mab

noun. grasp

mablothren

masculine name. *Empty-handed

A rejected name for Camlost “Empty-handed” appearing in The Etymologies and at least one name list from the 1930s (Ety/LEP, LR/405). It is a combination of mab “hand” and lothren “empty”, and may be a Noldorization of Ilk. Mablosgen.

camland

noun. palm of hand

A noun appearing as N. camland “palm of hand” in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a combination of N. cam “hand” and N. lhann “wide” (Ety/LAD). It is not clear why this word ends in nd rather than reducing to n(n) as is usual.

Conceptual Development: There were some similar words for “palm of the hand” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s: G. mablad or mablod plus G. mavlant, all with an initial element G. mab “hand[s]” and a second element like G. lad “a level, a flat” or G. blant “flat” (GL/23, 52, 55).

Neo-Sindarin: This word is often adapted as ᴺS. camlann for Neo-Sindarin, as suggested in HSD (HSD), in keeping with the trend of final nd becoming n(n) in polysyllable in both Noldorin and Sindarin.

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.

cam

noun. hand

cam

noun. hand

camb

noun. hand

camm

noun. hand

camm

noun. hand

corw

adjective. cunning, wily

curu

noun. cunning

dalf

noun. palm of hand

dalv

noun. palm of hand

emil

noun. mother

emil

noun. mother

erchamui

adjective. one-handed

mō

noun. hand

ON. hand

nana

noun. mother, mummy

naneth

noun. mother

mab

root. lump, mass

mā

noun. hand

mab

root. something nice

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).

amal

noun. mother

amas

noun. mother

amma

noun. mother

amme

noun. mother

em

root. mother

emel

noun. mother

emer

noun. mother

Mablost

noun. empty hand (Beren)

mab (Dor. “hand”) + lost (Dor. “empty”)

Mablung

noun. heavy hand

mab (Dor. “hand”) + lung (Dor. “heavy”)

mablung

masculine name. Heavy Hand

An Elf of Doriath whose name is translated “Heavy Hand” (S/185), a combination of mâb “hand” (VT47/7) and lung “heavy”. In some late notes it was also translated “with Weighted Hand” (VT47/8).

Conceptual Development: When he first appeared in the earliest Lost Tales, this character’s name was already G. Mablung “Heavy-hand(ed)” (LT2/38, 231), and so it remained throughout Tolkien’s later writings. In The Etymologies from the 1930s, the name Ilk. Mablung was designated Ilkorin, with the same derivation as given above (Ety/LUG¹, MAP). At this time, the Noldorin word for “heavy” was given as N. lhong, which would Sindarize as (ᴺS.) ✱long. This means that the name Mablung might be dialectical Sindarin; see S. lung for further discussion.

mab-

noun. a hand-full, complete hand (with all five fingers)

mâb

noun. hand, hand, [N.] grasp

The typical Sindarin word for “hand” (VT47/7, 20), usable in almost any context. It is most notable as an element in the name Mablung “Heavy Hand” (VT47/8). See below for a discussion of its etymology.

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, where G. mab “hand” appeared as a derivative of the early root ᴱ√MAPA “seize” (GL/55). Tolkien then revised the gloss to “hands”, saying instead it was an irregular dual of G. mô “hand”. The word reverted to singular ᴱN. mab “hand” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/149). These early versions of the word were already an element of Mablung “Heavy Hand(ed)” (LT2/38; LB/311), but also of Ermabwed “One-handed” (LT2/34; LB/119).

In the 1930s it seems Tolkien decided Ilk. mâb “hand” was primarily an Ilkorin word, and the usual word for “hand” in Noldorin was N. cam. Compare Ilkorin Ermabuin “One-handed” and Mablosgen “Empty-handed” with Noldorin Erchamion and Camlost of the same meaning. In The Etymologies of the 1930s, Tolkien had N. mab “grasp” under the root ᴹ√MAPA “seize”, but the version of the entry with that word was overwritten (EtyAC/MAP), leaving only the Ilkorin form mâb. In this period, Mablung may also have been an Ilkorin name.

