ber

root. to mate, be mated, joined in marriage

The root √BER appeared in later writing as the basis for marriage words, and Quenya marriage words began with ver- for much of Tolkien’s life, dating all the way back in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s. However, there are many ways to produce a medial r in Quenya, and Tolkien experimented with more or less all of them in the formation of this root, as seen by the shifting forms in other branches in the Elvish languages.

The earliest form of this root appeared as √VEŘE in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/101), where the Ř indicated the actual primitive form was VEÐE (or ɃEÐE), as confirmed by its Gnomish equivalent Bedh- (QL/101; GL/22). This early root was unglossed, but its derivatives all had to do with marriage, including ᴱQ. veru/G. †benn/G. bedhron “husband”, ᴱQ. †veri/ᴱQ. vesse/G. bess “wife” and ᴱQ. vesta-/G. benna- “to wed”.

There are indications this root may have initially been ᴹ√BED in The Etymologies of the 1930s, based on primitive forms like ᴹ✶bedū “spouses” (Ety/LEP). But the main “marriage” entry in The Etymologies was ᴹ√BES “wed”, with derivatives like ᴹQ. vesta- “to wed”, ᴹQ. venno/N. benn “husband” and ᴹQ. vesse/N. bess “wife”. One interesting feature about this conceptual stage is that the Noldorin words for “husband” and “wife” drifted in meaning to become simply “man” and “woman”, and new words N. herven and herves were coined for “husband” and “wife”.

In various etymological notes from the late 1960s, Tolkien introduced a new root √BER for marriage. His longest description of it was in a 1969 note:

> √BER “to mate, be mated, joined in marriage”: Q. verya (intr.) “to marry (of husband and wife), be joined to” (veryanen senna); verta (tr.) “to give in marriage (a) to (b), or to take as husband or wife (to oneself)”; verū > veru “husband”; verī > veri “wife” (VT49/45).

The forms Q. veru/veri “husband/wife” were restorations of the Early Qenya forms from the 1910s.

It is not entirely clear when Tolkien made this change to the root, but in The Road Goes Ever On published in 1967, he said that “[S.] bereth actually meant ‘spouse’, and is used of one who is ‘queen’ as spouse of a king” (RGEO/66), strongly hinting that this word was derived from √BER “wed” at that conceptual stage. Earlier on, N./S. bereth “queen” was derived from primitive ✶barathī, an etymology Tolkien was still using in notes from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/22-23). As discussed in the entry on Elbereth, this etymology presented some phonological difficulties in Sindarin, which may have motivated Tolkien to introduce a new etymology for S. bereth, switching to the root √BER for marriage in the process. My best guess is that this switch happened sometime in the mid-1960s, but it could have been earlier.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin writing, I think it is best to ignore the introduction of the root √BER “wed”, and keep using ᴹ√BES “wed” from The Etymologies. As a root for marriage, √BER presents a number of problems:

• It clashes with ᴹ√BER “valiant” from the 1930s, the basis for the name S. Beren.

• It invalidates a number of Noldorin words for husband and wife with no obvious replacements.

• In Sindarin it is difficult to keep derivatives of √BER “wed” from colliding with other words like beria- “to protect”, bertha- “to dare” and beren “bold”, though technically these are all Noldorin words.

The main disadvantage of ignoring √BER “wed” is that it leaves us with no good etymology for the name S. Elbereth. It is quite possible to solve the above problems with √BER by coining new words, but I prefer to keep using the older words as they are quite popular in Neo-Sindarin. It would be relatively easy to coin a new etymology for Elbereth instead, perhaps from ✱elen-baratthī with the longer cluster inhibiting i-intrusion. See the entry on S. bereth for further discussion.

(au)be

adverb. not so

eñ

root. be, exist

Throughout much of its conceptual development, Quenya had two distinct roots for the verb to be: the root √NĀ functioning mainly as a copula in “to be” expressions like Elrondo Elda ná “Elrond is an Elf” or Aracorno halla ná “Aragorn is tall”, versus a distinct root used mainly for existential statements such as Eru ëa “God exists”. The copula-root was established very early as √NĀ, but the existential-root varied considerably.

The earliest version of the existential root was ᴱ√Ō “be, exist” from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/69). By the 1920s it seems this root has changed to ᴱ√Ī as it appeared in Early Qenya words lists from that period (PE16/140), and the verb for “to be” in the contemporaneous Early Qenya Grammar was ᴱQ. e- or i (PE14/51, 57).

