ind

noun. inner thought, meaning, heart

dîs

noun. bride

A word for “bride” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶ndīse under the root ᴹ√NDIS (Ety/NDIS). Ordinarily the s in this word would have been lost, but it was influenced by N. †dess “young woman” < ON. ndissa from the same root (EtyAC/NDIS). Dîs “bride” in turn influenced the form of N. †dî “woman”, originally ON. nī < ᴹ√NĪ (Ety/DER, NĪ¹; EtyAC/NDIS).

Neo-Sindarin: While I think this word is perfectly serviceable, for purposes of Neo-Sindarin it may be better to use the longer and more distinctive word dineth for bride.

car(dh)

noun. house, house, *construction, structure

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s appearing as car or carð with the gloss “house” under the root ᴹ√KAR “make, build, construct” (Ety/KAR). Its Quenya cognate ᴹQ. kar (kard-) was glossed “building, house”.

Neo-Sindarin: Given the meaning of its root, I would use cardh for any kind of building-like construction or structure for purposes of Neo-Sindarin. For an ordinary “house” where people live, I would use S. bâr.

herves

noun. wife

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s for “wife”, a combination of ᴹ√KHER “govern” and N. bess “woman” (which itself archaically meant “wife”), the latter element based on the root ᴹ√BES “wed” (Ety/BES, KHER).

Conceptual Development: A precursor to this word was ᴱQ. herivesti “wife, ✱lady spouse” from Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, which was assembled from elements similar to N. herves, but in the Qenya branch of the language instead.

Neo-Sindarin: In later writings, Tolkien seems to have revised ᴹ√BES > √BER as the basis for marriage words (VT49/45). However, I prefer to retain the 1930s root ᴹ√BES and would therefore use herves for “wife”. However, in later writings Tolkien also used the short form bess for “wife” as well (SD/129), so I consider herves to be more formal.

naneth

noun. mother

A noun for “mother” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from the (Noldorin-only?) root ᴹ√NAN (Ety/NAN). It apparently replaced archaic/poetic N. †emil (Ety/AM¹; EtyAC/AM¹).

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon had a similar set of words for “mother”: G. maba, mabir, baba, and mavwin from the early root ᴱ√maƀ “something nice” (GL/57). The last of these appeared as G. mavwen “ancestress” in the Gnomish Lexicon Slips modifying that document, with an archaic meaning of “mother” and variant forms mafwyn and mavuin (PE13/115). In these slips, it seems the normal “mother” word was G. nân (originally glossed “father”) with variant nanwin (PE13/115). This last word is likely the direct precursor of N. naneth.

Neo-Sindarin: I would use S. emel from the late 1960s as the normal word for “mother” in Neo-Sindarin, but would retain N. naneth as a dialectical or more formal variant.

an(d)fang

proper name. Longbeard

anann

adverb. long

ann

adjective. long

ann

adjective. long

car

noun. house, building

cardh

noun. house, building

dineth

noun. bride

dineth

noun. bride

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “bride”, a combination of N. †dî “woman, bride” and N. neth “young” (Ety/NĪ¹; EtyAC/NDIS, NIS).

dineth

feminine name. Nessa

A Noldorin name for Nessa appearing in The Etymologies from the 1930s, it is simply dineth “bride” used as a name (Ety/NĪ¹, NETH, EtyAC/NDIS).

dor

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor

dîs

noun. bride

emil

noun. mother

emil

noun. mother

gammas

noun. s-sign (special sign used to mark a final -s in Tengwar)

gobel

noun. walled house or village, town

gwîn

adjective. young

ha

pronoun. it

ha

pronoun. it

hana

pronoun. it

hana

pronoun. it

herves

noun. wife

hervess

noun. wife

hervess

noun. wife

ho

pronoun. he

ho

pronoun. he

hon

pronoun. he

hon(o)

pronoun. he

hono

pronoun. he

hûn

noun. heart (physical)

inn

noun. inner thought, meaning, heart

lhebed

noun. finger

Tolkien later seems to have replaced this form by leber

lhebed

noun. finger

min

fraction. one (first of a series)

min

cardinal. one

nana

noun. mother, mummy

naneth

noun. mother

nauth

noun. thought

nauth

noun. thought

neth

adjective. young

neth

adjective. young

irregular, compare: tathor @@@

neth

feminine name. Nessa

Noldorin equivalent of ᴹQ. Nessa appearing in The Etymologies from the 1930s, derived from the same primitive root ᴹ√NETH (Ety/NETH, NĪ¹). Given its Quenya form, the primitive form of this name might have been ✱✶netthā.

penia-

verb. to fix, to set

rhoeg

adjective. wrong

taen

adjective. long (and thin)

tew

noun. letter

@@@ tîw (Ety/TEK) appears to be plural, but is clearly glossed as singular “letter” with primitive form tekmē

tîw

noun. letter

indemma

noun. mind-picture (of apparition in dream)

A word for a “mind-picture”, a combination of indo “mind” and emma “picture” (PE17/174, 176, 179). Tolkien described them thus:

> They [the Elves] held that a superior mind by nature, or one exerting itself to its full in some extremity of need, could communicate a desired vision direct to another mind. The receiving mind would translate this impulse into the terms familiar to it from its use of the physical organs of sight (and hearing) and project it, seeing it as something external ... indemmar were by Men mostly received in sleep (dream). If received when bodily awake they were usually vague and phantom-like (and often caused fear); but if they were clear and vivid, as the indemmar induced by Elves might be, they were apt to mislead Men into taking them as real things beheld by normal sight (PE17/179).

Thus this word was used for telepathically induced visions, used among the Elves for communication, but Men could sometimes be fooled (intentionally or not) into believing these visions were real if they were awake when they received them, otherwise the visions were perceived as dreams. These “sorcerous” visions were likely one of the reasons for the mistrust between Elves and Men towards the end of the Third Age.

indemma

mind-picture

indemma noun "mind-picture", i.e. a vision transferred from one mind to another and perceived as visual (and aural) images, usually produced by Elves, though Men were capable of receiving them (especially during sleep) (PE17:174, 179). Compound of indo (#1) + emma. Ephemerally Tolkien may have considered the word fanwos (q.v.) for the same phenomenon.

indë

yourselves

indë "yourselves", 2nd person pl.. reflexive pronoun, e.g. *tirildë indë, "you watch yourselves". Indë is derived from earlier imde(VT47:37)

indómë

settled character

indómë noun "settled character", also used of the "will" of Eru (according to etymological notes written in 1957, referred to in VT43:16, presented in PE17:189). Indómelya "thy will" (VT43:16).

indis

feminine name. Great Woman

The second wife of Finwë (S/64-5). Her name is said to mean “great or valiant woman” (PM/343), but it is also identical in form to indis “wife, bride”.

Conceptual Development: The name Indis appeared in several places in The Etymologies from the 1930s glossed as “Bride” (Ety/I², NDIS, NETH), but there it seems to be a name for Nessa (Ety/NĪ¹). The number and names of the wives of Finwë were unspecified in Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s and 50s (LR/223, MR/175). Indis as the second wife of Finwë did not emerge until late in Tolkien’s writing (WJ/327, 383; PM/344).

indil

noun. lily, other large single flower

A Quenya noun for “lily” or more generally any “large flower”, cognate of Ad. inzil.

Conceptual Development: This word appeared in two forms with competing etymologies. In the early 1950s, it appeared as Q. insil, a loan word from Atani inzil, where the [[aq|[nz] became [ns]]] (PE19/99). A similar word indil appeared in the 1959-60 essay Quendi and Eldar, where it was a derivative of Valarin iniðil (WJ/399), with the middle i lost due to the Quenya syncope and then the [[q|spirant [ð] becoming the stop [d] after the nasal [n]]].

In the second scenario, Tolkien did not directly connect Q. indil to Ad. inzil, but the coincidence of forms is too great: Tolkien must have imagined a reverse loan from Valarin > Quenya > Atani. Perhaps this loan took place before the [ð] became [d] in Quenya ([[q|[nð] > [nd]]]), and the voiced spirant was adapted as the sibilant [z] in Atani because that language did not possess spirants in its earliest historical stages.

