View source for Klingon language

{{Short description|Language constructed for Star Trek}}
<!-- On this page, Klingon text in the Latin alphabet is displayed in typewriter font, and with the modifier letter apostrophe ( ʼ ) rather than the ASCII apostrophe ( ' ), which is a punctuation mark. See [[Klingon language § Writing systems]]. -->
{{More citations needed|date=August 2024}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Klingon
| nativename       = [[File:tlhIngan Hol.png|120px|alt=tlhIngan Hol|link=]]<br />{{transliteration|tlh|{{mono |tlhIngan Hol}}}}
| pronunciation    = {{IPA|tlh|ˈt͡ɬɪ.ŋɑn xol|}}
| speakers         = None as a first language; around a dozen fluent speakers
| date             = 1996
| ref              = <ref>According to [[Lawrence M. Schoen|Lawrence Schoen]], director of the [[Klingon Language Institute|KLI]]. [https://www.wired.com/wired/archive/4.08/es.languages.html?pg=4&topic= Wired 4.08: Dejpu'bogh Hov rur qablli!*] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512121409/http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/4.08/es.languages.html?pg=4&topic= |date=2013-05-12 }}</ref>
| familycolor      = fictional
| fam1             = [[Constructed languages]]
| fam2             = [[Artistic language]]s
| fam3             = [[Fictional language]]s
| creator          = [[Marc Okrand]], [[James Doohan]], [[Jon Povill]]
| setting          = ''[[Star Trek]]'' films and television series (''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation|TNG]]'', ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine|DS9]]'', ''[[Star Trek: Voyager|Voyager]]'', ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise|Enterprise]]'', and ''[[Star Trek: Discovery|Discovery]]''), the opera ''{{mono |[[ʼuʼ]]}}'', the play ''[[A Klingon Christmas Carol]]'', and ''[[The Big Bang Theory]]''
| posteriori       = [[Constructed language]]s<br>[[A priori (languages)|A priori languages]]
| script           = [[Latin script]] ([[#Phonology|Klingon alphabet]])<br/>
[[Klingon alphabets|Klingon script]]
| agency           = [[Marc Okrand]]
| iso2             = tlh
| iso3             = tlh
| notice           = IPA
| glotto           = klin1234
| glottorefname    = Klingon
| image            = 
}}
{{Contains special characters
| special    = private [[Unicode]] characters
| fix        = Help:Multilingual support
| error      = [[Specials (Unicode block)#Replacement character|question marks, boxes, or other symbols]]
| characters = the intended characters.  The following fonts may support these characters: pIqaD, Constructium, Unifont CSUR, Klingon pIqaD HaSta, Code2000, and Horta
| image      = 
| link       = Specials (Unicode block)#Replacement character
| alt        = 
| compact    = 
}}

The '''Klingon language''' ({{langx|tlh|tlhIngan Hol|links=no}}, ''[[Klingon scripts|{{mono|pIqaD}}]]'': <sub><span style="font-size:150%;font-family:pIqaD, Constructium, Unifont CSUR, Klingon pIqaD HaSta, Code2000, Horta;">{{lang|tlh|{{PUA|&#xF8E4;&#xF8D7;&#xF8DC;&#xF8D0;&#xF8DB; &#xF8D6;&#xF8DD;&#xF8D9;}}}}</span></sub>, {{IPA|tlh|ˈt͡ɬɪ.ŋɑn xol|pron}}) is the [[constructed language]] spoken by a fictional alien race called the [[Klingon]]s in the ''[[Star Trek]]'' universe.

Described in the 1985 book ''[[The Klingon Dictionary]]'' by [[Marc Okrand]] and deliberately designed to sound "alien", it has a number of [[Linguistic typology|typologically]] uncommon features. The language's basic sound, along with a few words, was devised by actor [[James Doohan]] ("[[Montgomery Scott|Scotty]]") and producer [[Jon Povill]] for ''[[Star Trek: The Motion Picture]]''. The film marked the first time the language had been heard. In all previous appearances, Klingons spoke in English, even to each other. Klingon was subsequently developed by Okrand into a full-fledged language.

Klingon is sometimes referred to as '''''Klingonese''''' (most notably in the ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series]]'' episode "[[The Trouble with Tribbles]]", where it was actually pronounced by a Klingon character as "Klingonee" {{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|l|ɪ|ŋ|ɡ|ɒ|n|i}}), but among the Klingon-speaking community, this is often understood<ref>{{Cite web |title=Klingonaase |url=https://docs.verbix.com/Conlangs/klingonaase |access-date=2024-10-11 |website=docs.verbix.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The KLINGONAASE Guide |url=http://www.khemorex-klinzhai.de/Hol/klingonaase.html |access-date=2024-10-11 |website=www.khemorex-klinzhai.de}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Klingonaase |url=https://afrodita.rcub.bg.ac.rs/~alexp/books/klingon.html |access-date=2024-10-11 |website=afrodita.rcub.bg.ac.rs}}</ref> to refer to another Klingon language called '''Klingonaase''' that was introduced in [[John M. Ford]]'s 1984 ''Star Trek'' novel ''[[The Final Reflection]],'' and appears in other ''Star Trek'' novels by Ford.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_mwMF_PhtgAC&q=%22fed-standard+klingonaase+is+pronounced%22&pg=PA138 |title=The Final Reflection |first=John M. |last=Ford |publisher=Simon and Schuster |year=1999 |isbn=9780671038533 |pages=138–139 |access-date=November 23, 2018}}</ref>

The play ''[[A Klingon Christmas Carol]]'' is the first production that is primarily in Klingon (only the narrator speaks English). The opera {{transliteration|tlh|{{mono |[[ʼuʼ]]}}}} is entirely in Klingon.

A small number of people are capable of conversing in Klingon. Because its vocabulary is heavily centered on ''Star Trek''-Klingon concepts such as [[Klingon starships|spacecraft]] or [[List of weapons in Star Trek|warfare]], it can be hard for everyday use because of the lack of words for a casual conversation.

==History==
The language is first mentioned in the original ''Star Trek'' series episode "[[The Trouble with Tribbles]]" (1967), but is not heard until ''[[Star Trek: The Motion Picture]]'' ([[1979 in film|1979]]). According to the actor who spoke the lines, [[Mark Lenard]], James Doohan recorded the lines he had written on a tape, and Lenard transcribed the recorded lines in a way he found useful in learning them.<ref name="whirlingwords">{{cite book |last1=Okrand |first1=Mark |last2=Adams |first2=Michael |last3=Hendriks-Hermans |first3=Judith |last4=Kroon |first4=Sjaak |editor-first=Michael |editor-last=Adams |title=From Elvish to Klingon: Exploring Invented Languages |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=December 1, 2011 |pages=111–134 |chapter=Wild and Whirling Words: The Invention and Use of Klingon |isbn=978-0-192-80709-0}}</ref>

For ''[[Star Trek III: The Search for Spock]]'' ([[1984 in film|1984]]), director [[Leonard Nimoy]] and writer-producer [[Harve Bennett]] wanted the Klingons to speak a structured language instead of random [[gibberish]], and so commissioned a full language, based on the phrases Doohan had originated, from Marc Okrand, who had earlier constructed four lines of [[Vulcan (Star Trek)|Vulcan]] dialogue for ''[[Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan]]''.<ref name="whirlingwords" /><ref name="Okrent">{{cite book |first=Arika |last=Okrent |author-link=Arika Okrent |title=In the Land of Invented Languages |publisher=Spiegel & Grau |year=2009 |isbn=9780385527880 |url=https://archive.org/details/inlandofinvented00okre }}</ref>{{rp|pages=266–267}}

Okrand enlarged the lexicon and developed a grammar based on Doohan's original dozen words. The language appeared intermittently in later films featuring the original cast; for example, in ''[[Star Trek V: The Final Frontier]]'' ([[1989 in film|1989]]) and in ''[[Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country]]'' ([[1991 in film|1991]]), where [[translation]] difficulties served as a [[plot device]].<ref>{{cite AV media |title=Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (Special Edition) DVD-special feature, text commentary}}</ref>

