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JRRT

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  2. JRRT
    My reaction to the end of the first true arc of the Bionicle storyline and the beginning of the next:
     

    » Click to show Spoiler - click again to hide... «When I first found out about the ultimate resolution of the Toa Nuva's quest, I actually felt quite let down. It happened to be on another website where there were no Bionicle Legends#11 spoiler warnings, and I didn't necessarily intend to spoil it for myself before reading the book. But it happened anyways.  
    I first felt kind of shocked that that was where it ended. I remember thinking "so after all this waiting, this is how it ends up?! I waited seven years to see Mata Nui wake up and Makuta finally destroyed in some epic manner, and this is what we get?!" Yes, I was rather ticked off. I also remember thinking before I had seen the spoilers that even if Mata Nui was awakened, I probably wouldn't stay with Bionicle on into 2009 because I would get what I had been waiting for since I was ten. I mean, the Great Spirit was originally going to wake up at the end of '01, then it was postponed to the end of '03 (Vakama even says it outright in MoL, no less!), and then we forgot about it ever happening while we took a detour into the past to give the story some history (no, I'm not complaining about '04-'05, Metru Nui was awesome), and then we get back to present time and Mata Nui needs to be saved from death--not awakened. So finally at last after all that time we get to 2008 and back to the Toa Nuva and at last the most climactic moment of the entire story is supposed to arrive...!!...but no. It doesn't happen, and it turns out that it was all for nothing. Biggest initial let-down so far (initial, these are my initial reactions--it turns around later).
     
    However, after hearing now about the next arc of the storyline in Bara Magna and having all these little clues about "the shattering" dropped, I began to change my opinion. After all, if Mata Nui had simply been awakened, and Makuta, in the final stages of his plan, was thwarted and utterly destroyed, that would really be the end of Bionicle. Or at least, I can't really see how there could be anything else after the happy ending, unless we waited for five years and "re-started" in the future with a completely new plot.
    So now I actually start to see the wisdom in what happened and the genius of the story team in engineering it this way. We're back to a single Makuta--The Makuta. The Great Spirit is hurtling through the cosmos on his way to a new, shattered world and some ultimate renewing of the universe, vowing to one day return to his Universe and overthrow his usurper. It's an epic new plot rising out of the ashes of the previous.
     
    I've been a Bionicle fan since the first, tiny promotional image of Onua in one of the 2000 Lego Magazines, and I've survived till now, never expecting to remain a fan past the awakening (supposed awakening) of Mata Nui, and now I find that I've been unwittingly hooked into 2009 and the "greater universe" from which Mata Nui himself originated. So what began as extreme disappointment and frustration has now been miraculously reversed into renewed interest and anticipation of what is to come.
     
    Well done, Lego, I applaud you.
     
    JRRT
  3. 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
  4. 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
  5. JRRT

    Final Chapter

    By JRRT,

    Chapter 11 of Mask Maker has been posted, and that's all folks! It's a pretty bittersweet ending...not just for the story, but also for myself, since this is actually the largest piece of Bionicle fanfiction I've completed, and it'll likely be the last (for a good long while at least).
     
    In a sense, this story is an attempt at bringing closure to the somewhat open-ended state in which G1 has remained since 2010, as well as a way of transitioning from G1 into G2 and beyond. That's what it is for me, at least. Thanks to everyone who has read it, and thanks to those who took the time to respond. =)
     
    JRRT
  6. JRRT
    The Language of Okoto


     
    Chapter 10: An Okotoan Grammar
     
    [crosspost]
     
    We have reached the end, so let’s go out with a bang, shall we? All of the previous posts have been solely focused on breaking down the small dataset available to us and fleshing out the form and meaning of various words/lexical items, which is basically just vocabulary-building. But if we want Okotoan to be usable in any form, we’ve gotta mix in a bit of grammar at some point, right? Right. The time has come.
     

    Table of Contents:



    1. Syntax



    2. Verbs



    3. Nouns



    4. Other



    5. Glossary


     
    1. Syntax
     
    There are two primary rules of syntactic composition (and semantic interpretation) that apply very broadly in Okotoan, as follows:
     
    Rule 1. A modifying element placed before the element it modifies receives an indirect/abstract/non-physical interpretation,
     
    Rule 2. A modifying element placed after the element it modifies receives a direct/concrete/physical interpretation.
     
    A couple of specific applications of this rule to note:
     
    Subjects are positioned before the verb. This expresses the concept that subjects are in an indirect/abstract relation to the action of the verb, since subjects can express various concepts, including “causer”, “initiator”, or just “thing about which the verb expresses an action/property” (depending on the verb).
     
    Objects are positioned after the verb. This expresses the concept that objects are in a dirrect/concrete relation to the action of the verb, indicating the entity which is directly affected by that action.
     
    Taken together, this means that the primary word order of Okotoan is Subject – Verb – Object (SVO), very much like English (and a large number of other human languages).
     
    2. Verbs
     
    Verbs are usually formed directly from basic stems (e.g. k- “to do, act”, e- “to originate, begin, exist”).
     
    A subclass of transitive verbs (verbs that require an object of some kind) is formed by the application of a marker -k (derived from k- “to do, act”; blatantly copied from Matoran -kha, which derives from kya “to do, act”). This can lead to related pairs of verbs such as e- “to originate, begin, exist” alongside ek- “to make smthg.; to cause to exist”.
     
    2.1 Subject-marking
     
    Subjects of verbs are marked by suffixes added directly to the verbal stem, indicating the person/number of the subject. Each suffix has two forms, depending on whether the verb stem ends in a consonant or vowel:
     
    Singular:
    1 -e (after consonants) OR -we (after vowels) = “I”
    2 -i OR -wi = “you”
    3 -a OR -wa = “she/he/it”
     
    Plural: Add the plural marker -to after the suffixes for 1st/2nd/3rd person.
     
    2.1.1 Examples
     
    1. ke “I act.” (= k- “to do, act” + -e “1st person”)
    2. keto “We act.” (= k- + -e + -to “plural”)
    3. ki “You act.” (= k- + -i “2nd person”)
    4. kito “You all act.”
    5. ka “She/he/it acts.” (= k- + -a “3rd person”)
    6. kato “They act.”
    7. owe “I exist.” (= o- “to exist, remain” + -we “1st person”)
    8. owi “You exist.” (= o- + -wi “2nd person”)
    9. owa “She/he/it exists.” (= o- + -wa “3rd person”)
    10. Ekimu owa. “Ekimu exists.”
     
    Notes:
    - The 1st person marker comes from the stem e “making, originating” (the stem o “place, location, point” was also considered, but this would make the Okotoan 1st person marker identical to Matoran!). The 2nd person marker comes from the noun marker -i, which indicates animate individuals, a common implication of the 2nd person in general (you generally address speech to animate, rather than inanimate, things). The 3rd person marker comes from the noun marker -a, which indicates general nouns--things, objects, and people.
    - The suffix-variants with -w- that are used after vowels derive from the addition of the stem u “skill, ability”, which covers the semantic domain of “instrument”, as well as “perspective”. This sound was eventually lost after consonants.
     
    2.2 Tense
     
    Tense is marked on verbs by prefixes added directly to the verbal stem, indicating present, past, and future tense. Each prefix has two forms, depending on whether the verbal stem begins in a consonant or vowel:
     
    Present: o- (before consonants), ok- (before vowels)
    Past: e- OR ek-
    Future: u- OR uk-, w-
     
    4.2.1 Examples
     
    1. Ekimu o-ka. “Ekimu acts.”
    2. Ekimu e-ka. “Ekimu acted.”
    3. Ekimu u-ka. “Ekimu will act.”
    4. Mu ok-owa. “The mask exists.”
    5. Mu ek-owa. “The mask existed”
    6. Mu uk-owa. OR Mu w-owa. “The mask will exist.”
     
    Notes:
    - The present-marker comes from the stem o “place, location, point”, specifying “(current) temporal location”. The past-marker comes from the stem e “making, originating”, specifying “temporal origination”. The future-marker comes from the stem u “skill, ability”, via metaphorical extension from “ability” to “possibility”, and eventually to “temporal possibility; future”.
    - The prefix-variants with -k- that are used before vowels derive from the addition of the stem k- “action”, under the assumption that, at an older stage in the language, tense was marked by a second “placeholder” verb (k-) which then fused with the primary verb stem.
    - Interesting: We can construct an alternate etymology for the name Okoto using a verbal template instead of a nounal one. The complex ok-o-we-to would translate to “we exist/remain” (ok- “present tense”, -o- “to exist, remain”, -we- “first person”, -to “plural”), and according to basic assumptions about sound change, it would undergo eventual phonological reduction along the following lines: okoweto > okoueto > okouto > okoto.
    - Also interesting: An alternate etymology for the name of Ekimu presents itself. The sentence eki mu would translate to “you acted (with respect to) masks”, with eki deriving from e- “past tense” + k- “to do, act” + -i “2nd person”, plus an object mu “mask(s)”.
     
    3. Nouns
     
    Nouns can be formed directly from basic stems (e.g. u “skill, ability”) as well as by the addition of derivative suffixes such as -a “general noun” and -i “animate noun”.
     
    Nouns can be marked for plural number via the suffix -to, which is attached directly to the noun-stem.
     
    Nouns can also be marked for possession by the addition of a set of independent markers for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd person possessors, which are placed before the noun which is possessed, expressing that the noun bears a concrete relation to the possessor.
     
    1 we “mine” (pl. weto “ours”)
    2 wi “yours” (pl. wito “yours”)
    3 wa “hers/his/its” (pl. wato “theirs”)
     
    If the possessor is another noun (rather than just a pronoun), it is placed before wa, followed by the possessed noun: [possessor] + wa + [possessed].
     
    Lastly, nouns can be marked to express various spatio-temporal properties (location, movement, instrumentality, etc.). These markers can be expressed as affixes (suffixes/prefixes) or as independent words (prepositions/postpositions), as desired. Since, in most cases, they express direct/concrete/physical relationships, it is suggested that these markers be placed after the nouns they modify (not an absolute rule!).
     
    o “in, at, on (position)”
    e “from, out of, before (origin, startpoint)”
    u “by, with (instrument)”
    mo “to, toward (endpoint)” (< m+o, lit. “completion+location”)
    omo “after, following; outside” (< o+mo, lit. “location+endpoint”)
    wo “through, via, across” (< u+o, lit. “instrument+location”)
    owo “during (process); like, as” (< o+wo, lit. “location+process”)
     
    3.1 Examples:
     
    1. eki-to “maker-s”
    2. kuta-to “hoarder-s”
    3. oko-to “land-s”
    4. we oko “my land”
    5. wi ta “your group/hoard”
    6. wato mu “their mask”
    7. Ekimu wa mu “Ekimu’s mask”
    8. oko-o “in/at/on (the) land”
    9. ta-e “from/out of (the) group/hoard/collection”
    10. tu-u “by/with mastery” OR u-tu, because tu ends in a vowel
    11. toa-mo “toward (the) master/hero” OR mo-toa
    12. oko-omo “outside (the) land”
    13. oko-wo “through/via/across (the) land”
    14. e-owo “during (the) making”
    15. wato oko-to mo “toward our land-s”
     
    Note:
    - Interesting: Example 3 above offers an interesting alternative etymology for the word Okoto; one that is appropriate, considering that Okoto is divided into multiple regions or “lands”.
     
    4. Other
     
    4.1 Expressing Negation
     
    Negation (i.e. “not”) is normally marked on verbs by the prefix um-, which is added before the prefixes marking tense. (This prefix is derived from a combination of the stems u “possibility” and m- “covering; completion”, yielding a sense of “completion” or “limitation” of possibility, i.e. “no possibility, negation”).
     
    Alternately, negation can be marked by addition of the independent morpheme uma “nothing, never” (< um-a “negation+thing”) placed before the verb.
     
    4.1.1 Examples
     
    1. Umeke “I did not act.”
    2. Uma eke “I did not act. / I never acted.”
    3. Makuta umokewa “Makuta does not originate/begin.”
    4. Makuta uma okewa “Makuta does not originate/begin. / Makuta never originates/begins.”
     
    4.2 Questions
     
    Two types of questions (“interrogatives”) can be formed: Yes/No-Questions (“Did you get the mask?”) and WH-Questions (“What did you get?” “Where did you get it?” “Who are you?”, etc.).
     
    - Yes/No-Questions are formed simply by the addition of rising intonation at the end of a sentence (similar to English, Spanish, and numerous other human languages).
     
    - WH-Questions are also formed via rising intonation, but coupled with a special set of interrogative (pro)nouns derived from the base-form at- (a combination of the stems a “thing, object, person” and t- “non-specificity”, hence “non-specific thing/object/person”).
     
    ata “who/what”
    atomo “where”
    atowo “when”
    atowe “why”
    atu “how”
     
    The element ata should be placed before or after the verb based on whether or not it corresponds to the subject or object. All of the other elements are adverbial in nature and can be placed basically anywhere in the sentence.
     
    4.2.1 Examples
     
    1. Ekimu eka? “Did Ekimu act?” (Yes/No-Q)
    2. Ukeki mu? “Will you make the mask?” (Yes/No-Q. Verb = ek- “to make smthg.”)
    3. Ata ekeka mu? “Who/what made the mask?” (WH-Q)
    4. Ekimu ekeka ata? “What did Ekimu make?” (WH-Q)
    5. Atomo Ekimu ekeka mu? “Where did Ekimu make the mask?” (WH-Q)
    6. Ekimu ekeka mu atowo? “When did Ekimu make the mask?” (WH-Q)
    7. Ekimu atu ekeka mu? “How did Ekimu make the mask?” (WH-Q)
     
    4.3 Commands
     
    An imperative (command) is constructed by using the bare form of the stem, without any tense-marking, in combination with the 2nd person suffix -i. Negative imperatives are formed by adding either the negative prefix um- to the stem or by placing the independent negative element uma “nothing, never” before the verb.
     
    4.3.1 Examples
     
    1. Eki mu! “Make the mask!”
    2. Ki! “Do it!”
    3. Uma ki! “Don’t do it!”
    4. Ewi! “Begin/originate!”
    5. Umewi! “Don’t begin/originate!”
    6. Owi! “Exist! / Be!”
     
    4.4 Complex clauses
     
    4.4.1 Coordinating Conjunctions
     
    These independent morphemes are used to join together elements of the same type (e.g. nouns with nouns, verbs with verbs, clauses with clauses) in a symmetrical fashion, such that both elements are independent (“coordinated”).
     
    omo “and, plus” (< o+mo, lit. “location+endpoint”)
    me “but, except” (< m+e, “separation, exception”, lit. “completion+origin”)
    ome “or” (< o+me, lit. “location+separation/exception”)
    we “for, because” (< u+e, lit. “instrument+origin”)
     
    4.4.2 Subordinating Conjunctions
     
    These two morphemes are used to join together elements (usually clauses) in an asymmetrical fashion, such that one element is subordinate or dependent upon the other element. Respectively, they are used to turn a full clause into the object of a verb or into a modifier of a noun (a relative clause).
     
    mo “that” = Complementizer. This morpheme attaches to verbs, indicating that a following clause is the object (or “complement”) of said verb.
     
    ata “that” = Relativizer. This morpheme attaches to nouns, indicating that a following clause is a modifier of the noun.
     
    4.4.3 Examples
     
    1. Makuta omo Ekimu okowato ekimuto. “Makuta and Ekimu are Mask Makers.”
    2. Ekimu okeka, me Makuta otaka. “Ekimu makes, but Makuta hoards.”
    3. Okeki, ome otaki? “Do you make, or do you hoard?”
    4. Makuta ekoka ekimu, we ekeka muto. “Makuta was a Mask Maker, for he made masks.”
    5. Okike-mo Ekimu weka mu. “I want Ekimu to make the mask” (lit. “I want that Ekimu will make the mask.”)
    6. Mu-ata Ekimu ekeka... “The mask that Ekimu made...”
    7. Ekimu okika-mo Makuta uma weka mu. “Ekimu wants Makuta to not make the mask.” (lit. “Ekimu wants that Makuta will not make the mask.”)
     