I personally prefer this second scenario and the form indil, because using the first scenario would require discarding one of our few Valarin words (iniðil).

indis

noun. wife, [ᴹQ.] bride; [Q.] wife

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “bride” derived from the root ᴹ√NDIS (EtyAC/NDIS). It was translate “wife” in the later phrase Q. Indis i·Ciryamo “The Mariner’s Wife” (UT/8), but I think this is a loose translation and “bride” is more accurate. In The Etymologies Tolkien gave two plural forms: inderi (which might be indesi) and indissi, the latter influenced by the plural ᴹQ. nissi for “women” (EtyAC/NDIS). I’d use the stem form indiss- for this word, to avoid awkward changes of the final consonant from s to r in inflected forms.

indi

offspring of the valar

indi pl. noun, apparently a name of Men, hardly valid in Tolkien's later Quenya (LT2:343). Compare, however, the final element of Valarindi "Offspring of the Valar", suggesting that #indi can be used for "offspring" (the Quenya word is apparently plural). It may be that in Valarindi, a h has dropped out following r, and that the independent word would be *hindi (as a variant of -hín, -híni "children").

indil

lily

indil noun "lily", or other large single flower. Adopted and adapted from Valarin. (WJ:399)

indis

wife

indis noun, translated "wife" in UT:8, but the form is assigned the meaning "bride" in other places (the regular translation of "wife" is rather veri or vessë). Indis "Bride", name of the goddess Nessa. (NDIS-SĒ /SĀ (NETH, NI1, NDER, I) ); Indis Nessa *"Bride Nessa", title and name of the Valië (NETH) The stem-form of indis "bride" is somewhat obscure; according to VT45:37 the stem could be indiss- (pl. indissi given), but the alternative form pl. form inderi shows a curious shift from i to e as well as the more regular change from s (via z) to r between vowels (compare the pl. of olos, q.v.) The stem indiss- may be preferred by writers.

indo

heart, mood

indo (1) noun "heart, mood" (ID), "state" (perhaps especially state of mind, given the other glosses) (VT39:23), "mind, region/range of thought, mood" (PE17:155, 179), "inner thought, in fea as exhibited in character or [?personality]" (PE17:189). In another post-LotR source, indo is translated "resolve" or "will", the state of mind leading directly to action (VT41:13). Indo is thus "the mind in its purposing faculty, the will" (VT41:17). Indo-ninya,a word occurring in Fíriels Song, translated "my heart" (see ninya). In the compound indemma "mind-picture", the first element would seem to be indo.

indo

house

indo (2) noun "house" (LT2:343), probably obsoleted by #1 above (in Tolkiens later Quenya, the word for "house" appears as coa).

indor

master (of house), lord

indor noun "master (of house), lord" (LT2:343; probably obsoleted together with indo "house", q.v.)

indyalmë

clamour

indyalmë noun "clamour" (VT46:3)

indyo

grandchild, descendant

indyo noun "grandchild, descendant" (ÑGYŌ/ÑGYON - read *inyo in Noldorin Quenya, which dialect changed ndy to ny? Cf. Quenya for Quendya.) In the pre-classical Tengwar system presupposed in the Etymologies, indyo was also the name of tengwa #17 with overposed dots to indicate following y (VT46:4), the whole symbol having the value ndy.

indis i·ciryamo

proper name. The Mariner’s Wife

Title of the (unfinished) tale of Aldarion and Erendis (UT/8, 173-217).

indyel

noun. small bell

indë

pronoun. yourselves

indu-

verb. will, do on purpose

induinen

noun. purpose

induinen

noun. purpose

indyel

noun. small bell

small bell

Valarindi

offspring of the valar, their children begotten in arda

Valarindi pl. noun "offspring of the Valar, their children begotten in Arda" (sg. #Valarindë). (MR:49). Compare indi.

indis

Indis

Indis is also Quenya for "wife; bride".

indo

indo

Indo comes from Root ID, perhaps the Primitive Quendian form was *idnô

indya

noun. device, method, trick; machine, engine

indyarin

noun. device, escutcheon, blazon

lepetas

noun. index finger

A word for the “index finger” in notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals from 1968, a combination of ✶lepe “finger” and √TAS “point” (VT47/10-11; VT48/5). The short form Q. tassa (perhaps originally “pointer”?) was also used for the “index finger” (VT48/5).

Conceptual Development: In drafts of these notes, the word first appeared as Q. tastil where the second element was Q. -til “point” (VT47/26), but this was soon revised to leptas (VT47/27).

sahta-

induce

#sahta- (þ) vb. "induce", apparently primarily in negative sense: *"tempt, seduce". Compare the gerund or abstract noun sahtië (þ) "pressure or force (to do something against one's will or conscience)" (VT43:22-23; also compare úsahtië.)

tassa

index finger

tassa noun "index finger"; also lepetas (VT48:5, 14)

tastil

index finger

[tastil noun "index finger" (VT47:26)]

tengwë

indication, sign, token

tengwë (pl. tengwi attested) noun "indication, sign, token", in linguistics used for phonemes(VT39:7, WJ:394); hloníti tengwi "phonetic signs" (WJ:395). The term tengwë was particularly associated with consonants (VT39:16). In the Etymologies, stem TEK, tengwë is glossed "writing"; this gloss would seem to be obsolete (for this meaning the word sarmë occurs in Tolkien's later material).

tengë

indicated

tengë pa.t. vb. "indicated", pa.t. of tëa (VT39:6)

tëa

indicates

tëa (2) vb. "indicates" (evidently a present-tense stem)(VT39:6); past tense tengë (VT43:38)

é

indeed

é adverbial particle "indeed" that may be prefixed to a sentence (VT45:11). Short e in the sentence e man antaváro? "what will he give indeed?" (LR:63).

úsahtië

inducement to do wrong

úsahtië (þ) noun "inducement to do wrong" (VT43:23); allative úsahtienna attested (the alternative form úsahtíenna with a long í must be erroneous, as pointed out by the editors [ibid.]). Compare sahta-, sahtië.

tassa

noun. index finger

úsahtië

noun. inducement to do wrong, *temptation

fanwos

mind-picture of apparition in dream

fanwos noun "mind-picture of apparition in dream", possibly ephemeral variant of indemma (q.v.) (PE17:174). Normally Quenya phonology seems to prohibit a combination like wo.

nassë

person, an individual

nassë (1) "a person, an individual" (VT49:30). Also translated "true-being" (pl. nasser is attested), the inner "true" being of a person. With a pronominal suffix in the form nassentar "their true-being" (PE17:175, cf. -nta #2), in the source referring to the "true" spiritual nature of the Valar, as hidden within their visible shapes. The word nassentar would seem to be plural, *"their true-beings". Not to be confused with the verb nassë/násë "he/she is"; see ná #1.

quén

one, (some)body, person, individual, man or woman

quén (quen-, as in pl. queni; as final element in compounds -quen) noun "one, (some)body, person, individual, man or woman", pl. queni = "persons", "(some) people", "they" with the most general meaning (as in "they [= people in general] say that..."). The element is combined with noun and adjective stems in old compounds to denote habitual occupations or functions, or to describe those having some notable (permanent) quality; examples include roquen, ciryaquen, arquen, q.v. Also in aiquen "whoever", ilquen "everybody" (WJ:361 cf. 360, 372).

sanar

mind

sanar noun "mind" (literally "thinker" or "reflector", suggesting an underlying verb #sana- "to think, to reflect") (VT41:13)

sáma

mind

sáma noun "mind" (pl. sámar and dual samat [sic, read *sámat?] are given) (VT39:23, VT41:5, VT49:33, PE17:183)

síma

mind, imagination

síma noun "mind, imagination" (VT49:16); variant isima. Also attested with endings: símaryassen "in their imaginations" (with the ending -rya used = "their" rather than "his/her", according to colloquial useage) (VT49:16)

tana-

to show, indicate

tana- (2) vb. "to show, indicate" (MR:350, 385, 471) (cf. the demonstrative tana "that")

tenta-

point to, point out; indicate; direct toward, be directed toward

tenta- vb. "point to, point out; indicate; direct toward, be directed toward" (VT49:22-24). Compare hententa-, leptenta-, q.v. When constructed with a direct object, the verb may mean "go forth towards". In our examples, tenta is constructed with an allative (tentanë numenna "pointed westward", VT49:23; this may be the normal construction when the meaning is "point"). Pa.t. tentanë is attested (also with ending -s: tentanes "it pointed", VT49:26); there is also an alternative strong pa.t. form tenantë (VT49:22-23). Other examples of such double past tense forms (e.g. orta-) would suggest that the form tentanë is transitive ("pointed to/out, directed towards, went forth towards"), while tenantë is intransitive ("was directed towards"). Tolkien also considered the pa.t. form tentë, but emended it.

fëa

noun. (indwelling or incarnate) spirit, soul

sáma

noun. mind

tana-

verb. to show, indicate

tëa-

verb. to indicate

cöacalina

noun. light of the house, indwelling spirit

-lya

thy, your

-lya 2nd person sg. formal/polite pronominal suffix "thy, your" (VT49:16, 38, 48). In tielyanna "upon your path" (UT:22 cf. 51), caritalya(s) "your doing (it)" (VT41:17), esselya "thy name" (VT43:14), onnalya "your child" (VT49:41, 42), parma-restalyanna *"upon your book-fair" (VT49:38), and, in Tolkien's Quenya Lord's Prayer, in the various translations of "thy kingdom": aranielya in the final version, earlier turinastalya, túrinastalya, turindielya, túrindielya (VT43:15). Also in indómelya (changed from mendelya) "thy will" (VT43:15-16)

lye

thou/thee, you

lye pron. "thou/thee, you", 2nd person sg. formal/polite (corresponding to familiar/intimate tye, q.v.) (VT49:36) It seems the original stem-form was le (VT49:50), distinct from de as a plural "you", but when initial d became l and the forms threatened to fall together, le was apparently altered to lye by analogy with the ending -lyë and the emphatic pronoun elyë. Stressed lyé (VT49:51). For lye as object, cf. nai Eru lye mánata "God bless you" (VT49:39). Allative lyenna "to you, upon you" (VT49:40-41). Compare the reflexive pronoun imlë "yourself, thyself", q.v. (it did not have to be *imlyë, for the corresponding pl. pronoun indë "yourselves" is distinct anyhow).