A similar root ᴹ√YĒ or ᴹ√I appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s, albeit with no derivatives (EtyAC/YE). It was most likely the basis for the so-called “stative” suffix ᴹQ. -ie seen in the contemporaneous Fíriel’s Song (LR/72). The root ᴹ√YE was also mentioned in both the first and second versions of the Tengwesta Qenderinwa from 1937 (TQ1: PE18/60) and around 1950 (TQ2: PE18/84), though in the latter it was rejected (PE18/84 note #69). This root is reflected in the use of ᴹQ. ye- in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 (PE22/107, 115, 117, 119-120), but this verb was rejected and replaced towards the end of that document by a new verb ᴹQ. ea- (PE22/122-124 and PE22/123 note #130). The rejection of ye- “to be” may be due to the introduction of Q. yén for the Elvish long year, as suggested by Christopher Gilson (PE22/86).

In QVS, the new verb ea- was derived from a primitive ✱eʒe or ✱eñe (PE22/122); the root ᴹ√EƷ “be” had already been mentioned in Outline of Phonetic Development (OP1) from the 1940s, indicating Tolkien had been considering this form for some time. In 1948 QVS, Tolkien said:

> The primary sense of this verb was “to exist, to have being, to be found, extant, in the real world”. But it was often weakened to the copula, in statements of identity or predication. This however in classical Quenya was limited mainly to the past and future (PE22/123).

Thus in 1948 Tolkien started the process of establishing ea- as primarily an existential verb. A few years later, Tolkien mentioned the root √EÑ “be” in the Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s (PE19/96) and he described √EÑ more fully in verbal notes from 1969 where he said:

> Stem of verb “exist” (have being in primary world of history) was √EŊE, distinct from √NA joining adjs./nouns/pronouns in statements (or wishes) asserting (or desiring) a thing to have a certain quality, or to be the same as another (PE22/147).

Thus the conceptual development of this root seems to have roughly been √Ō (1910s) >> √YĒ/Ī (1920s) >> √EƷ (late 1940s) >> √EÑ (early 1950s). This is an oversimplification however, in that √EƷ appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s and Tolkien may have been considering it much earlier. Furthermore, the role of √EÑ as primarily as existential root (vs. copula √NĀ) was only firmly established in Tolkien’s later writings. When the root was √YĒ/Ī in the 1920s through 1940s, it seems the verbs ᴱQ. e- and ᴹQ. ye- were used for both existential statements and as a copula, and in this period √NĀ (though mentioned) was rarely used and may have been out of favor.

lay

root. *be alive, flourish, [ᴱ√] be alive, flourish

This root was primarily used as the basis for Elvish words for summer and, via its extended root √LAYAK, freshness and greenness. Its earliest appearance was as ᴱ√LAẎA “be alive, flourish” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/52) where the Ẏ indicated an ancient palatal spirant, [c] or [ɟ]. In this period it had derivatives like ᴱQ. laiqa/G. laib “green” and ᴱQ. laire/G. glair “meadow” (QL/52; GL/39, 52).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s ᴹ√LAYA was unglossed with a single derivative ᴹQ. laire “summer”, appearing in a marginal note next to more detailed ᴹ√LAYAK (EtyAC/LAYA). In this document, Tolkien gave the derivatives of ᴹ√LAYAK as ᴹQ. laiqa “green” vs. N. lhoeb “fresh” (Ety/LAYAK). The Ilkorin form laig “fresh, lively; keen, sharp” was said to be blended with ᴹ√LAIK “keen, sharp, acute” (Ety/LAIK), so “✱fresh” was probably the original meaning of ᴹ√LAYAK.

The root √LAY appeared quite regularly in Tolkien’s later writings, but was never glossed. It was mentioned in the second version of Tengwesta Qenderinwa from around 1950 as an example of a bi-consonantal root (PE18/97). It appeared in 1957 etymological notes as the basis for “summer” and “green”: the former still Q. lairë but the latter now Q. laika (PE17/145, 159). It was mentioned again in a 1958 letter to Rhona Beare as the basis for “summer” and ”green”, with the Sindarin form S. laeg having largely been replaced by S. calen “green” (Let/282).