    5. Glossary:
     
    Basic Stems:
     
    Note: The meanings of these stems are slightly expanded from those outlined in Chapter 9, and a few additional stems have been added.
     
    a |stm.| “thing, object, person”
    e |stm.| “making, originating; origination; past” (< *i-)
    i |stm.| “animacy, intentionality”
    iu |stm.| “sensation, feeling, sight, knowledge” (< *i-u)
    k- |stm.| “acting, doing; action”
    ko |stm.| “solidity, solid-ness; ?ice”
    m- |stm.| “covering; completion; past”
    o |stm.| “location, place, point; specificity; existing, remaining; present”
    t- |stm.| “plurality, mass; non-specificity”
    u |stm.| “skill, ability; instrument, perspective; possibility, future” (< *p-)
     
    Affixes:
     
    -a |aff.| “general noun (thing, object, person)”
    -i |aff.| “animate noun”
    -k |aff.| “transitive verb (verb taking an object)”
    -o |aff.| “general adjective (property, attribute)”
     
    Nouns:
     
    ata |n.| “thing, object”
    ati |n.| “person, individual”
    ati-ota |n.| “community, society”
    atu |n.| “crafted object, product; (piece of) art”
    atuki |n.| “crafter, producer” (< *atukui)
    ea |n.| “beginning, start, origin” (< *eo-a)
    eki |n.| “maker” (< *ekui)
    eki-atu |n.| “crafter, artisan”
    ekimu |n.| “mask maker” (< *eki-mau)
    ga |n.| “liquid, non-solidity; variety, variability, change; activity, movement; water” (< *k-a)
    gali |n.| “(ocean) tide, current; cyclicity, reactivity; humor, comedy; lit. ‘generation of variability/change’” (< *ga-li, see le |n.|)
    ianu |n.| “darkness; blindness; lit. ‘restriction of sensation’” (< *iua-nu)
    iawo |n.| “light; sight, vision; lit. ‘endurance/unrestrictedness of sensation’” (< *iua-po)
    i(w)a “sensation, feeling; discovery, knowledge, understanding” (< *iua)
    ka |n.| “(an) act, deed”
    ki |n.| “agent, causer, actor” (< *kui)
    ko |n.| “solidity, solid (substance), rigidity; structure, arrangement; ice” (< *k-o)
    kopaka “snow-drift, blizzard; slickness, slipperiness; lit. ‘wandering/drifting of ice’” (< ko-paka)
    ku |n.| “action”
    ku-ata |n.| “tool, weapon; appendage (arm, leg, hand), manipulator; lit. ‘thing/object of action’”
    kuta |n.| “hoarder” (< *kuita)
    la |n.| “diffusor, generator; teacher, elder; seed; lit. ‘thing of dispersal/growth/generation’” (< *le-a)
    le |n.| “diffusion, dispersal, circulation; generation, growth; jungle, plant-life; air, wind; lit. ‘multiplicity of origins’” (< *te < *t-i)
    leo |n.| “(a) generation, stage, step, link; lit. ‘point of dispersal/growth/generation’” (< *lea-o)
    lewa |n.| “chaos; lit. ‘freedom of generation/growth’” (< *le-pa)
    ma |n.| “covering, mask”
    makuta |n.| “mask hoarder” (< *mau-kuta)
    moka |n.| “protection, safety”
    moko |n.| “house, building, roofed dwelling-place; lit. ‘solid/stable covered-location’” (< m-oko)
    mu |n.| “mask” (< *mau)
    nu |n.| “restriction, limitation, boundedness; earth, ground; rest, sleep, inactivity; ability/perspective related to covering” (< *m-p)
    o |n.| “place, location, point”
    oga |n.| “body of water; lake, pond”
    ogato |n.| “ocean, sea”
    oki |n.| “inhabitant, dweller” (< *okoi)
    oko |n.| “land, place, home, region”
    okoa |n.| “city, town” (< *okoua)
    okoto |n.| “great land/place/home” (< oko-to)
    oku |n.| “constructed landmark, monument, temple” (< *okou)
    ola |n.| “tree, plant” (< *ole-a)
    ole |n.| “forested area; group of trees/plants”
    oleto |n.| “jungle, forest”
    oma |n.| “end, finish, completion” (< *o-uma)
    oni |n.| “miner, delver, cave-dweller; hermit, meditator” (< *onu-i)
    onu |n.| “underground, below-ground; refuge, resting place”
    onua |n.| “underworld, the deep; silence, rest, meditation” (< *onui-a)
    onuto |n.| “cave-system, subterranean world”
    opo |n.| “above-ground, surface”
    opoto |n.| “plain(s), overworld”
    ota |n.| “network, system, arrangement, organization; team; lit. ‘group/collection of points’” (< *otoa)
    otaga |n.| “volcano”
    otagato |n.| “volcanic region”
    otaki |n.| “organizer, networker; lit. ‘agent of network/systems’”
    pa |n.| “possibility, potential; freedom, autonomy” (< *p-a)
    paka |n.| “wandering, drifting; journey” (< *paki-a)
    paki |n.| “wanderer, rogue; lit. ‘agent of possibility/autonomy’”
    po |n.| “endurance, fortitude, strength; stone, rock; lit. ‘existing/remaining related to ability/perspective’” (< *p-o)
    ta |n.| “hoard, group, collection” (< *toa)
    ta |n.| “plurality; expansion, proliferation, consumption; fire, burning; lit. ‘multiplicity of things/objects’” (< *t-a)
    taga |n.| “magma; lit. ‘liquid fire’”
    to |n.| “largeness, greatness”
    toa |n.| “master, hero” (< *toua)
    toa-ota |n.| “Toa Team; team of heroes/masters” (< ota-toa)
    tu |n.| “mastery; lit. ‘skill of greatness’” (< *tou)
    tu |n.| “versatility, adaptability, application, usefulness” (< *t-u)
    tua |n.| “tool, device, instrument, implement; lit. ‘versatile/useful object’” (< *tuoa )
    tula |n.| “innovator, leader; lit. ‘teacher/elder of adaptability/versatility’ (< *tulea)
    tulaga |n.| “protector, preserver, caretaker; lit. ‘leader related to/against change/variability’”
    u |n.| “skill, ability; possibility”
    uma |n.| “nothing, absence”
    uwa |n.| “time” (< *upa)
     
    Verbs:
     
    Note: Because all verbs require the addition of prefixes and suffixes indicating tense and person/number, I have used the notation “-stem-” to distinguish verbs from other entries.
     
    -e- |v.| “to originate, begin, exist; to be (stative)”
    -ek- |v.| “to make/create smthg.”
    -ewo- |v.| “to go; lit. ‘to move away’” (see -wo-)
    -ga- |v.| “to vary, change; to flow”
    -i- |v.| “to intend, decide”
    -ik- |v.| “to cause, initiate”
    -iuk- |v.| to find, discover; to seek out; lit. ‘to know intentionally (abstract)’” (see -uk-)
    -k- |v.| “to do, act”
    -ki- |v.| “to want, wish, desire”
    -ku- |v.| “to change/become different, alternate, vary”
    -kuk- |v.| “to affect, influence, apply; to change smthg., manipulate”
    -le- |v.| “to disperse, spread, circulate; to generate, manifest”
    -lek- |v.| “to engender, spawn”
    -li- |v.| “to speak, say; to transmit, convey information” (see -le-)
    -m- |v.| “to complete, finish, establish”
    -m(i)k- |v.| “to stop smthg.; to end, cut off”
    -mowo- |v.| “to come; lit. ‘to move toward’” (see -wo-)
    -nu- |v.| “to restrict, limit; to rest, sleep”
    -o- |v.| “to be in/at location; to exist; to be (stative)”
    -ok- |v.| “to put/place smthg. (location); to locate, specify”
    -om- |v.| “to arrive; to end, finish, complete”
    -om(i)k- |v.| “to bring smthg.; lit. ‘to make arrive (with)’; to accomplish, achieve”
    -t- |v.| “to grow, increase, become larger”
    -tak- |v.| “to collect, group, amass, hoard”
    -uk- |v.| “to know, think; lit. ‘make possibility/perspective’”
    -uki- |v.| “to see, observe; lit. ‘to know intentionally (concrete)’” (see -uk-)
    -wo- |v.| “to move”
     
    Adjectives:
     
    eo |adj.| “first, initial” (< *eo-o, see ea |n.|)
    galo |adj.| “reactive; cyclic; humorous, comedic”
    go |adj.| “variable, changeable; flowing, watery” (< *gao, see ga |n.|)
    ko |adj.| “active, eventful” (< *k-o)
    ko(o) |adj.| “solid, stable, firm, concrete; frozen, icy” (< *ko-o)
    kopako |adj.| “slippery”
    lewo |adj.| “chaotic”
    lo |adj.| “dispersed; growing” (< *le-o)
    mo |adj.| “covered, separated; completed, finished; distant”
    no |adj.| “restful, sleepy”
    omo |adj.| “last, final” (< *oum-o, see oma |n.|)
    pako |adj.| “lost, direction-less”
    po |adj.| “above, over; unrestricted, free; resistant, strong”
    to |adj.| “great, large; plural, many”
    towo |adj.| “masterful, heroic; brave, courageous” (< *touo)
    wo |adj.| “skillful, competent, capable”
  7. JRRT

    TLoO: Chapter 9

    By JRRT,

    The Language of Okoto


     
    Chapter 9
     
    [crosspost]
     
    At this stage, we have reached what I think is, for all intents and purposes, “ground zero” for the language of Okoto. We have picked apart, decomposed, rendered down, and theoretically dismantled almost the entirety of the dataset established in Chapter 1 (to the near-exclusion of the names of the Masters, which continue to have an uncertain status). What more is there to do? Quite a bit, it turns out. This post will focus on tying up some loose ends and looking forward to the next chapter (Chapter 10), which will conclude this series of posts by outlining a pretty extensive grammar for the Okotoan Language.
     
    For now, though, here’s what I’d like to do: In the interests of completionism, I’d like to reduce all of the lexical elements that we have so far down to their most basic forms and then define those forms as “stems” from which new words are/can be created. The meanings of these stems will be appropriately abstract, and it will be possible to define them as any word-category (nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc.) depending on what they are combined with. This system will serve us well, I think, in the interests of future vocabulary-expansion, as well as the construction of a grammar.
     
    With this goal in mind, we have, luckily, already done most of this work. Elements in the glossary like k- “acting, doing”, e “making, creating” and m- “covering” already provide examples of what I have in mind, but there are a few entries that could be further redefined as stems (the noun-markers -a and -i, for example, might be raised to the status of basic stems indicating “thing, object, person” and “animacy, intentionality”), and there is at least one entry to “largeness, greatness” that can be further broken down. We’ll focus on the latter entry first, and then return to the former, concluding with a glossary of basic stems:
     
    Proposal 1: The element to can be dissolved into two elements: t- and -o. Let t- be a stem-element indicating the general concept of “plurality”, while o translates as “place, location”. Furthermore, let the semantic domain covered by o extend from “place, location” to the concept of “point, specific(ity)”, yielding, in combination with t-, t+o “plurality of points/locations; largeness/greatness”.
     
    With that done, we have exhausted the repertoire of undissolved lexical elements, and all that’s left is to redefine the bulk of the entries that we have derived as basic stems, with appropriately abstract/expanded meanings. These “extended” meanings are somewhat arbitrary, although I hope the connection with the originally-postulated meaning remains clear (e.g. o “location, place” > “point, specificity” > “existing, remaining”; m- “covering” > “completion”, u “skill, ability” > “instrument(ality)”, etc.). I think the following list of stems provides a sufficiently rich pool for future vocabulary construction:
     
    Proposal 2: The following entries constitute basic stems from which the majority of words in the Okotoan Language are derived:
     
    a |stm.| “thing, object, person”
    e |stm.| “making, originating; origination”
    i |stm.| “animacy, intentionality”
    k- |stm.| “acting, doing; action”
    ko |stm.| “solidity, solid-ness; ?ice”
    m- |stm.| “covering; completion”
    o |stm.| “location, place, point; specificity; existing, remaining”
    t- |stm.| “plurality, mass; non-specificity”
    u |stm.| “skill, ability; instrument(ality)”
     
    As mentioned, the next chapter will be the final chapter in this series. Stay tuned!
  8. JRRT

    TLoO: Chapter 8

    By JRRT,

    The Language of Okoto


     
    Chapter 8
     
    [crosspost]
     
    For this post, let’s return to a part of the dataset that we haven’t discussed for a while: the reconstructed element *kui “agent”. Elsewhere, we’ve been successful in breaking down the words toa, ta, okoto by delving into their reconstructed history and making some comparative observations. Let’s see what we can do with *kui, shall we?
     
    First, note that the element *kui has been translated only as “agent” thus far, and that this is actually a somewhat semantically complex concept. In order to get at the basic components of the word, we’ll need identify the semantic components of what it means to be an agent, and we can do that via paraphrase, as follows:
     
    Assumption: The concept of “agent” can be paraphrased as “an individual who is able to act intentionally”, which can be broken down into at least three parts: [intentional individual], [ability], and [action].
     
    With that in mind, let’s have an observation:
     
    Observation: The element *kui contains the sequence u, which has been elsewhere assigned an independent meaning of “skill, ability”.
     
    And now, a pretty straightforward proposal:
     
    Proposal 1: The element *kui can be decomposed into u “skill, ability” and the remaining elements k- and -i.
     
    With this proposal, we have assigned the [ability] part of the meaning of “agent” to u, leaving two units that have yet to be specified. Luckily, we also have two remaining word-units: k- and -i. At this point I will note that -i would fit nicely next to the general noun marker -a as a suffix capable of deriving nouns, but the question is, what kind of nouns? The following two proposals will flesh things out:
     
    Proposal 2: Let k- be a stem-element representing the general concept of “acting, doing” (similar to how e represents the general concept of “making”). Together with u “ability, skill”, these could form an independent complex ku “action”.
     
    Proposal 3: Let -i be a suffix which derives specifically animate (or “intentional”) nouns, contrasting with the general noun suffix -a, which does not specify animacy. In combination with ku “action”, this would yield a complex *ku-i “an intentional individual defined by action”, in other words, “an agent”.
     
    So the upshot of these proposals is that we have assigned the [action] component of the meaning of “agent” to the stem k- and the [intentional individual] component to the suffix -i.
     
    Recap:
     
    - Applying a variety of assumptions accumulated in previous posts, we have succesfully decomposed the reconstructed term *kui “agent” into three separate elements, corresponding to three semantic components of the meaning of “agency” ([action], [ability], and [intentional individual]): the stem k- “acting, doing”, u “skill, ability”, and a noun-marker -i “animate noun”.
     
    Current Glossary:
     
    -a “general noun (thing, object, person)”
    e “?making, ?creating”
    eki “maker” (< *ekui)
    ekimu “mask maker”
    -i “animate noun”
    k- “acting, doing” (basic stem)
    ki “agent” (< *kui)
    ko “solidity, solid-ness; ?ice”
    ku “action”
    kuta “hoarder” (< *kuita)
    m- “covering” (basic stem)
    ma “covering, mask”
    makuta “mask hoarder”
    mu “mask” (< *mau)
    o “place, location”
    oko “land, place, home”
    okoto “great land/place/home”
    ta “hoard, group, collection” (< *toa)
    to “largeness, greatness”
    toa “master, hero” (< *toua)
    tu “skill of greatness; mastery” (< *tou)
    u “skill, ability”
  9. JRRT

    TLoO: Chapter 7

    By JRRT,

    The Language of Okoto


     
    Chapter 7
     
    [crosspost]
     
    At this point, I think we’ve pretty much eked out all the information we reasonably can from the topic of the words toa/ta/okoto without having to rely on anything other than the contents of the dataset and some basic hypothesizing. With that in mind, we could stop...or we could move into realms of more-or-less pure speculation. I’ll take the latter choice in this post for the sake of creativity and completionism. In particular, we still haven’t defined the word oko in its entirety, but I think it’s still possible.
     
    Recall that we are unsure whether or not the names of the Masters (Tahu, Gali, Onua, etc.) should count as authentic Okotoan names. Thus far, I’ve attempted to flesh out an Okotoan Language without relying on these names for data, since their status is still up in the air. However, if we were to admit the Toa-names to some limited extent, it might provide us with further options for deciphering the word oko. I’m thinking in particular of the sequence /ko/ in /oko/ and its parallel in the name Kopaka (/kopaka/), the Master of Ice. Assuming that the elemental prefixes of the Matoran Language are, to some extent, preserved in Okotoan, this would mean that ko could be translated as “ice”.
     
    However, rather than simply copying Matoran wholesale, I’d like to put a slight twist on it: Instead of “ice”, why not think of ko as referring to a more general concept...something like “solid” or “solidity, solid-ness”, in the sense of ice being a solid form of matter (contrasting with liquid, gas, etc.)? This interpretation of ko seems a bit more reasonable if we’re trying to figure out how it would fit into a term like oko, which we’ve thus far assumed to mean something like “land”, “landmass” or “place”. A further benefit of this analysis is that it allows us to place ko alongside other “basic” or irreducible stems like to “greatness, largeness”. This leads naturally to a formal proposal:
     
    Proposal 1: The element ko is a lexical component of the Okotoan Language and may be translated as “solidity, solid-ness”.
     
    Of course, we can’t stop there! We’ve determined a plausible meaning for one part of the word oko, so that just leaves the remaining piece o- to be defined. Considering that we’ve thus far assumed that oko should refer to some kind of place or location (e.g. “land” or “home” in the previous posts), it might make sense to assign a similar meaning to o, which would imply a direct/concrete modifying relation between o (the primary element) and ko (the modifier), which is placed after the primary element. Here’s the proposal:
     
    Proposal 2: The element o translates to “place, location”. In combination with ko “solidity, solid-ness”, this means that the complex o-ko translates to “place of solidity (with direct/concrete relation); solid place, foundation; land, home”.
     
    Recap:
     
    - We made the decision to incorporate a small bit of data from the names of the Masters—the element ko from Kopaka—in order to derive a meaning for the as-yet-undefined element oko in Okoto. The stem ko is defined as “solidity, solid-ness” (referencing the status of “ice” as a solid, contrasting with liquids, gases, etc.). Furthermore, we have defined the remaining element o in o-ko as “place, location”, yielding a final meaning of “solid place, foundation; land, home”.
     
    Current Glossary:
     
    -a “general noun (thing, object, person)”
    e “?making, ?creating”
    eki “maker” (< *ekui)
    ekimu “mask maker”
    ki “agent” (< *kui)
    ko “solidity, solid-ness; ?ice”
    kuta “hoarder” (< *kuita)
    m- “covering” (basic stem)
    ma “covering, mask”
    makuta “mask hoarder”
    mu “mask” (< *mau)
    o “place, location”
    oko “land, place, home”
    okoto “great land/place/home”
    ta “hoard, group, collection” (< *toa)
    to “largeness, greatness”
    toa “master, hero” (< *toua)
    tu “skill of greatness; mastery” (< *tou)
    u “skill, ability”
  10. JRRT

    TLoO: Chapter 6

    By JRRT,

    The Language of Okoto


     
    Chapter 6
     
    [crosspost]
     
    In the previous post, we managed to break down the reconstructed term *toua into a few constituent parts and assign meanings to those parts. The element u translated to “skill, ability” and the element -a “general noun marker (person, object, thing)”, but the element to wasn’t fleshed out beyond the idea that it signified something like “greatness” and was somehow connected to the previously established word ta “?hoarding, ?grouping”. This post, we’ll try to get a bit more specific as to the meaning of this elusive element to in the contexts in which it arises. Let’s start with the following observation, which repeats what we already know:
     
    Observation: The sequence /t/ plus /a/ or /o/ occurs in *toua “master, hero”, ta “group, hoard, collection”, and the word okoto.
     