-nya

my

-nya pronominal suffix, 1st person sg. possessive, "my" (VT49:16, 38, 48), e.g. tatanya "my daddy" (UT:191, VT48:17), meldonya "my [male] friend" (VT49:38), meldenya "my [female] friend" (Elaine inscription), omentienya "my meeting" (PE17:68), tyenya "my tye" (tye being an intimate form of "you"), used = "dear kinsman" (VT49:51, 56). This ending seems to prefer i as its connecting vowel where one is needed, cf. Anarinya "my sun" in LR:72, so also in hildinyar "my heirs". It was previously theorized by some that a final -ë would also be changed to -i- before -nya, but the example órenya "my heart [órë]" indicates that this is not the case (VT41:11).

-on

name

-on gen.pl. ending (3O), in aldaron, aranion, elenion, Eldaron, #esseron, Ingweron, Istarion, Númevalion, Quendion, Silmarillion, Sindaron, tasarion (see Nan-Tasarion), Valion, wenderon, yénion. Normally the ending -on is added to the nominative plural, whether it ends in -i or -r, but some nouns in -ë that would have nominative plurals in -i seem to prefer the ending -ron in the genitive (hence #esseron as the gen. pl. of essë "name", though the nominative pl. is attested as essi and we might have expected the gen. pl. *ession; similarly wenderon, Ingweron).

Acairis

bride

Acairis ("k") fem. name, "bride" (LT1:252; in Tolkien's later Quenya, "bride" is rather indis)

amilyë

mummy

amilyë or milyë (cited as (a)milyë), noun "mummy", also used as a play-name of the index finger, but Tolkien emended it to emmë, emya. (VT48:4) In its basic sense, (a)milyë would be a variant of amil, amillë "mother", q.v.

anda

long

anda adj. "long" (ÁNAD/ANDA), "far" (PE17:90).In Andafangar noun "Longbeards", one of the tribes of the Dwarves (= Khuzdul Sigin-tarâg and Sindarin Anfangrim) (PM:320). Compare Andafalassë, #andamacil, andamunda, andanéya, andatehta, Anduinë. Apparently derived from the adj. anda is andavë "long" as adverb ("at great length", PE17:102), suggesting that the ending -vë can be used to derive adverbs from adjectives (LotR3:VI ch. 4, translated in Letters:308)

ciryamo

mariner

ciryamo noun "mariner", nominative and genitive are identical since the noun already ends in -o, cf. Indis i-Ciryamo "the Mariner's Wife" (UT:8)

emma

picture

emma noun *"picture" (compounded in indemmar "mind-pictures") (PE17:179)

emmë

mummy

emmë (1) noun "mummy", hypocoristic form of "mother", also used in children's play for "index finger" and "index toe" (VT47:10, 26, VT48:4, 6, 17, 19). Also emya.

emya

mummy

emya noun "mummy", also used in children's play for "index finger" and "index toe" (VT47:10, 26, VT48:4, 6). Said to be a reduction of emenya *"my mother", seemingly presupposing #emë as a word for "mother" (but this word normally appears as emil or amil, incorporating a feminine ending). In VT48:19, emya is explained as deriving from em-nya "my mother". Compare emmë # 2.

enda

heart

enda noun "heart", but not referring to the physical organ; it literally means "centre" (cf. endë) and refers to the fëa (soul) or sáma (mind) itself. (VT39:32)

hondo-ninya

my heart

hondo-ninya noun "my heart", changed to indo-ninya (FS, earlier version)

leper

noun. finger

The Quenya word for “finger” appearing in various notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals from 1968, derived from the root √LEP “pick up” (VT47/10; VT48/5).

Conceptual Development: The Quenya “finger” words went through quite a few conceptual changes, but they were always based on the root √LEP. The earliest of these was ᴱQ. let (lept-) “finger” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√LEPE with plural form lepsi (QL/53). In Qenya word lists of the 1920s, however, this became ᴱQ. lepta “finger”, still with the plural lepsi (PE15/72; PE16/137).

The form was ᴹQ. let (leps-) in the Declension of Nouns of the early 1930s (PE21/19, 26), expanded to ᴹQ. lepse “finger” in The Etymologies written around 1937, based on the root ᴹ√LEPET of the same meaning (Ety/LEPET). This form demonstrated the 1930s sound change whereby pt became ps (PE19/44 note #44). Tolkien revised this sound change so that the result remained pt (PE19/44), and in 1940s drafts to The Lord of the Rings Tolkien used the word ᴹQ. rakkalepta “✱claw-fingered” in Treebeard’s description of orcs (SD/68), though in the published version this word only appeared in English.

In the Outline of Phonology from the 1950s (OP1) Tolkien considered restoring the sound change pt > ps (PE19/84 note #75), and Q. lepsë appeared in notes from the late 1950s or early 60s on the tree name S. lebethron, so named because “its leaves (like chestnut) [were] shaped like a fingered hand” (PE17/89). However, he again abandoned this, clarifying that the actual result of [[q|[pt] was a spirantal [ɸt]]] (spelled pt to represent the bilabial pronunciation), and that in Tarquesta pronunciation (Exhilic Quenya of the first age) the [ɸ] vocalized to [u̯] so that ✶lepta > leꝑta > Q. leu̯ta “finger” (PE19/84). Q. lepta appeared in several words in the 1960s: Q. leptafinya “clever-fingered” (PE17/17) and Q. Tyelpelepta “✱silver-fingered” (VT47/27).

In drafts of the 1968 notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals, lepta reappeared as an independent word, but with the gloss “thumb” (VT47/27). In the final versions of these notes, however, Tolkien used leper for “finger”, as noted above.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would use leper for “finger”, but would retain lepta as an adjective meaning “fingered”, especially in compounds like [ᴹQ.] raccalepta “claw-fingered”.

mo

one, someone, anyone

mo, indefinite pronoun "one, someone, anyone" (VT42:34, VT49:19, 20, 26)

nessa

young

nessa adj. "young" (NETH), alsoNessa as name of a Valië, the spouse of Tulkas (adopted and adapted from Valarin, or an archaic Elvish formation: WJ:404 vs. 416). Also called Indis, "bride" (NETH, NI1). The fem. name Nessanië (UT:210) would seem to incorporate Nessa's name; the second element could mean "tear" (nië), but since Nessa is not normally associated with sorrow, this #nië is perhaps rather a variant of ní "female" (compare Tintanië as a variant of Tintallë).

ngwin

for us

ngwin dative pronoun ?"for us" _(VT21:6-7, 10, VT44:36). _Apparently belonging to the 1st person pl. It would be pronounced *nwin* at the end of the Third Age, but since Tolkien in another source implies that the 1st pl. exclusive base ñwe had the "independent" stem we- in Quenya (VT48:10), we must assume that the dative pronoun should rather be wen**, or in Exilic Quenya *ven. The form ngwin may reflect another conceptual phase when Tolkien meant the nasal element of ñwe to be preserved in Quenya as well. The vowel i rather than e is difficult to account for if the base is to be (ñ)we. In VT49:55, Carl F. Hosttetter suggests that ngwen rather than ngwin may actually be the correct reading of Tolkiens manuscript.

ninya

my

ninya _possessive pron _occurring in Fíriel's Song, evidently meaning "my"; see indo-ninya. It may be derived from the dative form nin "for me" by adding the adjectival ending -ya. Compare menya, q.v.

nácë

it is may be seeming

nácë ("k")interjection? "it is may be seeming" (sic) (VT49:28) Patrick Wynne believes the unclear gloss is "best understood as elliptical": i.e. as representing "it is [or] may be seeming", probably "indicating a qualified or hesitant yes." (VT49:29) As first written, the gloss was "not as it is [or may be seeming" (ibid.)

nór

noun. land

A term for “land” as in “(dry) land as opposed to the sea”, mentioned in the Quendi and Eldar essay of 1959-60 (WJ/413) and again in notes from around 1968 (PE17/106-107).

