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!

Early Quenya

noun. hand

Early Quenya [GL/55; LT2A/Ermabwed; PE14/052; PE14/076; PE14/117; PE15/73; PE16/137; QL/057; VT40/08] Group: Eldamo. Published by

máno kiluvando ninqe lutya kirya wilwarindon

*who shall see a white ship sailing like a butterfly

The first phrase (lines 1-2) of the intermediate version of the Oilima Markirya poem (PE16/77). The first word is a variant (masculine?) form máno of the interrogative pronoun man “who” followed by future 3rd-singular masculine inflection of the verb kili- “to see”.

The object of the phrase is the noun kirya “ship” preceded by the adjective ninqe “white” and the active-participle lutya “sailing” of the verb lutu- “to sail”, also functioning as an adjective. The phrase ends with the adverbial form of the noun wilwarin “butterfly”: wilwarindon = “like a butterfly”.

The sense of the phrase seems to be identical to the first two lines in the English translations of the poem LA2a-LA2b (PE16/68-9): “who shall see a white ship sailing like a butterfly”.

Decomposition: Broken into its constituent elements, this phrase would be:

> máno kil-uva-ndo ninqe lut-ya kirya wilwarin-don = “✱who see-(future)-he white sail-ing ship butterfly-like”

Early Quenya [PE16/077] Group: Eldamo. Published by

makte

noun. hand

An archaic word for “hand” in Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, derived from the early root ᴱ√MAHA “grasp” (QL/57). There are no signs of it in Tolkien’s later writings.

Early Quenya [QL/057] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mána

adjective. dead

An adjective for “dead” in the Early Qenya Grammar of the 1920s based on the verb ᴱQ. maka- “die” (PE14/58).

Early Quenya [PE14/058] Group: Eldamo. Published by

marda

noun. world

Early Quenya [GL/18; LT1A/Eldamar; PE12/024; PE15/79] Group: Eldamo. Published by

máne

noun. spirit of the air

Early Quenya [GL/56; LBI/Mánir; LT1A/Eruman; LT1A/Mánir; LT1I/Mánir; PE14/010] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mai

adverb. too much

Early Quenya [QL/060] Group: Eldamo. Published by

man

pronoun. who

Early Quenya [MC/213; MC/214; PE16/077] Group: Eldamo. Published by

maptale-lehesta

noun. (robbing) raid

Early Quenya [PE14/045; PE14/075; PE14/112; PE15/76] Group: Eldamo. Published by

marikta

noun. wrist

Early Quenya [QL/057; QL/080] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mata-

verb. to eat

Early Quenya [PE12/026; PE14/023; PE14/028; PE14/034; PE14/056; PE14/057; PE14/058; PE14/059; PE14/070; PE14/085; PE16/141; QL/043; QL/059] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mále

noun. ability

Early Quenya [PE15/67] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mára

adjective. mighty, power[ful], doughty; good, excellent, useful (of things)

Early Quenya [GG/10; LFC/030; PE13/122; PE13/125; PE14/048; PE14/081; PE15/32; PE15/73; PE16/137; PE16/140; PE16/141; QL/057] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mára mesta an ni véla tye ento, ya rato nea

good-bye until I see you next, and I hope it will be soon

This is a sentence in the “Arctic” language written in a supposed letter from Santa from Tolkien to his children in 1929. In form, it resembles the Quenya of this time period, and most scholars consider it an example of that language, though perhaps somewhat simplified. @@@

Early Quenya [LFC/030] Group: Eldamo. Published by

malina

adjective. yellow

Early Quenya [PME/058; QL/044; QL/058; VT40/08] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mande

adverb. well

Early Quenya [QL/058] Group: Eldamo. Published by

matsima

adjective. edible

Early Quenya [QL/059] Group: Eldamo. Published by

moa

noun. sheep

Early Quenya [PME/060; QL/060] Group: Eldamo. Published by

máka

adjective. each, every

Early Quenya [GL/41] Group: Eldamo. Published by

málos

noun. forest

A noun in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s given as the cognate of G. goloth “forest”, derived from primitive ᴱ✶ŋgua-aloþ- (GL/41). This is likely a combination of ᴱ✶ŋu̯a “together” and some elaboration of the root ᴱ√ALA “spread”, the basis of “tree” words, so probably originally “✱together spread(ing)” or something to that effect.

