In Star Trek: TOS, the Klingons were Bad Guys. The worst thing about them was that they were conquerors. The Klingon Empire (like the Terran Empire in the Mirror Universe and countless empires in real history) was an empire of the master race over conquered and exploited peoples. In TNG the Klingons were rehabbed into a proud and admirable warrior-culture. But what about all those conquered peoples? Has it ever been resolved whether they’ve still got those?
After the Praxis disaster, the Klingons re-evaluated their culture. Within 30 years of the explosion, they were the quadrant’s leading producers of low-cost, fuel-efficient personal transports and multitronics equipment, especially high-end sensory input. The Romulans eventually tried to duplicate their success but met with lots of controversy over their sentient-rights violations, leading to huge protests at the 2380 Galympics.
Was it ever said that the Klingon Empire conquered other alien races? Or did they just conquer other Klingon planets? Humans were certainly scattered everywhere in TOS; wouldn’t be a stretch to think that Klingons were too.
During the run of DS9, I really wished they would have explored the issue of subjugated worlds in the Klingon Empire. They could have had a number of really good episodes and/or multi-episode arcs about it.
- Subjugated race members seek refuge at Bajor/Federation world, pursued by Klingons who demand their extradition.
- Subjugated race members take over Klingon ship, attempt to exact revenge, drawing in the Federation.
- Dominion conquers Klingon Subject Planet, begins using subject race to provide manpower during time when the wormhole is blocked.
- In reprisal for any of the above, Klingons attempt genicide against widely used subject race, leading to wider refugee problems and High Handed Federation Moral Outrage.
- At height of Dominion War, Dominion attempts to recruit Klingon Subject Races into their alliance, promising revenge and subverting the Klingon Empire.
In “Errand of Mercy,” they occupied Organia and started treating the Organians like the Germans treated the Poles and Russians during WWII. That didn’t work out so well for them in the end because the Organians were really Energy Beings; but it was strongly implied this was SOP for the Klingon Empire. Kor even brags about it.
Also, in the episode A Private Little War , the Klingon strongly implies that he’s backing one of the villagers through conquest and plunder of the Hill people to eventualy be the governor of a the whole planet, even as far as saying “I’ll make a Klingon of you yet.”
I’m not sure if this is what you’re asking for, but in Judgment (ENT), Archer helps out some non-Klingon refugees who the Klingons say are escapees/subjects of the Empire.
I always wanted to see a character who was clearly not biologically Klingon who nevertheless was thoroughly assimilated and indeed proud of the culture, the result of his planet either being conquered generations earlier or his grandparents emigrating to a Klingon colony world or some such. If this’d happened during Enterprise, somebody could easily have pointed out to the Linda Park character that though she spoke and behaved in a typically “American” fashion, her physical appearance alone would have many humans wondering if she didn’t belong somewhere else.
I don’t think that would happen though. Klingons are biologically quite different from humans and still retain a lot of predator functions and senses - their blood lust is more than just proverbial.
The thing that always annoyed me about Klingons was their language. They were always using it, sometimes in a way that was clearly intended to communicate without others knowing what they were saying (happened in DS9 a few times) - what, was the universal translator programmed not to translate Klingon or something? It’s universal! That’s why all races speak English. The writers seemed to forget this whenever they were dealing with the Klingons.
The Klingon fanbase suggests otherwise - there are plenty of humans who would emulate Klingons if they could, and I seriously doubt their “predator functions” would seem out of place in, say, ancient Sparta. Besides, I’m talking about some alien who isn’t human nor Klingon, but whose ancestors were assimilated into the Klingon Empire. How would you deal with someone who has gills and flippers and yet speaks fluent Klingonaase and has Bat’leth skills? For that matter, how would you deal with a black person who speaks with an upper-class Boston accent, or an Asian with a Texas twang? All they need is one generation to assimilate the local culture. An unfortunate aspect of Star Trek is they pushed the “be true to yourself” thing a little too often, and it often meant “be true to what we expect of you.” The only exception I recall offhand with the TNG episode “Suddenly Human” and even that was full of soul-searching and speechifying and moral ambiguity and Picardian indecision.