Most likely this root retained the same basic sense as it had in the Qenya Lexicon, connected as it was to words having to do with freshness and liveliness.

gal

root. grow (like plants), flourish, be healthy, be vigorous, bloom, grow (like plants), flourish, be healthy, be vigorous, bloom, [ᴹ√] thrive

A root meaning “grow, flourish” used in both Quenya and Sindarin, though in Quenya it was influenced by other roots such as √AL(A) “good, blessed”. Its precursors in the earliest versions of Tolkien’s languages seem to be ᴱ√ALA “spread” (QL/29) and a Gnomish-only root ᴱ√cala [kala], unglossed but with derivatives like G. calw “green shoot, sapling, sprout” and G. caltha- “wax, grow, flourish” (GL/25).

The root ᴹ√GALA first appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s with various glosses, the last being “thrive” (Ety/GALA). The relevant entries went through considerable revision. For example, the meaning of this root was first given as “grow”, but this meaning was rejected and Tolkien said the verb for “grow” was ol- (EtyAC/GAL(AS)). This new verb seems to be based on a variant root ✱ᴹ√GOL, as indicated by ᴹQ. ola- “grow” < ᴹ✶golā- “grow” appearing in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 as a replacement for ᴹQ. ala- < ᴹ✶galā- (PE22/113, note #80), though the new root might also have been ᴹ√OL “grow” as indicated earlier in the same document (PE22/103). Since ᴹ√GALA was retained in The Etymologies, most likely the meaning of this root was changed from “grow” to “thrive” in the 1930s and 40s.

It seems ᴹ√OL “grow” survived into the 1950s (NM/84, 119-120), often with the sense “become” as well (PE22/134); see the entry on √OL for discussion. However, the sense “grow” as also restored to √GAL, but limited mainly to plants. For example, Common Eldarin: Verb Structure from the early 1950s had the primitive verbs ✶galā- “grow (of plants)” vs. ✶olā- “become, come into being, turn into (another state)” (PE22/134). This definition of √GAL as “growth” (along with “flourish” and “be healthy”) appeared regularly in Tolkien’s later writings, though it was often limited primarily to plants, especially in its connection to ✶galadā, the basis for tree words (PE17/25, 135, 153).

kor

root. round, round; [ᴱ√] be round, roll

This was the Elvish root for round things throughout Tolkien’s life. It first appeared as ᴱ√KORO “be round, roll” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, and had Early Qenya and Gnomish derivatives like ᴱQ. korima “round” and G. corm “ring, circle, disc” (GL/26). ᴹ√KOR “round” reappeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives in both Quenya and Noldorin (Ety/KOR). √KOR “round” was also mentioned in etymological notes probably written in the early 1960s (PE17/184). Its derivatives like Q. corma “ring” (LotR/953) and S. cerin “(circular) mound” (LotR/350; RC/309) appeared regularly in Tolkien’s later writings.

lat

root. open, unenclosed, free to entry; low, lowlying, at ground level, open, unenclosed, free to entry, [ᴹ√] lie open; be extended, stretch, be situated (of an area); [√] low, lowlying, at ground level

This root has a lengthy history in Tolkien’s development of the Elvish languages.

Its development seems to have begun in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with unglossed ᴱ√LAHA which had derivatives like ᴱQ. lá “moor, heath, open space” and ᴱQ. lāta- “spread, extend, lie (of country)” (QL/50). This root was compared to a variety of other roots: ᴱ√ALA, ᴱ√AŘA, ᴱ√ṆŘṆ, ᴱ√LAŘA and ᴱ√LATA, but the last of these was a later addition, both to the list and as an entry in the lexicon (QL/51). This newer entry had derivatives like ᴱQ. latwa “smooth, glossy” and ᴱQ. latsin(a) “level, smooth”, the latter transferred from ᴱ√LAHA. This new root also had Gnomish derivatives such as G. lad “a level, a flat; fair dealing” and G. ladin “level, smooth; fair, equitable” (GL/52).

After the 1910s it seems ᴱ√LAHA “✱open” faded out of use (though it may have remerged much later as √LAƷ “cross, pass over, go beyond”: PE17/91), but ᴱ√LATA “✱level, smooth” reappeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s as ᴹ√LAT “lie open” with derivatives like ᴹQ. latin(a) “open, free, cleared (of land)” and N. lhand “open space, level” (Ety/LAT). It is also evident in N. -lad “plain” from names like N. Lithlad “Plain of Ash” and N. Dagorlad “Battle Plain” from Lord of the Rings drafts (TI/208, 389), both of which reappeared in the published version (LotR/243, 636).

