Tamarian

The Tamarians (or Children of Tama/Tamar) are a human race first encountered by the Federation in the 23rd century.

The Federation encountered the Tamarians seven times prior to 2368, but were never able to break the language barrier. In that year, Tamarian Captain Dathon beamed himself and Starfleet Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise-D to the surface of planet El-Adrel IV, in hopes that a shared conflict would lead to mutual understanding and friendship. During this encounter, it was determined that the Tamarians communicated exclusively through cultural metaphors. Though Dathon was killed on the planet, the contact marked the opening of communication between the two cultures. (TNG episode: "Darmok")

Roxana Novac was a linguist assigned to the Federation's Tamarian liaison office, and did much work in understanding the Tamarians' language. (SCE eBook: War Stories, Book One)


 * While Memory Alpha uses the term "Children of Tama," the SCE story uses "Children of Tamar."