kylemb83 Posted August 6, 2016 Report Share Posted August 6, 2016 anyone figure out what kaluk'i'iki means Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Radiant Returned he/him Posted August 6, 2016 Report Share Posted August 6, 2016 I think it means wife, or greatest female love, or something along those lines. Rock says this to Kaladin Quote When you are able to travel that far without being eaten by chasmfiend or killed in floods, I shall name you my kaluk'i'iki. The Coppermind also states that only a woman can be called a kaluk'i-'ki Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Killik he/him Posted August 8, 2016 Report Share Posted August 8, 2016 From what i remember in the books, and a quick look on the coppermind, I can only find one reference to a Horneater 'leader' which is a "nuatoma" - referenced when Rock was talking about shards. If a nuatoma won a shard he would be named king. But if he's fighting to win shards, he would then be a 4th son since they're the warriors and not a leader of the village. So perhaps the Kaluk'i'iki is a matriarch in Horneater society. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FeatherWriter she/her Posted August 9, 2016 Report Share Posted August 9, 2016 Well, Rock says outright that kaluk'i'iki is not a wife, but he doesn't actually explain what it is. Could be a matriarch of some kind. Quote “Yes,” Rock said, laughing, “and when you are able to travel that far without being eaten by chasmfiend or killed in floods, I shall name you my kaluk’i’iki.” Kaladin raised an eyebrow. “Only a woman can be kaluk’i’iki,” Rock said, as if that explained the joke. “Wife?” Rock laughed even louder. “No, no. Airsick lowlanders. Ha! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pathfinder Posted August 9, 2016 Report Share Posted August 9, 2016 35 minutes ago, FeatherWriter said: Well, Rock says outright that kaluk'i'iki is not a wife, but he doesn't actually explain what it is. Could be a matriarch of some kind. Maybe sister? I feel like the joke is more the impossibility of Kaladin being called it as only a woman has that title. So unless he magically has a sex change, there is no way he is a kaluk'i'iki and thus no way he could manage not getting eaten by chasmfiends or killed in floods. Regarding the "name you", in our own language we use that too. Just its more like "if you get me out of this bind, I will call you brother". Total stretch I know, but just a thought I had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+hwiles Posted August 9, 2016 Report Share Posted August 9, 2016 18 minutes ago, FeatherWriter said: Well, Rock says outright that kaluk'i'iki is not a wife, but he doesn't actually explain what it is. Could be a matriarch of some kind. Some kind of matriarch seems like a good hypothesis. First off, I know explaining humor is painfully unfunny and laughter-killing, so I'm sorry in advance. Rock jokingly says he'll name Kaladin his kaluk’i’iki if Kaladin can travel a great distance through outrageously hazardous conditions unharmed. The humor could be originating from a variety of angles, including but not limited to: 1. A kaluk'i'iki is the only type of person or thing that could survive such a treacherous journey and all kaluk'i'iki are women/feminine in nature, ergo, Kaladin is a girl (pause for laughs). This would suggest kaluk'i'iki are some type of elite survivalist, guardian spirit (or spren), or otherwise unyielding hero/leader of the community. 2. Rock currently has a kaluk'i'iki who is one tough and/or stubborn lady and probably the only person capable of pulling off such an unbelievable feat; the humor would then come from the absurdity of Kaladin holding the relationship to Rock of a kaluk'i'iki. Rock then goes on to laugh again when Kaladin asks if a kaluk'i'iki is a wife, implying that the idea is scandalous or profoundly silly, suggesting a kaluk'i'iki might be of a familial or ancestral relation, such as a mother, sister, or grandmother. 3. Rock is making a mocking comparison between Kaladin's likelihood for success (which Rock believes to be zero), and his likelihood of becoming a kaluk'i'iki (definitely zero). The joke being that Kaladin has no chance for success combined with the juxtaposition of proposing Kaladin adopt a female role (IE: Kaladin's chance of success is about as good as his chance of growing breasts; pause for laughs). This interpretation would allow kaluk'i'iki to mean pretty much anything, as it would no longer need to be relevant to the context of traveling, survival, or heroism in order to be perceived as funny. However, Rock presumably felt that a kaluk'i'iki was an important or prominent enough figure that Kaladin ought to be able to understand the joke that was being made; combined with Rock's derisive laughter when Kaladin asked if it meant wife, this would imply that a kaluk'i'iki is some type of important matriarchal figure of a community, spirtiual leader, or female relative. TLDR; Based on how the word was used, a kaluk'i'iki is probably one of the following: a type of female relative/ancestor, a prominent matriarchal figure, a spiritual leader, or some kind of spren that Horneater culture treats as female. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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