Two "non-canon" dialects of Klingon are hinted at in the novelization of ''[[Star Trek III: The Search for Spock]]'', as [[Saavik]] speaks in Klingon to the only Klingon officer aboard Cpt. Kruge's starship after his death, as the survivors of the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)|''Enterprise'']]'s self-destruction transport up from the crumbling Genesis Planet to the Klingon ship. The surviving officer, [[List of Star Trek characters (G–M)#Maltz|Maltz]], states that he speaks the ''Rumaiy'' dialect, while Saavik is speaking to him in the ''Kumburan'' dialect of Klingon, per Maltz's spoken reply to her.<ref>{{cite book |title=Star Trek III: The Search for Spock |last=McIntyre |first=Vonda |year=1984 |publisher=Pocket Books |isbn=0-671-49500-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/startrekiiisearc2004mcin/page/272 272] |url=https://archive.org/details/startrekiiisearc2004mcin/page/272 }}</ref>

With the advent of the series ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' (1987)—in which one of the main characters, [[Worf]], was a Klingon—and successors, the language and various cultural aspects for the fictional species were expanded. In the episode "[[A Matter of Honor]]", several members of a Klingon ship's crew speak a language that is not translated for the benefit of the viewer (even Commander Riker, enjoying the benefits of a [[universal translator]], is unable to understand) until one Klingon orders the others to "speak their [i.e., human] language".<ref name="MatterOfHonor">{{cite web |url=http://chakoteya.net/NextGen/134.htm |title=A Matter of Honor |website=Chakoteya.net |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124162243/http://chakoteya.net/NextGen/134.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

A small number of non-Klingon characters were later depicted in ''Star Trek'' as having learned to speak Klingon, notably [[Jean-Luc Picard]] and [[Dax (Star Trek)|Dax]].<ref name="MatterOfHonor" />

==Language==
Hobbyists around the world have studied the Klingon language. At least nine Klingon translations of works of world literature have been published, among which are: ''[[The Klingon Hamlet|{{mono |Hamlet}}]]'' (''[[Hamlet]]''), ''[[GhIlghameS|{{mono |ghIlghameS}}]]'' (''The [[Epic of Gilgamesh]]''), ''{{mono|paghmoʼ tIn mIS}}''  (''[[Much Ado About Nothing]])'', ''{{mono |pInʼaʼ qan paQDIʼnorgh}}'' (''[[Tao Te Ching]]''), ''{{mono |Sun pInʼaʼ veS mIw}}'' (''[[The Art of War]]''), ''{{mono |chIjwI' tIQ bom}}'' (''[[The Rime of the Ancient Mariner]]''), ''{{mono |'aS 'IDnar pIana' Duna}}'' (''[[The Wonderful Wizard of Oz]]''), ''{{mono |taʼpuq mach}}'' (''[[The Little Prince]]''), and ''{{mono |QelIS boqHarmey}}'' (''[[Alice's Adventures in Wonderland]]''). The Shakespearean choices were inspired by a remark from High Chancellor [[List of Star Trek characters (G–M)#G|Gorkon]] in ''[[Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country]]'', who said, "You have not experienced Shakespeare until you have read him in the original Klingon." In the bonus material on the DVD, screenwriter [[Nicholas Meyer]] and actor [[William Shatner]] both explain that this was an allusion to the German myth that Shakespeare was in fact German.

The [[Klingon Language Institute]] exists to promote the language.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://tech2.nytimes.com/mem/technology/techreview.html?res=9A0CEFD8163BF934A35753C1A9629C8B63&fta=y |author=Lisa Napoli |title=Online Diary: tlhIngan maH! |date=October 7, 2004 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}{{dead link|date=April 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

[[CBS Studios]] owns the [[copyright]] on the official [[The Klingon Dictionary|dictionary]] and other [[Star Trek canon|canonical]] descriptions of the language. While constructed languages ("conlangs") are viewed{{by whom|date=September 2025}} as creations with copyright protection,<ref>{{cite journal |last=Adelman |first=Michael |date=Spring 2014 |title=Constructed Languages and Copyright: A Brief History and Proposal for Divorce |url=http://jolt.law.harvard.edu/articles/pdf/v27/27HarvJLTech543.pdf |journal=Harvard Journal of Law & Technology |volume=27 |number=2 |pages=543–562 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=March 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200304103410/http://jolt.law.harvard.edu/articles/pdf/v27/27HarvJLTech543.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> natural languages are not protected, excluding dictionaries and other works created with them. Mizuki Miyashita and Laura Moll note, "Copyrights on dictionaries are unusual because the entries in the dictionary are not copyrightable as the words themselves are facts, and facts can not be copyrighted. However, the formatting, example sentences, and instructions for dictionary use are created by the author, so they are copyrightable."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jar/RIL_9.html |title=Enhancing Language Material Availability Using Computers |first1=Mizuki |last1=Miyashita |first2=Laura A. |last2=Moll |publisher=Jan.ucc.nau.edu |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 1, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181101024918/http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jar/RIL_9.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Okrand had studied some [[indigenous languages of the Americas|Native American]] and [[Languages of Asia|Southeast Asian languages]],<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2009/05/theres_no_klingon_word_for_hello.html |title=There's No Klingon Word for Hello |magazine=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate magazine]] |date=May 7, 2009 |first=Arika |last=Okrent |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124111335/http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2009/05/theres_no_klingon_word_for_hello.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>An attribution to Okrand may be found in the museum displays at the [[San Juan Bautista, California|San Juan Bautista]], California State Historic Park, which includes a short mention of the local [[Mutsun]] native people whom Okrand studied for his thesis.</ref> and phonological and grammatical features of these languages "worked their way into Klingon, but for the most part, not by design."<ref name="whirlingwords"/> Okrand himself has stated that a design principle of the Klingon language was dissimilarity to existing natural languages in general, and English in particular. He therefore avoided patterns that are [[Linguistic typology|typologically]] common and deliberately chose features that occur relatively infrequently in human languages. This includes above all the highly asymmetric consonant inventory and the basic [[word order]].<ref>Okrent 2009, pp.270–271</ref> [[Kwantlen First Nation|Kwantlen]] journalist Robert Jago has pointed out similarities between Klingon and [[Halkomelem]], a language spoken by the Indigenous people of the area where James Doohan grew up.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jago |first=Robert |date=February 14, 2025 |title=Scotty was the person who created the first version of the Klingon language - who set the sound pattern for it. Scotty is also from South Vancouver, right next to the Musqueam reserve where they speak Halkomelem. [Post] |url=https://bsky.app/profile/rjjago.bsky.social/post/3li6kk32a4k2z |website=Bluesky}}</ref>

==Speakers==
A small number of people are capable of conversing in Klingon. [[Arika Okrent]] guessed in her 2009 book ''[[In the Land of Invented Languages]]'' that there might be 20–30 fluent speakers.<ref>{{cite book |first=Arika |last=Okrent |title=In the Land of Invented Languages |location=New York |publisher=Spiegel & Grau |year=2010 |page=273 |quote=But what about speakers in the sense of people who can carry on a spontaneous live conversation in Klingon? (...) I would say, oh, twenty or so. Maybe thirty.}}</ref> Its vocabulary, heavily centered on ''Star Trek''–Klingon concepts such as [[Klingon starships|spacecraft]] or [[List of weapons in Star Trek|warfare]], can sometimes make it cumbersome for everyday use. For instance, while words for ''transporter ionizer unit'' (''{{mono |jolvoyʼ}}'') or ''bridge'' (of a ship) (''{{mono |meH}}'') have been known since close to the language's inception, the word for ''bridge'' in the sense of a crossing over water (''{{mono |QI}}'') was unknown until August 2012.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kli.org/tlhIngan-Hol/2012/August/msg00112.html |title=tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Mon Aug 13 15:25:35 2012 |publisher=Kli.org |date=August 13, 2012 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180208210903/http://www.kli.org/tlhIngan-Hol/2012/August/msg00112.html |archive-date=February 8, 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Nonetheless, mundane conversations are possible among skilled speakers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.earthlings-movie.com/ |title=Earthlings: Ugly Bags of Mostly Water |publisher=Mostly Water LLC |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615082547/http://www.earthlings-movie.com/ |archive-date=June 15, 2011 |access-date=November 23, 2018}}</ref>

