Betazoid? why zoid?

[xvicente]

When I first heard Troi was a "betazoid", I didnt know what that word meant. The suffix 'oid' was odd there.

I thought she would look like, I dont know, a squid or whatever.

Then someone said, betazoids are from Betazed.

The universal translator must have had a glitch. The word don't sound like a demonym.

Why Betazoid and not Betazedean, like Organian, Andorian, Vulcan, Alderaanian, Romulan, see what I am saying?

 

[R. Star]

Why assume the naming conventions of aliens have to conform to ours?

 

[Takeru]

Why Betazoid and not Betazedean, like Organian, Andorian, Vulcan, Alderaanian, Romulan, see what I am saying?

Earthian?

 

[R. Star]

Humanoid?

 

[E-DUB]

Could just be their own term that made it into Fed standard. Like Michigander.

 

[xvicente]

They also don't say Data is an android bcause he is from the planet Androida. That would be silly.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

I think its simply a case of why not?

Not many species have an 'oid', so it immediately makes them different. And as said before, they're alien so they don't need to stick to human naming systems.

 

[Christopher]

It's better than Betazedan or Betazite.

The -oid suffix literally means "resembling," and tends to be used in fiction to refer to creatures that resemble another type of creature. "Android" means "resembling a man," for example. "Humanoid" is a linguistically inaccurate term for humanlike creatures ("hominid" would be more accurate etymologically, though not taxonomically). So you'd usually see the term applied in such descriptive ways, like "felinoid," "insectoid," and the like.

I've seen other aliens in fiction whose names ended in -oid, though usually in less serious contexts, like Buckaroo Banzai's Lectroids. And there are the eponymous creatures of the Metroid video games. I think there's a cheesy B-grade horror movie called Inseminoid. But there must be a fair amount of sci-fi monsters with names ending in -zoid (which would literally mean "resembling an animal"), given that Futurama used "Zoidberg" as a gag alien name. There was a toy line called Zoids once.

Oh, and in the universe of my novel Only Superhuman, there's a cheesy kids' show where the main alien villains are called Zelkoids, so I've done it myself.

 

[MikeS]

It sounds better than Betanoid.

 

[Mojochi]

Well Humans aren't from the Planet Hume, the people of Ferenginar aren't called Ferenginarians, & the Klingons originate on a world called Qo'noS. It's fair to say there's no rule book on nomenclature.

 

[Pavonis]

When I first heard Troi was a "betazoid", I didnt know what that word meant. The suffix 'oid' was odd there.

I thought she would look like, I dont know, a squid or whatever.

Why would you think she would look like a squid? Were you only listening to the TNG episodes? When did you learn Troi was a humanoid female? Just today?

 

[MikeS]

When I first heard Troi was a "betazoid", I didnt know what that word meant. The suffix 'oid' was odd there.

I thought she would look like, I dont know, a squid or whatever.

Why would you think she would look like a squid? Were you only listening to the TNG episodes? When did you learn Troi was a humanoid female? Just today?

To be fair she was squidy-like in Genesis.

 

[Christopher]

Well Humans aren't from the Planet Hume, the people of Ferenginar aren't called Ferenginarians, & the Klingons originate on a world called Qo'noS. It's fair to say there's no rule book on nomenclature.

Except that in "Heart of Glory" it was implied that Klingons came from the planet Kling. And the novel The Final Reflection called it Klinzhai.

When I first heard Troi was a "betazoid", I didnt know what that word meant. The suffix 'oid' was odd there.

I thought she would look like, I dont know, a squid or whatever.

Why would you think she would look like a squid? Were you only listening to the TNG episodes? When did you learn Troi was a humanoid female? Just today?

He said "when I first heard," so I'd assume he's referring to his assumption from reading about the character before he saw the show.

 

[RoJoHen]

Martia in TUC described herself as a Chameloid. I assumed that was her species' name. Though for what it's worth, did we EVER encounter another shapeshifting alien that wasn't a Founder?

 

[Christopher]

Though for what it's worth, did we EVER encounter another shapeshifting alien that wasn't a Founder?

Oh, yes, plenty. Here's a list of about 30, though it includes some incorporeal superbeings like Q, some that were just illusion-casters like the salt vampire, and some who used technology to change or disguise themselves. But I'd say there are at least nine corporeal species other than Changelings that could change their shape naturally: the Wraith from ENT: "Rogue Planet," the unnamed shapeshifting thieves from ENT: "Two Days and Two Nights," the Antosians from TOS: "Whom Gods Destroy," the Vendorians from TAS: "The Survivor," the Chameloids from TUC, the space jellyfish from TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint," the Allasomorphs from TNG: "The Dauphin," the coalescent organism from TNG: "Aquiel," and Steth from VGR: "Vis a Vis." (And the genetically enhanced Suliban, but that falls a bit outside "naturally.") Plus some that might have been using either shapeshifting or illusion projection, like the Devidians from TNG's "Time's Arrow" or the abductors from TNG: "Allegiance."

 

[Hober Mallow]

I feel bad for the people of the Hemorrh system.

 

[jimbotron]

You're a droid, and I'm a 'noid.

 

[R. Star]

You're a droid, and I'm a 'noid.

Data should've pushed Guinan overboard after -that- bad joke.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Betazed was probably named just like Delta was: A code name given to it by the human explorers who made first contact. Similar to the Deltans (who are actually from 'Dhei' of the star 'Lta', and the humans who visited them simply shortened it to 'Delta' - thank you Christopher), the Betazoids' own name for the planet is probably completely different. I'm guessing whoever made first contact with them simply gave it a letter combination, i.e. 'Beta' and 'Zed'.

 

[Nerys Myk]

When I first heard Troi was a "betazoid", I didnt know what that word meant. The suffix 'oid' was odd there.

I thought she would look like, I dont know, a squid or whatever.

Then someone said, betazoids are from Betazed.

The universal translator must have had a glitch. The word don't sound like a demonym.

Why Betazoid and not Betazedean, like Organian, Andorian, Vulcan, Alderaanian, Romulan, see what I am saying?

Vulcans aren't from the planet Vulc.