Perhaps the most controversial vulcan word, T’hy’la is a term created by Gene Roddenberry that roughly translates as “friend/brother/lover.”
It was introduced in Roddenberry’s novelization for The Motion Picture, in which he addressed Kirk/Spock slash in a now-notorious footnote. The meandering footnote attempts to deny the homosexual relationship, but never actually gives a definitive answer. It has been hotly debated by fans since the novel’s release in December 1979. [1]
Whatever its connotation, t’hy’la is probably the most well-known Vulcan word and so deserves a linguistic exploration.
Roddenberry’s definition is: “The human concept of friend is most nearly duplicated in Vulcan thought by the term t'hy'la, which can also mean brother and lover.”
But because of its comparison to romantic and familial bonds, t’hy’la implies a deeper relationship than casual Earth friendship. In fact, even Roddenberry describes Kirk and Spock’s friendship as “unusually close” in the footnote. Most fans have reserved this term for either incredibly deep platonic friendships or, more often, romantic relationships.
The Vulcan Language Institute draws a distinction between t’hyl’a, which is there defined as “friend (close/intimate)” and thrah, defined as “friend (general).” [2]
General consensus on pronunciation is “tuh-HIGH-la,” supposedly confirmed by Roddenberry himself shortly after the film’s release. [3]
Mark Gardener does not use y as a vowel in his Vulcan Language and so suggests that “t’hai’la” is the accurate spelling, [4] [5] but we retain Roddenberry’s original spelling.
Calligraphy of Gardner’s spelling, “t’hai’la,” looks like this. [6]
Calligraphy of Roddenberry’s original spelling, “t’hy’la,” looks like this:
Note: The Vulcan Language Dictionary incorrectly cites “t’hai’lu” as the VLI’s plurilzation of the world. It also includes “t’hy’lara,” defined as “2 – 5 friends; plural of t'hy'la,” and “t'hyle,” defined as “more than 5 friends.” [7] We have never seen these terms anywhere else, nor do they follow a pluralizing structure we are familiar with, so take them with a grain of salt. The correct plural would be “t’hy’lalar.”