Early Quenya [GL/41; LT2A/Golosbrindi] Group: Eldamo. Published by

máwe

noun. gull, seamew

Early Quenya [MC/213; PE16/138; PME/060; QL/060] Group: Eldamo. Published by

malin(d)

adjective. yellow

mat-

verb. to eat

málea

adjective. able

Early Quenya [PE15/67] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mára

noun. *world

máwar

noun. *shepherd

máye

adverb. too much

moalin

noun. sheepfold

The word ᴱQ. moalin “sheepfold” appeared in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, perhaps a combination of ᴱQ. moa “sheep” and lin “many” (QL/60).

Neo-Quenya: Damien Bador adapted this word as ᴺQ. mámalin using the later word Q. máma for “sheep”.

Early Quenya [QL/060] Group: Eldamo. Published by

narka

adjective. dead

An adjective for “dead” implied by the stative formation narkea “is dead” in Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s (PE16/140), perhaps connected to some precursor of √NDAK “slay”.

Early Quenya [PE16/140] Group: Eldamo. Published by

indo

noun. house

A word for “house” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√IŘI [IÐI] “dwell” (QL/43). It also appeared in the contemporaneous Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa (PME/43).

Early Quenya [LT2A/Idril; PE16/132; PME/043; QL/042; QL/043] Group: Eldamo. Published by

taure

noun. forest

Early Quenya [LT2/089; MC/213; MC/220; PE16/062; PE16/072; PE16/074; PE16/075; PE16/077; PE16/080; PE16/139] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-issa

suffix. language

Early Quenya [LT2A/Eldarissa] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-qet(se)

suffix. language

Early Quenya [QL/077] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ausi-

prefix. well

Early Quenya [QL/033] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ausie

noun. wealth

Early Quenya [LT2A/Ausir; QL/033] Group: Eldamo. Published by

auvar

masculine name. Wealth

A Qenya name for G. Ausir in the Qenya Lexicon from the 1910s (QL/33), also appearing as Autar and replacing rejected Avar/Avas.

Early Quenya [QL/033] Group: Eldamo. Published by

milkin

noun. wealth

Early Quenya [QL/062] Group: Eldamo. Published by

qalna

adjective. dead

Early Quenya [QL/076] Group: Eldamo. Published by

salistina

adjective. blessed

Early Quenya [QL/055; QL/081] Group: Eldamo. Published by

sauve

noun. sheep

Early Quenya [PE16/132] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tampo

noun. well

A noun in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s given as ᴱQ. tampo “a well”, derived from the root ᴱ√TṂPṂ “build”; Tolkien considered transferring the word to ᴱ√TAPA “✱stretch” (QL/93). This word also appeared in the Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa (PME/93).

Neo-Quenya: I think ᴺQ. tampo “well” might be salvaged in Neo-Quenya as a derivative of √TAM “construct”; it is used this way in Helge Fauskanger’s NQNT (NQNT).

Early Quenya [PME/093; QL/093] Group: Eldamo. Published by

taurie

noun. forest

túrea

adjective. mighty

Early Quenya [QL/095] Group: Eldamo. Published by

vande

adverb. well

Early Quenya [QL/099] Group: Eldamo. Published by

vilisse

noun. spirit

Early Quenya [GL/23] Group: Eldamo. Published by

warda

adjective. dead

An adjective for “dead” from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√GWṚÐṚ “die” (QL/104), given as a cognate to G. gwarth “dead (only of persons)” in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon (GL/44).

Early Quenya [GL/44; QL/104] Group: Eldamo. Published by