The root appeared again in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 with the gloss “be extended, stretch, be situated (of an area)” and a Quenya verb ᴹQ. lat- of similar meaning (PE22/126). In this document it was compared to ᴹ√LAD “lie flat, be flat”, and Tolkien said the two roots were confused in Noldorin as a way of explaining N. laden “flat (and wide)”.

The next appearance of √LAT is in etymological notes from 1959-60 with the gloss “open, unenclosed, free to entry” and contrasted with √PAK “shut” (VT41/5-6). In these notes the derivative Q. latina also reappeared with a meaning similar to the one it had in The Etymologies: “free (of movement), not encumbered with obstacles”. The last appearance of √LAT in currently published materials is in 1968 notes on D/L variations in Common Eldarin, where it was glossed “at ground level, low; lowlying” and compared to √DAT “fall down” (VT48/24); in this document it had no derivatives.

All this amounts to considerable conceptual variation in the meaning of this root. To summarize:

• 1910s ᴱ√LATA “✱level, smooth” as alternate to ᴱ√LAHA “✱open” (QL/50-51).

• 1930s ᴹ√LAT “lie open” compared to (unglossed) ᴹ√LAD (Ety/LAD, LAT).

• 1940s ᴹ√LAT “be extended, stretch, be situated (of an area)” contrasted with ᴹ√LAD “lie flat, be flat” (PE22/126).

• 1959-60 √LAT “open, unenclosed, free to entry” contrasted with √PAK “shut” (VT41/5-6).

• 1968 √LAT “at ground level, low; lowlying” contrasted with √DAT “fall down” (VT48/24).

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I think it is best to assume this root has the sense “(lie) open, be extended, unenclosed”, as this is consistent with the largest number of derivatives of the root.

mō

root. labour, be afflicted

This root first appeared as unglossed ᴹ√MŌ in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives like ᴹQ. mól/N. mûl “slave, thrall” and ᴹQ. móta-/N. muda- “labour, toil” (Ety/MŌ). The root √mō was mentioned again in notes associated with 1950s Quenya prayers, where it was glossed “labour, be afflicted” along with verb Q. moia- of similar meaning and noun (Q. or primitive) mōl “slave” < mō-l; Tolkien went on to suggest √mol might be a better root, though he marked it with a “?” (VT43/31).

In notes on “large vs. small” from 1968 Tolkien had (root or verb?) mol- “labour” and (noun?) mōle, followed by MBOL/BOL with derivative Q. molda “big, large”, but this note was crossed through and √(M)BOL “✱large” did not appear in the next list of the large/small roots (PE17/115). Thus I think √MO(L) reverted back to the meaning “labour”.

nath

root. welcome, be kind to

A root appearing with Notes on Names (NN) from 1957 glossed “welcome, be kind to”, with what appears to be a primitive word and its Sindarin derivative: ✶nathlo and S. nathal “guest” (PE17/141).

thā/atha

root. ease, comfort, heal; be helpful; be willing to assist (in any work, etc.), agree, consent, ease, comfort, heal; be helpful; be willing to assist (in any work, etc.), agree, consent; [ᴹ√] forward

Tolkien introduced the root ᴹ√THA in Quendian & Common Eldarin Verbal Structure (EVS1) of the 1930s to serve as the basis for the (Old) Noldorin future suffix -thā. Tolkien said: “This thā is probably in origin a defining adverb = then, next, since with time-reference the pronominal stem √THA in Noldorin referred forward” (PE22/97). Tolkien described a similar system for Sindarin in Common Eldarin: Verb Structure (EVS2) of the early 1950s: “The element thā is adverbial, and meant originally ‘then, next’. The pronominal stem the/tha when used in Sindarin with time-reference pointed forward to the future” (PE22/131).

In notes on Words, Phrases and Passages in the Lord of the Rings from the late 1950s or early 1960s, Tolkien assigned a disinct meaning for √ATH as “ease, comfort, heal”, forming the basis for the name of the healing plant S. athelas or Q. asëa aranion (PE17/49). In Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959 Tolkien gave √ATHA as the basis for a number of words such as verb Q. asya-/S. eitha- “to ease, assist” and prefix Q. as(a)-/S. ath- “easily” (PE17/148).