    Ideally, all of these surface forms could be related to a common root with a common meaning, thereby providing us with yet another lexical building block for our Okotoan glossary. With that goal in mind, we can use the regular sound change patterns we’ve already established to make a few deductions about what the “base form” of this /t+vowel/ sequence is. For example, the sequence /to/ shows up in both /toua/ and /okoto/, i.e. in the middle of a word and at the end of a word. If we decided to trace /to/ back to an older vowel-sequence like we did for /au/, /ui/, etc., we’d expect it to exhibit variation in these two positions. Instead, it’s identical (and in fact forms a part of a different vowel sequence /ou/ in /toua/). Now consider the sequence /ta/: it shows up only at the end of a word (cf. kuta); hence, if it traced back to an older vowel sequence, the sequence would have to be of the form /vowel+a/, since the other sound change rules all preserve the second vowel in word-final position. So it seems likely that /to/ in /toua/ and /okoto/ is the “base form”, while /ta/ is a form derived from an older stage /t+vowel+a/. Using these comparative deductions, we can arrive at the following proposals:
     
    Proposal 1: The element to in *toua “master, hero” and okoto translates to “largeness, greatness” (parallel to Matoran nui “large, great”).
     
    Proposal 2: The term ta “?hoarding, ?grouping” can be traced back to an older form *toa, consisting of the element to “greatness, largeness” combined with the element -a “general noun (person, object, thing)”, and can therefore be translated literally as “largeness of things (direct/concrete relation)”, or, more generally, as a noun signifying “hoard, group, collection”.
     
    Phonological Rule 4:
    Subpart 4a: /oa/ becomes /a/ word-finally. Example: /toa/ > /ta/.
    Subpart 4b: /oa/ becomes /o/ elsewhere. No example available.
     
    With that, we have managed to tie up the etymologies of both toa “master, hero” (< *toua, lit. “person of mastery [= ‘skill of greatness’]”) and ta “group, hoard, collection” (< *toa, lit. “largeness of things”) in a way that takes maximal advantage of their shared elements (e.g. to “largeness, greatness” and -a “general noun”) and follows the exact same phonological rules as every other etymological pairing.
     
    The only thing left to comment on is the composition of the word okoto. I’ve already proposed that to translates to “greatness, largeness”, so that leaves only oko to decipher. Admittedly, there are very few cues left to us, at this point, and because this post is becoming overlong, I’ll simply leave it with the following proposal:
     
    Proposal 3: The element oko translates to something that refers to a landmass or dwelling place, e.g. “land, place, home”, and it is modified by to “largeness, greatness” with a direct/concrete interpretation, hence “physically large”. This means that oko-to would translate roughly to “Great Land/Place/Home” (once again, parallel to the Matoran tradition of denoting placenames via the modifier nui “great”).
     
    Recap:
     
    - We have identified and extracted the common element to in the terms toa “master, hero”, ta “group, hoard, collection”, and okoto, defined this word-element as “largeness, greatness”, and provided an account of its appearance in each term.
    - Along the way, we’ve derived a fourth phonological rule affecting the vowel-sequence /oa/ (> /a/ word-finally, /o/ elsewhere).
    - Lastly, we’ve proposed a preliminary translation of the word okoto, consisting of the element oko and to: Okoto “Great Land/Place/Home”.
     
    Current Glossary:
     
    -a “general noun (thing, object, person)”
    e “?making, ?creating”
    eki “maker” (< *ekui)
    ekimu “mask maker”
    ki “agent” (< *kui)
    kuta “hoarder” (< *kuita)
    m- “covering” (basic stem)
    ma “covering, mask”
    makuta “mask hoarder”
    mu “mask” (< *mau)
    oko “?land, place, home” (unclear)
    okoto “great ?land/place/home”
    ta “hoard, group, collection” (< *toa)
    to “largeness, greatness”
    toa “master, hero” (< *toua)
    tu “skill of greatness; mastery” (< *tou)
    u “skill, ability”
  11. JRRT

    TLoO: Chapter 5

    By JRRT,

    The Language of Okoto


     
    Chapter 5
     
    [crosspost]
     
    Let’s continue with the breakdown of the word toa (< *toua). In order to delve a bit deeper, we will need a point of comparison, and I think this can be provided by bringing in the remaining reliably-native word Okoto. Connecting these two terms—one a title and the other the name of an island—might seem tenuous, but with the background we’ve already set up, I’m confident we can make some important headway.
     
    However, unlike the previous instances where we were able to use comparison, this time we aren’t able to compare the meaning of these terms, since one of them (Okoto) doesn’t have a meaning (nor any clear indications as to what it could mean…yet!). So instead of starting with a comparison of meaning, we’ll have to start with a comparison of the surface form of these words only, and go from there:
     
    Observation: The reconstructed term *toua (and its modern derivative toa) exhibits a sequence /to/. The word okoto also exhibits this sequence in isolation.
     
    Based on these facts, we could conclude that there is a discrete unit to which is combined in various ways. This would imply that *toua is to be separated into at least two parts: *to-ua. Now, a further observation about the surface form of another word which has been previously assigned a meaning:
     
    Observation: The reconstructed term *mau “mask” incorporates /u/.
     
    Adding this into the mix, we might assume that -u in itself constitutes a separable element in both *mau and *toua, hence *ma-u and *to-u-a. As a consequence, this could further lead us to assume that the sequence /ma/ in *ma-u and the sequence /a/ in *to-u-a also constitute separable elements. Here’s a list of all the discrete units (whether they are independent words or some kind of affix) that we can derive, according to these assumptions:
     
    toua
    tou- (in *tou-a)
    to (in *to-u, oko-to)
    mau
    ma (in *ma-u)
    u (in *to-u, *ma-u)
    a (in *tou-a)
     
    Now at last we have a (tenuous) point of comparison in the form of the reconstructed elements *mau “mask” and *tou “???”, which forms a subpart of *tou-a “master, hero”. Using this comparison, we may be able to derive a meaning for each of the distinct elements, with a little creativity.
     
    For this, we’ll have to consider some aspects of Okotoan culture in order to come to a conclusion on what the concepts of “mask” and “master, hero” might have in common. First, let’s consider the concept of masks on Okoto. They are clearly special, but in a somewhat different way than the Kanohi of the Matoran were. Okotoan masks have power, but they are also clearly valuable as products of artistry and skill, as evidenced by the prestige of the Mask Makers. Next, let’s think about the meaning of *toua “master, hero”. It’s pretty uncontroversial to say that a “master” is someone who is maximally skillful at whatever it is they do. At this point, you may already see where I’m going with this, so let’s codify it into a proposal:
     
    Proposal 1: The element u translates roughly to “skill” or “ability”.
     
    Alright, now let’s see how this would apply to *ma-u and *to-u-a. In the first case, it seems reasonable to assume that u would be a modifier indicating that the mask-object (represented by ma) is a product of (the Mask Maker’s) skill or ability. This works quite well, since u is placed second, giving it a direct/concrete interpretation:
     
    ma-u = “a ?mask/object/ma with a direct/concrete relation to skill/ability”, i.e. something that is physically characterized by the application of skillfulness.
     
    As for *to-u-a, we still don’t have meanings for to- or -a, so it’s a bit more difficult to characterize the function of u here. At the same time, we know that the result should be a term meaning “master, hero”, and this might lead us to assume that u “skill, ability”, in this case, is actually the primary element, with to- and -a being modifiers of some kind that intensify the meaning of “skill” (i.e. to “great skill, mastery”) and add the meaning of “an individual” to the word (“an individual with great skill/mastery; a master”). It should be noted that we already have the word ta “?hoarding, ?grouping” available as a comparison for to, and we could, in a preliminary way, assume that to expresses “greatness” in some sense, since ta seems to be related to concepts of groups or plurality (I’ll leave that to explore in a later post). That just leaves -a, and here’s the proposal:
     
    Proposal 2: -a indicates a general noun (thing, object, person).
     
    So bringing everything together, the complex form to-u would, at this stage in our analysis, translate roughly to “skill of ?greatness” (u “skill, ability” is the primary element, modified by to “?greatness” with an indirect/abstract interpretation), and in combination with -a “general noun (thing, object, person)”, that would yield:
     
    tou-a = “a person/thing characterized by great skill/mastery; mastery-person”, i.e. a “master”.
     
    At this point, I am tempted to continue and apply this conception of -a to the element ma, which has thus far only been defined as “mask/object”. Let’s go for it! Here’s the proposal:
     
    Proposal 3: The element ma generally translates to “covering, mask”, and can be decomposed into the stem-element m- “covering” and the general noun marker -a.
     
    Recap:
     
    - Using comparative methodology, we have broken down the reconstructed terms *mau and *toua into the units ma, to, u and a, and then we have made an attempt to furnish these units with meanings. In particular, u is translated as “skill, ability”, -a is translated as a general noun-marker for persons/things, and ma is translated as “covering, mask” (derived from a basic stem m- “covering” combined with -a), whereas to has been assigned the intermediate definition “?greatness” to be fleshed out later.
     
    Current Glossary:
     
    -a “general noun (thing, object, person)”
    e “?making, ?creating”
    eki “maker” (< *ekui)
    ekimu “mask maker”
    ki “agent” (< *kui)
    kuta “hoarder” (< *kuita)
    m- “covering” (basic stem)
    ma “covering, mask”
    makuta “mask hoarder”
    mu “mask” (< *mau)
    ta “?hoarding, ?grouping”
    to “?greatness” (unclear)
    toa “master, hero” (< *toua)
    *tou “skill of ?greatness; mastery” (unclear; would become tu in the modern form of Okotoan)
    u “skill, ability”
  12. JRRT

    TLoO: Chapter 4

    By JRRT,

    The Language of Okoto


    Chapter 4
     
    [crosspost]
     
    That’ll do for the names Ekimu and Makuta for the time being. Now let’s turn to another part of the dataset, one word in particular: Toa. I’ve already hinted at how I intend to incorporate this term into the sketch of the Okotoan Language, so might as well get on with it:
     
    Assumption: The term toa translates to “master” or “hero”.
     
    Where do we go from here? Because we only have one term to look at, there isn’t quite the same opportunity for comparative reconstruction that we’ve had previously. However, we can still apply some of the knowledge we’ve pieced together related to phonological rules.
     
    Observation: In all other instances of two-vowel sequences, phonological rules have reduced the sequence to a single vowel, so we would expect /oa/ to be subject to a similar rule (for example, /oa/ becoming /a/ at the ends of words, /o/ elsewhere). However, no such reduction applies in this case.
     
    It could, of course, be that /oa/ is simply “immune” to this class of sound changes...but that’s a bit of a dead-end if our aim is to actually make progress in constructing the Okotoan Language. So, instead, here’s another option to consider:
     
    Proposal: Reduction does apply to /oa/, but in a different way: The sequence /oa/ derives from an older sequence /oua/, which is indeed subject to phonological reduction, but in such a way that it results in the modern sequence /oa/. This means that the term toa derives from an older stage *toua.
     
    Phonological Rule 3:
    Subpart 3a: /ou/ > /u/ word-finally.
    Subpart 3b: /ou/ > /o/ elsewhere. Example: /toua/ > /toa/.
     
    Once again, we are able to use the exact same pattern of sound change that applies to sequences like /au/ and /ui/, this time affecting a postulated sequence /ou/ in such a way that it results in the preservation of a two-vowel sequence in the modern form of a word.
     
    Recap:
     
    - We’ve assigned the meaning “master” or “hero” to the word toa, and also reconstructed an older form of this word, *toua, based on observations about the occurrence of postulated two-vowel sequences elsewhere in the language.
    - Along the way, we’ve derived a third phonological rule affecting the vowel-sequence /ou/ (> /u/ word-finally, /o/ elsewhere).
     
    Current Glossary:
     
    e “?making, ?creating”
    eki “maker” (< *ekui)
    ekimu “mask maker”
    ki “agent” (< *kui)
    kuta “hoarder” (< *kuita)
    makuta “mask hoarder”
    mu “mask” (< *mau)
    ta “?hoarding, ?grouping”
    toa “master, hero” (< *toua)
  13. JRRT

    TLoO: Chapter 3

    By JRRT,

    The Language of Okoto


     
    Chapter 3
     
    [crosspost]
     
    Now that we’ve taken the first step in breaking down the dataset, it’s time to go a bit further. Recall that, thus far, we’ve decomposed the names ekimu and makuta into eki “maker” plus *mau “mask” (“mask maker”) and *mau “mask” plus kuta “hoarder” (“mask hoarder”). For this post, let’s focus on these newly-derived elements eki and kuta and try to break them down even further.
     
    First of all, consider their meanings: “maker” and “hoarder”. Both of these constitute “agentive” nouns, indicated by the English suffix -er. This common element of agentivity can easily provide us with a point of comparison, in the same way that we used the common element of “mask” in the previous post. Therefore:
     
    Assumption: The words eki and kuta both incorporate a morpheme corresponding to “agent”.
     
    And from there we can move immediately to an observation:
     
    Observation: There is a common sequence /k+vowel/ in both words, /e-ki/ and /ku-ta/.
     
    The variation between /ki/ and /ku/ presents us with a situation that is almost identical with the situation involving /ma/ ~ /mu/ in the previous post, in which case, to keep things maximally simple, we can apply the exact same methodology in order to derive /ki/ ~ /ku/ from a common etymological source, parallel to the derivation of /ma/ ~ /mu/ from the reconstructed *mau.
     
    Proposal 1: The sequence /ki/ in /eki/ and the sequence /ku/ in /kuta/ can both be traced back to an older common form *kui “agent”. Furthermore, the vowel-sequence /ui/ is affected by the following phonological rule, which has two subparts:
     
    Phonological Rule 2:
    Subpart 2a: /ui/ becomes /i/ word-finally. Example: /ekui/ > /eki/.
    Subpart 2b: /ui/ becomes /u/ elsewhere. Example: /kuita/ > /kuta/.
     
    This phonological rule is modeled on the first phonological rule affecting /au/ and operates according to the exact same principles, i.e. the first vowel in a sequence of two vowels is deleted in word-final position, while the second vowel deletes elsewhere. This kind of rule-based simplicity is desirable, I would say, on grounds of parsimony, so it’s fortunate that we can take advantage of it once again!
     
    Now that we’ve extracted *kui “agent” from eki and kuta, we are left with the challenge of assigning appropriate meanings to the remnants of these terms: e- on the one hand and -ta on the other. First, let’s consider the meanings of eki and kuta in relation to our new assumption about *kui “agent”: The term eki “maker” would derive from the complex e-kui, translating to something like “?agent of making; make-er”, while the term kuta would derive from kui-ta, translating to something like “?agent of hoarding; hoard-er”, in which case we can assign rough meanings to our remaining elements, e “?making” and ta “?hoarding”.
     
    This once again leaves the question of the syntactic/semantic difference between the two terms. In both cases, the primary element is *kui “agent”, with e “?making” placed as a modifier before *kui and ta “?hoarding” placed as a modifier after *kui. Here’s how these facts play out:
     
    e-kui = “agent with an abstract/indirect relation to making”, i.e. not a “direct” maker (creating things from nothing), but a builder or someone who makes things out of materials (one step removed from the initial process of creation)
     
    kui-ta = “agent with concrete relation to hoards/groups”, i.e. someone who directly/physically collects objects into definable groups.
     
    Recap:
     
    - We have decomposed the words eki “maker” and kuta “hoarder” into the reconstructed element *kui “agent”, modified in the former case by the element e “?making, ?creating” and in the latter case by the element ta “?hoarding, ?grouping”.
    - Along the way, we’ve derived a second phonological rule affecting the vowel-sequence /ui/ (> /i/ word-finally, /u/ elsewhere).
     
    Current Glossary:
     
    e “?making, ?creating”
    eki “maker” (< *ekui)
    ekimu “mask maker”
    *kui “agent” (would become ki in the modern form of Okotoan)
    kuta “hoarder” (< *kuita)
    makuta “mask hoarder”
    mu “mask” (< *mau)
    ta “?hoarding, ?grouping”
  14. JRRT
    The Language of Okoto


     
    Preface
     
    I’m afraid I have indeed succumbed to the secret vice once again. It was probably inevitable, even though the linguistic material incorporated into Generation 2 of Bionicle is admittedly quite a bit less than the material that was available in Generation 1. Ultimately, however, I decided that the lack of material shouldn’t deter creativity, and so this series of posts has grown and expanded to a pretty decent size (roughly 10 posts) over the past month or so.
     
    Before getting to the issue at hand, I’ll note that I am indebted to this topic for some of the inspiration, so credit where credit is due! I posted a first sketch of these ideas in that topic, and I encourage others to join in on the conversation there. The reason I’ve decided to splinter this off into a series of blog posts is...well, there’s a lot of material here, and I have no desire to squash other people’s creativity, which this material would threaten to do if I just flooded the topic with it. Instead, consider this my personal take on the language of the inhabitants of Okoto. These posts will proceed in a series of stages or “chapters”, each building on the proposals and conclusions of the last, and they will continue for as long as I feel like I have something to say. Also, as usual, I’ll be cross-posting everything on my other blog for the perusal of the tumblr community. Alright, enough chit-chat. Enjoy!
     
    Chapter 1
     
    Let’s start with a brief discussion of the data that is available for the language of the Okotoans. First, there is the name of the island itself, Okoto. Secondly, there are the names of the two brothers Ekimu and Makuta. These three names/terms are presented as authentically Okotoan in all G2 media sources, even though Makuta clearly mirrors the Matoran term from G1. For our purposes here, let’s assume that the match-up between the Matoran Language and the Okotoan Language when it comes to Makuta’s name is an homage/coincidence.
     
