o (2) prep. "with" (MC:216; this is "Qenya"; WJ:367 states that no independent preposition o was used in Quenya. Writers may rather use as.) See ó- below.
Quenya
as
with
as
with
as
preposition. with
asanye
verb. I will (do so) -- as you ask/order
ier
as
ier prep. "as" (VT43:16, probably rejected in favour of sívë, q.v.). In an abandoned version of the Quenya Lord's Prayer, Tolkien used ier...ter for "as...so" (VT43:17).
sívë
as
sívë (1) prep. "as", apparently ve of similar meaning with the prefix sí- "this, here, now"; sívë therefore makes a comparison with something close, whereas tambë (q.v.) refers to something remote. Sívë...tambë "as...so" (VT43:17). Elided sív' in VT43:12, since the next word begins in the vowel e-.
ya
as
ya (2) or yan, prep. "as" (VT43:16, probably abandoned in favour of sívë)
ye
as
[ye (3), also yé, prep. "as" (VT43:16, struck out; in the text in question Tolkien finally settled on sívë, q.v.)]
ier
preposition. *as
sívë
preposition. *as
yan
adverb/conjunction. *as
@@@ possibly modal adverb
cemendë tambe erumandë
on Earth as [it is] in Heaven
The fifth line of Átaremma, Tolkien’s Quenya translation of the Lord’s Prayer. The first word cemendë “on Earth” is an assimilated locative form of cemen “earth”. The word tambë likely corresponds to “as”, while Erumandë “in Heaven” is an assimilated locative form of Eruman “Heaven”. The English words “it is” are not represented in the Quenya phrase.
Decomposition: Broken into its constituent elements, this phrase would be:
> cemen-dë tambe Eruman-dë = “✱earth-on as [it is] Heaven-in”
Conceptual Development: In earlier versions of this phrase (I-V), Tolkien used menel for “Heaven”. Elsewhere, Tolkien said that menel referred to the dome of the sky or “the firmament”, and therefore was not proper for “Heaven” (MR/387, PE17/152), which is probably why he changed the word to Eruman in version VI of the prayer.
Tolkien experimented with various ways of comparing Earth to Heaven: ier ... ar tér (I), ier ... tier (IIa), ya(n) ... ar san (IIb) and san ... ya (III-IV), each probably meaning something like “as ... so ...”, as suggested by Wynne, Smith and Hostetter (VT43/16-7). In versions V and VI Tolkien switched to a single word “as”: sívë (V) and tambë (VI).
The English words “it is” are only expressed in version III-IV, with the Quenya verb na, appearing at the end of the phrase as is typical of declarative statements.
| |  I  |IIa|IIb|III|IV|V|VI| |{yé >> ye >>}|ier|ya(n)|san| | |menelle|menelze|menelde|cemende| |ar tér|tier|ar san|ya|sívë|tambe| |{kemenze >>}|cemenze|cemende|menelde|Erumande| | |na| |
sív’ emmë apsenet tien i úcarir emmen
as we forgive those who trespass against us
The eighth line of Átaremma, Tolkien’s Quenya translation of the Lord’s Prayer. The first word sív’ is an elided form of sívë “as”. It is followed by the emphatic second person plural subject pronoun emmë “us” and apsenet “forgive [them]”, the aorist form of the verb apsen- “forgive” with a plural direct object suffix -t. The fourth word tien “those” is a dative (indirect object) form of tie, apparently a variant of the third person plural pronoun te.
The second half of this phrase is the subordinate clause i úcarir emmen “who trespass against us”, composed of i “who”, úcarir “trespass” (aorist plural of úcar- “to do wrong, to sin”) and emmen “against us” (dative of emmë). The last of these is unusual in that it has an emphatic pronoun used as an object rather than the subject.