In Late Notes on Verb Structure (LVS) from 1969, Tolkien connected √THA and √ATHA as a “mono-consonantal reversible” root ÞĀ̆/AÞA combining these two senses. As Tolkien described it:

> Its basic sense was probably “be helpful”, be willing to assist, in any work etc., agree, consent ... this sense is obscured in the uses of aþa- with other verbs, it may be supposed to be the earliest sense, because of derivatives made from it, such as Q aþea (< apaya) name (as = “beneficial” ?) of a herb (PE22/165).

From this, Tolkien described a variety of derivatives, such as Q. aþumo “good companion”, S. natha- (< an-aþa-) “bring help to, save, rescue” and Q. þá or aþa “I agree”, or in longer form aþanye “I will (do so)”. In Sindarin, this verb developed into a sort of future inflection:

> In S. the verb aþa, atha had become agglutinated to the verb stem, and formed a kind of “future”, expressing the intention of the subject, closely resembling in sense and uses English will (when not mere future): I will (I’ll) go, he will (he’ll) go, espec. in the 1st and 3rd persons. In the second person the implication of “will” of the subject is clearest in questions or negation (PE22/167).

As described in this document, the Sindarin verbal suffix -atha was not a true future, but was rather an expression of intent. Nevertheless, this document connected both prior senses of the roots √THA “future” and √ATHA “ease, assist, comfort” via a more basic sense of “be helpful”, with atha- “agree” > “I will” > (in Sindarin only) a future sense resembling English “I will [I intend to] go”. In this same document, however, Tolkien considered splitting out the medical senses of √ATHA into a distinct root √HATHA “treat kindly/make easy, (help to) cure”; see that entry for details.

ur

root. heat, be hot

This root was connected to “heat” for most of Tolkien’s life. It first appeared as unglossed ᴱ√URU in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, with derivatives like ᴱQ. úrin “(blazing) hot”, ᴱQ. uru “fire”, G. urin “hot, very hot”, and G. urna- “blaze, burn” (QL/98; GL/75). In this early period it was blended with the root ᴱ√UŘU with variant ᴱ√USU which had derivatives like ᴱQ. urna “oven” and ᴱQ. usta- “burn” (QL/98). This second root had derivatives in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon such as G. gund “boil, pus” and gusta- “burn, destroy” from primitive ✱gudh (GL/42), indicating the actual root form was ✱ᴱ√ƷUÐU.

✱ᴱ√ƷUÐU seems to have been abandoned in Tolkien’s later writings, but ᴹ√UR “be hot” appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives like ᴹQ. úr/N. ûr “fire” and ᴹQ. urya- “blaze” (Ety/UR). This entry was deleted and replaced by ᴹ√UR “wide, large, great”. This was likely a transient change, however, as ᴹQ. Úrin as a name of the Sun remained in contemporaneous Silmarillion drafts (LR/240). Indeed primitive √UR appeared several times in later writings as the basis for words for “sunlight”, “fire” and “heat” (PE17/120, 148; PE21/71; PE22/160).

weg

root. live, be active, live, be active; [ᴹ√] (manly) vigour

This root was connected to vigour and masculinity for much of Tolkien’s life. The earliest iteration of this root seems to be primitive ᴱ√gu̯eg- from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s that served as the basis for various words such as G. gweg “man”, G. gwectha- “impregnate; generate”, and G. gwionert “deed of valour” (GL/44). Tolkien mentioned a few Qenya cognates like ᴱQ. wie and ᴱQ. wenga, but they were unglossed (GL/44). In the Gnomish Lexicon Slips Tolkien gave {ᴱ√we >>} ᴱ√waik as the primitive form beside {ᴱ✶u̯ē+kĕ >> ᴱ✶u̯ĕ+kĕ >>} ᴱ✶u̯ǝkḗ (PE13/117).

In the Early Noldorin Dictionary of the 1920s Tolkien gave ᴱ✶wikā > ᴱN. gweg “man” vs. ᴱQ. vika “valiant”; the Qenya form indicates this 1920s primitive was not specifically masculine, and it also had a primitive feminine variant ᴱ✶wiktā (PE13/162). It was nonetheless related to other words likes ᴱ✶wiqē > ᴱN. gwib “teors”, which is Old English = “penis” (PE13/162). Some similar forms like ᴱQ. via “male” and ᴱQ. vie “teors” appeared in Early Qenya Word-list of the 1920s as well (PE16/135). These 1920s forms seem to be based on primitive ✱ᴱ√WI instead of ᴱ√(g)weg.

