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Questions about Esperanto

benjordan, 2012 m. vasaris 22 d.

Žinutės: 37

Kalba: English

benjordan (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 00:39:59

So, because of confusion and such. I need to ask you questions about the language. I'll bookmark this thread so I can refer back to it, and ask questions in the future.

Current question: To say "I have a shoe." Would it be "Mi havas ŝuo" or would it be "Mi havi ŝuo"?

Zafur (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 00:49:03

It would be the first. But with -n on the object.The second says "I to have a shoe". I know the present seems a little weird at first but it makes sense if you think about it in different ways... "I currently have a shoe" etc.

benjordan (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 01:59:12

Next question.

My friend wants to know if Ĉi tiu means "this" when used in context of "Ĉu tiu memorigas mi de enigmon"

erinja (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 02:03:46

"ĉi tiu" means "this one" or "this individual"

You also would use "ĉi tiu" when pairing it with a noun, that is, "ĉi tiu mesaĝo..."

"ĉi tio" would be a more general "this". It's not ever paired with a noun.

This reminds me of a riddle = Ĉi tio memorigas min pri enigmo.

benjordan (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 02:18:09

erinja:"ĉi tiu" means "this one" or "this individual"

You also would use "ĉi tiu" when pairing it with a noun, that is, "ĉi tiu mesaĝo..."

"ĉi tio" would be a more general "this". It's not ever paired with a noun.

This reminds me of a riddle = Ĉi tio memorigas min pri enigmo.
Why 'pri' instead of 'de'?

erinja (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 02:34:29

benjordan:Why 'pri' instead of 'de'?
Prepositions can be somewhat arbitrary in different languages. Esperanto's practice is to accept any preposition that makes logical sense. "of" doesn't make very much logical sense, in this case, though it is used in the English idiom.

"De" has a number of uses in Esperanto (possession, origin, movement, origin, composition, etc) but this particular case doesn't seem to fit into any of them. "pri" has been used with "memorigi" practically since the beginning of Esperanto, and you can see how "to remind someone about something" makes a sort of logical sense.

You have to be careful not to fall into the trap of translating English idioms into Esperanto word for word. It doesn't usually work. Especially with prepositions, you have to think carefully about the actual meanings of the prepositions before choosing one, rather than just translating the preposition that English uses.

benjordan (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 02:55:35

erinja:
benjordan:Why 'pri' instead of 'de'?
Prepositions can be somewhat arbitrary in different languages. Esperanto's practice is to accept any preposition that makes logical sense. "of" doesn't make very much logical sense, in this case, though it is used in the English idiom.

"De" has a number of uses in Esperanto (possession, origin, movement, origin, composition, etc) but this particular case doesn't seem to fit into any of them. "pri" has been used with "memorigi" practically since the beginning of Esperanto, and you can see how "to remind someone about something" makes a sort of logical sense.

You have to be careful not to fall into the trap of translating English idioms into Esperanto word for word. It doesn't usually work. Especially with prepositions, you have to think carefully about the actual meanings of the prepositions before choosing one, rather than just translating the preposition that English uses.
I meant to say 'da' before, not 'de.' Would 'da' be acceptable or no?

erinja (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 02:59:24

benjordan:I meant to say 'da' before, not 'de.' Would 'da' be acceptable or no?
No. "da" is a preposition of quantity, and we aren't talking about quantity here.

benjordan (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 04:01:51

You guys are awesome! Thank you for your help!

Next question! My friend is trying to translate names. I don't really know how it works, but he is trying to replicate the sounds. And we go by usernames, and mine is Ewickly. "Y-wickly." I was wondering how that might translate, and what are the general translating rules when it comes to names?

benjordan (Rodyti profilį) 2012 m. vasaris 22 d. 06:35:31

My friend asks, and I have to ask for him for some reason. *squint*

Why Unukornulo?

He picked apart the word, and wonders why do you use "ul" instead of "cxevalo."
I myself think a unicorn is much more than a horse, so I am fine with it being referred to as a "being."

Edit: Oups. Maybe not cxevalo. What if there was a suffix for animal?

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