limë

noun. link, link, *joint

Cognates

• S. lîf “link, link, *joint” ✧ VT47/06

Derivations

• ✶limi “link” ✧ VT47/06
  • √LIM “link, join” ✧ VT47/06

Element in

• Q. málimë “wrist, (lit.) hand-link” ✧ VT47/06
• ᴺQ. tallimë “ankle, (lit.) foot-link”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶limi > lime	[limi] > [lime]	✧ VT47/06

Variations

• lime ✧ VT47/06 (lime)

limë

link

#limë (stem *limi-) noun "link", isolated from málimë, q.v.

harya-

verb. to have, to have, [ᴹQ.] possess

Derivations

• ᴹ√ƷAR “have, hold”

Element in

• ᴺQ. harno “possessor”
• Q. merin sa haryalyë alassë nó vanyalyë Ambarello “I hope that you have happiness before you pass from the world” ✧ MS/01

sam-

verb. to have

Derivations

• √SAM “to have, have; [ᴹ√] unite, join” ✧ PE17/173

Element in

• ᴺQ. osáma “common, joint, (lit.) together-having”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√SAM > samin	[sam-]	✧ PE17/173

yanta-

verb. to join

@@@ NQNT uses erta- “unite” with a reflexive

Cognates

• ᴺS. ianna- “to join, connect”

Derivations

• √YAN “*join”

Element in

• ᴺQ. yantaina “joined”

limya-

verb. to link, join

Derivations

• √LIM “link, join”

yalta

noun. yoke

@@@ used in NQNT along with yanta

Cognates

• ᴺS. ialt “yoke”

Derivations

• ᴺ✶. YALTA “yoke”

lîf

noun. link, link, *joint

Cognates

• Q. limë “link, link, *joint” ✧ VT47/06

Derivations

• ✶limi “link” ✧ VT47/06
  • √LIM “link, join” ✧ VT47/06

Element in

• S. molif “wrist, (lit.) hand-link” ✧ VT47/06
• ᴺS. tallif “ankle”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶limi > lif	[limi] > [lime] > [lim] > [liv]	✧ VT47/06

Variations

• lif ✧ VT47/06 (lif)

ianu

noun. (?) yoke

It originally meant "bridge" in the Etymologies, but was apparently switched with iant

lif

noun. link

sevin

8r$5% verb. I have

v. aor. & pron. suff. I have. Q. samin. >> -n

ertha-

verb. to unite

sav-

verb. to have

Derivations

• √SAM “to have, have; [ᴹ√] unite, join” ✧ PE17/173

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√SAM > sevin	[samini] > [semini] > [semin] > [sevin]	✧ PE17/173
√SAM > ahawv > aw	[asāme] > [asǭme] > [ahǭme] > [ahaume] > [ahaum] > [aum] > [auv] > [au]	✧ PE17/173

gwedh

bind

*gwedh- (i **wêdh, in gwedhir), pa.t. gwedhant, in older language also gwend**. In LR:397 s.v.

gwedh

bind

(i ’wêdh, in gwedhir), pa.t. gwedhant, in older language also gwend. In LR:397 s.v.

iant

yoke

iant (bridge), pl. iaint, coll. pl. iannath

iant

yoke

(bridge), pl. iaint, coll. pl. iannath

lîf

link

#lîf, isolated from molif ”wrist”, literally ”hand-link” (VT47:6)

nod

bind

nod- (i nôd, i nedir) (tie), pa.t. likely *nunt since the root is __ (LR:378).

nod

bind

(i nôd, i nedir) (tie), pa.t. likely ✱nunt since the root is NUT (LR:378).

ialtha-

verb. to yoke, join

Derivations

• ᴺ✶. YALTA “yoke”

ianna-

verb. to join, connect

Cognates

• ᴺQ. yanta- “to join”

Derivations

• √YAN “*join”

Element in

• ᴺS. goianna- “to join with, add to”

maer

fit

maer (lenited vaer, no distinct pl. form) (useful, good [of things])

maer

fit

(lenited vaer, no distinct pl. form) (useful, good [of things])

ialt

noun. yoke

Cognates

• ᴺQ. yalta “yoke”

Derivations

• ᴺ✶. YALTA “yoke”

ertha

unite

#ertha- (i ertha, in erthar). Isolated from the gerund #erthad (itself isolated from aderthad "reunion").

ertha

unite

(i ertha, in erthar). Isolated from the gerund #erthad (itself isolated from aderthad "reunion").