One Klingon speaker, d'Armond Speers of the [[Klingon Language Institute]], raised his son Alec to speak Klingon as a native language, while the boy's mother communicated with him in English.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dean |first=Eddie |url=https://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/news/article/13011269/klingon-as-a-second-language |title=Klingon as a Second Language |newspaper=Washington City Paper |date=August 9, 1996 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=September 5, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180905103056/https://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/news/article/13011269/klingon-as-a-second-language |url-status=live }}</ref> Alec rarely responded to his father in Klingon, although when he did, his pronunciation was "excellent". After Alec's fifth birthday, Speers reported that his son eventually stopped responding to him when spoken to in Klingon as he clearly did not enjoy it, so Speers switched to English.<ref name="Fry's">{{cite episode |title=Babel |date=September 25, 2011 |series=Fry's Planet Word |network=[[BBC]] TV}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wired.com/1999/08/babble-on-revisited/ |title=Babble On Revisited |website=Wired.com |issue=8 |date=August 1, 1999 |volume=7 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124105804/https://www.wired.com/1999/08/babble-on-revisited/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2007, a report surfaced that [[Multnomah County, Oregon]], was hiring Klingon translators for its mental health program in case patients came into a psychiatric hospital speaking nothing but Klingon.<ref name="Klingonsnopes">{{cite web |title=Klingon Interpreter |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/klingon-interpreter/ |website=Snopes.com |date=28 March 2003 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=3 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303161116/https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/klingon-interpreter/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Most circulations of the report seemingly implied that this was a problem that health officials faced before; however, the original report indicated that this was just a precaution for a hypothetical and that said translator would only be paid on an as needed basis.<ref name=Klingonsnopes/> After the report was misinterpreted, the County issued another release noting that releasing the original report was a "mistake".<ref name=Klingonsnopes/>

In May 2009, [[Simon & Schuster]], in collaboration with [[Ultralingua]] Inc., a developer of electronic dictionary applications, announced the release of a suite of electronic Klingon language software for most computer platforms including a dictionary, a phrasebook, and an audio learning tool.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ultralingua engaged by Simon & Schuster for launch of Star Trek-related iPhone Apps |date=May 9, 2009 |url=https://www.ultralingua.com/sites/ultralingua.com/files/pdfs/PR.Klingon-5.9.09.pdf |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011144408/https://www.ultralingua.com/sites/ultralingua.com/files/pdfs/PR.Klingon-5.9.09.pdf |archive-date=October 11, 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In September 2011, [[Eurotalk]] released the "Learn Klingon" course in its ''Talk Now!'' series. The language is displayed in both Latin and pIqaD fonts, making this the first language course written in pIqaD and approved by CBS and [[Marc Okrand]]. It was translated by Jonathan Brown and Okrand and uses the {{mono |Hol-pIqaD}} [[TrueType]] font.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-15122597|title= 'Klingon' helps Milton Keynes man deal with dyslexia|author= |date= October 2, 2011|publisher= BBC|accessdate=June 15, 2024}}</ref>

In August 2016, a company in the United Kingdom, Bidvine, began offering Klingon lessons as one of their services.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bidvine.com/klingon-lessons |title=We make it easy to hire a Klingon Tutor |publisher=Bidvine |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124105925/https://www.bidvine.com/klingon-lessons |url-status=live }}</ref>

In March 2018, the popular language learning site [[Duolingo]] opened a beta course in Klingon. After proving popular, the company offered to promote it from beta status, but due to ongoing software issues regarding Klingon's unexpected use of upper- and lower-case letters and the apostrophe as a consonant instead of punctuation, the course developers chose not to accept the offer until the problems were addressed.<ref name="Duolingo">{{cite web |url=https://forum.duolingo.com/comment/26588778/Duolingo%E2%80%99s-Klingon-Course-is-now-available |title=Duolingo's Klingon Course is now available! |website=Duolingo.com |date=March 15, 2018 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=January 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122184737/https://forum.duolingo.com/comment/26588778/Duolingo%E2%80%99s-Klingon-Course-is-now-available |url-status=live }}</ref>

There are Klingon language meetings<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.speakklingon.info |title={<code>tlhIngan Hol yejHaD qepʼaʼ</code> &#124; Information about the 2013 Conference of the Klingon Language Institute |date=2013-03-13 |publisher=Speakklingon.info |access-date=2013-12-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131214040542/http://www.speakklingon.info/ |archive-date=2013-12-14 |url-status=usurped }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.qephom.de/e/nextqephom.html |title=qep Hom: Meeting |publisher=qepHom.de |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124162237/http://www.qephom.de/e/nextqephom.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and linguists or students are interested in researching this topic, even writing essays about the language or its users.

Klingon speakers are also referred to in non-''Star Trek'' TV series, including ''[[Frasier]]'', ''[[The Big Bang Theory]]'', and [[Lucifer (TV series)|''Lucifer'']], and were heavily featured in the "[[My Big Fat Geek Wedding]]" episode of ''[[The Simpsons]]''. In the 2017 film ''[[Please Stand By]]'', in which a young autistic woman played by [[Dakota Fanning]] leaves her group home in [[San Francisco]] to deliver a ''Star Trek'' screenplay she wrote to [[Paramount Pictures]], a [[Los Angeles Police Department|Los Angeles police officer]] played by [[Patton Oswalt]] coaxes her out of hiding by speaking with her in Klingon.

== Real world usage ==
In July 2015, the [[Welsh Government]] issued a written statement in the Klingon language. Following a formal questioning of the Economy Minister [[Edwina Hart]] regarding the funding of research into [[UFO]] sightings around [[Cardiff Airport]] by [[Member of the Senedd]] [[Darren Millar]], a press officer in the Minister's office issued the reply: 

{{Blockquote|{{mono |jang vIDa je due luq. ʼach ghotvamʼeʼ QIʼyjH-devolved qaS}}}}

which was translated as: "The minister will reply in due course. However this is a [[Devolved, reserved and excepted matters|non-devolved matter]]."<ref>{{cite news |last=Deans |first=David |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/welsh-ministers-were-asked-information-9624682 |title=Welsh ministers were asked for information about UFO sightings... and they replied in KLINGON |publisher=Wales Online |date=July 9, 2015 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124162202/https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/welsh-ministers-were-asked-information-9624682 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jul/10/star-trek-welsh-assembly-ufo-question-prompts-dip-into-trilingualism-with-klingon |title=Welsh assembly UFO question prompts dip into trilingualism with Klingon |newspaper=The Guardian |date=July 10, 2015 |access-date=November 23, 2018}}</ref>{{efn|Literally, it reads "Answers[sic] minister and due of course. But regarding behaviour, [military] station devolved occurs."}}

The [[Bible]] is [[Bible translations into constructed languages|translated]] from English into Klingon.
* [https://nocr.net/hbm/etc/klingon/index.php Klingon Bible on NOCR.net]
* [https://www.kli.org/activities/kli-projects/#KBTP Klingon Bible Translation Project on KLI.org]
* [http://www.klingonwiki.net/En/ReligiousTextTranslationProject Religious Text Translation Project on the Klingon Language Wiki]

The Klingon Bible Translation Project, coordinated by Melanie Roney, translates the books of the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, into Klingon. It is promoted by the [[Klingon Language Institute]], whose goals do not include missionary work, but this project was considered worthy of KLI's efforts for purely secular reasons.

