First set of ears?

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

NOG: On Ferenginar, we learn about the Continuum while we still have our first set of ears.

Is this literal (Ferengi children shed their ears?!), or solely metaphorical (i.e. when they're very young, the same stage when Human children have their baby teeth - implying smaller and less developed prior to growing, not falling off and being replaced with brand new growths)?

It's an odd expression to use unless they adapted it from a similar phrase about something else in their culture that does shed once and grow back, unless that's just the best translation Nog has for whatever Ferengi say. It's be like a person saying "our first nose" or "our baby fingers".

 

[Nerys Myk]

Is this literal (Ferengi children shed their ears?!), or solely metaphorical (i.e. when they're very young, the same stage when Human children have their baby teeth - implying smaller and less developed prior to growing, not falling off and being replaced with brand new growths)?

It's an odd expression to use unless they adapted it from a similar phrase about something else in their culture that does shed once and grow back, unless that's just the best translation Nog has for whatever Ferengi say. It's be like a person saying "our first nose" or "our baby fingers".

Sounds like an attempt to "alienfy" a human idiom. A throw away line.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

They could have just said teeth - Ferengi are (lesser) known for having sharpened teeth, but I suppose it's because ears are their most prominent, oft-mentioned feature.

 

[scotpens]

It could be calqued from a Ferengi idiom meaning something like "when a child is just starting to learn language." Although a more likely idiom would be "while we still have our baby tongue."

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Or their phrase "lobes for business"? https://www.amazon.com/Disney-Emper...r's+new+groov,stripbooks-intl-ship,148&sr=1-1

 

[Tosk]

Perhaps male Ferengi have smaller lobes in childhood like those we see on females...then when they grow they are referred to as their second set?

The Ferengi prosthetic has no real opening where our ear canal is, so I kind of head-canon that they either don't have the same internal set-up as we do or if they do there is a membrane covering the opening. So maybe I could incorporate the first set of ears into that somehow. ie: The membrane is there to help protect the ear canal until the outer ears come in...or something.

 

[F. King Daniel]

I like to think Nog's look in the fan-film Renegades: Requiem is his in-between sets of ears look.

 

[Lynx]

Is this literal (Ferengi children shed their ears?!), or solely metaphorical (i.e. when they're very young, the same stage when Human children have their baby teeth - implying smaller and less developed prior to growing, not falling off and being replaced with brand new growths)?

It's an odd expression to use unless they adapted it from a similar phrase about something else in their culture that does shed once and grow back, unless that's just the best translation Nog has for whatever Ferengi say. It's be like a person saying "our first nose" or "our baby fingers".

Now, this is an interesting thing which I've never thought about, not even after years of watching DS9.

But in that case, the new ears must grow undetr the old ones until the old ones just cracks, fall of and reveal the new ones.

I can't imagine Quark suddenly losing his ears and having to hide for a couple of weeks or months because other Ferengi might mistake him for a "Fee-male".

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

But in that case, the new ears must grow undetr the old ones until the old ones just cracks, fall of and reveal the new ones.

Like snakeskin?