Does this work for 'zombie'?

Language learning: How to speak Toki Pona, translation problems, advice, memory aids, tools and methods to learn Toki Pona and other languages faster
Lingva lernado: Kiel paroli Tokiponon, tradukproblemoj, konsiloj, memoraj helpiloj, iloj kaj metodoj por pli rapide lerni Tokiponon kaj aliajn lingvojn
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janAetherStar
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Does this work for 'zombie'?

Post by janAetherStar »

Ok so I'm finally teaching my friend toki pona and she's really into The Walking Dead. So, how do I say zombie? Is it just 'jan lon moli' (living dead person) or something else?
Thanks a ton!

mi pana jan pona e sona pi toki pona. mi ken ala ken toki e ni: "Zombie", "jan lon moli"?
ale li pona. :)
sina o sona e ni.
janKipo
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Re: Does this work for 'zombie'?

Post by janKipo »

Well, I would have said 'jan moli lon', in spite of that having the the opposite meaning of a really dead person. Of course 'jan lon moli' is contradictory, too: a dead living person. But I think the best is probably from the series itself, 'jan moli tawa'
'nimi Inli "Zombie" li sona ala sona e nimi pi toki pona 'jan lon moli?'
janMato
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Re: Does this work for 'zombie'?

Post by janMato »

strategy #1- coin a phrase that suits the particular situation. Walking dead? Infected with the T virus (i.e. Resident Evil)? World War Z called it African Rabies (since in the fictional story there was an published outbreak in Africa)

strategy #2- Check community attempts & pick the best of what has been used before ref: search.php?keywords=zombie&terms=all&au ... mit=Search
Kuti
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Re: Does this work for 'zombie'?

Post by Kuti »

jan moli (pi?) tawa :?:
janKipo
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Re: Does this work for 'zombie'?

Post by janKipo »

Surely not; the 'pi' is inadmissible since followed by only one word. And it would give exactly the same grouping as without it, if it were allowed. This suggestion looks like a sign of a growing tendency (in which I get involved with everyone else) of seeing 'pi' as a stand-in for a relative clause. It isn't, though it occasionally performs a similar semantic function (but not always or even usually, and, so, not reliably)
janMato
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Re: Does this work for 'zombie'?

Post by janMato »

One can always add one more filler word:

jan moli pi tawa tawa. (reduplication as filler)
jan moli pi tawa mute. (unnecessary emphasis)
jan moli pi tawa kin. (ditto)
jan moli pi tawa ijo. ijo doesn't mean much-- used as filler elsewhere.

Or use pu as a relative particle (exactly what sort of clause maker is another matter).

waso pu tawa -- running bird, ostrich
waso pu tawa telo -- swimming bird, penguin

Or entire sentences

jan moli li tawa.

Injecting these into other sentences is still difficult.
janKipo
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Re: Does this work for 'zombie'?

Post by janKipo »

Well, 'pu' doesn't work that way (0r any other, as far as I can see) in tp and it would make life difficult if it did. But I do miss it, even though we don't NEED it.
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