yan

root. *join

The earliest iteration of this root was ᴱ√ẎATA “join” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like ᴱQ. yarta “yoke” and ᴱQ. yatta “neck; isthmus” (QL/105). In the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon it had derivatives like G. gada- “join, connect, unite” and G. gath⁽⁾ “neck” < ᴱ✶yatt- (GL/36). It reappeared as ᴹ√YAT “join” in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives like ᴹQ. yanta/N. iant “yoke” and ᴹQ. yanwe/N. ianw “bridge” < ᴹ✶yatmā (Ety/YAT). Above ᴹ√YAT there was a deleted root ᴹ√YATH with a single derivative ᴹQ. yatta “neck, isthmus” that was not deleted (EtyAC/YAK). ᴹQ. yatta may have been transferred to ᴹ√YAT, though as pointed out by Carl Hostetter and Patrick Wynne it might also have been transferred to ᴹ√YAK, which included among its derivatives ᴹQ. yat (yaht-) “neck” (Ety/YAK).

In later writings, Q. yanta and S. iant were used for “bridge” (LotR/1123; SD/129). The word Q. yanwë reappeared with the gloss “joining” in notes from 1969, initially derived from ✶yadme but this was deleted and replaced by √YAN (VT49/45-56). Carl Hostetter suggested that rejected ✶yadme probably reflected the earlier phonological developments seen in The Etymologies whereby tm became dm, then nm, and ultimately nw. However, sometime in the late 1950s or early 1960s Tolkien abandoned tm > dm > nm > nw, deciding instead that tm &gt; tw, which may have motivated him to change the root ᴹ√YAT to √YAN. A similar revision can be seen in change of ᴹ√TEK to √TEÑ in the derivation of Q. tengwa “letter”.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I prefer to retain the phonological developments of the 1930s to 1950s whereby km, tm > gm, dm > ñm, nm > ngw, nw. As such, I think it is better to retain the 1930s form of the root ᴹ√YAT “join”, which also helps avoid conflict with √YAN “wide, extensive, large”. As the above discussion indicates, Tolkien seems to have been vacillating on tm > tw vs. tm > nw as late as 1969.

Changes

• yadme → YAN ✧ VT49/45

Derivatives

• Q. yanta “bridge”
• ᴺQ. yanta- “to join”
• Q. yanwë “joining, joining, [ᴹQ.] isthmus, bridge” ✧ VT49/45
• ᴺS. ianna- “to join, connect”
• ᴺS. iannen “joined, connected”
• S. iant “bridge”

Variations

• YAN ✧ VT49/45
• yadme ✧ VT49/46 (yadme)

lim

root. link, join

A root glossed “link, join” appearing in notes on hands and fingers from the late 1960s where it was the basis for words meaning “wrist (hand-link)”, such as Q. málimë and S. molif (VT47/6). It is likely a later iteration of unglossed ᴱ√LIMI (probably = “✱bind”) from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, with both Qenya and Gnomish derivatives like ᴱQ. lim- “bind” and G. laim “thong, rope” (QL/54; GL/52, 54); this connection was suggested by Patrick Wynne (VT47/18 note #7).

Derivatives

• ✶limi “link” ✧ VT47/06
  • Q. limë “link, link, *joint” ✧ VT47/06
  • S. lîf “link, link, *joint” ✧ VT47/06
• ᴺQ. limil “chain”
• ᴺQ. limya- “to link, join”

limi

noun. link

Derivations

• √LIM “link, join” ✧ VT47/06

Derivatives

• Q. limë “link, link, *joint” ✧ VT47/06
• S. lîf “link, link, *joint” ✧ VT47/06

Element in

• ✶mā-limi “wrist, (lit.) hand-link” ✧ VT47/06

sam

root. to have, have; [ᴹ√] unite, join

The root ᴹ√SAM “unite, join” was a later addition to The Etymologies of the 1930s with the derivative ᴹQ. samnar “diphthongs” (Ety/SAM). There is also evidence for it in the word ᴹQ. sampane “combination” as in ᴹQ. Lámasampane “Combination of Sounds”, a term used in the first version of the Tengwesta Qenderinwa (TQ1) from the 1930s (PE18/40), and again in the second version (TQ2) from around 1950 (PE18/90). In an isolated note from the late 1930s, Tolkien gave ᴹ√kam “bind, join” as a replacement for √sam along with a new word ᴹQ. okamna “diphthong” (VT44/13), but given the reappearance of Q. sampanë in TQ2 this may have been a transient idea, and in any case Tolkien used the word Q. ohlon for “diphthong” in the 1950s and 60s (VT39/9; VT48/29).

