Qirɛk Time Terminology: view article

While there is only one word for "time" in English (maybe two if you count "space-time") and many other Earth languages, the concept of time is much deeper for the Qirɛk. The way time is defined and discussed in

Girekian reflects a complex relationship.

Background
The Qirɛk live on a planet called Majɛn, a planet with two moons that revolves around a single sun. The Qirɛk evolved as fisher-foragers, and so they depend heavily on the moons and the tides. They developed a very early understanding of the planet’s relationship with the moons, sun, and stars, in that the entire solar system is in constant motion both within itself and among the universe.

Time and Location: a Multidimensional Concept
There is no distinction between physical motion and the passage of time in Qirɛk understanding. Movement is always thought of in 4D, and every specific instant is a point on the space-time continuum, not just a point in time. A person standing "still" is still technically moving, due to maqu the “breath” of the planet (tides, tectonic shifts, wobble of the planet, and rotation of the planet on its axis), as well as the revolution of the planet around the sun, revolution of the solar system around the center of the galaxy, etc. As long as there is progression of time there is never actually an absence of physical motion.

Example of this mindset: The Qirɛk would never say anything like “I’m going back home”. You can only “go home” since the home you will go to in the future is not precisely the same home you left; it will be in a different space and time. (The Qirɛk hold this transience of reality as a sacred truth so nostalgia, regret, etc are considered unnatural and almost sinful.)

The Qirɛk words kija and lynɛc would be translated into English as “here and now” and “there and then”, respectively. The word kija would be used in the same way as either here or now, for example “the book is here” or “I’m hungry now”. In the same way, lynɛc is interchangeable in translations for both there and then, for example “it’s not there” or “I’ll meet you then”.

Defining Time
There are various ways the Qirɛk refer to time. There are different “types” of time, subdivided by level of precision.

Het
Het is the general, overall concept of time and the time-space continuum. The word het is used to refer to unspecified points in time and to time in the abstract (ie. an age of discovery, once upon a time, translation of “space-time continuum”). Het is considered the original time, the time of the gods.

Ɂāfut
Ɂāfut translates to “the movement of the sun”, but the Qirɛk understanding of ɂāfut is “far time”. This is what the Qirɛk use to refer to long units of time measured on a solar scale (seasons, years). The word ɂāfut is also used to refer to large amounts of general time and time in the distant past or future (ie. I remember a time, it happened a long time ago, at some point when I’m retired).

Cɛmfut
Similar to ɂāfut, cɛmfut literally translates to “the movement of the moon(s)” but the connotation of the term is deeper. For the Qirɛk, cɛmfut means “life time”, the time that affects daily life, which is measured on a lunar scale(hours, periods, days, weeks, months). This term is used for events in the recent past and near future, regularly occurring events, and moderate unspecified amounts of time (ie. I might be a while, that time a few weeks ago, that’s around the time we normally wake up).

Ɂelet
The most precise unit of time is ɂelet, translated to “inner time” or “close time”. This is used for the precise measurement of points in space-time and the passage of small quantities of time (seconds, moments, minutes). Ɂelet is only used for specific times or to refer to specific time-locations (ie. what time is it, where are you now, at that point). The term is also used as the most precise measure of regular time (a Qirɛk second).

Measuring Time
Each ɂenin (sidereal day) is divided into 21 cɛmel (hours). The closer moon, cɛcoci, orbits Majɛn three times per ɂenin which divides each ɂenin into three ɂɛmel (7-cɛmel periods). It takes about 1.5 ɂenin, 30 cɛmel, for the outer moon, cɛcony, to make a full orbit, which is a cɛmin (lunar day). Every 13 ɂenin, cɛcoci and cɛcony align as their orbits coincide, which is a hucɛm (week). There are approximately 575 ɂenin in one ɂājet (solar year).

(There are also five ninǝmy (seasons) within each ɂājet: ɂānin (sun), cynin (rain), hicynin (wind), zamanin (snow), wōtyf (mud). These seasons don't have specific start/end points or durations, but each lasts between 100-150 ɂenin.)

On a more precise scale, each cɛmel is divided into 21 qȗt (minutes). (One qȗt is the average time a Qirɛk person can hold his or her breath. For comparison, this is about 3.4 Earth minutes! Freediving for thousands of generations has given the Qirɛk amazing lung capacity.) Each qȗt is divided into 7 maqȗt (moments), approximately the duration of one wave crashing onto the beach. Each maqȗt is then finally divided into 21 ɂelet (seconds). ✎ Edit Article ✖ Delete Article

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