Quenya 

nehtë

honeycomb

nehtë (2) noun "honeycomb" (VT45:38)

lís

noun. honey, honey, *sugar, sweetener

A word for “honey” in Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959 given as lîs and derived from the root √(G)LIS (PE17/154); the usual representation of a long vowel in Quenya would be ✱lís. In DLN Tolkien said that it sometimes appeared as līr- in inflections with the usual change of intervocalic s to r, but that its usual stem form was liss-. Indeed, in The Etymologies of the 1930s this word was ᴹQ. lis “honey” under the root ᴹ√LIS of the same meaning, and its stem form was also liss- as indicated by its [ᴹQ.] genitive lissen (Ety/LIS). Tolkien originally gave the base noun as lisse in The Etymologies, but this was deleted and replaced by lis (EtyAC/LIS). In The Etymologies its Noldorin cognate was N. glî.

Conceptual Development: A likely precursor to this word was ᴱQ. ile “honey” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s, cognate to ᴱN. glí “honey” (GL/59).

Neo-Quenya: Since there are other honey-words in Quenya like Q. nehtë, I would use lís (liss-) for sweeteners in general, including both honey and sugar.

Derivations

  • LIS “*sweet, [ᴱ√] sweetness, [ᴹ√] honey” ✧ PE17/154

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
(G)LIS > lîs[līs]✧ PE17/154

Variations

  • lîs ✧ PE17/154

melu

honey

#melu noun "honey", isolated from melumatya, q.v. (PE17:68)

melu

noun. honey

A word for “honey” appearing only in the compound Q. melumatya “honey-eating” in notes from 1967 (PE17/68).

Element in

  • Q. melumatya “honey-eating” ✧ PE17/068
  • ᴺQ. meluquetya “sweet-speaking person, flatterer”

nectë

honey

nectë noun "honey" (LT1:262; Tolkien's later Quenya has lis; otherwise, nectë would have had to become nehtë_, a form appearing in the Etymologies with the meaning "honeycomb" [VT45:38]. However, this word clashes with _nehtë "angle" or "spearhead, gore, wedge, narrow promontory" from later sources [PE17:55, UT:282].)

nehte

noun. honey

honey

Quenya [PE 19:91] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

nehtë

noun. honey, honey; [ᴹQ.] honeycomb

A noun for “honey” appearing in 1970 green-ink revisions to the Outline of Phonology (OP2) derived from ✶negdē “exudation” based on the root √NEG “ooze, drip” (PE19/91). It was a later iteration of ᴹQ. nehte “honeycomb” in The Etymologies of the 1930s which had essentially the same derivation (EtyAC/NEG). This in turn was a later form of ᴱQ. nekte “honey” from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s derived from the early root ᴱ√NEHE having to do with bees and honey (QL/65).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I’d use this word only for “honey”. For “honeycomb” I’d use ᴺQ. nehtelë inspired by ᴱQ. nektele “honeycomb” (QL/65)

Cognates

  • S. nîdh “juice, [N.] honeycomb; [S.] juice” ✧ PE19/091
  • T. nettë “honey” ✧ PE19/091

Derivations

  • negdē “exudation” ✧ PE19/091
    • NEG “‽ooze, drip, ooze, drip; *honey” ✧ PE19/091

Element in

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
negdē > nehte[negdē] > [nektē] > [nextē] > [nexte]✧ PE19/091

Variations

  • nehte ✧ PE19/091

nehtelë

noun. honeycomb

Elements

WordGloss
nehtë“honey, honey; [ᴹQ.] honeycomb”
Quenya Group: Eldamo - neologism/adaptations. Published by

Sindarin 

medlin

adjective. honey-eater, bear-like

Sindarin [Ety/369, X/DL] Group: SINDICT. Published by

nîdh

honeycomb

(construct nidh; no distinct pl. form) (VT45:38).

nîdh

honeycomb

nîdh (construct nidh; no distinct pl. form) (VT45:38). HONEY-EATER, see BEAR

glî

honey

glî (i **lî**);

glî

honey

(i ’lî);

Telerin 

necte, nette

noun. honey

honey

Telerin [PE 19:91] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

nettë

noun. honey

Cognates

  • Q. nehtë “honey, honey; [ᴹQ.] honeycomb” ✧ PE19/091

Derivations

  • negdē “exudation” ✧ PE19/091
    • NEG “‽ooze, drip, ooze, drip; *honey” ✧ PE19/091

Variations

  • necte/nette ✧ PE19/091

Noldorin 

nîdh

noun. honeycomb

Noldorin [VT/45:38] Group: SINDICT. Published by

nîdh

noun. honeycomb

Changes

  • nēdhnīdh ✧ EtyAC/NEG

Cognates

  • ᴹQ. nehte “honeycomb” ✧ EtyAC/NEG

Derivations

  • ᴹ✶negdē ✧ EtyAC/NEG
    • ᴹ√NEG “*honey” ✧ EtyAC/NEG

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
ᴹ✶negdē > nīdh[negdē] > [nēdē] > [nīdē] > [nīde] > [nīðe] > [nīð]✧ EtyAC/NEG

Variations

  • nīdh ✧ EtyAC/NEG
  • nēdh ✧ EtyAC/NEG (nēdh)
Noldorin [EtyAC/NEG] Group: Eldamo. Published by

glî

noun. honey

Noldorin [Ety/369] Group: SINDICT. Published by

glî

noun. honey

A word for “honey” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶g-lisi under the root ᴹ√LIS of the same meaning (Ety/LIS).