NSKOL has published two volumes containing several portions of the Bible translated. One can find online the following specimen:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!  style="text-align:center; width:25%;"|Translation
![[Book of Psalms|Psalm]] 117
|-
| style="text-align:center;"|K'mel
|  joH'a' yInaD Hoch qorDu'pu' <br>
yIquvmoH Hoch ghotpu' <br>
numuSHa'qu'mo' <br>
'ej reH taHtaH vItDaj.<br>
joH'a' yInaD !'
|}

The linguist and [[Lojban]]ist Nick Nicholas has also translated the [https://archive.today/20130626182533/http://www.tlg.uci.edu/~opoudjis/Klingon/mark.new.html Gospel of Mark] into Klingon.

== Use in other media ==
[[File:Klingon letter "r" from a Wikipedia logo variant.jpg|thumb|right|Previous Wikipedia logo with Klingon [[Alveolar trill|/r/]] character ([[File:KlingonLang r.svg|19x19px]]) at upper right (2003–2010)]]

In the [[Quentin Tarantino]] film ''[[Kill Bill Volume 1]]'' (2003), the opening of the film cites 'Revenge is a dish best served cold' as an 'old Klingon proverb'.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Wong |first1=Aliza S. |title=Spaghetti Westerns A Viewer's Guide |date=2018 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |page=28}}</ref>

In 2010, a Chicago Theatre company presented a version of [[Charles Dickens]]' ''[[A Christmas Carol]]'' in Klingon language and a Klingon setting.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/8215826/Klingon-Christmas-Carol-brought-to-the-stage.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/8215826/Klingon-Christmas-Carol-brought-to-the-stage.html |archive-date=2022-01-12 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Klingon Christmas Carol brought to the stage |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |date=December 21, 2010 |access-date=November 23, 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref> On September 25, 2010, the [[Washington Shakespeare Company]] (now known as [[WSC Avant Bard]]) performed selections from ''[[Hamlet]]'' and ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]'' in the Klingon language in [[Arlington County, Virginia]]. The performance was proposed by Okrand in his capacity as chairman of the group's board.<ref>{{cite news |title=How the Washington Shakespeare Company came to offer Shakespeare in Klingon |newspaper=Washington Post |first=Peter |last=Marks |date=August 29, 2010 |page=E1 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/27/AR2010082702649.html |access-date=November 2, 2017 |archive-date=June 26, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626145156/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/27/AR2010082702649.html |url-status=live }}</ref> This performance was reprised on February 27, 2011 featuring [[Stephen Fry]] as the Klingon [[Characters in Hamlet#Osric|Osric]] and was filmed by the [[BBC]] as part of a 5-part documentary on language entitled ''[[Fry's Planet Word]]''.<ref name="Fry's" />

The Java edition of ''[[Minecraft]]''<ref>{{cite web |url=https://minecraft.wiki/w/Language |title=Language |work=Minecraft Wiki |access-date=24 September 2023 |language=en |archive-date=25 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925034741/https://minecraft.wiki/w/Language |url-status=live }}</ref> has a Klingon language setting.

The 2003–2010 version of the [[Logo of Wikipedia|puzzle globe]] logo of [[Wikipedia]], representing its multilingualism, contained a Klingon character. When updated in 2010, the Klingon character was removed from the logo, and substituted with one from the [[Ge'ez script]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Polo |first=Susana |url=https://www.themarysue.com/wikipedia-klingon-logo/ |title=Wikipedia Takes the Klingon Out of Its Logo |publisher=The Mary Sue |date=May 15, 2010 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=September 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220905201959/https://www.themarysue.com/wikipedia-klingon-logo/ |url-status=live }}</ref> A [[m:History of the Klingon Wikipedia|Klingon language Wikipedia]] was started in June 2004 at ''tlh.wikipedia.org''. It was permanently locked in August 2005 and moved to [[Wikia]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikipedia-l/2005-August/023607.html |title=[Wikipedia-l] Klingon Wikipedia locked |first=Brion |last=Vibber |date=August 7, 2005 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=March 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220327023236/https://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikipedia-l/2005-August/023607.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://klingon.fandom.com/wiki/ghItlh%27a%27 |title=tlhIngan Hol |access-date=February 2, 2024 |archive-date=February 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240219173255/https://klingon.fandom.com/wiki/ghItlh%27a%27 |url-status=live }}</ref> The Klingon [[Wiktionary]] was closed in 2008.<ref>[[m:Proposals for closing projects/Closure of Klingon Wiktionary]]</ref>

In the 2010 ''[[Dragon Ball Z Abridged]]'' episode "Episode 16", the Klingon language is used as the same language as the [[Namekians|Namekian language]].<ref>{{cite AV media|author=[[TeamFourStar]]|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcL46NjFDJU|title=DragonBall Z Abridged'': Episode 16 – TeamFourStar (TFS)''|work=[[Dragon Ball Z Abridged]]|date=July 5, 2010|access-date=July 5, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite AV media|author=[[TeamFourStar]]|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYJOuObFg7A|title=Dragonball Z Abridged ''Creator Commentary {{!}} Ep. 15–16''|work=[[TeamFourStar|FourStarBento]]|date=October 22, 2022|access-date=October 22, 2022}}</ref>

The file management software [[XYplorer]] has been translated into Klingon by its developer.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.xyplorer.com/xyfc/viewtopic.php?t=14737 |title=Klingon |website=XYplorer Beta Club |date=September 19, 2015 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124105741/https://www.xyplorer.com/xyfc/viewtopic.php?t=14737 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Microsoft's [[Bing Translator]] attempts to translate Klingon from and to other languages.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bing.com/translator/ |title=Bing Translator |publisher=Bing.com |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=January 1, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101221039/https://www.bing.com/translator/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://inserbia.info/today/2013/05/klingon-is-more-important-than-serbian-croatian-and-bosnian-language/ |title=Klingon is more important than Serbian, Croatian and Bosnian language? |date=May 15, 2013 |newspaper=InSerbia Today |access-date=November 23, 2018 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011144611/https://inserbia.info/today/2013/05/klingon-is-more-important-than-serbian-croatian-and-bosnian-language/ |archive-date=October 11, 2017}}</ref> It can do a good job with individual words, and with phrases included in its training corpus, but it is not well tuned for Klingon's system of [[prefix]]es and [[suffix]]es. For example, {{mono |DaHaDnIS}} "You must study it" is rendered instead as "They Must Study."

With the digital-only release of ''[[Star Trek: Discovery]]'' in 2017, streaming service [[Netflix]] announced it would provide Klingon subtitles for the entire first season,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2017/09/you-can-watch-star-trek-discovery-with-klingon-subtitles/ |title=You Can Watch Star Trek: Discovery With Klingon Subtitles |date=September 25, 2017 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124162208/https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2017/09/you-can-watch-star-trek-discovery-with-klingon-subtitles/ |url-status=live }}</ref> translated by Klingon language expert [[Lieven L. Litaer]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Mertens |url=https://geeko.lesoir.be/2017/09/29/les-sous-titres-en-klingon-sont-disponibles-sur-netflix/ |title=Les sous-titres en klingon sont disponibles sur Netflix |date=September 29, 2017 |access-date=November 6, 2020 |archive-date=August 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819163739/https://geeko.lesoir.be/2017/09/29/les-sous-titres-en-klingon-sont-disponibles-sur-netflix/ |url-status=live }}</ref> They can be enabled like any other language provided by the streaming service, and are shown using romanized transliteration rather than Klingon script.