Possible Etymology: In the Quendi and Eldar essay this term was derived from primitive ✶ndōro, but in the aforementioned 1968 notes Tolkien clarified that its stem form was nŏr-. This means it was probably derived from ancient ✱ndŏr-, where the long vowel in the uninflected form was inherited from the Common Eldarin subjective form ✱ndōr, a phenomenon also seen in words like nér (ner-) “man”. I prefer this second derivation, as it makes the independent word more distinct from the suffixal form -ndor or -nóre used in the names of countries.

saca-

draw, pull

saca- (þ) ("k") (2) vb. "draw, pull" (VT43:23; this word must come from older *þaca- because it is said to be related to sahta-, older þahta-, "induce", q.v.)

sarat

letter

sarat (pl. sarati given) noun "letter", any individual significant mark, used of the letters of Rúmil after the invention of Fëanor's tengwar (WJ:396). Cf. sarmë.

tengwa

noun. sign

sign, indicator, letter

veri

noun. wife

The most common word for “wife” in Quenya (VT49/45).

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s appearing as ᴱQ. veri “wife” under the early root ᴱ√VEŘE [VEÐE] (QL/101), but there it was marked archaic (†). It also had a number of competing forms: archaic ᴱQ. †veruni and ᴱQ. †vesse alongside only one non-archaic form ᴱQ. vestin. One of these forms, ᴹQ. vesse, reappeared for “wife” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√BES “wed” (Ety/BES). Later veri “wife” was restored, but derived from a new root √BER for marriage words (VT49/45).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I prefer to retain the 1930s root ᴹ√BES for marriage words in order to preserve Noldorin/Sindarin forms, but I would still use the veri for “wife”, just conceived of as a derivative of the root √BES, coming from ✱besī with intervocalic s &gt; z &gt; r.

órë

heart

órë (1) noun "heart" (inner mind), also name of tengwa #21 (Appendix E), "premonition" (VT41:13), "nearest equivalent of 'heart' in our application to feelings, or emotions (courage, fear, hope, pity, etc.)" (VT41:13). The órë apparently defines a person's personality, cf. the description of Galadriel in PM:337, that "there dwelt in her the noble and generous spirit (órë) of the Vanyar". Órenya "my heart" (VT41:11).

ná-

verb. to be, to be, [ᴱQ.] exist

ciryamo

noun. mariner

essë

noun. name

min

cardinal. one, one, [ᴱQ.] one (in a series), the first

tëalë

noun. meaning

-ndor

land

-ndor, final element in compounds: "land" (Letters:308, UT:253)

-nya

suffix. my

-o

person, somebody

-o (2), also -ó, "a person, somebody", pronominal suffix (PM:340)

-ro

he

-ro pronominal ending "he", in antaváro, q.v. In Tolkiens later Quenya, the ending -s covers both "he", "she" and "it".

-wë

person

-wë a suffix occurring in many personal names, generally but not exclusively masculine (Elenwë is the sole certain example of a fem. name with this ending); it is derived from a stem simply meaning "person" (PM:340, WJ:399). In Etym, -wë is simply defined as an element that is frequent in masculine names, and it is there derived from a stem (WEG) having to do with "(manly) vigour".

Námo

person, somebody

námo (2) noun "a person, somebody" (PM:340 writers may prefer the synonym quén to avoid confusion with # 1)

a

cardinal. one

amal

mother

amal noun "mother"; also emel (VT48:22, 49:22); the form amil (emil) seems more usual.

amil

mother

amil noun "mother" (AM1), also emil (q.v.) Longer variant amillë (VT44:18-19), compounded Eruamillë "Mother of God" in Tolkien's translation of the Hail Mary (VT43:32). If amil is a shortened form of amillë, it should probably have the stem-form amill-. Also compare amilyë, amya, emya. Compounded amil- in amilessë noun "mothername" (cf. essë "name"), name given to a child by its mother, sometimes with prophetic implications (amilessi tercenyë "mother-names of insight"). (MR:217).

amil(lë)

noun. mother

Tolkien used a number of similar forms for “mother” for most of his life. The earliest of these are ᴱQ. amis (amits-) “mother” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s along with variants ᴱQ. ambi, âmi, amaimi under the root ᴱ√AMA (QL/30). An additional variant ammi appeared in the Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa (PME/30). In Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s Tolkien had ᴱQ. ambe or mambe “mother” (PE16/135). This became ᴹQ. amil “mother” in The Etymologies under the root ᴹ√AM “mother” (Ety/AM¹).

This 1930s form amil appears to have survived for some time. It appeared in a longer form Amille in Quenya Prayers of the 1950s (VT43/26; VT44/12, 18), and as an element in the term amilessi “mother-names” in a late essay on Elvish naming (MR/217). In the initial drafts of Elvish Hands, Fingers and Numerals from the late 1960s Tolkien used the form amilye or amye as an affectionate word for “mother”, and amaltil as the finger name for the second finger (VT47/26-27 note #34 and #35).

However, in those documents Tolkien seems to have revised the root for “mother” from √AM to √EM and the affectionate forms from amye to emya or emme (VT47/10; VT48/6, 19). The revised word for “mother” appears to be emil based on the 1st person possessive form emil(inya) (VT47/26).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I prefer to retain the root √AM for “mother”, since that is what Tolkien used for 50 years, and ignore the very late change to √EM. As such, I would recommend amil(le) for “mother” and affectionate forms amme “mommy” and amya. However, if you prefer to use Tolkien’s “final” forms, then emil(le), emme and emya seem to be what Tolkien adopted in the late 1960s.

ammë

mother

ammë noun "mother" (AM1)

anda né

adverb. long ago

andanéya

long ago, once upon a time

andanéya adv. "long ago, once upon a time" (also anda né) (VT49:31)

andavë

long, at great length

andavë adv. "long, at great length" (PE17:102); see anda

ando

long

ando (2) adv. "long"; maybe replaced by andavë; see anda (VT14:5)

atarmë

for us

atarmë dative (?) pron. "for us" (VT44:18; Tolkien apparently considered dropping this curious form, which in another text was replaced by rá men, rámen; see rá #1)

elwen

heart

elwen noun "heart" (LT1:255; rather hón or enda in LotR-style Quenya)

emel

mother

emel noun "mother"; also amal (VT48:22, 49:22); the form amil (emil) seems more usual.

emil

mother

emil noun "mother", emilinya "my mother" (also reduced to emya) the terms a child would use in addressing his or her mother (VT47:26). Emil would seem to be a variant of amil. Also compare emel.

emil

noun. mother

enne

noun. thought, purpose

er

one, alone

er cardinal "one, alone" (ERE, VT48:6, VT49:54), in an early source also adv. "only, but, still" (LT1:269); Eru er "one God" (VT44:17; er was here emended by Tolkien from erëa, which seems to be an adjectival form *"one, single".)

erëa

cardinal. one

erëa adj.? "one" or *"single", apparently an adjectival form (see er) (VT44:17)

esse

noun. name

essë

name

essë (1) noun "name", also later name of Tengwa #31, originally (MET) called árë (ázë). (Appendix E). With a pronominal ending esselya "thy name" (VT43:14). Pl. #essi in PM:339 and MR:470, gen.pl. #esseron "of names" in the compound Nómesseron (q.v.); we would rather have expected *ession, given the nom.pl. essi; perhaps #esser is a valid alternative plural form. Essecarmë noun "name-making" (MR:214, 470), Eldarin ceremony where the father announces the name of his child. Essecenta *("k") noun "Name-essay" (see centa) (MR:415); Essecilmë noun "name-choosing", an Eldarin ceremony where a child named him- or herself according to personal lámatyávë (q.v.) (MR:214, 471). The meaning Tolkien originally assigned to the word essë** in the Etymologies was "place" rather than "name" (VT45:12).

essë

he

essë (2) pron? "he" (and also "she, it"?), possible emphatic 3rd sg. emphatic pronoun, attested in the sentence essë úpa nas "he is dumb" (PE17:126)

esta-

verb. name

hón

heart

hón noun "heart" (physical) (KHŌ-N); hon-maren "heart of the house", a fire (LR:63, 73; this is "Qenya" with genitive in -en, not -o as in LotR-style Quenya read *hon-maro?)