Conceptual Development: In Early Noldorin Word-lists Tolkien also had ᴱN. glí “honey” (PE13/144), presumably similarly derived from the early root ᴱ√LISI. However, in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s the word for “honey” was G. neglis with an initial element √neg- (GL/59), the Gnomish equivalent of the early root ᴱ√NEHE that was the basis for ᴱQ. nekte “honey” (QL/65). It is possible that the second element of G. neglis was based on ᴱ√LISI and this was carried forward into later “honey” words.

Cognates

  • ᴹQ. lis “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS

Derivations

  • ᴹ✶glisi “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS
    • ᴹ√LIS “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS

Element in

  • ᴺS. glidheb “like honey”
  • N. megli “bear, (lit.) honey-eater”

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
ᴹ✶g-lisi > glî[glisi] > [glihi] > [glih] > [glīh] > [glī]✧ Ety/LIS

meglin

adjective. honey-eater, bear-like

Noldorin [Ety/369, X/DL] Group: SINDICT. Published by

Beware, older languages below! The languages below were invented during Tolkien's earlier period and should be used with caution. Remember to never, ever mix words from different languages!

Qenya 

nehte

noun. honeycomb

Cognates

  • N. nîdh “honeycomb” ✧ EtyAC/NEG

Derivations

  • ᴹ✶negdē ✧ EtyAC/NEG
    • ᴹ√NEG “*honey” ✧ EtyAC/NEG

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
ᴹ✶negdē > nehte[negdē] > [nektē] > [nextē] > [nexte]✧ EtyAC/NEG

lis

noun. honey

Changes

  • lisselis ✧ Ety/LIS

Cognates

  • N. glî “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS

Derivations

  • ᴹ√LIS “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
ᴹ√LIS > lis[liss] > [lis]✧ Ety/LIS

Variations

  • lisse ✧ EtyAC/LIS (lisse)
Qenya [Ety/LIS; EtyAC/LIS] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Middle Primitive Elvish

glisi

noun. honey

Derivations

  • ᴹ√LIS “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS

Derivatives

  • N. glî “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS

Variations

  • g-lisi ✧ Ety/LIS
Middle Primitive Elvish [Ety/LIS] Group: Eldamo. Published by

lis

root. honey

Derivatives

  • ᴹ✶glisi “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS
    • N. glî “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS
  • ᴹQ. lis “honey” ✧ Ety/LIS

Element in

  • ᴹ✶madlī “honey-eater” ✧ Ety/LIS
  • N. megli “bear, (lit.) honey-eater” ✧ Ety/MAT; EtyAC/MAT (magli)
  • N. meglivorn “blackbear” ✧ Ety/MOR
Middle Primitive Elvish [Ety/LIS; Ety/MAT; Ety/MOR; EtyAC/MAT] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Gnomish

neglis

noun. honey

Cognates

Derivations

  • ᴱ√NEHE “*honey” ✧ GL/59

Early Noldorin

glí

noun. honey

Cognates

  • Eq. ile “honey”

Derivations

  • ᴱ√LISI “sweetness”

Element in

  • En. glidheb “like honey” ✧ PE13/144
  • En. glinui “honey-bee” ✧ PE13/144
Early Noldorin [PE13/144] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Early Quenya

nektele

noun. honeycomb

The word nektele “honeycomb” appeared in the Qenya Lexicon and Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa of the 1910s as an elaboration of ᴱQ. nekte “honey” (QL/65; PME/65).

Neo-Quenya: I’d update this word to ᴺQ. nehtelë “honeycomb” to be compatible with the later form Q. nehtë “honey” (PE19/91).

Cognates

Early Quenya [PME/065; QL/065] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ile

noun. honey

Cognates

  • En. glí “honey”

Derivations

  • ᴱ√LISI “sweetness”

Element in

  • Eq. matsile “bear” ✧ PE13/149
Early Quenya [PE13/149] Group: Eldamo. Published by

nekte

noun. honey

Cognates

Derivations

  • ᴱ√NEHE “*honey” ✧ LT1A/Nielluin; QL/065

Element in

  • Eq. nektele “honeycomb” ✧ QL/065

Phonetic Developments

DevelopmentStagesSources
ᴱ√NEHE > nekte[nextē] > [nexte] > [nekte]✧ QL/065

Variations

  • nektë ✧ LT1A/Nielluin
Early Quenya [LT1A/Nielluin; PME/065; QL/065] Group: Eldamo. Published by