Decomposition: Broken into its constituent elements, this phrase would be:
> sív(e) emmë apsene-t tie-n i úcari-r emme-n = “✱as we forgive-them those-for who trespass-(plural) us-against”
Taken together, the first half of the phrase has a subject (emmë), verb (apsene), a direct object suffix (-t) and an indirect object (tien). The sense of the phrase is probably something like “✱as we forgive them [the trespasses] for those [the trespassers] who trespass against us”.
Conceptual Development: Earlier versions of the prayer (I-IV) used a different verb avatyar- for “forgive”, as well as different prepositions for “so”: ier (I-IIa) and yan (III-IV). They also lacked any Quenya equivalent of “those who” (tien i in versions V-VI). The literal meaning of this phrase in versions I-IV of the prayer seems to be “✱as we forgive our trespassers”.
Tolkien considered a variety of ways to express “trespassers”. In version I-III, he used a (?verbal) element meaning “trespass” with the agental suffix -ndo: lucando (I), lucindo (IIa-IIb) and rocindë (III), all meaning “trespasser” and all in the plural. In version IV, he used rohtalië “trespass-people”, a compound of the noun rohta “trespass” and lië “people”.
These he combined with either the independent pronoun menya “our” (I-IIb, IV) or the possessive suffix -mma “our” (I deletion, III). Finally, he used an ablative element meaning “from”, either the preposition va (I-IIb) or the ablative suffix -llo (I deletion, III-IV). There was a similar construction for the verb avatyar- in line 6.
In version V of the prayer, Tolkien corrected úcarer to úcarir. This second form is more consistent with the rules Tolkien followed elsewhere in forming the aorist tense of a (basic) verb: it ends in an -e if unsuffixed but has an -i- between it and any suffix (-r in this case). However, Tolkien still used the form úcarer in version IV of the prayer, for reasons unknown.
| |  I  |IIa|IIb|III|IV|V|VI| |ier|yan|sív’| |emme| |{avatyarirat >>}|avatyarir ta|avatyarilta|apsenet| | |tien i| |{lucandollommar >>}|va menya lucandor|va menya lucindor|rocindillomman|menya rohtaliello|úcarer emmen|
For better consistency with Tolkien’s other writings, I have used the more typical aorist form úcarir for the entry of this phrase. As Helge Fauskanger points out (LP-AM), there is a similar issue with apsenet, which might be expected to be ✱✱apsenit, though in this case the variation may be due to the fact that object suffixes are appended directly to the verb instead of to a subject suffix.
töa
noun. wood (as material)
A word for “wood” mentioned in passing in notes on the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 (VT39/6), also appearing in a list of “large & small” roots from around 1968 with the gloss “wood as material” and derived from the root √TAW “wood” (PE17/115).
Conceptual Development: In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien instead had ᴹQ. tavar “wood (material)” derived from primitive ᴹ✶tawar of the same meaning, from the extended root ᴹ√TÁWAR “wood, forest” (Ety/TÁWAR). In this earlier conception, the awa became ava rather than reducing to *oa* because the initial a was stressed. Stress alone was probably not enough to preserve ancient áwa in Tolkien’s later conception of the language’s phonetic development.
ve
preposition. as, like, similar, after the manner [of], as, like, similar, after the manner [of]; [ᴹQ.] with
This was the Quenya preposition for “as, like” for much of Tolkien’s life. Its first appearance was all the way back in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s where ᴱQ. ve “as, like” appeared under the early root ᴱ√VĪ “as” (QL/101), though in that document there was another preposition ᴱQ. se or sen “as, like, in manner of” under the root ᴱ√SĒ (QL/82). The preposition ᴱQ. ve was used for “like” in the Oilima Markirya poem from around 1930 (MC/213), but in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 was translated as “with” (PE22/119).