leper

finger

leper (pl. leperi given) noun "finger" (VT44:16, VT47:10, 14, 24, VT48:5; an older source gives the word for "finger" as lepsë, q.v.)

lepsë

finger

lepsë noun "finger" (LEP/LEPET; see leper). According to VT45:27, Tolkien derived lepsë from primitive ¤lepti; if so, lepsë should have the stem-form *lepsi-. However, Tolkien struck out the ancestral form lepti, so we cannot be sure whether this idea was maintained or not. In later sources, the word for "finger" appears as leper.

leuta

noun. finger

lélë

noun. will

mamil

mother, mummy

mamil noun *"mother, mummy" (UT:191)

mendë

will

#mendë noun "will", only attested in mendelya "thy will" (VT43:15)

min

cardinal. one

min numeral "one", also minë (VT45:34, VT48:6)

minë

cardinal. one

minë numeral "one", also min (MINI, VT45:34)

mir

cardinal. one

mir (2) cardinal "one" (LT1:260; in LotR-style Quenya rather minë)

nalmë

clamour

[nalmë] (2) ("ñ")noun "clamour" (ÑGAL/ÑGALAM)

narwë

sign, token

[narwë (and short nar, unless this is an incomplete form) noun "sign, token"] (VT45:37)

nyelle

noun. small bell

small bell

nyellë

noun. small bell, [ᴹQ.] bell, [Q.] small bell

níra

will

níra noun "will" (as a potential or faculty) (VT39:30, VT41:6, 17, PE17:168)

nór

land

nór noun "land" (stem nor-, PE17:106) this is land as opposed to water and sea (nor in Letters:308). Cf. nórë.

nóre

noun. land

nórë

land

nórë noun "land" (associated with a particular people) (WJ:413), "country, land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live, race, clan" (NŌ, NDOR, BAL), also used = "race, tribe, people" (SA:dôr, PE17:169; however, the normal word for "people" is lië). Early "Qenya" hasnórë "native land, nation, family, country" (in compounds -nor) (LT1:272)

ontari

mother

ontari noun "mother" or etymologically "begetter, parent" (fem.); clashing with the plural ontari "parents", this was apparently an emphemeral form (see ontarë, ontaril, ontarië for other feminine forms of "begetter, parent") (VT44:7)

ontaril

mother

ontaril noun "mother", female *"begetter" (cf. onta-). Variant of ontarë. (VT43:32)

os

house, cottage

os (ost-) noun "house, cottage" (LT2:336; hardly valid in LotR-style Quenya writers may use coa or már)

panya-

fix, set

panya- vb. "fix, set" (PAN). The verb napan- (q.v.), "add" or literally *"to-set", may argue the existence of a shorter stem #pan- as well.

sa

it

sa pron. "it", 3rd person sg, corresponding to the ending -s (VT49:30). Used of inanimate things or abstracts (VT49:37; plants are considered animate; see se). For sa as object, cf. the sentence ecë nin carë sa "I can do it" (VT49:34). Stressed sá (VT49:51). Ósa "with it" (VT43:36). Also compare the reflexive pronoun insa "itself", q.v. In one text, sa is also defined as "that" (VT49:18); apparently Tolkien also at one point considered giving sa a plural significance, so that it meant *"they, them" of inanimate things, the counterpart of "personal" té (VT49:51).

sa

pronoun. it

sanda

name

[sanda, sandë] (þ) (2) noun "name" (VT46:16)

sanwë

thought, an act of thinking

sanwë noun "thought, an act of thinking" (VT39:23, 30; VT41:5, 13, PE17:183)

sanya

name

[sanya] (þ) (2) noun ?"name" (reading of gloss uncertain, VT46:16)

se

he, she, it

se (1) pron. "he, she, it" also object "him, her, it", 3rd person sg. Used "of living things including plants" (VT49:37; the corresponding inaimate pronoun is sa). The pronoun comes directly from se as the original stem-form (VT49:50). Stressed form sé, VT49:51, attested in object position in melin sé "I love him" (VT49:21). Ósë "with him/her", VT43:29; see ó-. Long dative/allative sena "[to/for] him" or "at him", VT49:14, allative senna "to him/her" (VT49:45, 46). Compare the reflexive pronoun insë *"himself, herself".

sóra

long, trailing

sóra adj. "long, trailing" (LT2:344)

taina

sign

#taina (2) noun "sign", isolated from Tainacolli *"Sign-bearer" MR:385

tanna

sign, token

tanna (1) noun "sign, token" (MR:385, PE17:186), also tanwa (PE17:186)

tanwa

sign, token

tanwa noun "sign, token" (Tolkien marked this word with a query, but it is not clearly rejected). Also tanna (#1). (PE17:186)

tengwa

letter

tengwa (pl. tengwar is attested) (1) noun "letter" Tengwa (ñ) is defined as "any one visible sign representing (theoretically) any one audible teñgwe" (phoneme) (VT39:17). In non-technical usage tengwa was equivalent to "consonant", since only the consonants were full signs (WJ:396, TEK). In the Etymologies, tengwa was apparently emended from tengwë (VT46:17).

tenna

noun. thought

thought, notion, idea

tuc-

draw

tuc- ("k")noun "draw" (1st pers. aorist tucin "I draw") (TUK)

tulca-

fix, set up, establish

tulca- (2) ("k") vb. "fix, set up, establish" (LT1:270)

veri

wife

veri noun "wife" (VT49:45)

vessë

wife

vessë noun "wife" (BES). A later source gives the word for "wife" as veri.

vinya

young

vinya (1) adj. "young" (VT46:22, VT47:26, PE17:191) or "new" (cf. compounds Vinyamar, Vinyarië below; cf. also winya "new, fresh, young" in a deleted entry in the Etymologies, VT45:16; there the word was first written as vinya.) Vinya "the Young", original name of the isle of Númenor among its own people (SD:332).

véna

for us

véna pron. "for us", (long) dative form of ve # 2, q.v.

yalmë

clamour

yalmë noun "clamour" (ÑGAL/ÑGALAM)

nessa

Nessa

Nessa ([ˈnesːa]) is a Quenya name meaning "young".

raicë

noun. wrong

ind

mind

ind (inner thought, meaning, heart), no distinct pl. form;, coll. pl. innath.

ind

mind

(inner thought, meaning, heart), no distinct pl. form;, coll. pl. innath.

ind

inner thought

ind (mind, meaning, heart), no distinct pl. form; coll. pl. innath

ind

inner thought

ind (mind, meaning, heart), no distinct pl. form;, coll. pl. innath.

ind

meaning

ind (inner thought, mind, heart), no distinct pl. form; coll. pl. innath

ind

heart

(inner thought, mind, meaning), no distinct pl. form;, coll. pl. innath.

ind

meaning

(inner thought, mind, heart), no distinct pl. form; coll. pl. innath

lebdas

noun. index finger

A name for the index finger in notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals from 1968, a combination of ✶lepe “finger” and √TAS “point out”; shorter tas was also used for “index finger (lit. ✱pointer)” (VT48/5).

tas

noun. index finger

úthaes

noun. inducement to do wrong, *temptation

emig

noun. index finger (Elvish play-name used by and taught to children)

lebdas

noun. index finger

tas

noun. index finger

úthaes

noun. inducement to do wrong, temptation

nidh-

verb. will, mean to, have a mind to

nobad

noun. the pair of fingers composed of the thumb and the index (grouped together as in the act of picking something)

lebdas

index finger

lebdas, pl. lebdais, coll. pl. lebdassath (VT48:5). In childrens play also called emig ”little mother” (VT48:6, 17). Nobad, the dual form of naub ”thumb”, is used of the thumb and the index grouped together in the act of picking something (VT48:5, 6)

î

interjection. indeed

idhr

id

> idhor as the later forms.)

fanwos Speculative

noun. mind-picture (of apparition in dream)

A Sindarin(?) word that seems to be the equivalent of Q. indemma “mind-picture”, based on the root √PHAN “veil” (PE17/174). This was a telepathic vision induced in another’s mind; see Q. indemma for further discussion.

caetha-

verb. to make to do or be, cause, compel, induce, bring about

gûr

inner mind

(i ’ûr, construct gur) (heart), pl. guir (i nguir = i ñuir). Note: A homophone means ”death”, but has different mutations. (VT41:11)

leber

noun. finger

The Sindarin word for “finger”, derived from primitive ✶leper and based on the root √LEP “pick up” (VT47/10; VT48/5).