In notes grouped with Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959, Tolkien gave √SAM as the basis for Elvish verbs for “to have”, with Q. samin and S. sevin “✱I have” (PE17/173). Whether this was connected to 1930s ᴹ√SAM “unite, join” is unclear. In notes associated with the 1959-60 essay Ósanwe-kenta, Tolkien gave the root √SAM with the gloss “mind, think, reflect, be aware” (VT41/5), but in later writings he used √SAN for “think, use mind” instead (PE22/158); see that entry for discussion.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I’d use √SAM = “have”.

Derivatives

• Q. sam- “to have” ✧ PE17/173
• S. sav- “to have” ✧ PE17/173

Element in

• ᴺQ. sampan- “to combine”
• Q. sampanë “combination”

Variations

• SAM ✧ PE17/173; PE17/183

kam

root. fit, suit, agree, be agreeable, fit, suit, agree, be agreeable; [ᴹ√] bind, join

The root √KAM had several distinct meanings over Tolkien’s lifetime. The first appearance of this root is as ᴱ√KAMA “lie down” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, with derivatives like ᴱQ. kama- “to lie down; (c. loc.) to endure, suffer” and ᴱQ. kamba “bed” (QL/44). Its Gnomish equivalents G. cum- “lie (down)” and G. cumli “couch” hint at a vowel shift (GL/27). In any cases, the sense “lie” was primarily assigned to the root √KAY in later writings, as indicated by the later word ᴹQ. kaima for “bed” (Ety/KAY).

There is another unglossed early root ᴱ√KAMA from the Qenya Lexicon whose derivatives are mostly different types of red flowers, but there are no signs of √KAM being used for this purpose in Tolkien’s later writing.

The next published appearance of ᴹ√KAM was in the 1930s with the gloss “bind, join” to serve as the basis for ᴹQ. okamna “diphthong” (VT44/13), which replaced (o)samna “diphthong” (< ᴹ√SAM) from The Etymologies, only to be replaced again in the 1960s by Q. ohlon (VT39/9; VT48/29). Thus the meaning “bind, join” for √KAM may have been abandoned as well.

The final published appearances of √KAM as a root were in various etymological notes from the late 1960s. In a couple notes it appeared with glosses “fit, suit, agree” and “suit, fit, be agreeable” and a derived (probably primitive) verb ✶kamta- “to (make) fit, suit, accomodate, adapt” (VT44/14). In notes associated with hands and finger written in 1968, Tolkien proposed √KAM as a replacement for √KAB “hold, contain, retain” from which the words Q. camba/S. cam “(cupped) hand” were derived (VT47/20). It also had a derived verb form camnelyes “you received it” (✱cam- “receive”), with nasal-suffixed past form camne- (VT47/21). The verb form was replaced by cambelyes, which might indicate a restoration of √KAB with nasal-infixed past form cambe- (✱cav- “receive”), as suggested by Patrick Wynne.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I think it is best to assume that √KAM as a replacement for √KAB was a transient idea, allowing us to use √KAM with the sense “fit, suit, agree” instead.

Derivatives

• ✶kambā “(cupped) hand” ✧ VT47/20
  • Q. camba “(cupped) hand, hollow of the hand” ✧ VT47/07
  • S. cam “(cupped) hand, holding hand; handful” ✧ SA/cam
• ✶kamta- “to (make) fit, suit, accomodate, adapt” ✧ VT44/14; VT44/14
• ᴺQ. camma “receptacle”
• ᴺQ. camya- “to contain, hold”
• Q. cam- “to receive” ✧ VT47/20
• ᴺS. camma- “to make fit, suit, accommodate, adapt”

yalta

root. yoke

Derivatives

• ᴺQ. yalta “yoke”
• ᴺS. ialt “yoke”
• ᴺS. ialtha- “to yoke, join”

gwedh-

verb. to bind

iant

noun. yoke

Cognates

• ᴹQ. yanta “yoke” ✧ Ety/YAT

Derivations

• ᴹ✶yantā “yoke” ✧ Ety/YAT
  • ᴹ√YAT “join” ✧ Ety/YAT
• ᴹ√YAT “join” ✧ Ety/YAT

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ✶yantā > iant	[jantā] > [janta] > [jantʰa] > [janθa] > [janθ] > [jant]	✧ Ety/YAT

Variations

• iad/?iannas ✧ EtyAC/YAT (iad/?iannas)

ianw

noun. (?) yoke

It originally meant "bridge" in the Etymologies, but was apparently switched with iant