In the 1950s and 60s, ve appeared often with the translation “like” or “as”, most notably in the Namárië poem from The Lord of the Rings (LotR/377), the 1960s version of the Markirya poem (MC/222), and the Ambidexters Sentence from 1969 (VT49/6-8). In this period ve was given several different derivations, from ✶wē in 1957 (VT49/10), ✶bē in notes from the late 1950s or early 1960s (VT49/32), and ✶vai in notes from 1968 (VT49/32).
yallë
conjunction. as, like, [lit.] in the same way as
A word for “as, like” or more literally “in the same way as”, a combination of the relative pronoun ya and the suffix -llë related to lé “way, method, manner” (PE17/74).
Conceptual Development: Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 instead had ᴹQ. íl or ilde of similar meaning, but using the earlier suffix -l(de) (PE23/111).
eämbar
proper name. Creation as a Whole
latya-
verb. to open anything (so as to allow entry)
A verb appearing in notes associated with the Ósanwe-kenta essay from 1959-60, glossed “to open anything (so as to allow entry)” and derived from √LAT “open, unenclosed, free to entry” (VT41/5; PE17/159).
nár
noun. fire (as an element), fire (as an element); [ᴹQ.] flame
The basic Quenya word for “fire” derived from the root √NAR of the same meaning (PE17/29, 38), more specifically “fire as an element” or as a force or abstract concept (PE17/183), versus ruinë “a fire, a blaze” which is an individual fire or blaze in the physical world. In The Etymologies of the 1930s it appeared as ᴹQ. nár or náre “flame” derived from the root ᴹ√NAR “flame, fire” (Ety/NAR¹).
Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had as a derivative of the root ᴱ√SAH(Y)A “be hot” the word ᴱQ. Sā “Fire, especially in temples, etc. A mystic name identified with Holy Ghost” (QL/81), and this “mystic name” was also mentioned in the Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa (PME/81). Thus it seems ᴱQ. sá was “mystic fire”, as opposed to ᴱQ. uru which was ordinary “fire” (QL/98).
Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would use this word as [ᴹQ.] náre as an independent word, and use nár or nar in compounds only. This helps keep it distinct from nár the plural of ná- “to be”.
tambë engë i et...
as it was [in] the [beginning]...
The second line of Alcar i Ataren, Tolkien’s translation of the Gloria Patri prayer. The first word is tambë “as”, also seen in the Átaremma prayer. The second word is enge “[it] was”, the past tense of ëa- “to be, to exist”. This is followed by i “the” and an incomplete word beginning with et (“out?”). At this point Tolkien stopped work on the prayer.
wilwarin wilwa
vague as a butterfly
The seventh line of the Markirya poem (MC/222). The first word is wilwarin “butterfly” modified by the adjective wilwa “fluttering to and fro”, which is more loosely translated as “vague” in the poem itself. The English preposition “as” is not reflected in the Quenya text, and may be an artifact of the Early Qenya version of the poem.
Decomposition: Broken into its constituent elements, this phrase would be:
> wilwarin wilwa = “✱butterfly fluttering”
yéni únótimë ve aldaron rámar
long-years not-countable as trees’ wings
The 2nd phrase of the prose Namárië. Tolkien altered the text from the poetic version as follows:
> yéni únótimë ve rámar aldaron >> yéni únótimë ve aldaron rámar
Tolkien moved the genitive element aldaron “trees’, of trees” to be before the noun it modifies: rámar “wings”. Elsewhere Tolkien indicated that the Quenya genitive can appear after the noun in ordinary speech (WJ/368), so perhaps either placement is acceptable.
-vë
as, like
-vë, (3) apparently an ending used to derive adverbs from adjectives (see andavë under anda and oiavë under oia). May be related to the preposition ve "as, like".
Eämbar
dispositions and will of eru, with regard to creation as a whole
Eämbar noun "dispositions and will of Eru, with regard to Creation as a whole" (PE17:105)
Quenderin
quendian, belonging to the elves as a whole
Quenderin adj."Quendian, belonging to the Elves as a whole" (a learned word) (WJ:407). The phrase quenderinwë coar "Elvish bodies" (PE17:175) presupposes a longer form *quenderinwa, here attested in the pl.