In the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s Tolkien gave primitive weʒ- as the basis for N. gwe, ᴹQ. †wé “man, warrior” and the masculine suffix ᴹQ. -we common in names (PE21/1). In The Etymologies of the 1930s this masculine suffix was derived from ᴹ√WEG “(manly) vigour” along with other derivatives like ᴹQ. vea “adult, manly, vigorous”, ᴹQ. vie “manhood, vigour” and N. gweith “manhood; man-power, troop of able bodied men, host, regiment” (Ety/WEG; EtyAC/WEG).

In some notes from the late 1950s Tolkien again gave the suffix Q. -wë as masculine and derived it from √WEG or √WEƷ, but then changed his mind and decided it was derived from √WĒ or √WEƷ “person” (PE17/189-190), an idea he seems to have stuck with thereafter; see the entry on √WĒ/EWE for further discussion. In Quenya Notes (QN) from 1957 Tolkien gave {√WEK >>} √WEG as distinct from √WĒ, giving it the gloss “live, be active” where it served as the basis for words like Q. vëo/S. gwê “living creature” and Q. vehtë “life”, though he clarified that this last word was “not Life in general or as a principle, but (a period of) individual activity, as in vehtequentalë ‘biography’ (PE17/189)”. This use for “active” can also be seen in the primitive name ✶Denwego “Light-and-active” in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 (WJ/412).

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I think it is best to assume this root had to do with vigour and activeness, characteristics that were generally (but not absolutely) attributed as masculine. This allows us to retain the largest array of derivatives of this root from various periods. I also think it is best to assume it remains distinct from √WĒ/EWE “person”, though the two roots may originally have been related.

kenásĭta

adverb. if it be so, may be, perhaps

kait-a

verb. lie, be on the ground

kalar

root. *be radiant, [ᴹ√] be radiant

kheru

verb. lord it over, be master of, own

lā-

verb. to not be

sam

root. mind, think, reflect, be aware

uba-

verb. impend,be imminent,approach,draw near

waw

root. blow (of wind), be disturbed

way

root. blow (of wind), be disturbed

kay

root. lie, lie, [ᴹ√] lie down; [ᴱ√] rest, dwell

Tolkien used this root for “lie (down)” for most of his life. It appeared as ᴱ√KAYA “lie, rest; dwell” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/46), but in that document there was another root ᴱ√KAMA “lie down”, with the derivative ᴱQ. kama- “to lie down” (QL/44). There is no sign of ᴱ√KAMA¹ being used this way after the 1910s, and in the 1920s Early Qenya Grammar, the verb for “lie down” was kaita- (PE14/58), which in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had the transitive sense “to place” (QL/44).

The root ᴹ√KAY “lie down” reappeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/KAY), and it appeared again in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 as the basis for the verb ᴹQ. kaita- “to lie (down)” (PE22/126). The root and associated Quenya verb continued to appear in Tolkien’s later writings all the way up through the late 1960s, always with the sense “lie” (PE17/72; PE22/156).

khad

root. sit

The roots √KHAD and √KHAM were in competition for words having to do with “sit” and “seat” for a significant portion of Tolkien’s life. Both roots have antecedants in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, but in that early document the root for “sit” was given as ᴱ√ÐORO or ᴱ√SORO (QL/85), replacing rejected ᴱ√SOŘO [ᴱ√SOÐO] and ᴱ√SODO (QL/85). Of these, the true form was clearly ᴱ√ÐORO given Gnomish derivative G. dorn “seat”, G. doros “throne”, G. dortha- “settle” (GL/30). This root seems to have been abandoned in Tolkien’s later writing, though N. dortha- “dwell, stay” was reassigned to ᴹ√NDOR in The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/NDOR).

As for √KHAD and √KHAM, their clearest antecedents in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s were ᴱ√HAÐA “cleave, remain” and ᴱ√HAM (QL/39), the latter without gloss but with derivatives having to do with the ground such as ᴱQ. hamba “on the ground” and G. ham “ground” (QL/39; GL/48). Some variant of ᴱ√HAÐA seems to have drifted in the direction of “sit” based on ᴱN. haud “seat” from Early Noldorin word lists of the 1920s (PE13/147, 155).

