"This is the Way" in mando'a ?

[TracynKurs]

So out of curiosity I wanted to see if there was a consensus on the matter and found this thread:

https://www.reddit.com/r/mandojoha/comm ... al_mandoa/

Here's my 2 cents :

I wondered if anybody had asked this question before hand and I am surprised that the response has been so literal.

I like aSmelly's "Darasuum Aka" with the concept that the mission is primary. But sometimes the way it's said in the show as a justification or a pledge leaves me to think it can have a more casual meaning which Darasuum Aka leaves very little room for. It sometimes has a religious like connotation, much like an Amen for catholics (which it can definitely pull). All in all it's got great positives, but I want to see if I can come up with a "shorter" version, a more contracted which can be used as a jack of all trades. From a war cry to a simple acknowledgement of existence.

I'd like to propose : "Ibic Manda" = lit. This (is) Soul/Heaven/State of Being

It follows the 4 syllable simplicity of "This is the Way".

Refers to the great "Manda", way of life, overall spirit of the mandalorian encompassing the body, mind and spirit of all. Expressing both unity of the clan as well as the being of the individual. It responds well to that religious connotation as well. Plus, if an outsider hears this, there's no doubt what is being talked about and probably shouldn't be repeated lightly in front of a heavy armored bro.

It rolls off the tongue quite nicely as well in that it's less "agressive" to enunciate but keeps that punchy ending with -anda.

The beauty of this is you can keep the very much abbreviated form for a more casual setting but you can add to it so it can carry more important:

"Ibic cuy Manda" or "Ibic cuy Te Manda" - This Is THE Manda. You are literally driving home every word by taking the time to say them. Like Commander Adama shouting "SO SAY WE ALL" at the end of his tear wrenching speech.

To borrow from MmBopShoobie , we can have the Call and Response forms which mix up the dynamic of what is being said :

Call from leader --- Ibic cuun Manda (This is our Manda)
Response from clan --- Ibic ner Manda (This is my Manda)

What do you guys think? Have I missed this topic already being posted and already having been discussed to death?

[Cin Vhetin]

Unfortunately I haven't watched the show (Disney+ is still unavailable in Europe...), so I don't know the context.

I do very much like your suggestion of "Ibic Manda", because it sticks to canon Mando'a. However what bothers me abuot it is the abrupt break between the two consonants c (in ibic) and M (in Manda).

If you allow fanon, then there are the words "yust" for 'way' (as in 'method') and the verb "ibicir" meaning "to be this". So using extended vocabulary, my best guess would be "Ibici yust", which interestingly also has just four syllables. Mayust ibac nu gana gevin.

Alternatively, "Ibici Manda" works as well, of course.

[Vlet Hansen]

Ibic Manda is good. I've been using Ibic Yust whenever I had cause for something similar, but Manda is also pretty apropos.

[always21]

Found it. I asked in another thread for this.
So i will say
Ibici Manda or
Ibici yust / ibic cui yust (english pronouncment?)

[Vlet Hansen]

It's pronounced ee-BEEK cooy yoost, or ee-BEEK Man-dah

[always21]

Thanks. This means not really english pronouncement actually. A written "u" spoken as a "u" isn't really english, right? It's like in German, good for me
You take "oo" for this pronouncement, like "look" or "book", right?

[Vlet Hansen]

Correct, cuy has essentially the same u sound as book, more or less. Maybe a bit more "u-ish", but mostly the same

[Outis Hawkwind]

In the RP group I play with, I've been using "ibic cuyir te goyust".

The distilled essence of "this is the way" is to express "what we are doing represents the proper path".
So I've estimated that "this be the road" could be the closest translation. Plenty of room to debate that conclusion, any counter-arguments would be most welcome.

[ca'tra]

I'm admittedly new to Mando'a and no accomplished linguist myself, but my suspicion is that you would need to conjugate the verb "cuyir" to "cuyi" if you include it (it seems that Mando'a tends to simplify by dropping articles and other words that can be inferred from context, and the verb "cuyir" is often dropped entirely).

There's a bit more discussion about this phrase on the last page of this thread. My preferred translation is more figurative than literal, as posted in that thread.

Not sure if that's helpful at all, but food for thought!

[Outis Hawkwind]

That's true, I've read somewhere that Mando'a favors brevity.
"Ibic cuy yust"? That does make sense to me actually, the root "yust" is certainly present in the role Hansen describes.
I'm convinced.

[ca'tra]

Oya! You might enjoy the document posted in this thread, which includes a nice overview of Mando'a as a whole, and quite a lot of derived words.