Conceptual Development: Tolkien used various Elvish words for “finger” over his life, but most were based on the root √LEP. The Gnomish Grammar and Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. leptha “finger” (GG/13; GL/53), clearly derived from the early root ᴱ√LEPE that was the basis for contemporaneous Qenya finger words (QL/53). In Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s it was ᴱN. lhê “finger”, derived from primitive ᴱ✶lept- (PE13/148). In The Etymologies of the 1930s it was N. lhebed “finger” based on the root ᴹ√LEPET of the same meaning (Ety/LEP). In drafts of the 1968 notes mentioned above, Tolkien had S. lebed “finger” (VT47/27), but this was replaced by leber in the finished versions (VT47/23-24 note #30).

anfang

proper name. Longbeard

The Dwarvish tribe of northwestern Middle-earth, also known as Durin’s Folk (PM/321). The name translates as “Longbeard”, a compound of and “long” and fang “beard” (PM/321). The name also appears in its plural form Enfeng and its class-plural Anfangrim (PM/321, WJ/10).

Conceptual Development: In the Lost Tales and the earliest Silmarillion drafts this tribe was called the G. Indrafang (LT2/68, SM/104). In the Gnomish Lexicon from the 1910s, the variant form G. Surfang or Fangsur also appeared (GL/68). The name was later changed to N. Enfeng (plural) in Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s (LR/274), and the singular form N. An(d)fang appeared in The Etymologies (Ety/ÁNAD, SPÁNAG).

The name S. Enfeng appeared in Silmarillion revisions from the 1950s-60s (WJ/10, 75), but did not appear in the published version of The Silmarillion. The name was referenced in some notes to Tolkien’s essay “Of Dwarves and Men”, composed around 1969, along with Khuzdul and Quenya translations (PM/321).

bess

noun. wife, wife; [N.] woman

A word for “wife” appearing in the King’s Letter written towards the end of the 1940s (SD/129).

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to G. bess “wife” from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, where it was a derivative of the early root ᴱ√Beđ (GL/22). In Early Noldorin Word-lists, Tolkien changed ᴱN. {bess >>} gweth “wife” based on the modified root ᴱ√wed- (PE13/139, 146); it also had a negated form ᴱN. urweth “without wife” (PE13/156). In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien restored N. bess, now a derivative of the root ᴹ√BES “wed” (Ety/BES). However in that document the sense “†wife” was archaic, and it has come to mean “woman” in modern speech, replacing archaic N. †dî “woman” (Ety/BES, NDIS, NĪ¹). In the scenario of The Etymologies, the normal word for “wife” was herves (Ety/BES, KHER). However, in the late-1940s King’s Letter, it seems the sense “wife” was restored to bess.

At some point in the mid-to-late 1960s, Tolkien changed the root for marriage words from ᴹ√BES to √BER (VT49/45), apparently motivated by a need to deal with some etymological problems with the name S. Elbereth. Indeed, in The Road Goes Ever On from 1967, Tolkien said S. bereth meant “spouse”, also “used of one who is queen as spouse of a king” (RGEO/66). This calls into question the continued validity of bess from ᴹ√BES.

Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I prefer to retain the root ᴹ√BES for marriage word; see that entry for further details. I’d therefore keep bess, but I recommend using it only in the sense “wife”. For “woman” I’d use dî, much as I recommend using S. dîr for “man” over N. benn, which had similar conceptual developments.

e

pronoun. he

The meaning "he" is deduced from the apparent function of this word in the so-called "King's Letter", but it also seems possible to interpret it as "indeed" (as in Q. e, LR/63, VT/45:11), used here in a way of formal address expressing the wishes or the will of the King

emel

noun. mother

A word for “mother” in notes on Elvish Hands, Fingers and Numerals from the late 1960s, along with a diminutive form emelig (VT48/17 note #13). These forms were struck through and replaced by emig as the proper diminutive form from the root √EM (VT48/6), but that doesn’t necessarily invalidate emel = “mother”, which appeared elsewhere as (probably primitive) emel, emer in rough versions of these notes (VT48/19 note #16). These Sindarin forms are unusual in that the medial m did not become v, which means the primitive form was likely based on ✱emm- as suggested by Patrick Wynne (VT48/17 note #14).

Conceptual Development: G. amil “mother” appeared in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s along with rejected forms {anwin, amril} and an archaic variant †amaith (GL/19). The forms {emaith >>} amaith appeared unglossed in Gnomish Lexicon Slips revising that document (PE13/109). In The Etymologies of the 1930s there was a form N. †emil for “mother” under the root ᴹ√AM of the same meaning, but Tolkien said this word was archaic, apparently replaced by N. naneth (Ety/AM¹; EtyAC/AM¹). With N. emil, the a became e via i-affection, but the medial m failing to become v requires an explanation similar to that of 1960s S. emel.

Neo-Sindarin: I generally prefer derivatives of the earlier root √AM for “mother” words in Quenya, but in the case of Sindarin, I find emel and emig from √EM to be better and more widely accepted.

hûn

heart

1) (physical heart) hûn (i chûn, o chûn, construct hun), pl. huin (i chuin), 2) (inner mind) gûr (i **ûr, construct gur), pl. guir (i nguir = i ñuir). Note: A homophone means ”death”, but has different mutations. (VT41:11). 3) ind (inner thought, mind, meaning), no distinct pl. form;, coll. pl. innath. 4) nest (core, center), pl. nist. Also notice the prefix hû**- apparently meaning ”heart”..

and

long

(adjective) and (pl. aind),

and

long

(pl. aind)

andaith

long mark

(no distinct pl. form). The word refers to an accent-like mark used to indicate long vowels in Tengwar modes that employ separate vowel letters, like the Mode of Beleriand.

e

he

1) e (SD:128-31), 2) ho, hon, hono. (The distinctions between these forms are unclear. Possibly ho is the nominative ”he”, whereas hon is the accusative ”him”. Hono could be an emphatic form. It may be that all of these pronouns, except e, are ”Noldorin” and were not maintained in Sindarin proper.)

emig

little mother

(no distinct pl. form except with article: in emig). Also used (in children’s play) as a name for the index finger (VT48:6, 17)

ha

it

ha, han, hana. (The distinctions between these forms are unclear. Possibly ha is the nominative, whereas han is the accusative. Hana could be an emphatic form. It may be that these pronouns as ”N” rather than Sindarin proper.)

ha

it

han, hana. *(The distinctions between these forms are unclear. Possibly ha is the nominative, whereas han is the accusative. Hana could be an emphatic form. It may be that these pronouns as ”N” rather than Sindarin proper.)*

ho

he

hon, hono. *(The distinctions between these forms are unclear. Possibly ho is the nominative ”he”, whereas hon is the accusative ”him”. Hono could be an emphatic form. It may be that all of these pronouns, except e, are ”Noldorin” and were not maintained in Sindarin proper.)*

leber

finger

leber (pl. lebir) (VT47:10, 23, 24; VT48:5). This may replace ”Noldorin” lhebed, which we would otherwise update to Sindarin as lebed. For names of specific fingers, see INDEX FINGER, LITTLE FINGER, MIDDLE FINGER, RING FINGER, THUMB.

nand

wide grassland

(construct nan) (valley), pl. naind, coll. pl. **nannath **(VT45:36);

pen

cardinal. one

(indefinite pronoun) (= somebody, anybody) pen (WJ:376); lenited ben. According to one interpretation of the phrase caro den i innas lín from the Sindarin Lords Prayer (VT44:23), this could mean *”let one do your will”, with den (perhaps a lenited form of *ten) as the indefinite pronoun ”one”. However, others interpret den as the accusative form of the pronoun ”it”: ”Do it [, that is:] your will”.

pen

one

(WJ:376); lenited ben. According to one interpretation of the phrase caro den i innas lín from the Sindarin Lord’s Prayer (VT44:23), this could mean ✱”let one do your will”, with den (perhaps a lenited form of ✱ten) as the indefinite pronoun ”one”. However, others interpret den as the accusative form of the pronoun ”it”: ”Do it [, that is:] your will”.

tann

sign

1) (etymologically ”something shown/indicated”) tann (i dann), construct tan, pl. tain (i thain) (MR:185); 2) têw (i dêw, o thêw, construct tew) (letter, tengwa), pl. tîw (i **thîw), coll. pl. téwath**;

-u

suffix. a person or being

têw

noun. letter

-en

suffix. my

_1st sg. poss. suff. my.See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Later -nin_. >> lammen, -nin

anann

adverb. long

adv. long. Cuio i Pheriain anann 'May the Halflings live long'.

