english fluency of the na'vi

[aznbeggerap]

from tsu'tey's ability to just translate jake's heroic speech, it is evident that he is actually fluent in english. same neytiri.
i thought it's pretty cool/interesting. if you are billingual, u'll know how much skill it takes to be able to translate like that.
but then, it was also done for movie effect. =/

[Technowraith]

from tsu'tey's ability to just translate jake's heroic speech, it is evident that he is actually fluent in english. same neytiri.
i thought it's pretty cool/interesting. if you are billingual, u'll know how much skill it takes to be able to translate like that.
but then, it was also done for movie effect. =/

Thank Dr. Augustine's school for that. She taught the Na'vi english. They speak it with a Na'vi accent though. So english is a little different sounding when listening to it from Na'vi speakers.

[Meuia te Stxeli Tstew'itan]

from tsu'tey's ability to just translate jake's heroic speech, it is evident that he is actually fluent in english. same neytiri.
i thought it's pretty cool/interesting. if you are billingual, u'll know how much skill it takes to be able to translate like that.
but then, it was also done for movie effect. =/

I don't see why it would't be possible to translate Na'vi <-> English in real time. After all, it's all about getting the idea of a sentence and building a sentence that tells the same idea. Depending on the subject, you might need a lot of knowledge or very little. As it wasn't a speech with a lot of stuff indigenous to the Na'vi, it is easier to do for them.

They speak it with a Na'vi accent though.

I'm starting to do that too. Ejective really get into you when you practice Na'vi

[Tsepxor]

Ejective really get into you when you practice Na'vi

I am finding myself saying most T's and k's as ejectives in English, think I've been practicing too much

[Meuia te Stxeli Tstew'itan]

I'm starting to do that too. Ejective really get into you when you practice Na'vi

I am finding myself saying most T's and k's as ejectives in English, think I've been practicing too much

It make me think about the first time I saw Avatar in IMAX. It was also the first time I saw the original english version. The voice actors for the french version didn't bothered about this. OMG! The face I made when I first listen to Neytiri's voice! That's all because they took the time to learn it properly.

Back on the subject, You can say that we went a step further than the actors because they never really learned the language. They only learned their script and that all. This make it very hard to know how a real Na'vi would react to 'Ìnglìsì syntax and grammar. We really see this happening during the first line of Neytiri when she say: "You don't thank for this. This is sad. Very sad, only. [...] Why save you?".

[aznbeggerap]

also i think it is kinda implied that na'vi are really intelligent. from the script, grace talk about how they learn faster than she teaches. or can that just be an expression for her affection?

i've also been thinking about technology development for the na'vi. will they ever develop into the civilisation we have today in a couple thousand years?

[ShadowedSin]

also i think it is kinda implied that na'vi are really intelligent. from the script, grace talk about how they learn faster than she teaches. or can that just be an expression for her affection?

i've also been thinking about technology development for the na'vi. will they ever develop into the civilisation we have today in a couple thousand years?

The question is not will it is why. The Na'vi live in an environment where they have all the subsistence needs meet and are resource rich. They have not external pressures to change their situation sides the RDA which is gone. Why would they want to change?

Plus Civilization refers to city living societies, and I don't really at all see the Na'vi living in a city. Doesn't fit their culture at all.

[Meuia te Stxeli Tstew'itan]

also i think it is kinda implied that na'vi are really intelligent. from the script, grace talk about how they learn faster than she teaches. or can that just be an expression for her affection?

There's a biological explaination to that one: They are huge which imply bigger brains than humans

[Technowraith]

also i think it is kinda implied that na'vi are really intelligent. from the script, grace talk about how they learn faster than she teaches. or can that just be an expression for her affection?

There's a biological explaination to that one: They are huge which imply bigger brains than humans

Bigger brains may not necessarily mean higher intelligence. But in the Na'vi case, they have an exceptionally complex brain structure. Tsayhalu requires a much more complex brain than humans have. It would make sense that Na'vi are fast learners. From Jake's point of view, to learn all the things that he needed to integrate so well into Na'vi life in just about 3 months? Maybe that is about typical for how humans learn, maybe not. I'm not entirely sure how the human mind integrates with that of the Avatar's. But i would fathom to think what it's like to "step into such a large brain." Would that allow the avatar driver to "learn faster?" Or would he or she only learn at the pace a human brain can learn? This is analogous to putting a very powerful processor into an older computer. What happens is the procesor simply waits for the system functions to run. (It's a known fact that CPU's often end up waiting to process instructions because in some cases, they don't get instructions fast enough. So the CPU simply waits in an idle state until the next instruction cycles in). Would the Avatar brain simply learn at the human brains pace? This is something that i'm interested in finding out if possible. At the least it's got to create some kind of interesting experience for sure.

