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Biblical question: Alta Kanto 6:8

ya cFlat7, 5 Septemba 2011

Ujumbe: 6

Lugha: English

cFlat7 (Wasifu wa mtumiaji) 5 Septemba 2011 8:19:38 alasiri

In Alta Kanto 6:8 (Song of Songs), we have, "Da reĝinoj ekzistas sesdek, kaj okdeko da kromvirinoj..."

Does anyone know why 'okdek' is given an O ending and 'sesdek' not? The two phrases seem equivalent apart from word order and that the first phrase holds the verb. Is it perhaps optional and the difference is just a matter of poetic style?

geo63 (Wasifu wa mtumiaji) 5 Septemba 2011 9:44:39 alasiri

I think that it it is the latter case - poetic style. Okdeko is a substantive numeral here, perhaps to show it as a whole or something...

EldanarLambetur (Wasifu wa mtumiaji) 5 Septemba 2011 10:02:33 alasiri

Doesn't it emphasis like a group of things of the same kind (so yeah, kinda like a whole)? For example:

dekduo = a dozen
deko = a ten (of something)
okdeko = an eighty(?) (of something)

cFlat7 (Wasifu wa mtumiaji) 6 Septemba 2011 12:35:15 asubuhi

This makes sense (what you both have said). I checked the Hebrew and it doesn't appear to be trying to make a distinction. So maybe Mr. Zamenhof was using poetic license or was influenced by the German or Russian translations. Perhaps someone with Hebrew, Russian, or German skills has a further idea.

erinja (Wasifu wa mtumiaji) 6 Septemba 2011 1:36:51 asubuhi

If Zamenhof was trying to treat it like a poem in Esperanto, he may have been trying to fit the Esperanto text to certain meter.

Use of okdeko necessitates use of 'da', so it adds two syllables to that line. Maybe he chose that for rhythmic purposes.

cFlat7 (Wasifu wa mtumiaji) 6 Septemba 2011 1:49:11 alasiri

erinja:If Zamenhof was trying to treat it like a poem in Esperanto, he may have been trying to fit the Esperanto text to certain meter.

Use of okdeko necessitates use of 'da', so it adds two syllables to that line. Maybe he chose that for rhythmic purposes.
Yes, that makes good sense. Thanks.

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