After Tolkien abandoned Ilkorin in the 1950s, he kept S. Erchamion and Camlost based on cam, but also kept Mablung “Heavy Hand” which must have become Sindarin. In his later writings Tolkien again revisited the etymology of S. mâb “hand”. In a note from Jan-Feb 1968, he wrote:

> It [Q. má = “hand”] did not survive in Telerin and Sindarin as an independent word, but was replaced by the similar-sounding but unconnected C.E. makwā, Q. maqua, T. mapa, S. mab, of uncertain origin, but probably originally an adjectival formation from MAK “strike” ... (VT47/19).

This sentence was struck through, however. In drafts of notes on Elvish Hands, Fingers and Numerals written in or after 1968, Tolkien again derived mâb from √MAP (VT47/20 note #13), but in the final version of these notes he made the remarkable decision to discard this root despite it being a stable part of Elvish for nearly 50 years, declaring it was used only in Telerin and not Quenya or Sindarin (VT47/7). He coined a new etymology for S. mâb “hand” based on ✶makwā “handful” = ✶mā + ✶kwā (VT47/6-7), a variation on the above etymology from √MAK.

Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I prefer to ignore Tolkien’s 1968 removal of √MAP “seize”, and so would continue to derive S. mâb “hand” from that root. However, its ancient meaning may have been “✱grasp”, and its eventual use as “hand” might have been influenced by ancient ✶makwā “handful”.

mâb

noun. a hand-full, complete hand (with all five fingers)

mab

grasp

*mab*-[or maba-?] (i vâb, i mebir**) (seize). Only the ”Old Noldorin” form map- is cited in the source (LR:371 s.v. MAP)

mab

grasp

[or ✱maba-?] (i vâb, i mebir) (seize). Only the ”Old Noldorin” form map- is cited in the source (LR:371 s.v. MAP)****

Mablung (ranger of Ithilien)

Mablung (ranger of Ithilien)

Mablung was named after Mablung of the Heavy Hand, a great Hunter of Doriath. His epithet was a translation of his name from Doriathrin. Mab means "hand", while lung means "heavy".

Mablung

Mablung

The Sindarin name Mablung is translated as "with weighted hand". The name might either have been prophetic or given as a title after the cutting of the Silmaril. The Quenya equivalent of Mablung appears to have been Lungumá or Lungumaqua ("Heavyhand"), containing the element má ("hand").

mabren

adjective. handed, having hands, dextrous

mabrenas

noun. dexterity

mab-

verb. to seize, *grasp, grab; to take away by force

mabed-

verb. to ask [a question]

mablanthos

noun. sycamore

mâb

hand

(i vâb; construct mab), pl. maib (i maib).

maw

noun. hand

The Sindarin equivalent of Q. má, likewise derived from the root √MAH or √MAƷ “hand; handle, wield” (PE17/162; VT47/6). However, in Sindarin this word was archaic, used only in poetry, having been replaced in ordinary speech by other words like S. mâb and (less often) cam. Other remnants of this word can be seen in compounds like molif “wrist, (orig.) hand link” and directional words like forvo and harvo for left and right hand side.

Conceptual Development: In the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, G. mô from the early root ᴱ√MAHA was the normal word for “hand”, replacing mab “hand” (< ᴱ√MAHA) which in this document Tolkien decided was instead an irregular dual form of mô (GL/55). It had also had an irregular plural mabin based on this dual, replacing an older plural †maith. In the Gnomish Grammar, its archaic form was †mâ, with the usual Gnomish sound change of ā to ō (GG/14), as opposed to later Sindarin/Noldorin ā to au, spelt -aw when final. Tolkien seems to have abandoned mô as a non-archaic word for “hand” early on, preferring ᴱN. mab “hand” by the 1920s and introducing N. cam “hand” in the 1930s.

camlost

masculine name. Empty-handed

A name of Beren, an alternate of Erchamion “One-handed” (S/184). This name is a combination of cam “hand” and lost “empty” (SA/cam, Ety/LUS).

Conceptual Development: Beren’s sobriquet “One-handed” dates back to the earliest Lost Tales, but the alternate “Empty-handed” did not appear until Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s. The first version of the name was Ilk. Mablosgen (SM/311), variously revised to Dor. Mablost (LR/405) or N. Camlost (LR/146). All three names appeared in The Etymologies from the 1930s where Tolkien specified their languages as Ilkorin, Doriathrin and Noldorin, respectively (Ety/MAP, KAB, LUS).