In 2020 the German artist Hans Solo ([[Äi-Tiem]]) released an [[Extended Play|EP]] ''NuqneH'', whose 5 tracks are completely rapped in Klingon language.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnjHrZU7AJs | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/XnjHrZU7AJs| archive-date=2021-12-11 | url-status=live|title=''NuqneH'' rap-EP by Hans Solo | website=[[YouTube]]|date=July 2, 2020 |access-date=July 25, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

=== Language learning sources ===
*[[Duolingo]] features a course for Klingon, which was released on March 15, 2018 and is now in beta testing.<ref name="Duolingo" /><ref>{{Cite web|last=Gartenberg|first=Chaim|title=Duolingo can now teach you how to speak Klingon|url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/15/17123836/duolingo-klingon-star-trek-learning-course-app-website-qapla|access-date=March 9, 2022|website=The Verge|date=March 15, 2018|language=en|archive-date=March 9, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220309154433/https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/15/17123836/duolingo-klingon-star-trek-learning-course-app-website-qapla|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Lardinois|first=Frederic|title=nuqneH? yIjatlh! You can now learn Klingon with Duolingo|url=https://techcrunch.com/2018/03/14/nuqneh-yijatlh-you-can-now-learn-klingon-with-duolingo/|access-date=March 9, 2022|website=Tech Crunch|date=March 14, 2018|language=en|archive-date=March 9, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220309155012/https://techcrunch.com/2018/03/14/nuqneh-yijatlh-you-can-now-learn-klingon-with-duolingo/|url-status=live}}</ref>
*The [[Klingon Language Institute]] provides a Learn Klingon Online series of lessons to its members. The first few lessons are free to sample.
*[[Memrise]] has user-created materials on various topics.<ref>{{cite news |date=17 March 2017 |title=5 resources to help you translate, read, and learn to speak Klingon (seriously) |url=https://sg.news.yahoo.com/5-resources-help-translate-read-learn-speak-klingon-040257324.html |url-status=live |work=geektime |location=Singapore|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240325101455/https://sg.news.yahoo.com/5-resources-help-translate-read-learn-speak-klingon-040257324.html |archive-date=25 March 2024 |access-date=25 March 2024 |quote=Rival app Memrise, which allows users to create their own courses and thus offers many more classes than Duolingo, has several separate mini courses on things like Klingon vocabulary, the Klingon alphabet, affixes, basic grammar, shapes, days of the week, adverbs, numbers, and even a review course for the Klingon Language Certification Program (KLCP1).}}</ref>

==Canon==
An important concept to spoken and written Klingon is [[canon (fiction)|canonicity]]. Only words and grammatical forms introduced by Marc Okrand are considered canonical Klingon by the KLI and most Klingonists.<ref>{{Cite web |title=canon – Klingon Language Wiki |url=http://klingon.wiki/En/Canon |access-date=2023-04-10 |website=klingon.wiki |language=en |archive-date=2023-04-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230410173316/http://klingon.wiki/En/Canon |url-status=live }}</ref> However, as the growing number of speakers employ different strategies to express themselves, it is often unclear as to what level of [[neologism]] is permissible.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.angelfire.com/trek/yensw/PDF/thesis.pdf |title=Klingon as Linguistic Capital |first=Yens |last=Wahlgren |date=June 2000 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-date=November 6, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121106070716/http://www.angelfire.com/trek/yensw/PDF/thesis.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> New vocabulary has been collected in a list maintained by the KLI until 2005<ref>{{cite web |last=Martin |first=Will |date=December 15, 2005 |url=https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/new-klingon-words/ |title=New Klingon Words (not in the original lexicon) |work=[[Klingon Language Institute|KLI]] |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124131416/https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/new-klingon-words/ |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and has since then been followed up by Klingon expert [[Lieven Litaer]] until the KLI's website was renewed in 2015.<ref>{{cite web |last=Litaer |first=Lieven |date=August 20, 2013 |url=https://www.qephom.de/e/newwords.html |title=New canonical Klingon words |work=[[qepHom]] |access-date=February 2, 2024 |archive-date=February 22, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112242/https://www.qephom.de/e/newwords.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Internal history===
Within the fictional universe of ''Star Trek'', Klingon is derived from the original language spoken by the messianic figure [[Kahless the Unforgettable]], who united the Klingon home-world of {{mono |QoʼnoS}} under one empire more than 1500 years ago.<ref name="GalacticTraveller" />

==Phonology==

{| class="wikitable floatright"
|-
! Latin transcription !! Klingon script !! [[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]]
|-
| a || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang a.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|ɑ}}
|-
| b || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang b.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|b}}
|-
| ch || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang ch.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|t͡ʃ}}
|-
| D || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang D.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|ɖ}}
|-
| e || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang e.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|ɛ}}
|-
| gh || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang gh.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|ɣ}}
|-
| H || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang H.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|x}}
|-
| I || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang I.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|ɪ}}
|-
| j || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang j.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|d͡ʒ}}
|-
| l || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang l.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|l}}
|-
| m || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang m.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|m}}
|-
| n || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang n.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|n}}
|-
| ng || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang ng.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|ŋ}}
|-
| o || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang o.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|o}}
|-
| p || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang p.svg|x32px]] || {{IPA|/{{IPAlink|p}}{{IPAlink|ʰ}}/}}
|-
| q || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang q.svg|x32px]] || {{IPA|/{{IPAlink|q}}{{IPAlink|ʰ}}/}}
|-
| Q || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang Q.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|q͡χ}}
|-
| r || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang r.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|r}}
|-
| S || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang S.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|ʂ}}
|-
| t || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang t.svg|x32px]] || {{IPA|/{{IPAlink|t}}{{IPAlink|ʰ}}/}}
|-
| tlh || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang tlh.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|t͡ɬ}}
|-
| u || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang u.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|u}}
|-
| v || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang v.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|v}}
|-
| w || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang w.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|w}}
|-
| y || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang y.svg|x32px]] || {{IPAslink|j}}
|-
| ʼ || style="background-color: white !important;" | [[File:KlingonLang '.svg|x20px]] || {{IPAslink|ʔ}}
|}

Klingon has been developed with a [[phonology]] that, while based on human [[natural language]]s, is intended to sound [[Alien language|alien]] to human ears. When initially developed, Paramount Pictures (owners of the ''Star Trek'' [[media franchise|franchise]]) wanted the Klingon language to be guttural and harsh and Okrand wanted it to be unusual, so he selected [[articulatory phonetics|sounds]] that combined in ways not generally found in other languages. The effect is mainly achieved by the use of a number of [[retroflex consonant|retroflex]] and [[uvular consonant|uvular]] consonants in the language's inventory.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5Did-eVQDc&t=5m46s | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/e5Did-eVQDc| archive-date=2021-12-11 | url-status=live|title=Marc Okrand on Klingon | website=[[YouTube]]|date=May 2, 2012 |access-date=November 23, 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Klingon has twenty-one consonants and five vowels. Klingon is normally written in a variant of the [[Latin alphabet]]. The orthography of this [[transliteration]] is [[case-sensitive]], that is, [[Capital letter|upper]] and [[lower case]] letters are not interchangeable (uppercase letters mostly represent sounds different from those expected by English speakers), although the only [[minimal pair]] is {{angle bracket|Q}} and {{angle bracket|q}}. In other words, while {{mono|hol}} is incorrect Klingon, it cannot be misread as anything but an erroneous form of {{mono|Hol}} (which means ''language''); on the other hand, {{mono|Qat}} and {{mono|qat}} are two different words, the first meaning ''be popular'' and the second meaning ''accompany''. In the discussion below, standard Klingon orthography appears in ''{{angle bracket|angle brackets}}'', and the [[phoneme|phonemic transcription]] in the [[International Phonetic Alphabet]] is written between ''/slashes/''.