    Next, we have to consider the names of the G2 Toa/Masters: Tahu, Gali, Lewa, Kopaka, Onua, and Pohatu. These are also definitively Matoran names, but they could be included as authentic Okotoan names via the same criteria by which Makuta can be included (i.e. coincidence). However, there is one problem: we don’t yet know anything about the connection that these Toa have—if any—with the Toa Mata of the G1 universe. If the G2 universe is indeed somehow connected to the G1 universe (which remains a possibility given the hints about the Mask of Time), and, hence, the Masters are actually the same beings as the G1 Toa Mata, then this poses a problem for the inclusion of these names as native to the Okotoan Language, since they would still be Matoran in origin—simply transferred from one universe to another.
     
    It has, of course, been noted that the Protectors clearly gave the Masters their names shortly after the Masters crashlanded, and this might be seen as an argument for the native-status of these names. Then again, it could also very easily be that these names have been passed down to the Protectors in connection with Ekimu’s Prophecy of Heroes (or some other prophecy); hence still non-native. Only time will tell, in this case.
     
    The last thing to consider is the term Toa itself. To me, this word seems to fall more-or-less under the same criteria as Makuta’s name, but that’s mainly because the title of Toa seems to already have a uniquely Okotoan meaning of “Master” (note: seems to—not necessarily confirmed, but I think it’s a pretty solid hypthesis).
     
    Okay, with that out of the way, here is the dataset that is available to us and from which we can begin to assemble a language:
     
    Native terms:
     
    Okoto
    Ekimu
    Makuta
    Toa
     
    Possibly native terms (unconfirmed):
     
    Tahu
    Gali
    Lewa
    Kopaka
    Onua
    Pohatu
  15. JRRT

    The Prophecy of Heroes

    By JRRT,

    The Prophecy of Heroes


     

    Hear now, my son, what the prophecy says:


     

    When times are dark and all hope seems lost,


     

    The Protectors must unite, one from each tribe.


     

    Evoke the power of past and future,


     

    And look to the skies for an answer.


     

    When the stars align, six comets will bring timeless heroes


     

    To claim the Masks of Power and find the Mask Maker.


     

    United, the elements hold the power to defeat evil…


     

    United, but not one.


     
     



     

    Toavakamaja


     

    Ro’o, akai deya ki vakamaja roya:


     

    Vahi kraui-ika no taka rayase


     

    Mangai kaitayasu, ikoronga,


     

    Vuna no vaka naya


     

    No ivanto-akee akuya


     

    Ni kaitaya-ika, duni-na Toa-vahikhu kyako


     

    Ta ai Kanohi kyase, ta ai Ekimu eleyase


     

    Kaita, nahi vuata ki rawa maya huya…


     

    Kaita, va nga-ru.


     
     



     

    [
    link]

  16. JRRT
    Irnakk the Fearsome: As real as pain and death


     

    [
    yikes]

     
    Although Matoran culture doubtless remains the most widely recognized and influential of the cultural systems which arose within the Matoran Universe, it was not the only culture to exist. The various non-Matoran races created by the Great Beings eventually formed their own individual cultural variations, although the imprint of Matoran culture remained. One interesting example of this interplay between cultural concepts – especially an interplay represented in language – can be identified in the earliest stages of Skakdian society.
     
    While the Skakdi were equipped with their own individual language, they were also competent to communicate in Matoran, and as such there was extensive language contact during the millenia preceding the arrival of Makuta Spiriah on the Skakdian home-island of Zakaz, after which Skakdian society underwent a series of drastic changes, as has been recorded elsewhere.
     
    One of the core principles that characterized Matoran behavior and values – perhaps on par with the Three Virtues – was the concept of "system-normality", expressed in the Matoran language by the morpheme ha. This concept constituted an important lynchpin of early Matoran morality, and it was opposed by an antonymic concept of "system-abnormality", expressed by the complex morpheme ur-ha "not-system-normal" (ur- "negative, not"; ur-ha > rha > ra). This moral binary has observable correlates in most non-Matoran cultures throughout the Matoran Universe, including the Skakdi.
     
    However, the Skakdian variation of ha was slightly different: Some of the central values of early Skakdian society lay in concepts of "power", "strength", and "physical/mental prowess", rather than the more general category of "system-normality". Accordingly, the Skakdi co-opted the Matoran stem na "elemental power/energy" as their own equivalent of Matoran ha-system-normality, with a correspondingly antonymic concept expressed by the complex ur-na (parallel to ur-ha): "powerlessness, wrongness, weakness, fear".
     
    Interestingly, the word-form urna ultimately passed into Skakdi vernacular as the word irna (with unrounding and fronting of Matoran to [i ] in accordance with Skakdi dialects), more commonly as a constituent of a word [i]irnakk [/i]"creature of irna" (irnakk < irna-ki "lit. 'component of powerlessness/weakness/fear'", from irna and the Matoran morpheme ki "piece, part"). Initially, irnakk was used as a general term for "wrongdoer/criminal", "coward", or "dangerous ('fearsome') one". However, after Makuta Spiriah initiated his program of experimental mutation on the inhabitants of Zakaz and Skakdian society quickly dissolved into savagery, the term irnakk took on a different significance as part of a newly-innovated mythology:
     
    Although few historical records survive, it is known that Skakdian rulers developed an extensive mythological tradition designed to enforce a modicum of order and maintain their authority over the populace, primarily through fear of punishment. At the center of this mythology was the figure of (the) Irnakk, a monstrous embodiment of all anti-Skakdian ideals, including "weakness" and "loss of strength/power", but even more centrally, archetypal fear and terror. In some sense, therefore, Irnakk is an etymological parallel to the Matoran word Rahi: rahi < ur-ha-hi "thing of system-abnormality; 'not us'" vs. irnakk < ur-na-ki "thing of fear; 'not us'" (-ki and -hi both originating as noun-markers from a similar source), and as such, Irnakk came to hold a significant place in the Skakdian psyche: a nightmarish reminder of the fate suffered by those who exhibited weakness or succumbed to fear.
     
    A final point of interest comes in the form of a folk-etymology that arose in the period after the Irnakk-myth had been fully established. It involved an almost ritualistic phrase which was used as an imprecation to silence and condemn any Skakdi who expressed doubt about the existence of Irnakk: Ei iradi irai na kho, literally "He is as real as pain and death". Given the brutal societal conditions faced by most Skakdi, concepts of pain and death were familiar and naturally effective as a means of quelling any disbelief, since the expression carried with it an unspoken threat of punishment. Translated into Standard Matoran, the phrase would be glossed as follows:
     
    ai e-rode e-rahu no khu
    he as-real as-pain and death
    "He (is) as real as pain-and-death."
     
    The folk-etymology is based on the claim that the name irnakk is actually a contraction of the latter portion of this phrase: Matoran e-rahu-no-khu, Skakdi irai-na-kho "(as) pain and death" > iranako > irnakk. Interpreted in this sense, the malediction takes on further dread significance, as it is essentially the equivalent of responding to someone who doubts the existence of Irnakk by saying "He (Irnakk) is as real (as) irnakk".
     
    It is fitting, therefore, that the only eyewitness account of Irnakk – as a manifestation created to test the six Skakdi known as Piraka in the labyrinth beneath Mt. Valmai – reports the following exchange between the creature and the Skakdi Thok and Avak, in which Irnakk symbolically invokes himself as a means of rebuking the Skakdi's expression of unbelief (as witnessed by Toa Matoro and recounted afterward by his surviving comrades):
     
    Thok:
    Dialogue: Skino ei-si? Na skai akoka ski skiro Irnakk-ro!
    Translation: "How can this be? Everyone knows there's no such thing as Irnakk!"
     
    Avak:
    Dialogue: Skai roka. Ai skai akokasi ski ei-ro.
    Translation: "Tell it that. Maybe you can get it to agree that it doesn't exist."
     
    Irnakk:
    Dialogue: Skiro, ai roka? Iradi irai na kho, a roka…
    Translation: "No such thing, says you? As real as pain and death, says I..."
  17. JRRT

    Roots & Stems

    By JRRT,

    Oh hi. It’s been a while, hasn’t it? At least, it’s been a while since I posted anything of substance here. I’ve actually been pretty freakishly active on my tumblr blog over the last couple of months, although not so much in recent weeks. That’s due to the fact that the academic year has once again begun, and my time is now mostly consumed by a combination of teaching and coursework. woo
    But, in spite of that, I have managed to eke out something that might be of interest to the Matoran language enthusiasts that still lurk hither. It’s something that has been in development for a long time, and it’s bound to continue developing in future, as usual, but I felt like it had reach a sufficient stage of maturation to post. So here it is:
     

    ROOTS & STEMS


     
    One of the most difficult (and yet, most satisfying) parts of thinking about Matoran etymology is seeing just how far we can reduce the set of original root-stems that might have formed the lexical inventory of the Matoran language in its most ancient state (i.e. the state of the language as programmed by the Great Beings). This has pretty much been a constant preoccupation of mine, since every additional stem that we have to posit in order to sufficiently derive all known Matoran words is technically an additional departure from the canon. Ideally, we’d be able to derive every Matoran word by relying solely on a small pool of well-motivated stems which are combined in consistent and logical ways to create the complex forms we see. Over the past several years, this pool has fluctuated wildly, but overall I’m happy to say that it has grown consistently smaller. In fact, at this point in the project, I can say with pretty good certainty that it is possible to derive every known Matoran word from a pool of stems consisting of about 16 elemental stems (ta, ga, le, (o)nu, po/pa, ko, vo, fa, bo, de, fe, ce, su, ba, av, kra, no/na) plus roughly 16 additional stems with varying semantic values. An entire lexicon and grammatical system derived from the combination of ~32 primitive items? Seems like a pretty good result to me! =p
    And that finally brings me to the point of this entry: a provisional list of the ~32 stems coupled with the semantic domains that they (supposedly) cover. I won’t attempt to provide any justification for these other than to direct you (as always) to the Matoran Dictionary and the Matoran Grammar, where most, if not all, of these stems manifest in one form or another.
     
    ELEMENTAL STEMS:
     
    TA -- fire; courage/bravery; essence, being; cause/initiation, inception
    GA -- water; purity; progression
    LE -- air; cohesiveness, accuracy; habituality
    (O)NU -- earth; firmness, steadfastness; past-orientation, memory
    PO/PA -- stone; strength, stolidness; reliability, friendliness; present-orientation
    KO -- ice; clarity, knowledge, sight; foresight, future-orientation
    VO -- lightning; energy; movement, conduction/transmission; ability
    FA -- magnetism; field, range, limitation; perfectivity
    BO -- plant-life; permanence; patience, stativity
    DE -- sonics; ?sensitivity, ?precision
    FE -- iron; metal; invention, innovation
    CE -- psionics; mind; (epistemic) possibility
    SU -- plasma; consumption, conversion; (deontic) necessity
    BA -- gravity; weight, balance
    AV -- light; enlightenment, ?revelation
    KRA -- shadow; obscurity
    NO/NA -- protodermis, substance, matter; the protodermic Elements
     
    NON-ELEMENTAL STEMS:
     
    KA -- unity; power, energy, potential; ?system-normality (?> HA)
    MA -- duty; control, use, mastery
    VA -- destiny; time
    HA -- system-normality; ?activity, process (?> HU)
    HI -- thing, object (> hi); part (> ki); intensive (> -k)
    HU -- activity, process
    RO -- unit, individuation
    ZA -- schematic, plan, structure
    AR -- affirmation, presence, realis (ar-); application, realization (> ­-ar)
    UR -- negation, absence, irealis (ur-); antonymy (> -ur)
    WA -- mass, quantity, magnitude; ?relation, property
    AI -- basis of deictic grammatical affixes (> ai-, -ai, i-...-a; > ai-ai > i-ai > yai > YI)
    IA -- basis of non-deictic derivative affixes (> -ya, a-...-i; -a-wa-i > -aui > -ui)
    YI -- contact, connection, together(ness) (< AI+AI)
    ?LA -- positivity, goodness (?< LE)
    ?NI -- ?being, star (?< NO/NA)
    ?SI -- possibility, variation (?< CE)
  18. JRRT

    The Legend

    By JRRT,

    MATANUYAMAJAI



    -



    THE LEGEND







    Ivaha vahai,



    Mata Nui ini-wahi uvoya;



    Nohi-artakhai akoa,



    Matoran roya, karaya.







    In the time before time,



    The Great Spirit descended from the heavens,



    Carrying us, the ones called the Matoran,



    To this island paradise...







    -







    Oa kaitura, maitura;



    Mata Nui i-Haua-Ngavongu,



    Kaita, Maita, Vaita,



    Oai takaya.







    We were separate and without purpose,



    So the Great Spirit illuminated us



    With the Three Virtues:



    Unity, Duty, and Destiny...







    --







    Oa i-Hau kouya;



    Ihahla, oa Mata Nui



    Inohi-reahi rokha;



    Nga i’Amana rohi.







    We embraced these gifts,



    And in gratitude,



    We named our island home Mata Nui,



    After the Great Spirit himself...







    --







    Oa-hahli rhourakha:



    Mata Nui-ro, nga Makuta,



    Suva vorakha, akai guurakha.



    Makuta ikouka Mata Nui zya.







    But our happiness was not to last.



    Mata Nui's brother, the Makuta,



    Was jealous of these honors and betrayed him.



    Makuta cast a spell over Mata Nui, who fell into a deep slumber...







    --







    Makutaka nohi maya,



    Itaua bo-wahi jutlamoya,



    Avotaka kokha,



    Hau-raga ceuraya.







    Makuta's power dominated the land,



    As fields withered away,



    Sunlight grew cold,



    And ancient values were forgotten...







    --







    This was originally
    posted via tumblr over the space of a few weeks, and now that it's complete, I thought I'd share it here. It's a rough translation of the Legend of Mata Nui, and if you've been following along with the last three posts, you may recognize a few things. I'm considering posting a full gloss once I find the time. Currently, a continuation is in progress: The Prophecy (of the Toa), the first few passages of which have already found their way online.






    Enjoy.


  21. JRRT
    [hey look
    a tumblr]


    Treatise: Translating the Avohkii



    : Part 2 :


     
    Check out the previous post for the full lead-in. Here’s a summary: There is an inscription written on the Mask of Light. The Mask of Light film novelization provides the “text” of this inscription, while the Mask of Light film itself has a sequence of actual dialogue where the inscription is pronounced. The two versions are different, but are clearly related. Starting with the version transcribed from the film, I will attempt to arrive at a translation of the inscription that (1) works within the (mostly non-canon) version of Matoran grammar and etymology outlined extensively on this blog and (2) makes (some degree of) sense within the larger context of the Bionicle storyline.
     
    In the upcoming analysis, therefore, I will be drawing heavily upon the entries found in the Matoran Dictionary (Vols. 1-8), as well as upon the various bits and pieces of Matoran grammar that I have developed in the Learning Matoran series, Lessons 1-8 (e.g., grammatical particles for nouns and verbs—locative and subject/object particles, pronouns, etc.). In addition, the analysis of the text will be informed by some theorizing about the in-universe context of the Avohkii’s creation and purpose.
     
    Time to delve into the nitty-gritty details. Here’s the transcription that I arrived at in Part 1:

     
    Some general thoughts: Notice that the word makuta is clearly present, and the word taka also appears. Full disclosure, once again: the taka in this transcription is a “correction” I have made from tak[?], where the final syllable was indistinct in the film. Although the version of the text from the novelization seems to have a corresponding tahkee instead (cf. makuta-tahkee), I believe that the correction to taka will be justified in the end. Another familiar term is (what I have spelled as) whenu—very close to whenua. Furthermore, in comparison with the novel-version, the term a-tua-na could contain a variation of toa; the novel-version yields an equivalent toa-nak, in fact.
     
    These initial observations aside, let’s start by focusing on the first few words: ...mapaku ke whenu ka. As noted, a good place to start in the translation might be whenu, which resembles whenua. Here’s the relevant entry:
     
    whenua |n.cmpd.| hidden/secret underground [whenua < whe-nua, from whe “underground” and nua “hidden, unseen, secret”]
     
    Is this a good place to start though? Is it well-motivated if we want a translation that is as close to canon as a non-canon translation can get? In reality, that depends on the authenticity of the etymology of whenua. If I, as the translator, want to argue that whenua (or any other word encountered) is a legitimate candidate for incorporation in this translation, I have to be able to defend the etymologies that I’ve come up with. Alright, so let’s (try to) do that. Whenua is a compound of whe "underground" and nua "hidden, unseen, secret":
     
    whe |n.| underground [whe < uw-hī, from uw “under, lower, below” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
     
    Although I’ve used the postulated stem uw “under, lower, below” (variants w-, u, -a) in various other etymologies, it is probably the least well-attested of the elements at play here. There are two pieces of "evidence" that I can bring in its support, the first from the etymology for us "steed; lit. ‘under-thing’" and the second from the etymology of mangaia "under mangai". In the interest of time, I won’t go into the specifics, but suffice it to say that I believe the postulation of a stem element corresponding to uw "under, lower, below" (with variants) is reasonable. The second element, hī "thing, object, place" is much easier to defend, cf. my decomposition of kanohi, keahi, rahi, rahk-shi, mahi, etc.
     
    nua |adj.| hidden, unseen, secret [etymology uncertain; Variant forms: na, nu, ny]
     
    The defense of nua is more a matter of comparing the likely semantic domains of words in which (I claim) the element appears, viz. huna, nynrah, nuju, kranua, odina. My claim is that the common semantic element of these terms is in the range of "hidden, unseen, secret". The first two terms, hu-na and ny-nrah provide a certain amount of grounding for this meaning, regardless of its actual realization as na, ny (or elsewhere as nua).
     
    Alright, so that’s the rationale behind whenua. Whether or not it’s reasonable is certainly up to debate, but I will continue under the assumption that it is reasonable.
     