Yón
region, any (fairly extensive) region between obstacles such as rivers or mountains
yón (2), variant of yondë, q.v. Defined as "a region, any (fairly extensive) region _between obstacles such as rivers or mountains" (PE17:43)_
aina-
verb. to hallow, bless, treat as holy
aina- (1) vb. "to hallow, bless, treat as holy" (PE17:149)
avar
recusant, one who refuses to act as advised or commanded
avar noun "recusant, one who refuses to act as advised or commanded"; pl. Avari Elves that refused to join in the westward march to Aman (WJ:371, singular Avar in WJ:377 and VT47:13, 24).The Etymologies gives Avar or Avaro, pl. Avari "Elves who never left Middle-earth or began the march" (AB/ABAR)
camba
the whole hand, but as flexed, with fingers more or less closed, cupped, in the attitude of receiving or holding
camba noun "the whole hand, but as flexed, with fingers more or less closed, cupped, in the attitude of receiving or holding" (VT47:7)
enelmo
go-between, intervener, intermediary [as noun], mediator
enelmo noun "a go-between, intervener, intermediary [as noun], mediator" (VT47:14)
findessë
head of hair, a person's hair as a whole
findessë noun "a head of hair, a person's hair as a whole" (PM:345). Compare findilë.
hócir-
verb. to cut off (so as to have or use a required portion)
latya-
verb. to open anything (so as to allow entry)
latya- (2) vb. "to open anything (so as to allow entry)" (PE17:159). Cf. the negated form avalatya *"un-open" = to "close"? (VT41:6). See ava- #3.
mel-
verb. love (as friend)
mel- vb. "love (as friend)" (MEL). Melinyes or melin sé "I love him" (VT49:21). LR:70 has melánë"I love", a doubtful form in Tolkien's later Quenya (melin occurs in later material).
nápat
thumb and index as a pair
nápat noun "thumb and index as a pair", a dual formation. Apparently formed from #nápa, an alternative form of nápo "thumb"; Telerin also has a final -a (rather than -o) in this word (VT48:5; etymology, VT48:16)
rondo
vaulted or arched roof, as seen from below
rondo noun "a vaulted or arched roof, as seen from below" (and usually not visible from outside); "a (large) hall or chamber so roofed", "vaulted hall" _(WJ:414; VT39:9; in the Etymologies, stem ROD, the gloss is simply "cave" or "roof"; see VT46:12 for the latter gloss)_. Cf. *Elerondo.
sav-
verb. believe (that statements, reports, traditions, etc. are) true, accept as fact
sav- vb. "believe (that statements, reports, traditions, etc. are) true, accept as fact" (VT49:27; the fist person aorist savin is given). Not used with a person as object (in the sense of believing that this person tells the truth); with a noun, name or corresponding pronoun as object, sav- implies "I believe that he/she/it really exists/existed": Savin Elessar "I believe that Elessar really existed" (VT49:27). To "believe in" someone meaning "believe that (s)he tells the truth" can be paraphrased as (for instance) savin Elesarno quetië "I believe in Elessars words" (lit. speaking). (VT49:28)
tecco
stroke of pen or brush (´) when not used as long mark
tecco ("k")noun "stroke of pen or brush (´) when not used as long mark" (TEK)
ten-
verb. go as far as
[ten- (3) vb. "go as far as", 1st person sg. aorist tenin, (tenin coaryanna "I arrive at [or come/get to] his house"), endingless aorist tenë, present tense téna- "is on point of arrival, is just coming to an end", past tense tennë "arrived, reached", in this tense usually with locative rather than allative: tennen sís "I arrive[d] here", perfect eténië "has just arrived", future tenuva "will arrive".] (VT49:23, 35, 36; Tolkien emended the initial consonant from t to m throughout)
tenna
until, up to, as far as
tenna prep. "until, up to, as far as" (CO), "unto" (VT44:35-36), "to the point", "right up to a point" (of time/place), "until", "to the object, up to, to (reach), as far as" (VT49:22, 23, 24, PE17:187), elided tenn' in the phrase tenn' Ambar-metta "unto the ending of the world" in EO, because the next word begins in a similar vowel; cf. tennoio "for ever" (tenna + oio, q.v.) The unelided form appears in PE17:105: Tenna Ambar-metta.