Tolkien initially used the root ᴹ√KHAD for words having to do with “sit” and “seat” in The Etymologies of the 1930s (EtyAC/KHAM), but it was replaced by ᴹ√KHAM “sit” (Ety/KHAM) and this root seems to have survived for some time, since ᴹ√KHAM “sit down” appeared in the Quenya Verbal System from 1948 (PE22/103). However, at some point Tolkien added a new root ᴹ√KHAM “call to, summon, name by name” to The Etymologies, and in this new entry he said “KHAM sit (replacing KHAD, cancelled)” indicating ᴹ√KHAD was restored (EtyAC/KHAM²). This seems to represent an ongoing vacillation between √KHAD and √KHAM in the 1930s and 40s.

However, √KHAD “sit” appeared in the second version of Tengwesta Qenderinwa written around 1950 (PE18/95), Q. hárar “sit” (not ✱✱hámar) appears in Cirion’s Oath (UT/305), and in late notes on verbs from 1969 Tolkien had ✶khadmā “seat” as the basis for Q. hanw̃a S. haðw (PE22/148). There are no signs of √KHAM “sit” in this period, so it seems Tolkien chose √KHAD for “sit” in the 1950s and 60s.

Neo-Eldarin: I think √KHAD “sit” is the best choice for Neo-Eldarin, since it also lets us use ᴹ√KHAM “call to, summon, name by name” more freely.

kot(h)

root. strive, quarrel

There is evidence that the later form of this root may have been √ÑGOTH. See ᴺ✶kottō for a discussion.

Another variation, √KHOT “be wroth, quarrel; hate” appears in notes on root formations (PE18/62, 85, 87), but its only derivative ✶ok(h)tā could just as easily come from √KOT(H).

In order to retain all the derivatives from The Etymologies, this entry assumes that the root form remains √KOTH.

-b(iy)ē

suffix. -ing

-m(iy)ē

suffix. -ing

apa

root. touch

ay(ar)

root. sea

dāra

adjective. wise

ezdē

noun. rest

eñ-

verb. to exist

imin

masculine name. One

ista-

verb. to know

kalat

noun. light

mat

root. eat

This was the root for eating words for all of Tolkien’s life, appearing very regularly. It was ᴱ√MATA “eat” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/59), ᴹ√MAT “eat” in The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/MAT), and √MAT “eat” in etymological notes from the late 1960s (VT48/26), among its many other appearances. This puts it among the most conceptually stable of Elvish roots.

mat-

verb. to eat

melā-

verb. to love

min

cardinal. one

san-

pronoun. that

sed

root. rest

This root first appeared as ᴹ√SED “rest” in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives like ᴹQ. sére “rest, repose, peace” and N. sîdh “peace”, along with the name of the Valië ᴹQ. Este < ᴹ✶ezdē (Ety/SED). The root √SED “rest” along with the etymology of Este reappeared in both the Outline of Phonetic Development (OP1) from the 1940s (PE19/45) and the Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s (PE19/92), and again in revisions to the OP2 page annotated in green ink and thus probably from 1970 (PE19/91 and note #110).

The root √SED “rest” was mentioned a couple times in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 as the basis for the verb ᴹQ. ser- “rest, repose” (PE22/102, 125) and again (unglossed) in the Quendi and Eldar essay of 1959-60 as the basis for Este (WJ/403). In the sense “peace” this root had some competition, however. In the first version of the Gloria in Excelsis Deo prayer from the mid-1960s, Tolkien used Q. sívë for “peace”, revised to Q. sérë in the second version and then Q. rainë (VT44/32). The word Q. sívë “peace” reappeared in unpublished etymological notes from 1969 derived from the root √SIB “rest, quiet” (VT44/35).

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I would use √SED for the act of resting and so Q. sérë “peace” = “restfulness (personal peace)”, and would use √SIB = “quiet, ✱stillness, absence of activity” and so Q. sívë “peace” = “absence of activity or violence (environmental peace)”. I would use Q. rainë as “good will” in connection to √RAY “smile”.

tul-

verb. come, is coming, has come, is here, I come, have come

¤kurwē

noun. power, ability