    So if we translate whenu as "hidden/secret underground", where does that leave us? It certainly gives us a direction to go in fleshing out the context of the rest of the inscription. Let’s see what else can we get from the surrounding text: Note that whenu is flanked by two monosyllables, ke and ka, that might be analyzed as separate words or grammatical particles, perhaps—the former at the very least. One correlation that quickly presented itself to me was the split-form of the basic locative particle -oki:
     
    -oki |p.| in, on, at; during (basic locative particle) [Variant form: ki/ke...o (splitting+displacement) - FD: LM#8]
     
    I won’t spend nearly as much time attempting to defend this translation choice, since there isn’t very much that can be defended: the "particles" (locative, objective, etc.) that I have introduced into Matoran etymology are, for the most part, of my own creation. However, I have found them extremely useful in deriving some rather tricky etymologies, and have been able to "retroactively" provide some evidence for them (cf. kiro, pouks for -oki).
     
    Regardless, as listed in the entry, this locative particle can be split into a circumfixal variant with initial ke- and final -o. If the ke in the inscription is in fact the locative particle, that would shift the meaning of ke-whenu to “in/on/at [locative] (a) secret underground (place)”. The -o element could easily become the victim of assimilation: ke-whenua-o > ke-whenuo > ke-whenu.
     
    This leaves ka. Continuing with the particle analysis, there is another locative particle that might prove to be a good candidate: the origin particle -ha (cf. arta-kha, mo-a, pek-ka, amay-a):
     
    -ha |p.| from, out of (origin particle) [Variant forms: -ga (after /n/), -ka (after consonants), -ka/-kha/-a (after vowels) - FD: LM#8]
     
    This particle manifests as -ka or -kha when it follows a vowel (beware: semi-arbitrary phonological rule!). If ka is the origin particle, this would further modify the meaning of ke-whenu-ka to “from [origin] within [locative] a secret underground (place)”, and we would have an example of two different particles modifying the same noun: ke-whenua-o-ka > ke-whenu-ka.
     
    How does this tie in to a relevant translation of the inscription on the Avohkii? Let’s translate a little further. We need to identify two things: (1) some kind of action or event—a verb?—within which to orient this concept of a thing “from within a secret-underground (place)” and (2) the thing itself that originates from the secret underground location—that is, the thing that ke-whenu-ka modifies or describes. The next few words may provide some insight: ke-whenu-ka kitu akila ...
     
    At first glance, there are no real distinguishing features that we can use to categorize these words. The same could be said looking back at mapaku. There are many directions that we could go here...too many, in fact. Whatever steps are taken after this, they are bound to be arbitrary and subjective to some degree. With this in mind: what follows is my own opinion to a much greater extent than the previous passages, so take it with that sizeable grain of salt:
     
    To accomplish a complete and coherent translation, I will choose to draw upon my own descriptions of Matoran verbal morphology, as represented in the Learning Matoran lesson (Lesson #6, in particular). I have proposed, minimally, that verbs in Matoran may take a pronominal particle/prefix to indicate either their subject or object. One of these is the third-person singular subject-pronoun ai- “s/he/it” (which may be contracted to a-) and another is the third-person singular object pronoun akai- “him/her/it” (which may be contracted to ak-).
     
    So if an a- or ak- prefix betrays a verb, we may have a candidate in akila: a-kila or ak-ila. How to decide? The answer may be somewhat straightforward: In a standard declarative sentence, it seems reasonable to assume that the verb would take a pronoun marking the subject. In a non-declarative—specifically, an imperative sentence (i.e. a command, “Throw the disk!”, “Kill the Rahi!”, etc.)—the subject (“you”) is generally implied (in human languages, at least), and so, if the verb is marked at all, it might be a reasonable for it to take a pronoun marking the object instead of the subject. Furthermore, the ending of akila does not show clear evidence of a verbal particle (e.g., -ya), so a further step would be to analyze akila as an imperative taking a third-person singular object pronoun: ak-ila.
     
    On a less grammar-oriented note, I believe the decision to analyze akila as an imperative can also be supported by assumptions about the context of the Avohkii-inscription: This is something that was written on a powerful Kanohi mask, presumably (my presumption) to inform others about its nature or function. I think it’d reasonable to assume that whatever is written on the Avohkii could take the form of instructions—commands.
     
    Continuing on: while imperative command-forms of verbs are generally assumed to be identical to the standard citation form (compare zya in the well-known Manas zya! “Attack the monster!”), it is no stretch to allow that imperative verb-forms could undergo minor reduction. As such, the closest candidate for a verb that would reduce to an imperative form ila might be something like il-ya. Looking at already-established (i.e. already sort-of-made-up!) verbs in the Dictionary, the following appears to be a promising option:
     
    el-ya |v.| to seek out [From the stem el “seeking/searching; detection, sense” and the verbal particle ya. Basically synonymous with el-ma “to seek, search”]
     
    If we define ak-ila in this way, the resulting meaning is “Seek out him/her/it”. Presto—we have satisfied task (1) above! We have identified an action/event—and it happens that the action/event can actually be interpreted as a command, a set of instructions. Interesting, no? Combined with the earlier ke-whenu-ka, we get the following:
     
    ... ke-whenu-ka ... ak-ila “Seek out (a thing/person) originating from within a secret underground (place)”
     
    It strikes me that this would be a significant thing for someone to write as instructions on a Kanohi that was meant for a particular type of Matoran—a type of Matoran that just so happens to originate from a very particular place within the MU…Hmm. I promise I’ll stop being so vague once we get a little farther along, though it may be obvious to you by now what direction I’m taking. We’ll see...
     
    Next time.
  22. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME VI :: R-S






    -R-
     
    ra |adj./stm.| 1. wild, free, untamed; 2. strive, struggle; climb [Variant form: ar(a)i (verbal)]
    radi |n.| laughter; wild, gibbering sound [radi < ra-de, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and de “elemental sound”]
    radiak |n.| raucous sound/laughter [radiak < radi-ak, from radi “laughter; wild, gibbering sound” and the intensive particle -ak]
    raga |n./stm.| elder, wise one; lit. “tamed, wildness-at peace” [raga < ra-ga, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and ga “elemental water; peace, calm, settledness”]
    rahaga |n.cmpd.| 1. guardian of wild(-things), beast-master; 2. wild guardians [rahaga < ra-hagah, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and hagah “guardian”]
    rahi |n.| Rahi, wild thing, beast [rahi < ra-hī, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    rahi-nui |n.cmpd.| great rahi [From rahi “wild thing, beast” and nui “great, significant”]
    rahk |n.| wild/untamable thing [rahk < ra-hī-ak, from ra “wild(ness), untamed”, the particle hī “thing, object, place”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    rahkshi |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) wild/untamable offspring/spawn [rahkshi < rahk-shi, from rahk “wild/untamable thing” and shi “offspring, spawn” - FD: MN#1]
    rak |n./stm.| extreme wildness, lawlessness, violence; menace, scourge [rak < ra-ak, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: rakk (Skakdi dialect)]
    rakauhi |n.| wild bird [rakauhi < ra-kau-hī, from ra “wild(ness), untamed”, kau “free-flowing, breathing; flying” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant forms: rakohi, rockoh]
    rak-ya |v.| to commit crime/violence, to wrong; to murder [From the stem rak “extreme wildness, lawlessness, violence” and the verbal particle ya]†
    rama |n.| flying Rahi-insect [rama < ra-mai, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry), yielding a sense of “flying wild-thing”. Variant forms: ramai, rami]
    ranama |n.| predatory Rahi; lit. “mastery of many wild things” [ranama < ra-nā-ma, from ra “wild(ness), untamed”, the plural particle nā, and ma(t) “mastery, control”. Applied to the ranama species of Rahi-toad, referencing their fierce predatory nature]
    rau |n.| (Kanohi-) translation, understanding [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to oro “word, unit of communication”, possibly rau < roua < ro-wa, from ro “word, unit of communication” and wa “wide, great, large; expanse”, yielding an original sense of “many words, expanse of words”]
    rehi |n.| home, homeland [rehi < rei-hī, from rei “home, nest, safe place” and the particle hī “thing, object place”]
    rehix |n.| community; lit. “greater home” [rehix < rehi-ak-si, from rehi “home, homeland”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    rei |n./stm.| home, nest, safe place [etymology uncertain. Variant forms: rey, rye, rī, rea]
    reidak |n.| extremely wild/violent spirit [reidak < rei-ta-ak, from rei “wild, uncontrolled, violent” (Skakdi dialectal variant of rī, see entry), ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and the intensive particle -ak]
    reysa |n.| homesickness; lit. “hunger for home” [reysa < rey-sa, from rey (variant of rei, see entry) and the stem sa “hungering; desiring”]
    rho |n./stm.| line, edge, boundary [etymology uncertain; Variant forms: ro, rō]
    rhotu |n.| wheel, ring, circle [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the stem rho “line, edge, boundary”, possibly rhotu < rho-tu, from rho “line, edge, boundary” and tu (< du) “extension, scope, reach; influence”]
    rhotuka |n.cmpd.| wheel of energy [rhotuka < rhotu-ka, from rhotu “wheel, ring, circle” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    rī |adj.| wild, uncontrolled, violent [rī < ra-ui, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: raui, rai, rei (Skakdi variant)]
    ris |n.| bird; nesting creature; lit. “nest-spawn” [ris < rī-s, from rī “home, nest, safe-place” (variant of rei, see entry) and the Rahi-designation affix -s. Variant form: reas]
    rōdaka |n.cmpd.| heir, ascendant; lit. “(on the) edge of powerful authority” [rōdaka < rō-da-ka, from rō “line, edge” (variant of rho, see entry), da “order, authority”, and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    rode |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) truth, clarity, clear communication; lit. “sound of word” [rode < ro-de, from ro “word, unit of communication” (variant of oro, see entry) and de “elemental sound”]
    ropo |n.| patience [ropo < ro-po, from ro “contemplation, stillness” (variant of rua, see entry) and po “elemental stone”, yielding a sense of “stillness of stone”]
    roporak |n.cmpd.| patient menace; lit. “scourge of patience” [roporak < ropo-rak, from ropo “patience” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    rorzakh |n.cmpd.| lit. “great limiting judge/law-keeper” [rorzakh < rhor-zatahki-ak, from rhor (from rho-oro, a compound of rho “line, edge, boundary” and oro “word, unit of communication” in imitation of boh-oro, see entry bohrok), zatahki “judge, law-keeper” (an earlier form of dahki, see entry), and the intensive particle -ak - FD: MN#3]
    ru |n./adj./stm.| orientation; oriented toward; intention [etymology uncertain]
    rua |n.| (Kanohi-) contemplation, stillness; wisdom; lit. “peaceful orientation/intention” [rua < ru-ha, from ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and ha “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”. Variant forms: ruha, ro-]
    rui¹ |n.| joint; lit. “orienting thing” [rui < ru-hī, from ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]†
    rui² |adj.| oriented toward [rui < ru-ui, from ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and the adjectival particle ui]
    ruki |n.| school-swimming Rahi-fish; lit. “part of (larger) orientation” [ruki < ru-kī, from ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    ruru |n.| (Kanohi-) sensory-awareness, night-vision; lit. “orientation-of-orientation” [From an intensivizing reduplication of ru “orientation; intention”]
     
    -S-
     
    -s |aff.| Rahi-designation [An affix derived from shi “offspring, spawn” (see entry)]
    sa |stm.| hungering, desiring [sa < sā, from the stem sā “hungering desiring”. Variant forms: sā, -so (ā > ō / _#)]
    san |stm./adj.| precise, accurate, clear [etymology uncertain]
    sano |n.| accuracy, precision [sano < san-ō, from the stem san “precise, accurate, clear” and the nounal particle ō]
    sanok |n.| (Kanohi-) extreme accuracy/precision [sanok < sano-ak, from sano “accuracy, precision” and the intensive particle -ak]
    sanso |adj.| focused, obsessive; lit. “desire for precision” [sanso < san-sā, from the stem san “precise, accurate, clear” and sā “hungering, desiring” (older form of sa, see entry, with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    sare |adj.| nostalgic, wistful, sad [sare < sa-rei, from sa “hungering, desiring”, rei “home, nest, safe-place”]
    sarda |n.| nostalgic/wistful/sad spirit [sarda < sare-ta, from sare “nostalgic, wistful, sad” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    sau |adj.| hungry, desirous; living, active [sau < sa-u, from sa “hungering, desiring” and the adjectival particle u. Variant form: sū]
    se |n./stm.| elemental psionics [se < sē, from the primeval stem sē “elemental psionics”. Variant forms: se-, ce-, sul (u/l-modified)]
    sentrahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “emptying (a) being-vessel of untamable-wildness” [sentrahk < se-ān-te-rahk, from se “empty, emptied out” (variant of ze, see entry), ān “being, individual”, te “vessel, contained space”, and rahk “wild/untamable thing”]
    shasa |n.| reserved, shy; lit. “desiring silence” [shasa < shai-sa, from shai “silence; mute, quiet” (variant of she, see entry) and sa “hungering, desiring”]
    she |n.| silence, muteness; whisper [she < shē, from the stem shē “silence; mute, quiet”. Variant forms: sha, shai, shī]
    shelek |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) complete deaf-muteness [shelek < she-leu-ak, from the stem she “silence, muteness; whisper”, the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    shi |n.| offspring, spawn [shi < isi-hī, from isi “possibility; possible” and the particle hī “thing, object, place” - FD: MN#1]
    shu |adj.| silent; whispering [shu < she-u, from she “silence, muteness; whisper” and the adjectival particle u]
    sido |n.| commander, decision-maker; lit. “authority over possibilities” [sido < isi-dā, from isi “possible; possibility” and dā “authority, order” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    sidorak |n.cmpd.| commander of the menace/scourge [sidorak < sido-rak, from sido “commander, decision-maker” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    solek |n.cmpd.| blazing wind [solek < su-le-ak, from su “elemental plasma; bright, blazing”, le “elemental air”, and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: sulek]
    spinax |n.cmpd.| great tracker/hunter [spinax < sa-pin-ak-s, from sa “hungering, desiring”, pin “subject, target”, the intensive particle -ak, and the Rahi-designation suffix -s. Variant forms: spainax, spinaks]
    spiriah |n.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) strategic experiment; 2. (modern) empty experiment; failure [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is spiriah < zī-piriahi, zī “strategy, planning, scheming” and piriahi “experiment”; another proposed etymology is spiriah < zi-piriahi, from zi “empty/emptied space” and piriahi “experiment”]
    su |n./stm.| elemental plasma [su < sū, from the primeval elemental stem sū “elemental plasma”. Variant form: su-]
    sūko |n.| stasis, suspension [sūko < sū-ko, from sū “living, active” (variant of sau, see entry) and ko “elemental ice”. Variant form: sauko]
    sūkorak |n.cmpd.| scourge of stasis/suspension [sūkorak < sūko-rak, from sūko “stasis, suspension” and rak “menace, scourge”. Variant form: saukorak]
    suletu |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) psionic will, mind of psionics [suletu < sul-atu, from the u/l-modified elemental stem sul “elemental psionics” (see entry se) and atu “mind, will” - FD: NM]
    suva |n.| shrine, gathering place [etymology uncertain; possibly related to vā “time”, with reference to the design-parallels between the suva-mechanisms and the common layout of the Matoran sundial]
     
    --------------------
     
    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...”
     