===Consonants===
The inventory of consonants in Klingon is spread over a number of [[place of articulation|places of articulation]]. In spite of this, the inventory has many gaps: Klingon has no [[velar consonant|velar plosives]], and only one [[sibilant consonant|sibilant fricative]]; common consonants absent in Klingon include {{IPA|/k ɡ f h s z ʃ/}}. Deliberately, this arrangement is very different from that of most human languages. The combination of an aspirated [[voiceless alveolar plosive]] {{IPA|/tʰ/}} and a [[voiced retroflex plosive]] {{IPA|/ɖ/}} is particularly unusual.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! rowspan="2" colspan=2 | 
! rowspan="2" | [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! colspan="2" | [[Coronal consonant|Coronal]]
! rowspan="2" | [[Dorsal consonant|Dorsal]]
! rowspan="2" | [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
! {{small|[[Central consonant|central]]}}
! {{small|[[Lateral consonant|lateral]]}}
|-
! rowspan=2| [[stop consonant|Plosive]]
! {{small|[[voicelessness|voiceless]]}}
| {{mono |p}} {{IPAslink|p|pʰ}}
| {{mono |t}} {{IPAslink|t|tʰ}}
| 
| {{mono |q}} {{IPAslink|q|qʰ}}
| <span style="text-decoration: none">{{mono |ʼ}} {{IPAslink|ʔ}}</span>
|-
! {{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
| {{mono |b}} {{IPAslink|b}}
| {{mono |D}} {{IPAslink|ɖ|ɖ&thinsp;}}
| 
| 
| 
|-
! rowspan=2| [[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]
! {{small|[[voicelessness|voiceless]]}}
| || {{mono|ch}} {{IPAslink|t͡ʃ}}||{{mono |tlh}} {{IPAslink|t͡ɬ}} || {{mono |Q}} {{IPAslink|q͡χ}} ||
|-
! {{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
| 
| {{mono|j}} {{IPAslink|d͡ʒ}}
| 
| 
| 
|-
! rowspan=2| [[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
! {{small|[[voicelessness|voiceless]]}}
| 
| {{mono |S}} {{IPAslink|ʂ}}
| 
| {{mono |H}} {{IPAslink|x}}
| 
|-
! {{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
| {{mono |v}} {{IPAslink|v}}
| 
| 
| {{mono|gh}} {{IPAslink|ɣ}}
| 
|-
! colspan=2| [[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
| {{mono |m}} {{IPAslink|m}}
| {{mono |n}} {{IPAslink|n}}
| 
| {{mono |ng}} {{IPAslink|ŋ}}
| 
|-
! colspan=2| [[Trill consonant|Trill]]
| 
| rowspan="2" |{{mono |r}} {{IPAslink|r}}
| 
|
| 
|-
! colspan=2| [[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
| {{mono |w}} {{IPAslink|w}}
| {{mono |l}} {{IPAslink|l}}
| {{mono|y}} {{IPAslink|j}}
| 
|}

There are a few dialectal pronunciation differences<ref name="GalacticTraveller">{{cite book |last=Okrand |first=Marc |title=Klingon for the Galactic Traveller |year=1997 |publisher=Pocket Books |location=New York |isbn=978-0671009953 |pages=18–24}}</ref> (it is not known if the aforementioned non-canon ''Kumburan'' or ''Rumaiy'' dialects of ''{{mono |tlhIngan Hol}}'' hinted at in the novelization of ''[[Star Trek III: The Search for Spock]]'' might differ):

* In the Krotmag dialect {{IPA|/b/}} and {{IPA|/ɖ/}} are realized as nasal stops {{IPAblink|m}} and {{IPAblink|ɳ}}
* In the Tak'ev dialect {{IPA|/b/}} and {{IPA|/ɖ/}} are pre-nasalized oral stops {{IPA|[mb]}} and {{IPA|[ɳɖ]}}
In the Morskan dialect:
*{{IPAslink|t͡ɬ}} is a central affricate {{IPAblink|t͡s}}
*{{IPA|/x/}} is realized as glottal {{IPAblink|h}} syllable-initially and deleted syllable-finally
*{{IPAslink|q͡χ}} is realized as a velar fricative {{IPAblink|x}}

===Vowels===
In contrast to its consonants, Klingon's inventory of vowels is simple, and similar to those of many human languages, such as [[Spanish language|Spanish]] or [[Japanese language|Japanese]]. There are five vowels spaced more or less evenly around the vowel space, with two back rounded vowels, one back unrounded vowel, and two front or near-front unrounded vowels. The vowel inventory is asymmetrical in that the back rounded vowels are tense and the front vowels are lax.

The two front vowels, {{angle bracket|{{mono |e}}}} and {{angle bracket|{{mono |I}}}}, represent sounds that are found in [[English language|English]], but are more open and lax than a typical English speaker might assume when reading Klingon text written in the Latin alphabet, thus causing the consonants of a word to be more prominent. This enhances the sense that Klingon is a clipped and harsh-sounding language.

; [[Vowel]]s
:{{angle bracket|{{mono |a}}}}{{spaced ndash}}{{IPAslink|ɑ}}{{spaced ndash}}[[open back unrounded vowel]] (in English ''sp'''a''''')
:{{angle bracket|{{mono |e}}}}{{spaced ndash}}{{IPAslink|ɛ}}{{spaced ndash}}[[open-mid front unrounded vowel]] (in English ''b'''e'''d'')
:{{angle bracket|{{mono |I}}}}{{spaced ndash}}{{IPAslink|ɪ}}{{spaced ndash}}[[near-close near-front unrounded vowel]] (in English ''b'''i'''t'')
:{{angle bracket|{{mono |o}}}}{{spaced ndash}}{{IPAslink|o}}{{spaced ndash}}[[close-mid back rounded vowel]] (in [[French language|French]] ''eau'' and English ''c'''o'''ld'')
:{{angle bracket|{{mono |u}}}}{{spaced ndash}}{{IPAslink|u}}{{spaced ndash}}[[close back rounded vowel]] (in Spanish ''tu'' and English ''y'''ou''''')

[[Diphthong]]s can be analyzed phonetically as the combination of the five vowels plus one of the two [[semivowel]]s {{IPA|/w/}} and {{IPA|/j/}} (represented by {{angle bracket|{{mono |w}}}} and {{angle bracket|{{mono |y}}}}, respectively). Thus, the combinations {{angle bracket|{{mono |ay}}}}, {{angle bracket|{{mono |ey}}}}, {{angle bracket|{{mono |Iy}}}}, {{angle bracket|{{mono |oy}}}}, {{angle bracket|{{mono |uy}}}}, {{angle bracket|{{mono |aw}}}}, {{angle bracket|{{mono |ew}}}} and {{angle bracket|{{mono |Iw}}}} are possible. There are no words in the Klingon language that contain *{{angle bracket|{{mono |ow}}}} or *{{angle bracket|{{mono |uw}}}}.

===Syllable structure===
Klingon follows a strict [[syllable]] structure. A syllable must start with a consonant (including the glottal stop) followed by one vowel. In prefixes and rare other syllables, this is enough. More commonly, this consonant-vowel pair is followed by one consonant or one of three biconsonantal [[coda (linguistics)|codas]]: /-'''''{{mono |wʼ}}'''&nbsp;-'''{{mono |yʼ}}'''&nbsp;-'''{{mono |rgh}}'''''/. Thus, ''{{mono |ta}}'' "record", ''{{mono |tar}}'' "poison" and ''{{mono |targh}}'' "targ" (a type of animal) are all legal syllable forms, but *''{{mono |tarD}}'' and *''{{mono |ar}}'' are not. Despite this, one suffix takes the shape vowel+consonant: the endearment suffix {{mono |-'''''oy'''''}}.

===Stress===
In [[verb]]s, the stressed syllable is usually the verbal stem itself, as opposed to a prefix or any suffixes, except when a suffix ending with {{mono |{{angle bracket|ʼ}}}} is separated from the verb by at least one other suffix, in which case the suffix ending in {{mono |{{angle bracket|ʼ}}}} is also stressed. In addition, stress may shift to a suffix that is meant to be emphasized.

