Monday, July 18, 2011

MWW 2: баяр

At this point, it's more like Mongolian word of the month, but...


Cyrillic
баяр

Transcription
bayar
IPA
[ˈpa.jər]
Layman’s
Pronunciation
BAH-yer
Translation
1. joy, happiness
2. party, celebration, holiday
In Genghis Khan’s time it was also bayar.

Today's word is баяр, the basis of several of the most common expressions in Mongolian. By itself, it has several meanings. Firstly, it means "joy" or "happiness." It also refers to a party, feast, holiday, or any other occasion for celebration. For example, a баярын өдөр is a holiday.

Greetings

Баяр is most important because of its use in greetings.

Anyone who has studied even a tiny bit of Mongolian will recognize the word баяртай (bayartai). Баяртай, "happy," is the comitative case of баяр and so literally means "with joy." However, it is most commonly used by itself with the meaning "Goodbye!"

Just as important is Баярлалаа (bayarlalaa), "Thank you." Баярлалаа is originally a verb form meaning "have / has just rejoiced," from баярлах "to rejoice."

One more useful phrase is Баярын мэнд хүргэе (Bayaryn mend hürgeye, "I will send joy's greeting"). It is equivalent to "Congratulations" and may be said at any number of happy occasions. Frequently, it is shortened to Баярын мэнд or Баяр хүргэе (Bayar hürgeye, "I will send joy").

Names

Баяр is very popular as a name, and as a part of other names, such as Энхбаяр
(Enhbayar), former prime minister and president of Mongolia whose name could be translated as "Peace and Happiness." Other examples include Батбаяр, Ганбаяр, Мөнхбаяр, Баярцэцэг and many, many more.

Sentences

Би баяртай (байна).
"I am happy."

Баяртай!
"Goodbye!"

Баярлалаа!
[ba.jər.ɬa:] or [baj.tɬa]?
"Thank you!"

Төрсөн өдрийн баярын мэнд хүргье!
Törsön ödriin bayaryn mend hürgeye
"Happy birthday!"
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7 comments:

  1. M-DJuly 18, 2011 at 9:31 AM

    I am still trying to post a comment - will keep trying

    ReplyDelete
  2. DedalvsJuly 18, 2011 at 1:46 PM

    Whoa, you have to explain this:

    Баярлалаа

    How does [lal] become [ɬ] or [tɬ]?! Very cool!

    ReplyDelete
  3. M-DJuly 18, 2011 at 4:55 PM

    Enjoy all the data. Can see connections in some words. I think we have got it now, see how it goes

    ReplyDelete
  4. M-DAugust 1, 2011 at 8:46 AM

    Training is drawing near. Good luck

    ReplyDelete
  5. M-DSeptember 1, 2011 at 10:02 PM

    Andrew we need an update later than July 18

    ReplyDelete
  6. M-DSeptember 5, 2011 at 9:46 PM

    We hope to hear from you soon, all about your life since July 18

    ReplyDelete
  7. Eye of TengriDecember 11, 2011 at 4:42 AM

    Dedalvs, I believe that first because there would be two [la] sequences in a row, we have haplology, and [lala:] becomes just [la:]. And because this is a common phrase it gets worn down even further. The flap/trill [r] followed by the lateral [ɬ] sort of turns into a lateral affricate. Or at least that's what it sounds like to me. So,

    ba.jər.ɬa.ɬa:
    ba.jər.ɬa:
    baj.tɬa

    A funny thing I forgot to mention about баяртай is that the trill seems to get devoiced partway through in anticipation of [t]. English speakers aren't used to a voiceless trill and think they hear a voiceless sibilant, so everyone was pronouncing this as [ba.jəɹ.stæ] or [ba.jəɹ.ʃtæ].

    Funny that these were two of the first words we learned, because [r] and [ɬ] gave people the most trouble, and both words have them right next to each other.

    ReplyDelete

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