  23. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME V :: N-P


     
    -N-
     
    nā |p.| many, multiple (plural particle) [Variant forms: nāl (l-modified), -nō (ā > ō / __#]
    naho |n.| protection of many [naho < nā-hō, from the plural particle nā “many, plural” and hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    nai |n./p.| all [nai < nā-ī, from the plural particle nā and the nounal particle ī. Variant form: nī]
    nai-ya |v.| to multiply, proliferate [From nai “all” and the verbal particle ya]
    nalo |n.| group, collection, herd [nalo < nāl-ō, from nāl, a stem-modification of the plural particle nā, and the nounal particle ō]
    nekta |n.| overlord, high rank; lit. “very large spirit” [nekta < ne-ak-ta, from ne “great, big” (Skakdi dialectal variant of nui, see entry), the intensive particle -ak, and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    nektann |n.| overlord/high-ranking being [nektann < nekta-ann, from nekta “overlord, high rank” and ann “being, individual” (Skakdi dialectal variant of ān, see entry)]
    nga |adj./n.| one; first, lone [etymology uncertain]
    ngai |adj.| elite [ngai < ngaui, from nga “one; first, lone” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant form: ngoi]
    ngalawa |n.| boat-race; lit. “first-boat” [ngalawa < nga-lawa, from nga “one, first; lone” and lawa “boat, floating vessel”]
    ngu |adj./n.| last, final; alone [ngu < nga-u, from nga “one; first, lone” (see entry) and the adjectival particle u]
    ni |p.| one who (personifying particle)
    niazesk |n.| (Rahi-) terrible swarming predator [niazesk < niazis-ak, from niazis “Rahi-insect; swarming predator” and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: niazisak]
    niazis |n.| Rahi-insect; swarming predator [niazis < niya-azi-s, from niya “multiplying, swarming” (stem variant derived from the verbal complex nai-ya, see entry), azi “violence, predatory” (variant of zai, zī), and the Rahi-designation suffix -s]
    nidi |n.| cunning, slyness; thievery [nidi < ni-zi-ti, from the particle ni “person/place who”, zi “empty, emptied out” (variant of ze, see entry), and ti “vessel”, yielding an original sense of “one who empties vessels; thief”]
    nidhiki |n.cmpd.| 1. measurer of cunning; 2. cunning deception [nidhiki < nidi-hiki, from nidi “cunning, slyness; theivery” and hiki (multiple meanings, see entries)]
    nihu |adj.| starry; glittering, sparkling [nihu < nih-u, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and the adjectival particle u]
    niki |n.| (individual) star; lit. “piece of star(s)” [niki < nih-kī, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    nikila |n.cmpd.| precious falling-star [nikila < niki-la, from niki “(individual) star; lit. ‘piece of star(s)’” and the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”]
    nireta |n.| sailor, seaworthy one; lit. “spirit at home on the sea” [nireta < nī-rei-ta, from nī “(liquid) protodermis; sea, ocean”, rei “home, nest, safe place”, and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    nita |adj.| uplifted, enlightened [nita < ni-ta, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and the elemental stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    nita-ya |v.| to uplift, enlighten [From nita “uplifted, enlightened” and the verbal particle ya]
    nivawk |n.| Rahi-hawk; lit. “under the high sky” [nivawk < nih-fau-ak, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)”, fau “under-roof”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    nixie |n.| astrology, lit. “star-possibilities” [nixie < niki-isi, from niki “(individual) star(s), lit. ‘piece of star(s)’” and isī (< isi) “possible; possibility”]
    nohi |n.| face; mask [nohi < no-hī, from no (< ono) “protodermis” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Originates as a term used by mask-makers in reference to powerless Matoran masks]
    noi |n.| (liquid) protodermis; sea, ocean [noi < no-ī, from no (< ono) “protodermis” and the nounal particle ī. Variant form: nī]
    noka |n.| (Kanoka-) disk; powerful protodermic object [noka < no-ka, from no (< ono) “protodermis” and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    nokama |n.cmpd.| tide; current; lit. “movement of the sea (liquid protodermis)” [nokama < noi-kama, from noi “(liquid) protodermis; sea, ocean” and ka-ma “to move”]
    nokoro |n.| cliff, dome-barrier [nokoro < no-koro, from no (< ono) “protodermis” and koro “(archaic) wall, barrier”]†
    nokoro-nui |n.cmpd.| the Great Barrier [From nokoro “cliff, dome-barrier” and nui “great, significant”]†
    norik |n.| command of many [norik < nā-orik, from the plural particle nā “many, plural” and orik “command, authority”. Variant form: noryk]
    nua |adj.| hidden, unseen, secret [etymology uncertain; Variant forms: na, nu, ny]
    nuhvok |n.| earth-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    nuhrī |n.| mask-maker; lit. “oriented toward mask(s)” [nuhrī < nohi-rī, from nohi “face; mask” (see entry) and the particle rī, a reduction of rui “oriented toward” (< ru-ui). Variant form: nuri]
    nui |adj.| great, significant; large [nui < nā-ui, from the plural particle nā “many, multiple” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: -nī, ne- (Skakdi variant)]
    nui-jaga |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) giant Rahi-scorpion [From nui “great, significant” and jaga “Rahi-scorpion”]
    nui-kopen |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) giant flying carver [From nui “great, significant” and kopen “flying carver”]
    nui-rama |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) giant flying Rahi-insect [From nui “great, significant” and rama “flying Rahi-insect”]
    nuju |n.| secret intelligence [nu-ju < nu-aju, from nu “hidden, unseen, secret” (variant of nua, see entry) and aju “intelligent; intelligence”]
    nuparu |n.cmpd.| iron-monger; lit. “oriented toward earth and stone” [nuparu < nu-pa-ru, from nu “elemental earth”, pa “elemental stone”, and ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”]
    nūrakh |n.| firm-command-Vahki [nūrakh < nu-oro-akh, from nu “elemental earth” (variant of onu, see entry), oro “word, unit of communciation”, and the Vahki-designation affix -akh (reanalyzed from the older Vahki-designation terms, see entries bord-akh, rorz-akh, vorz-akh, zad-akh) - FD: MN#3]
    nuva |adj.cmpd.| new, brand new, original, unique [nuva < nui-ava, from nui “great, significant” and ava “revealed, (newly) discovered” (variant of avu, see entry)]
    nyn |n.| hidden/secret one(s) [nyn < ny-ān, from ny “hidden, unseen, secret” (variant of nua, see entry) and ān “being, individual”]
    nynrah |n.cmpd.| lit. “wilderness of the hidden/secret ones” [nynrah < nyn-rahī, from nyn “hidden/secret one(s)” and an archaic usage of the complex ra-hī “wild place, wilderness” (ra “wild(ness), untamed” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”)]
     
    -O-
     
    o |pro.| I [1st pers. sg., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    oa |pro.| you [2nd pers. sg., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    oa-nā |pro.| you all [2nd pers. pl., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    odina |n.cmpd.| hidden southern place [odina < odī-nua, from odī, a reduced variant of udui “south” (see entry), and nua “hidden, unseen, secret”]
    oduh-ya |v.| to walk, travel on foot [From oduh “leg” (variant of udui, see entry) and the verbal particle ya]
    ōhnorak |n.cmpd.| mimicking/impersonating menace; lit. “scourge of mimicry” [ōhnorak < ōhno-rak, from ōhno “mimicry, impersonation” (variant of auhno, see entry) and rak “menace, scourge”]
    -oki |p.| in, on, at; during (basic locative particle) [Variant form: ki/ke...o (splitting+displacement) - FD: LM#8]
    okoth |adj.cmpd.| adventurous, tenacious, exploratory; lit. “will of (a) diving-bird” [okoth < ukua-ath, from ukua “diving-bird” and ath “mind, will” (a heavily reduced form of atu, see entry). Variant forms: okotu, ukot, ukuatu]
    olisi |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) possible available courses/pathways [olisi < ol-isi, from the stem ol “door, gate, opening; available course/pathway” and isi “possible; possibility” - FD: MN#1]
    olmak |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) powerful control of doors/gateways (dimensional gates) [olmak < ol-ma-ak, from the stem ol “door, gate, opening; available course/pathway”, ma(t) “mastery, control”, and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: olmatak - FD: MN#1]
    olo |n.| door, entrance, gateway [olo < ol-ō, from the stem ol “door, gate, opening; available course/pathway” and the nounal particle ō - FD: MN#1]
    o-nā |pro.| we [1st pers. pl., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    one |adj.| firm, steadfast; earthy, foundational [one < onew, from the u-modified elemental stem onew “elemental earth; firm, steadfast; earthy” (variant of onuw, see entry)]
    onepu |n.cmpd.| firm/steadfast friend [onepu < one-pu, from one “firm, steadfast; earthy, foundational” and pu “friend, ally”. Variant form: onupu]
    onewa |n.cmpd.| firm/steadfast foundation [onewa < one-wa, from one “firm, steadfast; earthy, foundational” and the stem wa “wide, great, large; expanse”]
    ono |n./stm.| protodermis [Variant form: no]†
    onoi |n.| body, form [onoi < ono-hī, from ono “protodermis” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant form: onohi]†
    onu |n./stm.| elemental earth [onu < onū, from the primeval elemental stem onū “elemental earth”. Variant forms: onu-, nu-, onuw/onew (u-modified, see entry onuw)]
    onua |n.cmpd.| broad earth [onua < onu-wa, from onu “elemental earth” and the stem wa “wide, great, large; expanse”]
    onui |adj.| black [onui < onu-ui, from onu “elemental earth” and the adjectival particle ui]†
    onuw |adj./stm.| elemental earth; firm, steady, steadfast; earthy [Derived from the elemental stem onu “elemental earth” (see entry) via u-modification. Variant form: onew]
    orde |n.cmpd.| mind, language/communicative faculty; lit. "vessel of words" [orde < or-te, from or "word, unit(s) of communication" (variant of oro, see entry) and te "vessel, contained space"]
    ori |n.| word; command [ori < or-ī, from oro “word, unit(s) of communication” and the nounal particle ī]
    orik |n.| command, authority, echelon [orik < ori-ak, from ori “word; command” and the intensive particle -ak. Also see related entry orok. Variant form: oryk]
    orix |n.| superior command, upper echelon [orix < orik-si, from orik “command, authority” and the comparative adjectival particle si. Variant forms: oryx, -rex]
    orkahm |adj.| racing along, careening, fluttering [orkahm < o-rakauhi-m, an adjective grammaticalized from the nounal complex o-rakauhi-m, from the split-particle amu (o...m) “through, by, via (transitional-instrumental)” and rakauhi “wild bird”. Variant form: orkan (with alternate o...n particle-split, see entry -amu)]
    oro |n.| word; unit(s) of communication [etymology uncertain. Variant forms: ro, or]
    oro-ha |v.| to communicate [From oro “word, unit(s) of communication” and the verbal particle ha]†
    orok |n.| order, directive, command [orok < oro-ak, from oro “word” and the intensive particle -ak. Also see related entry orik]
    oropi |n.| word-creature, speaker [oropi < oro-pi, from oro “word, unit of communication” and pi “agent, perpetrator; creature”]
    otilin |adv./adj.| steadily, soundly; structured, structurally sound [otilin < o-ti-la-n, an adverb/adjective grammaticalized from the nounal complex o-ti-la-n, from ti “space, area”, the particle -la “good, excellent”, and a heavily reduced form of the split-particle -amu (o...n) ”through, by (transitional-instrumental)”]
     
    -P-
     
    pahrak |n.| stone-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    paka |n.| strength; lit. “power of stone” [paka < pa-ka, from pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry) and ka “power, force, ability”]
    pakari |vn.cmpd.| strength, durability; lit. “exerting power of stone” [pakari < pa-akari, from pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry) and akari “exertion, resistance”]
    pakastā |n.cmpd.| harsh weather/the elements; lit. “scattering/consuming strength” [pakastā < paka-stā, from paka “strength” and the stem stā (< sā-ta) “scattering, consuming, driving out”]
    pala |n.| good/quality stone [pala < pa-la, from pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry) and the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”]
    panur |n./stm.| shattering, breaking, fragmentation [panur < pa-nu-ūr, from pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry), nu “elemental earth” (variant of onu, see entry), and the particle ūr(u) “un-, negative, not” - FD: MN#1]
    panrahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “shattering wild thing; shatterer” [panrahk < panur-rahk, from panur “shattering, breaking, fragmentation” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    papa |adj.| extremely hard, stony [From an intensivizing reduplication of pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry)]
    par |adj./stm.cmpd.| strong, stolid, robust; strengthened, made strong; lit. “application of strength” [par < po-ār, from po “elemental stone” and the particle ār “applied, application of; applied against, resistance, hindering”. Variant forms: para, pra]
    parakrekks |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) lit. “strengthened/robust, extremely resistant force” [parakrekks < para-krekka-s, from para “strong, stolid, robust; strengthened, made strong” (variant of par, see entry), krekka “extremely resistant force”, and the Rahi-designation affix -s - FD: MN#4]
    pavohi |n.| lightstone [pavohi < pā-avo-hī, from pa “elemental stone”, avo “elemental light”, and the particle hī "thing, object, place"]†
    pe |stm.| carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down [pe < peu < pau, derived from the elemental stem po “elemental stone” (see entry) via u-modification]
    pehiki |n.cmpd.| small unit; lit. “carving-measurement” [pehiki < pe-hiki, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and hiki¹ “piece/part/portion of something; measurement”. Originates as a stone-crafting term designating a (generally small) amount of material to be removed from a sculpture]
    pehkui |adj.| (Kanohi-) miniature, diminished [pehkui < pehiki-ui, from pehiki “small unit” and the adjectival particle ui]
    peke |n.| carving; carver [An agentive variant of pekeke “shard, fragment, pebble” (see entry peki)]
    peki |n.| shard, fragment, pebble; lit. “piece of carving” [peki < pe-kī, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”. Also found in an intensivized form pekiki, pekeke]
    pekka |n.| avalanche, rockslide [pekka < pekiki-ha, an independent lexicalization of the nounal complex pekiki-ha, from pekiki “many stones/pebbles” (intensivized variant of peki, see entry) and the particle ha “from, out of (origin)”]
    peli |adj.| carven, sculpted [peli < pe-li, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and the primeval modifying particle li]
    pelagia |adj.cmpd.| carved/sculpted by waves [pelagia < peli-agiya, from peli “carven, sculpted” and agi-ya “to wash over, immerse”]
    pen |n.| carver [pen < pe-ān, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and ān “being, individual”]
    pena |n.| (a) quarry; lit. “many carvings” [pena < pe-nā, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and the plural particle nā]
    pi |p.| agent, perpetrator; creature [etymology irrational]
    piatra |n.| lit. “echo of carving” [piatra < pe-atra, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and atra “echo, resonance” (variant of artra, see entry). Variant form: peatra]
    pin |n.| subject, target; lit. “agent-being” [pin < pi-ān, from pi “agent, perpetrator; creature” and ān “being, individual”. Variant form: pain]
    piraka |n.cmpd.| criminal, wrongdoer; (obscenity) thief/murderer [piraka < pi-iraka, from the particle pi “agent, perpetrator; creature” and iraka “wrongdoing, crime; murder”]
    piriahi |n.| experiment [piriahi < piri-ya-hī, from piri-ya “to manipulate” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    piri-ya |v.| to manipulate [piri-ya < pi-rī-ya, from pi “agent, perpetrator, creature”, rī, a reduction of rui “oriented toward” (rui < ru-ui) and the verbal particle ya, yielding a sense of “actively orienting/re-orienting”]
    piruk |n.| skilled scout/agent [piruk < pi-ru-ak, from the particle pi “agent, perpetrator; creature”, ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    po |n./stm.| elemental stone [po < pā, from the primeval elemental stem pā “elemental stone”. Variant forms: po-, pa, poh, pe (< pau, u-modified, see entry)]
    podu |n.| stone outcropping, pinnacle, spire [podu < po-du, from po “elemental stone” and du “extension, scope, reach; influence”]
    pohatu |n.cmpd.| 1. will of stone; 2. protecting will of stone [multi. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is pohatu < poh-atu, from poh (variant of po, see entry) “elemental stone” and atu “mind, will”; another proposed etymology is pohatu < po-ha-atu, from po “elemental stone”, ha “protection, peace/calm, safety, systems-normal”, and atu “mind, will”]
    poi |adj.| brown [poi < po-ui from po “elemental stone” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant form: paui]†
    pokawi |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) lit. “flight of/like stone” [pokawi < po-akawi, from po “elemental stone” and akawi “flying, soaring; moving freely”. Applied to the pokawi Rahi-bird, in reference to its flightlessness]
    pouks |n.| stone-dweller [pouks < po-oki-s, from po “elemental stone”, the particle oki “in/on/at; during (basic locative)”, and the affix -s, usually reserved for Rahi-designations]
    prida |n.| governance, rule, strong authority; lit. “applying strength toward order” [prida < pra-īda, from the stem-compound pra “lit. ‘application of strength’” (variant of par, see entry) and the nounal complex ī-da “toward order”. Variant form: praida]
    pridak |n.| great ruler, governor [pridak < prida-ak, from prida “governance, rule, strong authority” and the intensive affix -ak. Variant form: praidak]
    pu |n.| friend, ally [etymology uncertain; possibly a modification of the elemental stem po “elemental stone”. Variant form: pew]
    puku |n.| amiable friend [puku < pu-kau, from pu “friend, ally” and kau “free-flowing, unhindered” (see entry). Variant form: pewku]
     
    --------------------
     
    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...”
     
  24. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME IV :: L-M


     
    -L-
     
    -la |p.| good, excellent (modifying particle) [etymology uncertain; possibly la < li-hā, from the primeval modifying particle li and the stem hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”]
    lari |adj.| refined, perfectionistic; lit. “oriented toward excellence” [lari < la-rī, from the particle la “good, excellent” and rī, a reduction of rui “oriented toward” (< ru-ui)]
    lariska |n.cmpd.| powerful refined-creature/perfectionist [lariska < lari-s-ka, from lari “refined, perfectionistic”, the Rahi-designation affix -s, and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    la-ya |v.| to be good/kind [From the particle -la “good, excellent” and the verbal particle ya]
    lawa |n.| boat, floating vessel [etymology uncertain]
    le |n./stm.| elemental air [le < lē, from the primeval elemental stem lē “elemental air”. Variant forms: le-, leu (u-modified, see entry leu)]
    lehvak |n.| air-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    lekha |vn.| interaction, conversing; hearing+speech [lekha < leu-ha, nominalized from the verbal complex leu-ha (see entry lu-ha). Variant forms: lukha, also found affixed as -lek]
    ler |n.| toxicity, poison [ler < lē-ūr, from le “elemental air” and the particle ūr(u) “un-, negative, not”. Variant form: lūr - FD: MN#1]
    lerahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “poisonous wild thing; poisoner” [lerahk < ler-rahk, from ler “toxicity, poison” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    leru |adj.| acidic, toxic [leru < lēr-u, from the stem lēr “noxious, toxic; poison(ous)” and the adjectival particle u]†
    leso |adj.| wandering; lit. “scattering wind” [leso < le-sā, from le “elemental air” and sā “scattering, consuming” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    lesovikk |n.cmpd.| wandering judge [lesovikk < leso-vikk, from leso “wandering” and vikk, an extreme reduction of vahki “judge, law-keeper” (earlier vahiki > vaiki > vīk, vikk)]
    leu |n./stm.| elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking [Derived from the elemental stem le “elemental air” (see entry) via u-modification. Variant form: lu]
    leva |n.cmpd.| weather, weather-cycle [leva < le-vā, from le “elemental air” and vā “time; timeline, progression, schedule, cycle”]
    lewa |n.cmpd.| open air [lewa < le-wa, from le “elemental air” and wa “wide, great, large”]
    le-ya |v.| to hear; to receive [From the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking” and the verbal particle ya. Variant form: lu-ya]†
    lhī |adj.| virtuous, good, noble; fulfilling-duty/function [etymology uncertain; possibly an extreme reduction lhī < l’hui < li-hā-ui, from the primeval modifying particles li and ui (analogous to u/l-modified elemental stems, perhaps split from an even earlier particle -uil, -ol) and the stem hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”, yielding a meaning of “functioning well/normally; performing one’s function”]
    lhika |n.| integrity, uprightness; lit. “power/ability of fulfilling-duty” [lhika < lhī-ka, from lhī “virtuous, good, noble” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    lhikan |n.| upright one, duty-bound hero [lhikan < lhika-ān, from lhika “integrity, uprightness” and ān “being, individual”]
    lho |n.| duty; function, assigned purpose [lho < lhī-ō, from lhī “fulfilling-duty/function” and the nounal particle ō]†
    lohi |n.| cry, screech, scream [lohi < leu-hī, from the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    lohrak |n.cmpd.| screeching menace [lohrak < lohi-rak, from lohi “cry, screech, scream” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    lu-ha |v.| to interact, interface with; to converse [From the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking” and the verbal particle ha]†
    lui |adj.| green [lui < le-ui, from le “elemental air” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: leui, leo]†
    lumi |n.| greater insight; lit. “increasing perception” [lumi < lu-mi, from the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking” and mi “up, upward, rising”]
     