That assumes the Klingons allow/encourage cultural assimilation. Empires don’t always. In some, if you’re born of a subject race you remain there; learning to speak the masters’ language is acceptable if it’s more convenient for them, but no getting above yourself. And that’s even more likely to be the case if the difference between “races” is defined by actual biology rather than social perceptions.
I don’t see any reason to assume Klingons were racial purists. Besides, there are black people in the U.S. who are patriotic Americans and recognized as valuable citizens, even if their ancestors were slaves 150 years ago.
If we never saw an “unconventional” but thoroughly assimilated Kllingon, I fault a lack of imagination on the part of the writers. If such a character had ever been used, the whole episode would have revolved around some two-bit message about racism or cultural assimilation or some such crap. I’d’ve preferred a more casual “Yeah, I’m a Klingon. So were my parents and grandparents. You sayin’ I’m not a Klingon? Fuck off, asshole.”
In a Voyager episode, “Prophecy,” some of the old-school Klingons showed a certain prejudice towards B’Elanna Torres because she was half-human and her unborn child was “not even half Klingon!”
Weren’t those particular Klingons descendents of some kind of extremist sect that was wandering the universe in search of the Chosen One? They might have about as much in common with a typical Klingon citizen as a modern New Yorker (who routinely runs into other New Yorkers of varied backgrounds) has with the Texas FLDS.
The original-series Klingons were relatively casual about assimilating planets into their empire, with Errand of Mercy being the classic example, with some additional material hinted at in Friday’s Child.
They assimilated planets into the Empire. Not the same as trying to turn their people into Klingons. The Roman Empire was assimilationist; the Persian Empire was exclusivist and non-Persians were not encouraged to think of themselves as Persians. The Klingon Empire – at least in TOS – was more like the latter.
Of course, an empire can change over time in that regard. In the first century of Islamic expansion, it was a racial empire of Arabs; outside Arabia, they lived in special military settlements to protect them from being corrupted by the local culture, and infidel subjects were not encouraged to convert to Islam. But eventually that was reversed.
They wouldn’t have to try in any significant way. The planet’s upper classes could easily adopt Klingon language and mannerisms in trying to curry favour with the new masters, and the middle classes gradually pick it up to curry favour with them.
This being a work of fiction, of course, there’s no compelling need that it perfectly conform to any historical example. Klingon houses have demonstrated a willingness to “adopt”, so genetic legacy is not an absolute. Would it be that much of a stretch for the Klingon governor of a conquered planet to adopt a local into his clan, have him educated as a Klingon and, three or four generations later, the local’s descendants are as immersed and assimilated as any native of Kronos?
Would that be any weirder than, say, a black guy who’s a devoted hockey fan? It’s only weird if we insist on thinking of it as so, and I would have liked the NextGen guys get their liberal kumbaya worldview shaken up by something that to them does not compute.
Troi: You’re a Klingon?
Assimalik: Yeah. What, you got a problem wit’ dat? I mean ‘dis wit’ all due respect but seriously, fuck you. Go Rangers!
I can’t see Klingons accepting other species. It would be like the Ferengi donating to charity. 
Certainly not canon but the game Star Fleet Battles dealt with this issue. Many Klingon ships were crewed by subject races and were commanded by Klingons. These ships had security stations and if they were destroyed during the course of the game then the subject crew might stage a mutiny.
Marc
Babel fish constipation.
Stranger
As an afterthought, the DS9 episode “You are Cordially Invited…” features the marriage of Worf (adopted into the house of Martok) to Jadzia Dax, making her and their children, had they had any, also part of that house. I presume their hypothetical children would look somewhat like Torres, since Trills are essentially humans with spots. And if those children mated with non-Klingons, presumably their children would have Klingon features even more muted. Would they be recognized as members of the house of Martok? If not, why not? And if one of those grandkids gets more Klingy than a static-charged sock, even if he or she doesn’t look the part, would it be fair to say he or she is not a Klingon?
I don’t see why the grandkid would need to justify himself. And if he adopts someone who has not genetic ties to the Klingon race but raises him as a Klingon, does the adoptee need to justify himself?
I don’t understand the objection. I have adequate basis for a character who is culturally but not genetically Klingon. The only reason one could not appear is because the writers or the audience isn’t flexible enough to accept him.