In Silmarillion revisions from the 1950s-60s, only S. Camlost appeared, either normally (WJ/51) or in its lenited form Gamlost (WJ/231, 234).

cam

hand

1) cam (i gam, o cham), pl. caim (i chaim), coll. pl. cammath; 2) mâb (i vâb; construct mab), pl. maib (i maib). 3) Archaic †maw (i vaw), pl. moe (i moe). A homophone means ”soil, stain”. (VT47:6) 4) (fist) dond (i dhond; construct don), pl. dynd (i nynd), coll. pl. donnath (VT47:23).

cam

noun. hand

camm

noun. hand

coru

adjective. cunning, wily

emel

noun. mother

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.

emig

noun. "litte mother"

emig

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

emmel

noun. mother

erchamion

adjective. one-handed

erchammon

noun. one-handed man

erchammui

adjective. one-handed

erchamon

noun. one-handed man

maw

noun. hand

molif

noun. wrist

ravaed

adjective. skillful

cam

hand

(i gam, o cham), pl. caim (i chaim), coll. pl. cammath

camlann

of the hand

(i gamlann, o chamlann), pl. cemlain (i chemlain).

camlann

noun. palm of hand

coru

cunning

(adj.) coru (wily), lenited goru, analogical pl. cery. Archaic corw (pl. cyrw).

coru

cunning

(wily), lenited goru, analogical pl. cery. Archaic corw (pl. cyrw).

crûm

left hand

(i grûm, o chrûm, construct crum), pl. cruim (i chruim), coll. pl. crummath. Also ✱hair (i chair), no distinct pl. form (not even with article). Note: hair is also used = ”left” as adjective. Cited in archaic form heir (LR:365 s.v. KHYAR).

curu

cunning device

(i guru, o churu) (skill, craft), pl. cyry (i chyry) (VT45:24). Similar forms function as adjectives:

dond

hand

(i dhond; construct don), pl. dynd (i nynd), coll. pl. donnath (VT47:23).

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)

forgam

right-handed

(pl. fergaim, for archaic förgeim)

fuir

right hand

pl. fŷr. Also used as adj. "right, north" (VT42:20). In ”Noldorin” the word appeared as (”foeir” =) föir, feir (LR:382 s.v. PHOR).

maw

hand

(i vaw), pl. moe (i moe). A homophone means ”soil, stain”. (VT47:6) 

molif

wrist

molif (i volif), no distinct pl. form except when article precedes (i molif), coll. pl. molivath

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)

lungumá

masculine name. Heavyhand

The Quenya name of S. Mablung, a compound of lungo “heavy” and má “hand” (VT47/19). Normally long final vowels were shortened in Quenya, so perhaps its proper form would be Lunguma, as it appeared in some notes from the early 1930s (PE21/41).

Conceptual Development: The first appearance of a Quenya cognate for Mablung was ᴹQ. Lunguma in the aforementioned notes from the 1930s. It reappeared in notes from the 1960s with long á (VT47/19). In these same notes, this name also appeared in the form Lungumaqua where its second element was the direct equivalent of S. mâb “hand”. However, Q. maqua was elsewhere used as an alternate word for “five” (lit. “hand-full”), much as English “dozen” is an alternate word for “twelve” (VT47/7), so the variant Lungumaqua may be an archaic form of this name.

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)

arimaitë

skillful

arimaitë adj. "skillful" (PE17:162)

cambë

noun. hand, (hollow of) hand

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

findë

cunning

findë (2) noun? (less likely adj.) "cunning" (LT1:253; this "Qenya" word is possibly obsoleted by # 1 above)

finië

cunning

finië noun? "cunning" (LT1:253)

finë

dexterity

finë (2) noun "dexterity" _(PE17:119, related to words for skill)_

fínë

noun. dexterity

maitë

handed

maitë (stem *maiti-, given the primitive form ¤ma3iti) adj. "handed" or "handy, skillful" (VT49:32, 42) in Angamaitë, hyarmaitë, lungumaitë, morimaitë, Telemmaitë, q.v. Etym gives maitë pl. maisi "handy, skilled" (MA3), but Tolkien later eliminated the variation t/s (compare ataformaitë "ambidextrous", pl. ataformaiti).