    -M-
     
    -ma |p.| verbal particle
    madu |n.| tree; spire, tower; lit. “extending upward” [madu < mai-du, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and the particle du “extension, scope, reach; influence”. Variant forms: maidu, midu]
    madumei |n.cmpd.| canopy; lit. “tree-head” [madumei < madu-mehi, from madu “tree” and mehi “head”]†
    maglya |vn.| succeeding, advancing; lit. “mastering power/force/ability” [maglya < makal-ya, from the verbal complex makal-ya “to succeed, advance, master/learn (a) skill”. Variant form: amagli]
    ma-ha |v.| to ascend/descend, move vertically [From mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and the verbal particle ha. Variant form: mai-ha]†
    mahi |n.| Rahi cattle, beast of burden, lit. “controlled-thing” [mahi < ma(t)-hī, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    mahiki |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) mastery of deception; deception-master [mahiki < ma-hiki, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and hiki2 “trickery, deception”]
    mahri |n.| ocean, depths; descent/ascent (through water); lit. “violent ascent/descent” [mahri < maha-rī, from ma-ha “to ascend/descend” and rī “wild, uncontrolled, violent” (< ra-ui). Variant forms: mahari, maihri, mahrui]
    mahri-nui |n.cmpd.| great ocean/depths [From mahri “ocean, depths; descent/ascent” and nui “great, significant”]
    maiduno |n.cmpd.| east (cardinal direction) [maiduno < maidui-no, from maidui “arm” (variant of midui, see entry) 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 meno, midouno, uduno). Variant form: meduno]†
    maka |n.| power distributor; lit. “mastery of power” [maka < ma-ka, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and ka “power, force, energy”. Variant form: maca]
    makal-ya |v.| to succeed, advance, master/learn (a) skill [makal-ya < ma-kal-ya, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, the modified stem kal “power, force, ability”, and the verbal particle ya]
    makani |n.| shooting star, comet; lit. “star of/with flying power” [makani < mai-ka-ini, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry), ka “power, force, ability”, and ini “star”]
    makika, n .cmpd. (Rahi-) croaker, one who croaks; lit. “master of croaking” [makika < ma-kika, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and kika “croaking”]
    mako |n.| lock, bond; lit. “control of freedom” [mako < ma-kua, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and kua “freedom, independence” (see entry]
    makoki |n.| (archaic) key; lit. “piece/part of a lock” [makoki < mako-kī, from mako “lock, bond; lit. ‘control of freedom’” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    maku |n.| light-heartedness, optimism; lit. “upward-sight, looking-up” [maku < māku < mai-aku, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and aku “sight, vision”. Variant forms: macku, maiaku, mēku]
    makuta¹ |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”]
    makuta² |n.cmpd.| master of lesser-spirits [makuta < ma-kuta, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and (u)kuta “lesser spirit, being of lesser rank”. Largely a scholarly term, indicating the hierarchical rank of the Makuta in relation to other beings]
    mamru |n.| crane/lift-operator, lit. “mastery of suspension” [mamru < ma-mi-ru, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, mi “up, upward, above”, and the particle ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”]
    mana |n.| servant, slave; enslavement; lit. “much control” [mana < ma-nā, from ma(t) “master, control” and the plural particle nā]
    mana-ko |n.cmpd.| silent slave [From mana “servant, slave; enslavement” and ko “elemental ice; silence, stillness”]
    manas |n.| monster, servant of evil; lit. “enslaved spawn” [manas < mana-s, from mana “servant, slave; enslavement” and the Rahi-designation suffix -s]
    mangai |n.| elite protector [mangai < ma-hā-ngai, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, hā “protection; peace/calm, safety, systems-normal”, and ngai “elite”. Variant form: mahangai]
    mangaia |n.| under-Mangai [mangaia < mangai-au, from mangai (used as a placename, see entry) and the stem au “under, lower, below” (variant of uw, see entry)]
    mantax |n.| conqueror, subjugator; lit. “spirit of greater-enslavement” [mantax < mana-ta-ak-si, from mana “servant, slave; enslavement”, ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    manu |adj.| enslaved, chained [manu < mana-u, from mana “servant, slave; enslavement” and the adjectival particle u]
    manutri |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) lit. “chained wings” [manutri < manu-tiri, from manu “enslaved, chained” and tiri “wing, flat appendage”. Applied to the common aquatic species of Rahi-bird, referencing their flightlessness]
    marka |n.| swimming, treading water [marka < marī-kau, from marī “arm(s)” (a reduced variant of mirui) and kau “free-flowing, breathing” (see entry)]
    ma(t) |n./stm.| mastery, control; master [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the coeval stems me(t) “upper-part, head; primary system” and atu “mind, will”, as well as the stem mi “up, upward, above” (see entries). Variant form: ma]
    mata |n.| master of spirits; master-spirit [mata < ma-ta, from ma(t) “mastery, control; master” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    mata-nui |n.cmpd.| great master of spirit; great master-spirit [From mata “master of spirit; master spirit” and nui “great, significant”]
    matatu |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) mastery of will(power) [matatu < mat-atu, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and atu “mind, will”]
    matau |n.| (high-)elevation, altitude; lit. “result/essence of upward-movement” [matau < mai-tau, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and the u-modified elemental stem tau “elemental fire; spirit/essence, result-of-process”]
    matoro |n.| mastery of words, word-master [matoro < mat-oro, from ma(t) “mastery, control; master” and oro “word(s)”]
    matoran |n.| speakers; lit. “word-master-beings; those who use words” [matoran < matoro-ān, from matoro “word-master” and ān “being, individual”]
    mat-ya |v.| to master, use [From ma(t) “mastery, control; master” and the verbal particle ya]†
    mavrah |n.cmpd.| lit. “master of revealed/discovered Rahi” [mavrah < ma-avu-rahi, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, avu “revealed, (newly) discovered”, and rahi “beast, wild thing”]
    maxi |n.| enforcement, pacification; lit. “more intensive control” [maxi < ma-ak-si, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, the intensive particle ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    maxilos |n.cmpd.| peacekeeper, security-unit; lit. “unit with enforcement/pacification function” [maxilos < maxi-lo-s, from maxi “enforcement, pacification, peacekeeping”, lo (< lho) “duty, function”, and the affix -s, usually reserved for Rahi-designations]
    mazeka |n.cmpd.| powerful spy/infiltrator [mazeka < maze-ka, from maze “spy, infiltrator” (variant of mazi, see entry) and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    mazi |n.| spy, infiltrator [mazi < ma-zī, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and the stem zī (zai, zē) “strategy, planning, scheming”. Variant form: maze]
    mehi |n.| head; skull [mehi < me-hī, from me(t) “head; mind” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant form: mei]†
    mehirui |n.cmpd.| neck; lit. "head-joint" [mehirui < mehi-rui, from mehi “head; skull” and rui “joint”. Variant form: meirui]†
    meno |n.| north (cardinal direction) [meno < me-no, from me(t) “head; mind” and no (also 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, midouno, uduno)]†
    me(t) |n./stm.| upper-part, head; primary system [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the coeval stems ma(t) “mastery, control” and atu “mind, will”, as well as the stem mi “up, upward, above” (see entries)]
    meto |n.| mind-brain, mental system [meto < met-ō, from me(t) “head; mind” and the nounal particle ō]†
    metu |adj.| mental, of the mind [metu < met-u, from me(t) “head; mind” and the adjectival particle u]†
    metru |n.| city; lit. “oriented toward the head” [metru < met-ru, from the stem me(t) “head; mind” and the particle ru “orientation, intention; oriented toward”. The application of this term to the city of Metru Nui is unclear, although it may pattern along with terms for cardinal directions, which appear to be derived from parts of the body (see entries maiduno, midouno, meno, uduno)]
    metru-nui |n.cmpd.| great city [From metru “city” and nui “great, significant”]
    mi |adv.| up, upward, above [mi < mī. Variant forms: mai, mē]
    midak |n.| lit. “fervently reaching upward” [midak < mid’ak < mi-du-ak, from mi “up, upward, above”, the stem du “extension, scope, reach; influence”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    midouno |n.cmpd.| west (cardinal direction) [midouno < midui-ono, from midui “arm” 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, uduno). Variant form: midono]†
    midui |n.| arm; lit. “upper-limb” [midui < mi-dui, from mi “up, upward, above” and dui “limb, appendage; extension”. Variant forms: medui, maidui]†
    midurui |n.cmpd.| shoulder; lit. “arm-joint” [midurui < midui-rui, from midui “arm” and rui “joint”]†
    mi-ma |v.| to rise, levitate [From the stem mi “up, upward, above” and the verbal particle ma. Variant forms: mai-ma, mē-ma]†
    miru |n.| (Kanohi-) levitation, floating; lit. “upward orientation” [miru < mi-ru, from mi “up, upward, above” and the particle ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”]
    misi |adj.| unknown, indistinct; misty, hazy [misi < me-isi, from me(t) “head; mind” and isi “possibility; possible”, yielding a sense of “possible thoughts, unknown thoughts”. Variant forms: meisi, metisi]
    miserix |n.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) high-level command of the mind; 2. mysterious/unknown high-level command [miserix < misi-orix, from misi “unknown, indistinct; misty, hazy” and orix “superior command, upper echelon”. Variant forms: miseryx, meserix]
    miso |n.| mist, fog, haze [miso < misi-ō, from misi “unknown, indistinct; misty, hazy” and the nounal particle ō]
    mistai |n.| unknown being, stranger, silhouette; lit. “unknown-spirit, spirit of mist” [mistai < misi-tai, from misi “unknown, indistinct; misty, hazy” and tai (also tī) “spirit, being, essence”. Variant forms: misti, misitai]
    mistika |n.cmpd.| powerful unknown spirit, spirit of mist [mistika < misti-ka, from misti “stranger, silhouette” (variant of mistai, see entry) and ka “power(ful), force, ability”. Variant form: mistaika]
    mo |n.| plains, broad expanse of land [mo < mō < no-wa, from no (also ono) “protodermis” and the primeval stem wa “wide, great, large” (with final ā > ō vowel shift), yielding a sense of “expanse of protodermis”]
    moa |n.| desert bird; lit. “from the plains; plains-dweller” [moa < mo-kha < moha, from mo “plains, broad expanse of land” and an extreme reduction of the origin particle ha]
    mohi |n.| (an) alternate, variant [mohi < mou-hī, from mou “change, variation, difference” (variant of mu(t)) and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    mohtrek |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) time-duplication; lit. “guide of alternate(-versions)” [mohtrek < mohi-trē-ak, from mohi “(an) alternate, variant”, the stem trē (< tēr) “guidance, guiding-force”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    mora |adj.| moody, tempermental [mora < mou-ra, from mou “change, variation, difference” (variant of mu(t)) and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    morak |n.| very tempermental [morak < mora-ak, from mora “moody, tempermental” and the intensive particle -ak]
    morbuzakh |n.cmpd.| treacherous sentient plant [morbuzakh < mor-bo-u-zakh, from mor “word-usage, sentience”, bo “elemental plant-life”, the adjectival particle u, and the adjectival stem zakh “treacherous”]
    motara |n.cmpd.| desert, wilderness; hot, barren region [motara < mo-ta-ra, from mo “plains, broad expanse of land”, ta “elemental fire”, and ra “wild(ness), untamed”, yielding a sense of “hot, untamed expanse of land”]
    mua |n.| Rahi cat/feline [etymology uncertain]
    muaka |n.cmpd.| powerful Rahi-cat [muaka < mua-ka, from mua “Rahi cat/feline” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    mukau |n.cmpd.| Rahi-bovine; lit. “mu-breath” [mukau < mu-kau, from an onomatopoeic coinage mu (in imitation of the lowing of bovinous Rahi) and the stem kau “free-flowing, unhindered; breathing”]
    mutra |adj.| erratic, volatile, unpredictable, eccentric; lit. “wildly changing” [mutra < mut-ra, from the stem mu(t) “change, variation, difference” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    mutran |n.| eccentric being, maverick; lit. “one who changes wildly” [mutran < mutra-ān, from mutra “erratic, volatile, unpredictable, eccentric” and ān “being”]
    mutatu |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) charisma; lit. “change-mind/will” [mutatu < mut-atu, from mu(t) “change, variation, difference” and atu “mind, will” - FD: NM]†
    mutru |n.| lit. “oriented toward change; process of mutation” [mutru < mut-ru, from mu(t) “change, variation, difference” and ru “orientation; intention; oriented toward” - FD: NM]†
    mutu |adj.| different, unlike [mutu < mut-u, from mu(t) “change, variation, difference” and the adjectival particle u - FD: NM]†
    mutuku |n.| emulation; lit. “not-different” [mutuku < mutu-ku, from mutu “different, unlike” and the negative particle -ku - FD: NM]†
     
    --------------------
     
    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...”
     