In [[noun]]s, the final syllable of the stem (the noun itself, excluding any affixes) is stressed. If any syllables ending in {{mono |{{angle bracket|ʼ}}}} are present, the stress shifts to those syllables.

The stress in other words seems to be variable, but this is not a serious issue because most of these words are only one syllable in length. There are some words which should fall under the rules above, but do not, although using the standard rules would still be acceptable.

==Grammar==
{{Main|Klingon grammar}}
Klingon is an [[Agglutination|agglutinative]] language, using mainly affixes in order to alter the function or meaning of words. Some nouns have inherently plural forms, such as ''{{mono |jengvaʼ}}'' "plate" (vs. {{mono |''ngop''}} "plates"), but most nouns require a suffix to express plurality explicitly. Depending on the type of noun (body part, being capable of using language, or neither) the suffix changes. For beings capable of using language, the suffix is ''{{mono |-puʼ}},'' as in ''{{mono |tlhInganpuʼ}},'' meaning "[[Klingon]]s," or ''{{mono |jaghpuʼ}},'' meaning "enemies". For body parts, the plural suffix is ''{{mono |-Duʼ}},'' as in ''{{mono |mInDuʼ}},'' "eyes". For items that are neither body parts nor capable of speech, the suffix is ''{{mono |-mey}},'' such as in ''{{mono |Hovmey}}'' ("stars"), or ''{{mono |targhmey}}'' ("targs") for a Klingon animal somewhat resembling a boar. (However, a plural suffix is never obligatory. To say "The stars are beautiful", ''{{mono |ʼIH Hovmey}}'' and ''{{mono |ʼIH Hov}}'' are equally grammatical, although the second can also mean "The star is beautiful".)

The words ''{{mono |loD}}'' and ''{{mono |beʼ}}'', which on their own mean "man" and "woman" respectively, can be used in compound words to refer to the referent's sex. For example, from ''{{mono |puq}}'' ("child") this process derives ''{{mono |puqloD}}'' ("son") and ''{{mono |puqbeʼ}}'' ("daughter").

Klingon [[noun]]s take suffixes to indicate [[grammatical number]]. There are three [[noun class]]es, two levels of [[deixis]], and a possession and syntactic function. In all, twenty-nine noun suffixes from five classes may be employed: ''{{mono |jupoypuʼnaʼwIʼvaD}}'' "for my beloved true friends". A word may carry no more than one suffix from each class, and the classes have a specific order of appearance.

[[Verb]]s in Klingon take a prefix indicating the number and person of the subject and object, whereas suffixes are taken from nine ordered classes and a special suffix class called rovers. Each of the four known rovers has a unique rule controlling its position among the suffixes in the verb. Verbs are marked for [[grammatical aspect|aspect]], certainty, predisposition and volition, dynamic, [[causative]], [[Grammatical mood|mood]], [[negation]], and [[honorific]]. The Klingon verb has two moods: [[Grammatical mood|indicative]] and [[Imperative mood|imperative]].

The most common [[word order]] in Klingon is [[object–verb–subject]], and, in most cases, the word order is the exact reverse of English for an equivalent sentence:

{{interlinear|lang=tlh|indent=3
|top= [[File:Klingon sentence.svg|upright=2.72|frameless]]
|DaH  mojaq-mey-vam  DI-vuS-nIS-beʼ  ʼeʼ  vI-Har|style1= font-family:monospace;
|now suffix-PL-DEM  1PL.A.3PL.P-limit-need-NEG that 1SG.A.3SG.P-believe
|"I believe that we do not need to limit these suffixes now."}}

(Hyphens are used in the above only to illustrate the use of affixes. Hyphens are not used in Klingon.)

<span id="Clipped_Klingon"></span>An important aspect of Klingon grammar is its "ungrammaticality". As with for example [[Japanese language|Japanese]], shortening of communicative statements is common, and is called "Clipped Klingon" (''{{mono |tlhIngan Hol poD}}'' or, more simply, ''{{mono |Hol poD}}'') and Ritualized Speech.{{Clarify|date=January 2014}} Clipped Klingon is especially useful in situations where speed is a decisive factor. Grammar is abbreviated, and sentence parts deemed to be superfluous are dropped. Intentional ungrammaticality is widespread, and it takes many forms. It is exemplified by the practice of ''{{mono |pabHaʼ}}'', which Marc Okrand translates as "to misfollow the rules" or "to follow the rules wrongly".<ref name="GalacticTraveller" />

==Writing systems==
{{Main|Klingon writing systems}}
[[File:Qapla'.svg|thumb|left|{{mono |Qaplaʼ}} (success)]]

When written in the Latin alphabet, Klingon is unusual in being [[case-sensitive]], with some letters written in capitals and others in lowercase.
For example, ''{{mono |q}}'' and ''{{mono |Q}}'' are an actual case-sensitive pair representing two different consonants.
Capitals are generally reserved for uvular or retroflex consonants pronounced further back in the mouth or throat than is normal for the corresponding English sounds, as with ''{{mono |D}}'', ''{{mono |Q}}'', and ''{{mono |S}}''.
The letter ''{{mono |H}}'', pronounced like the {{angle brackets|ch}} in German "ach" or Scottish "loch", is further forward in the throat than English /h/.

One phoneme, the vowel ''{{mono |I}}'', is written capital to look more like the IPA symbol for the sound /ɪ/, and can pose problems when writing Klingon in sans-serif fonts such as [[Arial]], as it looks almost the same as the consonant ''{{mono |l}}''.
This has led some Klingon enthusiasts to write it lowercase like the other vowels ("i") to prevent confusion, but this use is non-canonical. Instead, a serif font that clearly distinguishes "{{mono |I}}" and "{{mono |l}}", such as [[Courier (font)|Courier]] or [[Courier New]], has traditionally been employed for writing Klingon in the Latin alphabet. In any case, it can be disambiguated through context, as {{mono |I}} never occurs next to another vowel, while {{mono |l}} always does.

The apostrophe, denoting the [[glottal stop]], is considered a letter, not a punctuation mark, as with the [[ʻOkina|ʻokina]] in the [[Hawaiian alphabet]].
: {{mono |a b ch D e gh H I j l m n ng o p q Q r S t tlh u v w y ʼ}}

Klingon is often written in ([[in-universe]], "transliterated to") the [[Latin alphabet]] as used above, but on the television series, the Klingons use their own alien writing system. In ''The Klingon Dictionary'', this alphabet is named ''{{mono |pIqaD}}'', but no information is given about it. When Klingon symbols are used in ''Star Trek'' productions, they are merely decorative graphic elements, designed to emulate real [[writing]] and create an appropriate atmosphere. Enthusiasts have settled on the name {{mono |pIqaD}} for this writing system.

The Astra Image Corporation designed the symbols currently used to "write" Klingon for ''[[Star Trek: The Motion Picture]]'', although these symbols are often incorrectly attributed to [[Michael Okuda]].{{efn|See:
*Symbols attributed to Okuda: the [[Klingon Language Institute]]'s ''Klingon FAQ'' (edited by d'Armond Speers), [https://web.archive.org/web/20041012093544/http://higbee.cots.net/~holtej/klingon/faq.htm#2.13 question 2.13] by Will Martin (August 18, 1994).
*Symbols ''incorrectly'' attributed to Okuda: KLI founder Lawrence M. Schoen's [https://www.kli.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Orthography.pdf "On Orthography" (PDF)], citing J. Lee's "An Interview with Michael Okuda" in the KLI's journal ''HolQeD'' 1.1 (March 1992), p. 11.
*Symbols actually designed by Astra Image Corporation: Michael Everson's [[#note-2|Proposal...<sup>[3]</sup>]]}} They based the letters on the [[Klingon starships|Klingon battlecruiser]] hull markings (three letters) first created by [[Matt Jefferies]] and on [[Tibetan script|Tibetan writing]] because the script has sharp letter forms—used as a testament to the Klingons' love for knives and blades.

