================
     
    Line-by-line explanation:
    1. The verb hoi-ha appears in this line in the imperative (command) form, taking the objects o-i "to-us" and hiki "deception", with an implied subject "you" (Mata Nui). Literal gloss: "to-us deception protect".
    2. The verb ha-ha is inflected for future tense with the suffix -ko, thus: haha-ko > hahko "will protect/save/cleanse". The subject is ou "you". The noun hiki also appears here with the affix i- "from, against" (i-hiki "against deception"). Literal gloss: "you against-deception protect-will".
    3. The verb haui-ha also appears in the imperative here, with objects o-i and hiki, identical to line 1. Literal gloss: "to-us deception make-safe"
    4. This line contains the elements ou "you", i-hiki "against deception" (same as line 3), and hahi "protector". There is no overt verb, but it is understood to be "be", thus the literal gloss: "you [are] against-deception protector".
     
     
  25. JRRT

    Survivors of the Red Star

    By JRRT,

    A while back (almost a year, actually) I posted a series of Bionicle short-fiction snippets over on this blog. Each post was an entry into a larger story, which was intended as an expansion of the Bionicle G1 storyline related to the nature of the Red Star (specifically, what if the Red Star fell out of orbit? Who might survive, and what would they do?)
     
    I got through five posts (and a sixth was in the works) before burning out, as happens, and they never generated much interest, so I let it rest. Lately though, I’ve been feeling nostalgic, so I thought I’d give it another plug.
    Here are links to each post, in order:

    1. When the Red World fell at last, there were few survivors…
    2. We continued our journey away from the great wreck the next day.
    3. How Yi Resolved to Reach the Sky
    4. Muru continued with his tale:
    5. How Yi Struggled Against the Red Below and the Dark Above
     
    JRRT
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