  25. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME III :: K


     
    -K-
     
    ka |n./stm.| (non-elemental) power, force, energy; ability, (creative) potential [ka < kā. Variant form: ca]
    kabolo |n.| fruit of power [kabolo < ka-bolo, from ka “power, force, ability” and bolo “fruit”. Variant form: cabolo]
    kadin |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) flight; lit. “power of high-space” [kadin < ka-ti-ini, from ka “power, force, ability”, the stem ti “space, area” (variant of te, see entry), and ini “star(s); height”]
    kahgai |adj.| elite, powerful; lit. “immersed in power” [kahgai < kahi-agai, from kahi “power/energy thing” and the modified verbal stem agai “elemental water; washing, immersion” (see entry ga)]
    kahgarak |n.cmpd.| elite/powerful menace [kahgarak < kahgai-rak, from kahgai “elite, powerful” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    kahu |n.| Rahi-bird species (gukko-subspecies) [kahu < kau-huw, from kau “free-flowing, unhindered; flying” and huw “activity, sport”]
    kai¹ |n.| skill, ability [kai < ka-ī, from ka “power, force, ability” and the nounal particle ī]
    kai² |n.| unity; lit. “unified/combined power, force, ability” [kai < ka-yi, from ka “power, force, ability” and yi “together, combined”. Variant form: ky]
    kailani |n.| prowess, expertise, high-skill [kailani < kai-la-nī, from kai “skill, ability” (see entry), the particle la “good, excellent”, and the particle nī, a reduction of nui “great”]
    kaita |n.| spirit of unified/combined power [kaita < kayi-ta, from kayi “unified/combined power” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    kaj |n.| excavation, quarrying [kaj < ka-ji, from ka “power, force, ability” and the stem ji “empty/emptied space”]
    kakama |n.| (Kanohi-) speed; lit. “movement-of-movement” [kakama < ka-kama, from an intensivizing reduplication of the verbal complex ka-ma “to move”]
    kal¹ |n./stm.| action, capability [stem l-modified from ka “power, force, ability” (see entry)]
    kal² |n.| seeking power; lit. “detecting/finding/sensing power” [kal < ka-el, from ka “power, force, ability” and el “seeking/searching; detection, sense” - FD: MN#2]
    kalama |n.cmpd.| highly skilled/capable one; lit. “master of excellent ability” [kalama < ka-la-ma, from ka “power, force, ability”, the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”, and ma(t) “mastery, control”]
    kali |n.| ability, capability [kali < kal-ī, from kal¹ “power, force, ability” and the nounal particle ī. Variant form: cali]
    kalix |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) greater capability [kalix < kali-ak-si, from kali “ability, capability”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si. Variant form: calix]
    kal-ma |v.| to act, lead, initiate [From the modified stem kal¹ “power, force, ability” and the verbal particle ma]
    kalmah |n.| leader, forerunner, figurehead; lit. “thing that acts/is able” [kalmah < kalma-hī, from the verbal complex kal-ma “to act, lead, initiate” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    ka-ma |v.| to move [From ka “power, force, ability” and the verbal particle ma]
    kame |n.| finesse, increasing skill/ability [kame < ka-me, from ka “power, skill, ability” and mē “up, upward, rising” (variant of mi, see entry)]
    kamen |n.| apprentice, learner; lit. “one who increases in skill/ability” [kame-ān, from kame “finesse, increasing skill/ability” and ān “being, individual”]
    kanae |n.| harshly proliferating [kanae < ki-anae, from the stem ki “sharpness, harshness, biting” (variant of khi) and anae “multiplying, proliferation”. Largely a Le-Matoran dialectal term, applied to large bodies of water, in reference to choppy (“harsh”) waves]
    kane |n.| Rahi-bull [etymology uncertain]
    kane-ra |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) lit. “wild bull” [From kane “Rahi-bull” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    kano |n.| forged mask of power [kano < kanohi, a reduced form of older kanohi “mask of power” (see entry), also found further reduced as an affix -kan(o)]
    kanohi |n.cmpd.| mask of power [kanohi < ka-nohi, from ka "power, force, ability" and nohi “face; mask”]
    kanoka |n.cmpd.| disk of power [kanoka < ka-noka, from ka "power, force, ability" and noka “disk; powerful protodermic object”]
    kantai |n.cmpd.| power of enlightenment [kantai < ka-antai, from ka “power, force, ability” and antai “enlightenment”]
    kao |n.| power, energy [kao < ka-ō, from ka “power, force, ability” and the nounal particle ō. Variant forms: kō, cō]
    kapura |n.cmpd.| wise and powerful friend [kapura < ka-pu-rua, from ka “power(ful), force, ability”, pu “friend, ally”, and rua “contemplation, stillness, wisdom”]
    kar |n./stm.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) application of power/energy; 2. (modern) application of power against (something), repulsion, rejection, subjugation; 3. (modern) resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier [kar < ka-ār, from ka “power, force, ability” and the particle ār “applied, application of; applied against, resistance, hindering”. Variant forms: kara, cara, kera, kra, kre - FD: MN#4]
    karapar |n.cmpd.| stubbornness; lit. “strong/robust resistance (shell)” [karapar < kara-par, from the stem-compound kara “resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier” (variant of kar, see entry) and the stem-compound par “strong, stolid, robust; strengthened, made strong”. Variant form: carapar - FD: MN#4]
    karda |n.| heart, core, engine; lit. “ordered/rhythmic application of power” [karda < kar-da, from the stem-compound kar “application of power/energy” and da “authority; order”]
    karda-nui |n.cmpd.| great heart/engine [From karda “heart, core, engine” and nui “great, significant”]
    kardas |n.| (Rahi-) lit. “engine-Rahi” [kardas < karda-s, from karda “heart, core, engine” and the Rahi-designation affix -s]
    kar-ya |v.| to exert, apply power/force [From the stem-compound kar “application of power/energy” and the verbal particle ya]†
    karzahni |n.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) lit. “one who applies power according to plan/strategy”; 2. (modern) anomaly, enemy, error; lit. “one who rejects plan/strategy” [karzahni < kar-zahi-ni, from the stem-compound kar “application of power/energy” (see entry), zahi “plan, schematic, strategy”, and the particle ni “one who...” - FD: MN#4]
    kau 1. |n./stm.| breath; breathing; 2. |adj.| free-flowing, unhindered; flying [etymology uncertain; possibly kau < k-wa-u, from the split-particle (u)ku (k...u) “middle, in the midst of” and the stem wa “wide, great, large”, yielding an original sense of “out/in the middle of wide/open space”. Variant forms: ko, ku, ka]
    kaukau |n.| (Kanohi-) water-breathing; lit. “breath-of-breath” [From an intensivizing reduplication of kau “breath; breathing” (see entry)]
    kau-ya |v.| to move freely, fly, swim [From kau “free-flowing, unhindered” (see entry) and the verbal particle ya]
    kava |adj.| rapid, rushing, breathless; lit. “time of (a) breath” [kava < kau-vā, from kau “free-flowing, breathing” and vā “time”]
    kavinika |n.cmpd.| Rahi-canine [kavinika < kava-ini-kau, from kava “rapid, rushing, breathless”, ini “star(s)” and kau “free-flowing; breathing; howling” (see entry), yielding a sense of “breathless star-howler”, in reference to the nocturnal behavior of kavinika]
    ka-ya |v.| to empower, energize [From ka “power, force, ability” and the verbal particle ya]
    kazi |n.cmpd.| strategic ability [kazi < ka-zī, from ka “power, force, ability” and zī (zai, zē) “strategy, planning, scheming”]
    kē |n.| whole(ness); regeneration, restoration [kē < kī-yi, from the particle kī “part, piece, portion of” and yi “together, combined”]
    kea |n.| Rahi-shark/marine predator [etymology unknown]
    keahi |n.| tooth, fin; lit. “shark-thing” [keahi < kea-hī, from kea “Rahi-shark” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    keke |n.| bush, shrub [etymology uncertain; possibly from a reduplication of boki “leaf” (see entry): boki-boki “many leaves” > bokiki > keke]
    kēlerak |n.cmpd.| shrieking/screaming menace [kēlerak < kē-le-rak, from kē “sharp, biting/gnawing”, le “elemental air”, and rak “menace, scourge”]
    kērakh |n.cmpd.| harsh-command-Vahki [kērakh < kē-oro-akh, from kē “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu, see entry), oro “word, unit of communciation”, and the Vahki-designation affix -akh (reanalyzed from the older Vahki-designation terms, see entries bord-akh, rorz-akh, vorz-akh, zad-akh) - FD: MN#3]
    keras |n.| Rahi-crab; lit. “shell-spawn” [keras < kera-s, from the stem kera “resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier” (variant of kar, see entry) and the Rahi-designation suffix -s - FD: MN#4]
    kēto |n.| healer, lit. “spirit of regeneration” [kēto < kē-tā, from kē “whole(ness); regeneration, restoration” and tā “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    kētongu |n.cmpd.| lit. “last of healers” [kētongu < kēto-ngu, from kēto “healer” and ngu “last, final; alone”]
    khiara |n.| chain-lightning; lit. “wild(ly) stabbing” [khiara < khiya-ra, from khi-ya “to cut, stab” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”. Variant form: chiara]
    khirox |n.| lit. “many more teeth” [khirox < khiru-ak-si, from khiru (variant of kiru, see entry) “tooth, tusk”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si. Variant forms: khirux, chirox]
    khiu |adj.| sharp, biting/gnawing [khiu < khi-u, from the stem khi “sharpness, harshness, biting” and the adjectival particle u. Variant forms: khu, chiu, kē]
    khi-ya |v.| to cut, stab [From the stem khi “sharpness, harshness, biting” and the verbal particle ya. Variant form: chi-ya]
    kī |p.| part, piece, portion (of)
    kika |n.| (a) croak; croaking [From an onomatopoeic coinage kika, in imitation of the croaking of the makika Rahi-toad (see entry makika)]
    kikanalo |n.cmpd.| strength in numbers; lit. “group (made up) of powerful parts” [kikanalo < ki-ka-nalo, from the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”, kai “power(ful), force, ability”, and nalo “group, collection, herd”]
    kini |n.| temple; lit. “great part, significant part” [kini < kī-nī, from the particle kī “part, piece, portion of” and the particle nī, a reduction of nui “great, significant”]
    kini-nui |n.cmpd.| great temple [From kini “temple” (see entry) and nui “great, significant”]
    kinloka |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) powerful biting/gnawing horde [kinloka < ki-nalo-ka, from the stem ki “sharpness, harshness, biting” (variant of khiu, see entry) and nalo “group, collection, herd”, and ka “power(ful), force, ability”. Variant forms: kinaloka, khinloka, khinaloka]
    kirik |n.| chirp, chirping; chirping insect [From an onomatopoeic coinage kirik, imitating the sound of the kirikori Rahi-insect (see entry kirikori)]
    kirikori |n.cmpd.| Rahi-insect; lit. “creature communicating with chirps” [kirikori < kirik-or-ī, from kirik “chirp, chirping”, or “word, unit of communciation” (variant of oro, see entry), and the nounal particle ī]
    kirikori-nui |n.cmpd.| great kirikori [From kirikori “Rahi-insect” and nui “great, significant”]
    kiril |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) regeneration, restoration; lit. “oriented toward wholeness/restoration” [kiril < kē-ril, from kē “whole(ness); regeneration, restoration” and the modified stem ril (< ru-li) “orientation; oriented toward; intention”. Variant form: keril]
    kiro |adj.| bounded, within an edge/boundary [kiro < ki-rho-o, from the split-particle oki (ki...o) “in/on/at; during (basic locative)” and the stem rho “line, edge, boundary”]
    kirop |n.| soothing/restorative speaker [kirop < kē-oropi, from kē “whole(ness); regeneration, restoration” and oropi “word-creature, speaker”]
    kiru |n.| tusk, tooth; jaw [etymology uncertain; possibly kiru < ki-rui from ki “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu, see entry) and rui “joint; oriented thing”. Variant forms: khiru, chiru]
    kivi |n.| detail, facet [kivi < kī-fi, from the particle kī “part, piece, portion of” and fi ”subtle, fine, cunning; web”, yielding a sense of “subtle part”]
    ko |n./stm.| 1. elemental ice; 2. stillness, silence; clarity, focus; 3. icy, stern [ko < kō, from the primeval elemental stem kō “elemental ice”. Variant forms: ko-, koul/kul/kyl (u/l-modified)]
    koda |n.| determination, resolve [koda < kau-da, from kau “free-flowing, unhindered; flying” (see entry) and da “authority, order”. Variant form: kauda]
    kodan |n.| determined one [kodan < koda-ān, from koda “determination, resolve” and ān “being, individual”]
    kodrex |n.cmpd.| lit. “highest authority/control of power” [kodrex < kō-drex, from kō “power, energy” (variant of kao, see entry) and drex “high command; highest authority” (variant of darex). Variant form: codrex]
    kofo |adj.| small, little [kofo < kau-fā, from kau “free-flowing, breathing” (see entry) and fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling, sky” (with final ā > ō vowel shift), yielding an original sense of “limit of/restriction on free movement”, eventually shifting toward “small space/range of movement” and repurposed as an adjectival modifier. Variant forms: kofa/kova; -k'fa > -fa, -va (heavily reduced, affixal)]
    kofo-jaga |n.cmpd.| small Rahi-scorpion [From kofo “small, little”, and jaga “Rahi-scorpion”]
    kohrak |n.| ice-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    koi |adj.| white [koi < ko-ui, from the elemental stem ko “elemental ice” and the adjectival particle ui; Variant form: koui]†
    kojol |n.cmpd.| icy/stern tactician [kojol < ko-jola, from ko “elemental ice; icy, stern” and jola “excellent strategy” (variant of jala, see entry)]
    koki |n.| snowflake [koki < ko-kī, from ko “elemental ice” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”. Also found in an intensivized form kiki (also kokiki), see entries boki, keke for a parallel development]
    kokkan |n.| lover of snowflakes; lit. “snowflake-being” [kokkan < kokiki-ān, from kokiki “(many) snowflakes” (intensivized variant of koki, see entry) and ān “being, individual”]
    kolhii |n.| game of koli [koli-hui, from koli “free-flowing, running; a Matoran sport” and hī, a reduction of hui “sport, game, activity”]
    koli |adj./n.| free-flowing, running; a Matoran sport [koli < kau-li, from kau “free-flowing, breathing” (see entry) and the primeval modifying particle li]
    komau |n.| (Kanohi-) mind control [komau < ko-ma-u, from the split-particle uko (ko...u) “outside, external (locative)” and ma(t) “mastery, control” - FD: NM]
    kongu |n.| solo-flight [kongu < kau-ngu, from kau “free-flowing, breathing; flying” and ngu “last, final; alone”. Variant forms: kaungu, koungu]
    kopaka |n.cmpd.| strength of ice [kopaka < ko-paka, from ko “elemental ice” and paka “strength”]
    kopeke |n.cmpd.| 1. ice-carving; carver of ice; 2. silent carver [kopeke < ko-peke, from ko “elemental ice; stillness, silence” and peke “carving; carver”]
    kopen |n.cmpd.| Rahi-wasp; lit. “flying carver” [kopen < kua-pen, from kua “flying thing” (see entry) and pen “carver”. Variant form: kuapen]
    kordak |n.cmpd.| desolation, destruction; lit. “powerful repulsion/explosion” [kordak < kardu-ak, from the stem-compound kar “resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier”, du “extension, scope, reach; influence”, and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: cordak]
    koro |n.| village, town, settlement defined by borders [koro < kar-rhō, from the stem-compound kar “resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier” and the stem rhō “ring, boundary, edge”, yielding a meaning of “edge/boundary of resistance” with reference to the outlying borders of early Matoran settlements, which were frequently delimited by walls or barriers. Variant forms: korro, karo]
    kotini |n.| glacier [kotini < ko-ti-nī, from ko “elemental ice”, ti “space, area”, and nī, a reduction of nui “great, significant”]
    kotu |n.| icicle [kotu < ko-tu, from ko “elemental ice” and tu (< du) “extension, scope, reach; influence”]
    krā |n./stm.| elemental shadow [From the primeval elemental stem krā “elemental shadow”]
    krāhi |n.| (a) shadow; darkness, gloom [krāhi < krā-hī, from krā “elemental shadow” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]†
    krahka |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) power in shadow/gloom [krahka < krāhi-ka, from krāhi “shadow, gloom” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    krāhkan |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) Mask of Shadows [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is krāhkan < krā-hiki-ān, from krā “elemental shadow”, hiki¹ “part/piece/portion of (something]; measurement”, and ān “being, individual”, yielding a meaning of “measurement of (one’s) shadow”; another proposed etymology is krāhkan < krāhi-kan(o), from krāhi “(a) shadow; darkness, gloom” and an affixed form of kano “forged mask of power” (see entry), yielding a (somewhat straightforward) meaning of “mask of shadows/darkness”]
    krāhu |n.| lit. “shadowy activity” [krāhu < krā-huw, from krā “elemental shadow” and huw “activity, sport”]
    krakua |n.cmpd.| shadow-bird, night-singing bird [etymology uncertain; one proposed etymology is krakua < krā-kua, from krā “elemental shadow” and kua “bird, flying thing” (see entry)]
    kralhi |adj.cmpd.| clandestine, surreptitious; lit. “fulfilling duty/function in the shadows” [kralhi < krā-lhi, from krā “elemental shadow” and lhi “fulfilling duty/function”]
    krana |n.| hive, hive-mind; lit. “many subjugations” [krana < kra-nā, from kra “subjugation; application of power against (something)” (variant of kar, see entry) and the plural particle nā]
    kranua |n.| lit. “hidden in shadow” [kranua < krā-nua, from krā “elemental shadow” and nua “hidden, unseen, secret”]
    krast |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) repulsion, rejection; lit. “driving out via repulsion” [krast < krā-sta, from kra “resistance, repulsion” (variant of kar, see entry) and the stem sta “scattering, consuming, driving out” (< sā-ta). Variant form: crast - FD: MN#4]
    krāta |n.| spirit of shadow [krāta < krā-ta, from krā "elemental shadow" ta "elemental fire; spirit, being, essence"]
    krāwa |n.| (Rahi-) lit. “large shadow” [krāwa < krā-wa, from krā “elemental shadow” and the stem wa “wide, great, large”. Coined as the name of a dangerous Rahi encountered in Metru Nui with the ability to dramatically increase its size by absorbing kinetic energy]
    krekka |n.cmpd.| extremely resistant force [krekka < krē-ak-ka, from kre “resistance, repulsion” (variant of kar, see entry), the intensive particle -ak, and ka “power, force, ability”. Variant form: krakka - FD: MN#4]
    krika |n.cmpd.| powerful insect [krika < kirik-ka, from kirik “chirp, chirping; chirping insect” and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    krom |n.cmpd.| lesser-master; lit. “master-within-boundaries” [krom < kiro-ma, from kiro “bounded; within an edge/boundary” and ma(t) “mastery, control”. Variant forms: kroma, kromata, kiro-mata - FD: MN#6]
    kua 1. |n.| bird, flying thing; freedom, independence; 2. |adj.| liberated, independent; free-flowing, flying, leaping [etymology uncertain; possibly kua < ku-wa, from the particle (u)ku “middle, in the midst of” and the stem wa “wide, great, large”, yielding an original sense of “out/in the middle of wide/open space”. Variant forms: ko, ku, ka, kual (l-modified)]
    kualsi |n.cmpd.| teleportation, quick-travel; lit. “flying/leaping between possibilities” [kualsi < kual-isi, from kual “free-flowing, flying, leaping” (l-modified form of kua, see entry) and isi “possible; possibilities”]
    kualus |n.cmpd.| converser with birds [kualus < kua-lu-s, from kua “bird, flying thing” (see entry), the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking”, and the affix -s, usually reserved for Rahi-designations]
    kuma |n.| Rahi-rodent; lit. “master of biting/gnawing” [kuma < kiu-ma, from kiu “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu, see entry) and ma(t) “mastery, control”. Applied to a common variant of the kinloka species of Rahi-rodent]
    kuma-nui |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) great kuma [From kuma “Rahi-rodent” and nui “great, significant”]
    kume-ha |v.| to hone, sharpen [kume-ha < ku-mē-ha, from ku “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu), mē “up, upward; rising/increasing” (variant of mi, see entry), and the verbal particle ha]
    kumo |n.| refinement, sharpening, honing [kumo < ku-mē-ō, from ku “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu), mē “up, upward; rising/increasing” (variant of mi, see entry), and the nounal particle ō]
    kumu |adj.| partly-changed; lit. “in the middle of change” [kumu < ku-mu, from the primeval particle (u)ku “middle, in the midst (of)” and the stem mu “change, variation, difference”]
    kuna |n.| Rahi-snake; lit. “much twisting/turning/slithering” [kuna < kau-nā, from kau “free-flowing, breathing” and the plural particle nā]
    kur |n.| anger, rage [kur < ko-ūr, from ko “elemental ice” and the particle ūr(u) “un-, negative, not”. Variant form: kour - FD: MN#1]
    kurahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “raging wild thing” [kurahk < kur-rahk, from kur “anger, rage” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    kuru |adj.| angry, enraged [kuru < kur-u, from kur “anger, rage” and the adjectival particle u]†
    kuru-ha |v.| to rage, become angry [From the stem kūr(u) “anger, rage” and the verbal particle ha]†
    kyl-ma |v.| to freeze, frost over [From the u/l-modified elemental stem kyl (< koul) “elemental ice” and the verbal particle ma. Variant forms: koul-ma, kul-ma]
    kylma |vn.| deep-freeze, freezing, frosting over [From the verbal complex kyl-ma “to freeze, frost over”. Variant forms: koulma, kulma]
    kyrehx |n.cmpd.| unified power of community [kyrehx < ky-rehix, from ky “unity; lit. ‘unified power’” (variant of kai, see entry) and rehix “community”]
     
    ------------
     
    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...”
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