mamil

mother, mummy

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

mapa-

grasp, seize

mapa- vb. "grasp, seize" (MAP; according to LT2:339 this word was struck out in the "Gnomish Lexicon" [where it was quoted as the cognate of certain Gnomish words], but it reappears in the Etymologies.) Earlier material gives map- "take" (PE16:133) or map- "seize, take" with pa.t. nampë (QL:59); it is unclear if the pa.t. of map(a)- is still nampë in LotR-style Quenya.

má

noun. hand

hand

má

hand

má noun "hand" (MA3, LT2:339, Narqelion, VT39:10, [VT45:30], VT47:6, 18, 19); the dual "a pair of hands" is attested both by itself as mát (VT47:6) and with a pronominal suffix as máryat "his/her (pair of) hands" (see -rya, -t) (Nam, RGEO:67). The nominative plural form was only máli, not **már (VT47:6), though plurals in -r may occur in some of the cases, as indicated by the pl. allative mannar "into hands" (FS). Mánta "their hand", dual mántat "their hands" (two hands each) (PE17:161). Cf. also the compounds mátengwië "language of the hands" (VT47:9) and Lungumá "Heavyhand" (VT47:19); also compare the adj. -maitë "-handed". See also málimë.

má

noun. hand

má

noun. hand

The most common Quenya word for “hand”, which Tolkien usually derived from a root √MAH or √MAƷ “hand; handle, wield”. The weak consonant h or ʒ in the root was lost very early, so that primitive ✶mā was one of a rare set of ancient monosyllabic nouns ending in a vowel. Tolkien said that of the various hand words, má was “the oldest (probably) and the one that retained a general and unspecialized sense — referring to the entire hand (including wrist) in any attitude or function” (VT47/6).

As a part of the body, má “hand” was usually referred to in the singular (má) or dual (mát). This was true when referring to the hands of groups of people as well. For example, to say that “the Elves raised their hands”, you would say either i Eldar ortaner mánta (singular, one hand each) or i Eldar ortaner mántat (dual, both hands each), with the possessive suffix -nta “their”.

The plural form már “hands” (or archaic †mai) was almost never used, in part because it conflicted with Q. már “dwelling”. The singular form was also used in general statements and proverbs: “hand is cleverer than foot” má anfinya epe tál (ná). A collection of otherwise unrelated hands would likely use the partitive-plural form: máli “some hands”, which in this case could also serve as the general plural (VT47/12 Note 2). See the discussions on PE17/161 and VT47/6 for more information.

This word is also unusual in that it retains its long vowel before consonant clusters in inflected forms such as mánta “their hand” (PE17/161) or márya “his/her hand” (PE17/69). As Tolkien described it:

> Lá is usually shortened to la before 2 consonants, according to the usual Q. procedure, but the long vowel can be retained, especially for additional emphasis, as in other cases where pronominal affixes follow a long vowel, as in márya “his hand” (PE22/160).

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to ᴱQ. mā “hand” from Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, derived from the early root ᴱ√MAHA “grasp” (QL/57). ᴹQ. má “hand” also appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√MAƷ “hand” (Ety/MAƷ). Tolkien mentioned this word with great frequency, usually derived from √MAH or √MAƷ (as noted above) though he sometimes considered deriving it from √MAG instead.

málimë

wrist

málimë (stem *málimi-, given primitive form ¤mā-limi) noun "wrist", literally "hand-link" (má + #limë). (VT47:6)

nonda

hand, especially in [?clutching]

nonda noun "hand, especially in [?clutching]" (VT47:23; Tolkien's gloss was not certainly legible)

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)

finië

noun. cunning

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.

pâ

noun. hand

A noun translated “hand”, given as an example of an apparent Adûnaic uniconsonantal noun, which had a biconsonantal-root but lost one of its consonants from its ancient form ✶Ad. paʒa (SD/416, 426).

camba

noun. hand

emmë

noun. mother

mapa

noun. hand

má

noun. hand