and

adjective. long

adj. long. i·arben na megil and 'The Knight of the Long Sword'. >> ann

ann

adjective. long

adj. long. Rare except in old names (e.g. Anduin). >> and

gwein

adjective. young

adj. young. Q. vinya. >> gwîn

tew

letter

(dew), pl1. tiw _ n. _letter. tew << têw; tiw << tîw. >> téw

anann

adverb. long, for a long time

and

adjective. long

and

adjective. long

ann

adjective. long

dor

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor

dôr

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor

dôr

noun. land, land, [N.] region where certain people live, [ᴱN.] country; [G.] people of the land

e

pronoun. he

emel

noun. mother

emig

noun. "litte mother"

emmel

noun. mother

eneth

noun. name

esta-

verb. to name

guren

noun. my heart

Apparently the word gûr.1 with a suffixed possessive. See lammen for a similar form

gwein

adjective. young

gûr

noun. heart (in the moral sense), counsel

inn

noun. purpose, intention

innas

noun. will

lebed

noun. finger

Tolkien later seems to have replaced this form by leber

lebenedh

noun. middle finger

lebent

noun. ring finger

leber

noun. finger

lebig

noun. little finger

lin

adjective. thy (reverential)

lín

adjective. thy (reverential)

min

fraction. one (first of a series)

min

cardinal. one, one, [G.] single

mîn

fraction. one (first of a series)

na-

verb. to be

neitha-

verb. to wrong, to deprive

niged

noun. little finger

nín

adjective. my

The acute accent in nín has sometimes been regarded as an error for a slanted macron in the manuscript, since all the other attested personal adjectives from Sauron defeated all have a circumflex accent. It was however noted that if the acute accent is confirmed, then this word is probably an enclitic, see HL/73. The acute accent is now confirmed by VT/44

nín

pronoun. my

pen

pronoun. one, somebody, anybody

Usually enclitic and mutated as ben.2

sennas

noun. guesthouse

taen

noun. sign

ten

pronoun. (?) it (as object)

têw

noun. letter, written sign

adab

house

(building), pl. edaib. In ”Noldorin”, the plural was edeb.

ammen

for us

ammen (to us).

anann

long

(adverb, = "for a long time") anann

anann

long

anfang

longbeard

pl. Enfeng, coll. pl. Anfangrim (WJ:10, 108, 205)

anfang

longbeard

(a member of a certain tribe of Dwarves) Anfang, pl. Enfeng, coll. pl. Anfangrim (WJ:10, 108, 205)

angerthas

long rune-row

(and + certhas).

annabon

long-snouted one

pl. ennebyn, coll. pl. annabonnath. (Archaic form andabon.)

bess

wife

(i vess, construct bes) (woman), pl. biss (i miss). The word bess was later used = ”woman” (in general).

brûn

long endured/established/in use

(old), lenited vrûn, pl. bruin;

bâr

house

bâr (dwelling, home, family; land, earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.

bâr

house

(dwelling, home, family; land, earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.

bâr

land

(dwelling, house, home, family; earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.

car

house

(building, dwelling-place) 1) car or cardh (i gar[dh], o char[dh]) (building), pl. cerdh (i cherdh) or cair (i chair). Note: cardh also means "deed, feat". Therefore, the form car may be preferred for clarity. 2) adab (building), pl. edaib. In ”Noldorin”, the plural was edeb. 3)

car

house

or cardh (i gar[dh], o char[dh]) (building), pl. cerdh (i cherdh) or cair (i chair). Note: cardh also means "deed, feat". Therefore, the form car may be preferred for clarity.

caun

clamour

caun (i gaun, o chaun) (outcry, cry, shout), pl. coen (i choen), coll. pl. conath, the latter often used = "lamentation" (PM:345, 362). Note: a homophone of caun means "valour".

caun

clamour

(i gaun, o chaun) (outcry, cry, shout), pl. coen (i choen), coll. pl. conath, the latter often used = "lamentation" (PM:345, 362). Note: a homophone of caun means "valour".

dess

young woman

(i ness, o ndess, constuct des), pl. diss (i ndiss)

díneth

bride

(i níneth, o ndineth), pl. dínith (i ndínith)

dî

bride

1) dî (i nî, o ndi) (lady), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ndî), 2) díneth (i níneth, o ndineth), pl. dínith (i ndínith)

dî

bride

(i nî, o ndi) (lady), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ndî)

dôr

land

1) dôr (i nôr, construct dor) (dwelling place, region), pl. dŷr (i ndŷr), coll. pl. dorath (WJ:413), 2) bâr (dwelling, house, home, family; earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.

dôr

land

(i nôr, construct dor) (dwelling place, region), pl. dŷr (i ndŷr), coll. pl. dorath (WJ:413)

e

he

(SD:128-31)

eneth

name

(noun) eneth (pl. enith)

eneth

name

(pl. enith)

ennin

long year

. No distinct pl. form, but coll. pl. enniniath.

eru

the one

isolated from

ess

noun. name

esta

name

(verb.) esta- (call) (i esta, in estar)

esta

name

(call) (i esta, in estar)

estel

purpose

(noun, ”steady purpose”) estel (hope, trust), pl. estil

estel

purpose

(hope, trust), pl. estil

fae

soul

fae (spirit, radiance). No distinct pl. form.: No general word for ”sound” is attested, but there are the following terms:

fae

soul

(spirit, radiance). No distinct pl. form.

gobel

village

(i ’obel) (enclosed dwelling, ”town”), pl. gebil (i ngebil = i ñebil). Archaic pl. ✱göbil.

gûr

heart

(i ’ûr, construct gur), pl. guir (i nguir = i ñuir). Note: A homophone means ”death”, but has different mutations. (VT41:11).

herves

wife

1) herves (i cherves, o cherves), pl. hervis (i chervis), coll. pl. hervessath, 2) archaic bess (i vess, construct bes) (woman), pl. biss (i miss). The word bess was later used = ”woman” (in general).

herves

wife

(i cherves, o cherves), pl. hervis (i chervis), coll. pl. hervessath

hûn

heart

(i chûn, o chûn, construct hun), pl. huin (i chuin)

idhor

thoughtfulness

. (Correction of idher in LR:361 s.v.

idhren

thoughtful

(pondering, wise), pl. idhrin;

innas

will

(noun) innas, pl. innais (VT44:23)

innas

will

pl. innais (VT44:23)

lín

thy

lín

lín

thy

meithas

noun. meaning

min

cardinal. one

1) (number ”one” as the first in a series) min, mîn (VT48:6), Note: homophones include the noun ”peak” and the adjective ”isolated, first, towering”. 2) (number) êr, whence the adjectival prefix er- (alone, lone); 3)

min

one

mîn (VT48:6), Note: homophones include the noun ”peak” and the adjective ”isolated, first, towering”.

naneth

mother

naneth (pl. nenith). Hypocoristic form (”mom”) nana, pl. nenai (but this word is probably rarely pluralized). In a higher style also †emil. No distinct pl. form; coll. pl. emillath. Variant form emel (pl. emil), also spelt emmel (pl. emmil). (VT48:17)

naneth

mother

(pl. nenith). Hypocoristic form (”mom”) nana, pl. nenai (but this word is probably rarely pluralized). In a higher style also †emil. No distinct pl. form; coll. pl. emillath. Variant form emel (pl. emil), also spelt emmel (pl. emmil). (VT48:17)

nauth

thought

nauth (pl. noeth, coll. pl. nothath);

nauth

thought

(pl. noeth, coll. pl. nothath);

neitha

wrong

(verb) #neitha- (i neitha, in neithar) (deprive). Isolated from Neithan ”Wronged” (as participle/derived noun)

neitha

wrong

(i neitha, in neithar) (deprive). Isolated from Neithan ”Wronged” (as participle/derived noun)

nest

heart

(core, center), pl. nist. Also notice the prefix hû- apparently meaning ”heart”..

neth

young

neth (pl. nith). A homophone is the noun ”sister, girl”.

neth

young

(pl. nith). A homophone is the noun ”sister, girl”.

neth

nessa

Neth, also called Díneth ”the young bride” (na Nineth)

neth

nessa

also called Díneth ”the young bride” (na Nineth)

noss

house

(family) 1) noss (construct nos, pl. nyss) (family, clan), 2) nost (pl. nyst) (family) (PM:360), 3) nothrim (family); no distinct pl. form (PM:360)

noss

house

(construct nos, pl. nyss) (family, clan)

nost

house

(pl. nyst) (family) (PM:360)

nothrim

house

(family); no distinct pl. form (PM:360)

nín

my

nín (following a noun with article: i adar nín, ”my father”). Not to be confused with nîn ”watery, wet” or as noun ”tear”, or the pl. form of nên ”water”. In a very few attested cases, the pronoun ”my” appears as an ending -en added to a noun (lammen ”my tongue”, guren ”my heart”).

nín

my

(following a noun with article: i adar nín, ”my father”). Not to be confused with nîn ”watery, wet” or as noun ”tear”, or the pl. form of nên ”water”. – In a very few attested cases, the pronoun ”my” appears as an ending -en added to a noun (lammen ”my tongue”, guren ”my heart”).