For [[April Fools' Day]] in 2013, [[Nokia]] and the typography company [[Dalton Maag]] claimed to have used "communication devices to far-flung star systems"<ref name="Pure Klingon">{{cite web |url=http://brandbook.nokia.com/blog/view/item80143/ |publisher=Nokia |title=Pure Klingon |date=April 1, 2013 |access-date=November 23, 2018 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130406025926/http://brandbook.nokia.com/blog/view/item80143/ |archive-date=April 6, 2013}}</ref> to assist them in localizing the [[Nokia Pure]] font of the Klingon writing system. Though the explanation was of course humorous in nature, as part of the [[practical joke]], a series of real fonts based upon the most commonly used ''{{mono |pIqaD}}'' character mapping were in fact developed, and have been made available for free download.<ref name="Pure Klingon"/>

==Vocabulary==
A design principle of the Klingon language is the great degree of lexical-cultural correlation in the vocabulary. For example, there are several words meaning "to fight" or "to clash against", each having a different degree of intensity. There is an abundance of words relating to warfare and weaponry and also a great variety of curses (cursing is considered a fine art in [[Klingon culture]]). This helps lend a particular character to the language.

There are many in-jokes built into the language.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.kli.org/wiki/Puns_in_the_Vocabulary_of_tlhIngan_Hol |title=Puns in the Vocabulary of tlhIngan Hol |access-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124105837/https://www.kli.org/wiki/Puns_in_the_Vocabulary_of_tlhIngan_Hol |archive-date=November 24, 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref> For example, the word for "pair" is {{mono |changʼeng}}, a reference to the original "[[Siamese twins]]" [[Chang and Eng Bunker]]; a {{mono |leSpal}} is a mid-size stringed instrument, comparable to a [[guitar]] (i.e. [[Les Paul]]);<ref name="Okrent" /> a "chronometer" is {{mono |tlhaq}} (pronounced similar to "clock"); the word for "torture" is {{mono |joy}}; "[[hangover]]" is {{mono |ʼuH}}, and the word for "fish" is ''[[Ghoti|{{mono |ghotIʼ}}]]''.<ref name="Okrent" />

Sources for the vocabulary include English (albeit heavily disguised), and also [[Yiddish language|Yiddish]]: {{mono |SaʼHut}} for "buttocks" (from [[wikt:תּחת|תּחת]] ''tuches'' spelled backwards),<ref name="Okrent" /> and {{mono |ʼoyʼ}} for "ache, pain, sore" (cf. ''[[oy vey]]'').<ref>{{cite book |last=Okrand |first=Marc |author-link=Marc Okrand |title=The Klingon Dictionary |year=1992 |publisher=Pocket Books |location=New York |isbn=0-671-74559-X |edition=2nd: i.e., with addendum |url=https://archive.org/details/klingondictionar00okra }}</ref>

Many English words do not have direct translations into Klingon. To express "hello", the nearest equivalent is {{mono |nuqneH}}, meaning "What do you want?",<ref name="Okrent"/> with "goodbye" translated as {{mono |Qapla'}}, "Success!".

==Example sentences==

;{{mono |tlhIngan Hol Dajatlhʼaʼ?}}
:Do you speak Klingon?
;{{mono |jIyajbeʼ.}}
:I don't understand.
;{{mono |Dochvetlh vISoplaHbeʼ.}}
:I can't eat that thing.
;{{mono |bIlughbeʼ.}}
:You are wrong.
;{{mono |bortaS bIr jabluʼDIʼ reH QaQquʼ nayʼ.}}
:[[Revenge is a dish best served cold]]. (lit: When cold revenge is served, the dish is always very good)
;{{mono |HeghluʼmeH QaQ jajvam.}}
:[[A good day to die (phrase)|Today is a good day to die]].

==See also==
{{Portal|Speculative fiction|Television|Language|Constructed languages}}
* [[Stovokor (band)|Stovokor]], a death metal band whose lyrics are written in Klingon

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{refbegin}}
*[[Bernard Comrie]], 1995, "The Paleo-Klingon numeral system". ''HolQeD'' 4.4: 6–10.
*[http://www.evertype.com/standards/csur/klingon.html Klingon ConScript Unicode Registry (CSUR)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629042255/http://www.evertype.com/standards/csur/klingon.html |date=2011-06-29 }}
*[https://hol.kag.org/page/piqadsupport.html pIqaD Support] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200828194052/https://hol.kag.org/page/piqadsupport.html |date=2020-08-28 }}
*[https://hol.kag.org/media/zip/pIqaD.zip ''Klingon (pIqaD)'' Unicode font] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011144736/https://hol.kag.org/media/zip/pIqaD.zip |date=2017-10-11 }} ({{mono |U+F8D0}}–{{mono |U+F8FF}})
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120620030022/http://yellowantphil.com/pIqaD_converter.html Klingon text converter (transliteration)]
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{sister project links|d=no|n=Elvish, Klingon and Na'vi: Constructed languages gain foothold in film|v=Topic:Klingon|voy=no|wikt=no|mw=no|m=no|species=no|commons=Category:Klingon language|q=Klingon proverbs|s=no|b=Klingon}}
* [https://www.kli.org/ Klingon Language Institute] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124232845/https://www.kli.org/ |date=2018-11-24 }}
* [http://klingonska.org/ Klingonska Akademien] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220330061039/http://klingonska.org/ |date=2022-03-30 }}
* [https://www.qephom.de qepHom Saarbrücken] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129191945/http://qephom.de/ |date=2020-11-29 }} The largest annual Klingon language meeting in Europe
* [https://klingon.wiki/En/MainPage Klingon Language Wiki] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230330123616/http://klingon.wiki/En/MainPage |date=2023-03-30 }} Open encyclopedia about the Klingon language
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071012194613/http://judion.de/klingon/ Klingon and its User: A Sociolinguistic Profile], a [[sociolinguistics]] MA thesis
* {{Cite thesis |last=Wahlgren |first=Yens |title=Klingon as Linguistic Capital: A Sociologic Study of Nineteen Advanced Klingonists |type=Bachelor's thesis |url=http://www.angelfire.com/trek/yensw/PDF/thesis.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040921000505/http://www.angelfire.com/trek/yensw/PDF/thesis.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 21, 2004 |date=Spring 2004 |publisher=Department of Sociology, Lund University |place=Lund, Scania, Sweden |access-date=2015-03-10}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050520162132/http://www.cs.vu.nl/~dick/Summaries/Languages/MutsunKlingonComparison.pdf Is Klingon an Ohlonean language? A comparison of Mutsun and Klingon]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20040402041317/http://www.omniglot.com/writing/klingon.htm Omniglot: Klingon Alphabet]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080530164638/http://www.eatoni.com/wiki/index.php/Klingon Eatoni Ergonomics' Klingon page] includes BDF, TTF fonts and a Klingon text entry demo
* [https://punctumbooks.com/titles/paqbatlh-the-klingon-epic-2nd-edn/ paqʼbatlh: The Klingon Epic] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112241/https://punctumbooks.com/titles/paqbatlh-the-klingon-epic-2nd-edn/ |date=2024-02-22 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20170213090327/https://mybot.be/chat/-KcnG99buxsyZVPg3ZCS Klingon speaking chatbot]
* Klingon [https://github.com/PanderMusubi/klingon word list and spell checker] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180617151519/https://github.com/PanderMusubi/klingon |date=2018-06-17 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20181206102545/https://photolemur.com/klingon photo editor translated into Klingon]

{{Constructed languages}}
{{Star Trek}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Klingon Language}}
[[Category:Klingon language| ]]
[[Category:Agglutinative languages]]
[[Category:Object–verb–subject languages]]
[[Category:Constructed languages introduced in the 1970s]]
[[Category:1979 introductions]]
[[Category:Star Trek]]
[[Category:Fictional languages]]