[Tsu'roen]

Brain size is actually only loosely connected to intelligence - otherwise whales would be many times more intelligent than humans. Unfortunately they are not (or they would have figured out by now how to sink those bloody whaling ships)

Well, the Na'vi brains are not as much stuffed with useless information as the average human brain after 12-13 years of school and 4-10 years university. So they have a lot free capacity.

I would think the Avatars are ultimately limited by their human brain capacity. So far we do not know if they can actually use the Avatar brain like their own.
If they could use the Avatar brain it would actually mean they loose memories when coming out of link. And from all we have seen in the movie that doesn't happen. So I would say no - they can't use the Avatar brain for any learning/memory purpose.

The additional Na'vi brain structures for the bond probably do not add to intelligence but just provide the required capacity for the connection.

[Mithcoriel]

I don't know, is it that hard for Tsu'tey to translate? I learned French in school, for instance. I think I'd be able to translate a french speech into my mother language (german or english). On the other hand, I don't think I could translate my mother languages into French. Understanding is always easier than speaking.

This make it very hard to know how a real Na'vi would react to 'Ìnglìsì syntax and grammar. We really see this happening during the first line of Neytiri when she say: "You don't thank for this. This is sad. Very sad, only. [...] Why save you?".

What do you mean, what do we see happening in this quote?

I would think the Avatars are ultimately limited by their human brain capacity. So far we do not know if they can actually use the Avatar brain like their own.
If they could use the Avatar brain it would actually mean they loose memories when coming out of link. And from all we have seen in the movie that doesn't happen. So I would say no - they can't use the Avatar brain for any learning/memory purpose.

Wow, that's a good point!
So, that should mean that now that the connection is permament, he should have a higher capacity, no?

The additional Na'vi brain structures for the bond probably do not add to intelligence but just provide the required capacity for the connection.

Not too sure about that one, though. Didn't we humans develop higher intelligence cause you need it to coordinate the way you swing from branch to branch, and later to keep track of social structures? And yet, we can use our intelligence for other stuff as well.
Hm, but wait, many animals have Tsaheylu, so it's probably not connected to intelligence.

Anyway, another thing I wanted to mention which I think matches this thread: What's with Neytiri's accent? Am I the only one who thinks it varies a bit?
I get the impression that, when we hear her talk for the first time, she's got a pretty strongly exotic accent. But e.g. when she's teaching Jake how to ride a horse, she sounds very american. Especially when she says "Feel her heartbeat." The R is very soft, like in american english.

[wm.annis]

Anyway, another thing I wanted to mention which I think matches this thread: What's with Neytiri's accent? Am I the only one who thinks it varies a bit?
I get the impression that, when we hear her talk for the first time, she's got a pretty strongly exotic accent. But e.g. when she's teaching Jake how to ride a horse, she sounds very american. Especially when she says "Feel her heartbeat." The R is very soft, like in american english.

Practice!  If you asked me to speak French this instant, my accent would be really terrible, and I know from bitter and embarrassing experience I would sometimes substitute pronouns with their Chinese version.  But after a few weeks I could get better.  If the schools have been closed down, etc., the Na'vi are probably out of English practice.

Besides, you don't want to weary an audience by making them cope with strong accents through a long film. 

[Txontaw]

Speaking of R's, why is the 'r' in Neytiri's name an American 'r'? Shouldn't there be an alveolar flap?

[Meuia te Stxeli Tstew'itan]

This make it very hard to know how a real Na'vi would react to 'Ìnglìsì syntax and grammar. We really see this happening during the first line of Neytiri when she say: "You don't thank for this. This is sad. Very sad, only. [...] Why save you?".

What do you mean, what do we see happening in this quote?

She use Na'vi grammar rules to speak in english. I don't think you'll ever see an english speaker say something like "Very sad, only."

Speaking of R's, why is the 'r' in Neytiri's name an American 'r'? Shouldn't there be an alveolar flap?

It is not an american 'r'. It's just that you never hear a Na'vi pronounce it correctly

[Tsu'roen]

They should have had more problems with "b"s, "d"s and all the other sounds foreign to Na'vi. 

[Kätsyín te Zotxekay Tsyal’itan]

Its also that the Na'vi have that huge gap in English sounds, it seems to me that the Na'vi have trouble with B,C and D sounds. And, if I remember correctly, those sounds do not exist in the Na'vi vocabulary. So I can see why they would have trouble with those sounds.

[aznbeggerap]

They should have had more problems with "b"s, "d"s and all the other sounds foreign to Na'vi. 

i agree. but maybe it's just cause of the english school in which they learned how to pronounce those sounds despite not being part of their language. you can tell that they really stress the 'd's

[Tsu'roen]

Not to forget that there is only one language on all of Pandora! So them being good with learning foreign languages seems to be pushing it as English is the first foreign language they ever got in contact with.
Though they may have a very good memory and for sure have very good ears - things that help a lot with learning a new language.