parth

enclosed grassland

(i barth, o pharth) (field, sward), pl. perth (i pherth);

penia

fix

penia- (i benia, i pheniar) (set);

penia

fix

(i benia, i pheniar) (set);

pân

fixed board in a floor

(i bân, o phân, construct pan) (plank), pl. pain (i phain). Not to be confused with the adj. ✱pân ”all”.

sennas

guesthouse

(i hennas), pl. sennais (i sennais), coll. pl. sennassath (RC:523)

taen

thin

(lenited daen, no distinct pl. form). Note: a homophone means ”height, summit of high mountain”.

tann

sign

(i dann), construct tan, pl. tain (i thain)** **(MR:185)

teitha

draw

teitha- (i deitha, i theithar) (write)

teitha

draw

(i deitha, i theithar) (write)

thel

will

(vb.) ?thel- (intend, mean, purpose, resolve)

thel

will

(intend, mean, purpose, resolve)

thel

purpose

(verb) ?thel- (intend, mean, resolve, will);

thel

purpose

(intend, mean, resolve, will);

thelion

one who purposes

(pl. thelyn, coll. pl. thelionnath)

têw

sign

(i dêw, o thêw, construct tew) (letter, tengwa), pl. tîw (i thîw), coll. pl. téwath

têw

letter

têw (i dêw, o thêw, construct tew) (sign, tengwa), pl. tîw (i **thîw), coll. pl. téwath**

têw

letter

(i dêw, o thêw, construct tew) (sign, tengwa), pl. tîw (i thîw), coll. pl. téwath

êr

one

whence the adjectival prefix er- (alone, lone)

tassa

noun. index finger

anda

adjective. long

cava

noun. house

emmë

noun. mother

er

cardinal. one

leper

noun. finger

min

cardinal. one

nia

pronoun. my

phayā

noun. soul, indwelling spirit

teñwe

noun. sign, token, indication

am

root. mother

For most of Tolkien’s life, the Primitive Elvish root for “mother” was √AM. This began with the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, where Tolkien gave the root as ᴱ√AMA (QL/30). In The Etymologies of the 1930s it was ᴹ√AM with derivatives ᴹQ. amil and (archaic) N. emil “mother” (Ety/AM¹). In Quenya prayers of the 1950s, the word for mother was Q. Amille. In the last few years of his life, however, Tolkien toyed with the notion of changing this root to √EM. In notes associated with Eldarinwe Leperi are Notessi written in the late 1960s, Tolkien first gave the root as am, but then wrote em next to it with a question mark, along with several new em-derivatives (VT48/19 note #16). The Q. affectionate word emme for “mommy” appeared in the main article, indicating Tolkien did, in fact, adopt this new root, at least for some period of time.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Quenya writing, I personally prefer to ignore this late change to the root for “mother” and stick with the √AM-forms Tolkien used for most of his life. However, the √AM-forms were less stable in the Sindarin branch of the languages, so I’d use √EM-forms like S. emel and emig, and would assume √AM and √EM were variants of the root, as they were on VT48/19 (see above).

win

root. young, young, [ᴹ√] new, fresh

Tolkien used a similar set of Elvish roots for “youth” and “freshness” for many years. The earliest of these was primitive guı̯u̯ or gu̯iu̯ [ᴱ√GWIWI] in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like G. gui “just, just now, only just, already”, G. guin “recent, fresh”, and G. gwioth “youth” (GL/42). This root reappeared as ᴹ√WIR “new, fresh, young” in The Etymologies of the 1930s with variants ᴹ√WĪ and ᴹ√WIN and derivatives ᴹQ. vírie “youth” and ᴹQ. virya “fresh” (EtyAC/WIR). The ᴹ√WIN variant had derivatives ᴹQ. vinya/N. gwîn “young”. Tolkien considered, but rejected, deriving these from strengthened ᴹ√GWIN instead, producing (also rejected) ᴹQ. winya/N. bîn (EtyAC/GWIN).

Q. vinya appeared in quite a few later names with the gloss “young” or “new”, but the Sindarin form became S. gwain as in S. Narwain “January, ✱(lit.) New Fire” (LotR/1110) and S. Iarwain “Old-young” (LotR/1114; RC/128). In Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959, both were given as derivatives of √WIN “young” along with Q. víne/S. gwîn “youth”, though the Sindarin word for “young” was given as (archaic?) gwein (PE17/191). Also related are various words for “baby” from 1968 notes such Q. †wine/S. gwinig “little-one, baby” (VT48/6). In these notes primitive wini was glossed “little” but this was deleted (VT47/26), making it likely that the earlier senses “young, new” were restored for √WIN.

As for the 1930s root ᴹ√WIR, it might have survived as an element in the month names Q. Víressë/S. Gwirith “April” (LotR/1110), perhaps meaning “✱freshness”.

imde

pronoun. yourselves

lepe

noun. finger

tekmā

noun. letter

ṇ̃gyellē

noun. small bell

amal

noun. mother

amas

noun. mother

amma

noun. mother

amme

noun. mother

del

root. will

A root in etymological notes from 1968, meaning “to will with conscious purpose, immediate or remote”; it was distinct from “be willing, to assent, consent, agree”, which partakes of the will but also involves accident or change (NM/231). Given the many other uses to which √DEL was assigned, odds are this was a transient idea.

em

root. mother

emel

noun. mother

emer

noun. mother

imin

masculine name. One

leper

noun. finger

lepero

noun. finger

min

cardinal. one

mō

noun. person

ndorē

noun. land

ndōro

noun. land

verī

noun. wife

ʒandā

adjective. long

en

root. name

ammê

noun. mother

A noun for “mother” (SD/434). Tolkien gave two forms of this word, ammî and ammê, with no indication as to which would be preferred. However, ammî resembles a plural word, and Tolkien elsewhere stated that such forms tended to change their final vowel to -ê (SD/438), so my guess is that ammî is an archaic form. This word is probably related to the Elvish root √AM “mother”. Some authors have suggested it is directly related to ᴹQ. amme (AAD/10, AL/Adûnaic), but as Andreas Moehn points out (EotAL/MAM) such basic words are rarely borrowed from other languages, so the relationship is more likely from the Primitive Elvish root.

u

pronoun. he

A well-attested pronominal prefix, the masculine singular pronoun “he” (SD/433). See the entry on pronominal-prefixes for more discussion. Tolkien said that it had another variant hu- (SD/433), but this variant was only appears in the early and rejected hunekkū, which was changed to unekkū (see nakh-). Tolkien further indicated that the form u- primitively had an initial consonant [ɣ] or [ʔ] that was lost (SD/433).

banâth

noun. wife

The noun for “wife”, given as an example of a noun with a long vowel in its final syllable that (archaically) uses the declension for a strong-noun (SD/437), an example of the rare class of Strong-Ib nouns. By the time of Classical Adûnaic, it could be declined as an ordinary weak-noun instead.

thâni

noun. land

A noun translated “land” (SD/435) appearing in the Adûnaic names for the Blessed Realm: Amatthâni and thâni’nAmân. Its Primitive Adûnaic form was also ✶thāni, though its primitive was glossed “realm" (SD/420).

zadan

noun. house

A noun translated “house” and fully declined as an example of a Strong I noun (SD/430).

zâyan

noun. land

An Adûnaic word for “land” (SD/423). It has an irregular plural form zâin which is the result of the phonetic change (SD/423): [[pad|medial [w] and [j] vanished before [u] and [i]]]. Thus, the archaic plural changed from †zâyîn > zâîn > zâin.

Conceptual Development: In earlier names this word appeared as zen (SD/378, 385).

dóri-

noun. land

Isolated from Lindórinan. The independent form of the word may differ; it is unclear where the i of the compound Lindórinan comes from. In the Etymologies, the Eldarin words for "land" are derived from a stem NDOR "dwell, stay, rest, abide" (LR:376).

No Nandorin word is there listed, but Sindarin dor is derived from primitive ndorê. Notice, however, that Tolkien many years later derived the Eldarin words for "land" from a stem DORO "dried up, hard, unyielding" (WJ:413). However, this later source does confirm that the Primitive Quendian form was ndorê, now thought to be formed by initial enrichment d > nd. This is defined as "the hard, dry land as opposed to water or bog", later developing the meaning "land in general as opposed to sea", and finally also "a land" as a particular region, "with more or less defined bounds".

Whether dóri- actually comes from ndorê is highly doubtful (this would rather yield *dora in Nandorin), but it must be derived from the same set of stems.

ash

cardinal. one

ash

cardinal. one

sigin Reconstructed

adjective. long