ve
as, like
ve (1) prep. "as, like" (Nam, RGEO:66, Markirya, MC:213, 214, VT27:20, 27, VT49:22); in Narqelion ve may mean either "in" or "as". Ve fírimor quetir *"as mortals say" (VT49:10), ve senwa (or senya) "as usual" (VT49:10). Followed by genitive, ve apparently expresses "after the manner of": ve quenderinwë coaron ("k") "after the manner of bodies of Elven-kind" (PE17:174). Tolkien variously derived Quenya ve from older wē, bē or vai(VT49:10, 32, PE17:189)
vehtë
life - not life in general or as a principle, but (a period of) individual activity
vehtë noun "life - not Life in general or as a principle, but (a period of) individual activity", thus also "the place where a person, people &c. lived and had their business, i.e. habitat, haunt" (PE17:189)
vista
air as substance
vista (1) noun "air as substance" (WIS (WIL) )
yelda
friendly, dear as friend
[yelda] adj. "friendly, dear as friend" (YEL, struck out)
yondë
any fairly extensive region with well-marked natural bonds (as mountains or rivers)
yondë noun "any fairly extensive region with well-marked natural bonds (as mountains or rivers)", occurring as a suffix -yondë, -yon/-iondë, -ion in regional names. (PE17:43). Note: †yondë may also be an (archaic/poetic) past tense of the verb yor-, q.v.
ó-
used in words describing the meeting, junction, or union of two things or persons, or of two groups thought of as units
ó- (usually reduced to o- when unstressed) a prefix "used in words describing the meeting, junction, or union of two things or persons, or of two groups thought of as units". In omentië, onóna, ónoni, q.v. _(WJ:367, PE17:191; in the Etymologies, stem WŌ, the prefix _o-, ó- is simply defined as "together".) In VT43:29 is found a table showing how pronominal endings can be added to the preposition ó-; the resulting forms are onyë or óni "with me", ómë "with us" [also in VT43:36, where "us" is said to be exclusive], ólyë or ólë "with you" (olyë only sg. "you", whereas ólë can be either sg. or pl.), ósë "with him/her", ótë *"with them" (of animates where "them" refers to non-persons, óta [or shortened ót] is used, though the conceptual validity of ta as a pl. pronoun is questionable), ósa (or shortened ós) "with it". (Two additional forms, ótar and ótari, presumably mean "with them" of inanimate things; see VT49:56 for a possible second attestation of tar as the word for plural inanimate "they".) However, Tolkien's later decision to the effect that ó- refers to two parties only may throw doubt upon the conceptual validity of some of these forms, where at least three persons would be implied (like ótë "with them", where one person is "with" two or more others though Tolkien indicates that two groups may also be involved where the preposition ó- is used). The explicit statement in WJ:367 that the prepostion o (variant of ó) did not exist independently in Quenya is however difficult to get around, so instead using the preposition ó/o (with or without endings) for "with", writers may rather use as, the form appearing in the last version of Tolkien's Quenya Hail Mary (also attested with a pronominal suffix: aselyë "with you").
