inga

noun. top, highest point, top, highest point, [ᴹQ.] first

A word have the same root (√ING) as the name Ingwë, giving a clue to the original meaning of that name. In a few places, the plural Ingar of this word was used as another name for the Vanyar (MR/230, 265), but Tolkien more frequently used the plural Ingwë for this purpose: see Ingwi.

In later writings, this word was generally presented as a noun meaning “top, highest point” (PM/340, VT47/28), but in The Etymologies, ᴹQ. inga was an adjective glossed “first”, as in “foremost” (Ety/ING).

Tolkien stated that “inga ... applied to shapes pointing upward” but also that it “referred primarily to position and could be used of tops relatively broad” (VT47/28). Therefore, inga referred to the highest level whether it was a single point or a plateau.

inga

first

inga (2) adj. "first" (ING)

inga

top, highest point

inga (1) noun "top, highest point" (PM:340), "only applied to shapes pointing upwards...[it] referred primarily to position and could be used of tops relatively broad". Compounded in the nouns aldinga "tree-top" (alda + inga) (VT47:28), ingaran "high-king" (PM:340)

ingalaurë

masculine name. *Top Gold

The first mother-name Tolkien gave to Finarfin (MR/230, PE17/118). It seems to be a compound of inga “top” and laurë “gold”. It was Sindarized as Inglor.

Conceptual Development: In later writing Finarfin’s mother-name was changed to Ingoldo (PM/360).

ingaran

high-king

ingaran noun "high-king" (PM:340), compounded from inga and aran

ingaran

noun. high-king

inca

idea

inca ("k")noun "idea" (VT45:18, where the word is cited with a final hyphen, though its gloss would indicate that it is a noun not a verb. Originally, the triple glosses "idea, notion, guess" were provided.)

ingëa

adjective. top

@@@ Discord 2022-05-23

ingwi

collective name. People of Ingwë, Chieftains

A name for the People of Ingwë, the first tribe of Elves, more commonly known as the Vanyar (PM/332, PE17/154-5). It is simply the plural form of the name for their leader: Ingwë.

Alternate Forms: In a few places in Silmarillion revisions from the 1950s-60s, this name appeared instead as Ingar (MR/230, 265). It also appeared in an alternate plural form Ingwer and genitive plural Ingweron (PM/340). This last example seems to be an irregular plural, since the plural of nouns ending in -e are usually formed by changing this vowel to an -i (WJ/361). See the entry for the Quenya plural nouns for further discussion.

Conceptual Development: This name first appeared as ᴱQ. Inwir (LT1/50) derived from the older name of their leader: ᴱQ. Inwe. At this stage the name referred only the royal house of the first tribe (QL/42). In Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s, the form changed to ᴹQ. Ingwi, but still referred only to the royal house (LR/171). In Tolkien’s writing from the 1950s and later, the term expanded to include all Elves of the first tribe (MR/230; PM/332, 340).

cíta-

verb. to suppose

enna

first

[enna adj. "first" (VT45:12)]

esta

first

esta (2) adj. "first" (ESE/ESET); this entry was marked with a query. The word Yestarë (q.v.) "Beginning-day" in LotR suggests that Tolkien decided to change the stem in question to _YESE/YESET_. We could then read *yesta for esta (but later this became a noun "beginning" rather than an adj. "first", PE17:120) and also prefix a y to the other words derived from ESE/ESET (essë* > yessë, essëa > yessëa). Estanossë noun "the firstborn", read likewise Yestanossë** (*Yestanessi?) but in a later text, Tolkien used Minnónar (q.v.) for "the Firstborn" as a name of the Elves, and this form may be preferred. _(In the Etymologies as printed in LR, the word _Estanossë is cited as "Estanesse", but according to VT45:12, the second-to-last vowel is actually o in Tolkien's manuscript.)

minya

first

minya adj. "first" (MINI) (cf. Minyatur, Minyon); "eminent, prominent" (VT42:24, 25). Minyar "Firsts", the original name of the Vanyar (or rather the direct Quenya descendant of the original Primitive Quendian name) (WJ:380)

quista-

verb. to suppose

setta

first

[setta, setya adj. "first" (possibly also "primary", but Tolkien's gloss was not certainly legible) (VT46:13)]

inc

idea

1) inc (guess, notion), no distinct pl. form (though the pl. article in will mark the word as pl. when definite); coll. pl. ingath; 2) naw (pl. noe). In ”Noldorin”, the pl. form was nui. Coll. pl. ?nawath or ?noath.

inc

idea

(guess, notion), no distinct pl. form (though the pl. article in will mark the word as pl. when definite); coll. pl. ingath

main

ordinal. first, (only in the sense of) prime, chief, pre-eminent

mein

ordinal. first, (only in the sense of) prime, chief, pre-eminent

mein

ordinal. first

minui

ordinal. first

minui

ordinal. first

ned

noun. first, *one more; first; *during

This word replaced the preposition uin “of the” in the third version of the King’s Letter, appearing in the phrase nelchaenen ned Echuir “the thirty-first day of Stirring”. Both Carl Hostetter (VT31/30) and David Salo (SG/229) theorized that this replacement has a similar prepositional function, from either √NOT “count” or √NED “middle”. Fiona Jallings suggested it might be a temporal preposition, with sense “during” (FJNS/349).

On VT47/40, note 67, Patrick Wynne suggested that this word might be a cognate of the newly published Quenya word net(ë) “one more”. This theory is supported by the most likely interpretation of nelchaenen. This word seems to mean “thirtieth” rather than “thirty-first”, and Patrick Wynne suggested that nelchaenen ned means “thirtieth and one more” = “thirty-first”. I find this theory the most compelling, and use it here.

caw

top

caw (i gaw, o chaw), pl. coe (i choe)

caw

top

(i gaw, o chaw), pl. coe (i choe)

erui

first

(single, alone). No distinct pl. form. Some would argue that Tolkien abandoned erui as a word for ”first”.

minui

first

1) minui (lenited vinui; no distinct pl. form), 2) mîn (lenited vîn; no distinct pl. form) (isolated, towering). Note: homophones include the noun ”peak” and the number ”one”; 3) erui (single, alone). No distinct pl. form. Some would argue that Tolkien abandoned erui as a word for ”first”.

minui

first

(lenited vinui; no distinct pl. form)

mîn

first

(lenited vîn; no distinct pl. form) (isolated, towering). Note: homophones include the noun ”peak” and the number ”one”

naw

idea

(pl. noe). In ”Noldorin”, the pl. form was *nui***. Coll. pl. ?nawath or ?noath**.

pista-

verb. to suppose

caw

noun. top

caw

noun. top

edhen

adjective. first

ereg

place name. First

Earlier name for the river S. Erui from Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s, apparently a Noldorin word meaning ereg “first” (TI/312, WR/436).

ereg

adjective. first

naw

noun. idea

naw

noun. idea

minya

ordinal. first

minya

ordinal. first