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--- Christian Thalmann skrzypszy:
> > Polish ("pan/pani") (lit. Mr./Mrs., Lord/Lady).
>
> So that works... I've been considering using |is doemu,
> ja doema| with the third person as the polite form, but
> I wondered whether it wouldn't create misunderstandings
> when talking about some other sir/ma'am than the one
> you're talking to.
Well, in Polish "pan" always refers to the person addressed. In the case of a
third person you would add a demonstrative: "ten pan", "ta pani".
The Jervans will definitely find a way to distinguish: either by doing the same
(although I don't know the demonstratives in Jovian), or by removing the
article when doemu/-a is used instead of a second person.
BTW Dutch has something similar:
"Had meneer nog een glas water gehad willen hebben voordat meneer gaat slapen?"
Evidently, this is typical butler to master talk. However, you can frequently
hear parents saying to their children: "Geef die meneer eens een handje."
Jan
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