tambë
preposition. *as, so
tenna
preposition. until, up to, as far as, to the point, to reach
yéni únótimë ve rámar aldaron
long years numberless as the wings of trees
Second line @@@
han-
prefix. *back as an answer or return by another agent
nornë lintieryanen
he ran as swiftly as he could, (lit.) he ran with his speed
sarda
adjective. hard (*as stone)
tengwestië
noun. language [as a concept]
a carnë ta yallë b (carnë)
A did that as / like B (did)
alfirin
noun. ’immortal’ as a flower name
náner ataformaitë ve fírimor quetir
*were ambidextrous as mortals say
nápat
noun. thumb and index [fingers] as a pair
yuluite
adjective. drinking (as a habit)
aryë
adverb. as well, besides, in addition; also known as; also, too
A neologism for “also, as well, besides, too” coined by Elaran on 2023-06-22 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS) derived from primitive ASjē based on the root √AS “beside” which is also the basis for ar “and”. I would use this neologism primarily in the sense “as well, in addition, besides” as a replacement for ᴱQ. aru, while for the sense “also” = “too” I would use attested: [ᴹQ.] yú (PE22/121-2). The neologism arye was originally proposed to mean “also known as”, such as: Artanis Nerwen, arye Altáriel. I would use arye for this sense as well.
yánë
noun. space (as a physical dimension)
A neologism for “space (as a physical dimension)” based on yána “vast, wide”. For example: “space and time” = yáne ar lúme. Paul Strack coined this neologism specifically for Eldamo to replace [ᴺQ.] nairë from the NQW based on naira “vast, wide, empty”, since that adjective based on a probably-abandoned root √ÑGAY.
henca
adjective. rare (as opposite of dense)
A neologism for “rare (as opposite of dense)” coined by Tamas Ferencz based on √HEK “separate”.
vequi
conjunction. as if, as though
@@@ Discord 2022-03-20
nairë
noun. space (as a physical dimension)
sanyesta
noun. law [as a scholarly discipline]
yaitë
conjunction. such as, of the same kind as
yalca
as much as, as great as
yallini
as many as
yanaurëa
adjective. as old as, (lit.) of the same days as
yanicca
adverb. as little as, as small as
lé
preposition. with
The preposition lé “with” was mentioned in a (rejected) etymology of S. di “with” in Tolkien’s notes on Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WPP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/94), from the phrase le nallon sí __di__’nguruthos (LotR/729), usually translated “here overwhelmed in dread of Death, I cry”. In this note, Tolkien eventually decided that S. (n)di actually meant “beneath”, and its Quenya equivalent was Q. nî.
Conceptual Development: Prepositional ᴹQ. le also appeared in the Lament of Atalante from the 1940s, in the phrase ᴹQ. Númeheruvi arda sakkante __le__néme Ilúvatáren “the Lords of the West broke the world by [or with] leave of Ilúvatar” (SD/246, 310). Here “with” seems to be used in the instrumental sense “by means of”.
The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. le “with (accompaniment)” under the early root ᴱ√LĒ (QL/52). Le was also mentioned in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon as the equivalent of G. li “with (of accompaniment only)”, but also used to mean “and” between nouns (GL/54). In this period the instrumental preposition seems to be ᴱQ. ma, which appeared in a few phrases from ᴱQ. Sí Qente Feanor from the 1910s: ᴱQ. __ma__lto ísier i nosta “✱by those from whom this birth was known” and ᴱQ. nalto fustúme __ma__ Melkon “✱they can be smelled out by Melko” (PE15/32). Compare G. ma “with instrument or by agent” from the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon (GL/55).
Neo-Quenya: I would retain ᴺQ. lé for purposes of Neo-Quenya as a rarely-used instrumental preposition meaning “with, by (means of)”, reconceived as a derivative of √LEÑ “✱way, method, manner” (PE17/74).
car-
with
#car- (2) prep. "with" (carelyë "with thee"), prepositional element (evidently an ephemeral form abandoned by Tolkien) (VT43:29)
lé
with
lé (2) prep. "with" (PE17:95)
ó
with, accompanying
as prep. "with" (together with), also attested with a pronominal suffix: aselyë "with thee" (VT47:31, VT43:29). The conjunction ar "and" may also appear in assimilated form as before s; see ar #1.