Jynnan Tonnyx?

What’s a Jynnan Tonnyx?

It is a curious fact, and one to which no one knows quite how much importance to attach, that something like 85% of all known worlds in the Galaxy, be they primitive or highly advanced, have invented a drink called jynnan tonnyx, or gee-N’N-T’N-ix, or jinond-o-nicks, or any one of a thousand or more variations on the same phonetic theme. The drinks themselves are not the same, and vary between the Sivolvian “chinanto/mnigs” which is ordinary water served at slightly above room temperature, and the Gagrakackan “tzjin-anthony-ks” which kills cows at a hundred paces; and in fact the one common factor between all of them, beyond the fact that the names sound the same, is that they were all invented and named before the worlds concerned made contact with any other worlds.

What can be made of this fact? It exists in total isolation. As far as any theory of structural linguistics is concerned it is right off the graph, and yet it persists. Old structural linguists get very angry when young structural linguists go on about it. Young structural linguists get deeply excited about it and stay up late at night convinced that they are very close to something of profound importance, and end up becoming old structural linguists before their time, getting very angry with the young ones. Structural linguistics is a bitterly divided and unhappy discipline, and a large number of its practitioners spend too many nights drowning their problems in Ouisghian Zodahs.

Douglas Adams, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

Comments

6 responses to “Jynnan Tonnyx?”

  1. Che' Nonnto-Niexcks Avatar
    Che’ Nonnto-Niexcks

    Excellent trip down an old favorite path, thanks. Time to refresh my drink.

  2. Antriksh Avatar

    Just fixed my Nutrimatic Drinks Dispenser. I have modified it so that it actually works. I stuck my tongue into it and it gave me a glass of jynnan tonnyx.

  3. […] enjoys when I read the Guide aloud to her when we float on lakes in the summer with flagons full of Jynnan Tonnyx.  And yes, we are totally hoopy froods who know exactly where our towels are.  Hit me up and […]

  4. […] leaves me where I am now.  Chillin’ out, maxin’, relaxin’ all cool with a tasty jynnan tonnyx, contemplating some Katamari, and/or the prospect of going to bed before midnight for the fourth […]

  5. jesspants Avatar

    This makes me so happy. <3

  6. Travis Briggs Avatar

    Searching the web for exactly this quote. Thanks!

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