nor-

verb. to run (or leap, of animals or men), to run (of animals or men); to leap

A verb translated “run (or leap: of animals, men etc.)” in notes from around 1965, derived from the root √NOR (PE17/94, 168). It also appeared in its past form norne “ran” in Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WPP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/58).

Conceptual Development: A similar verb ᴱQ. nyor(o)- “run” appeared in Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s (PE16/132, 134). In earlier writings the root had a slightly different meaning: ᴱ√NORO “run, go smoothly, ride, spin” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/67), and ᴹ√NOR “run as of wheels, roll along” in a rejected page of verbal roots in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) of 1948 (PE22/127). The latter document had a distinct verb ᴹQ. rohta- based on the root ᴹ√ROK “run on foot”; in later writings from the 1950s and 60s this root was only used for “horse” words.

Earlier still, the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had several unrelated verbs for “run”: ᴱQ. loqo- “run (of human beings)” under the early root ᴱ√LOQO (QL/56), ᴱQ. pelte- “run” under the early root ᴱ√PELE having to do with revolving things (QL/73), and ᴱQ. yurin [yuru-] “runs” under the early root ᴱ√ẎURU “run” (QL/106). The last of these reappeared as a (Noldorin-only?) root ᴹ√YUR “run” in The Etymologies of the 1930s.

By the 1950s and 60s, the only surviving root for running on legs seems to be √NOR, as described above.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I’d use Q. nor- only to mean “run (of animals and men)”. For “leap” I would use [ᴹQ.] cap-.

nor-

prefix. fear

nor-

verb. run (or leap: of animals, men etc.)

nor- vb. "run (or leap: of animals, men etc.)", pa.t. nornë (PE17:58, 168); cf. nórima, nornoro-

nor-

verb. run

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.

-nor

suffix. land, country

nór

land

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

ñor

fear

[ñor noun? prefix? "fear" (PE17:172)]

ui

no

ui interjection "no" (originally an endingless negative verb in the 3rd person aorist: "it is not [so]"; see #u-). Apparently this is the word for "no" used to deny that something is true (compare vá, which is rather used to reject orders, or to issue negative orders). (VT49:28) Compare uito.

yur-

verb. to run

A neologism for “run” appearing in ABNW (ABNW) from the early 2000s based on the root ᴹ√YUR “run” from The Etymologies of the 1930s. I think it is better to use attested nor- “run”, published in 2007 after the neologism ᴺQ. yur- was defined.

-ndor

land

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

-ndor

suffix. land, country

caurë

fear

caurë _("k")_noun "fear" (LT1:257)

il-

verb. no, *un-

il- (prefix) "no, *un-" (LA); cf. ilfirin "immortal" (vs. firin "dead"). This prefix "denotes the opposite, the reversal, i.e. more than the mere negation" (VT42:32). But il- can also mean "all, every"; see ilaurëa, ilqua, ilquen.

la

no, not

la negation "no, not" (see lá); also prefix la- as in lacarë, q.v. (VT45:25)

lá

no, not

lá (1) adv. "no, not" (LA, VT45:25) According to VT42:33, lá is the stressed form, alternating with la when the negation is unstressed. In another conceptual phase of Tolkien's, lá had the opposite meaning "yes" (VT42:32-33), but this idea is contradicted by both earlier and later material: usually lá is conceived as a negation. The negation can receive tense markers and be used as a negative verb "when [another] verb is not expressed" (VT49:13), apparently where the phrase "is not" is followed by a noun or an adjective as a predicate, or where some verb is understood, as in English "I do not" (i.e. "I do not do whatever the context indicates"). With pronominal endings la- in the aorist, e.g. lanyë "I do not, am not" (etc.) (Tolkien abandoned the form lamin.) Exemplified in the sentence melin sé apa lanyë hé *"I love him but I do not [love] him" (another person) (VT49:15). Present tense laia, past lánë, perfect alaië, future lauva.

lá

adverb. no, not

lómëanor

place name. Gloomyland

A descriptive name of Fangorn appearing in the even longer Entish description of that land: Taurelilómëa-tumbalemorna Tumbaletaurëa Lómëanor (LotR/467). The name is a combination of the elements lómëa “gloomy” and -ndor “land” (LotR/1131, Let/308).

nordo

oak

nordo noun "oak" (PE17:25), possibly replacing norno (q.v.) in a pre-LotR source.

nordo

noun. oak

A word for “oak” in notes from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/25), possibly introduced to avoid conflict with Norno “Dwarf” (WJ/388). Its Sindarin cognate was S. norð, indicating derivation from primitive ✱nordō. See the entry Q. norno for earlier forms of the word.

norno

oak

norno (1) noun "oak" (DÓRON); a later source has nordo (PE17:25)

norno

noun. oak

A word appearing as norno “oak” in both The Etymologies of the 1930s and the Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s derived from primitive ✶[[p|dor[o]no]] and the root ᴹ√DORON (PE19/80; Ety/DÓRON). The appearance of an initial n- is unusual, since generally [[aq|initial [d] became [l]]] in Ancient Quenya. But sometimes ancient [[aq|initial [d] assimilated to following nasal]] instead, as was the case with this word.

Conceptual Development: Variants of this word date all the way back to the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, which had ᴱQ. nor (norn-) “oak” and ᴱQ. norne “oak-tree” under the early root ᴱ√NOŘO [NDOÐO?] (QL/67). The form ᴱQ. norne “oak” was mentioned in Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s (PE16/140), but it became ᴹQ. norno in The Etymologies of the 1930s, as noted above.

Neo-Quenya: Tolkien introduced words Q. nordo and S. norð “oak” in notes from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/25), possibly to avoid conflict with Norno “Dwarf” (WJ/388). I prefer the form norno “oak” as better-established and more etymologically interesting.

nornoro-

verb. run on, run smoothly

nornoro- vb. "run on, run smoothly" (LT1:263). Compare nor-.

nusta

verb. smell

nár

flame

nár noun "flame", also nárë (NAR1).Translated "fire" in some names, see Aicanár(o), Fëanáro (where nár apparently has the masculine ending -o added to it). According to PE17:183, nár- is "fire as an element" (a concrete fire or blaze is rather called a ruinë).

nárë

flame

nárë, also short nár, noun "flame" (NAR1, Narqelion). Translated "fire" in some names, see Aicanáro, Fëanáro (where nár apparently has the masculine ending -o, though in the latter name it may also be the genitive ending since Fëa-náro** is translated "Spirit of Fire"). At one point, Tolkien mentioned "nār-" as the word for "fire (as an element)" (PE17:183). Cf. ruinë** as the word for "a fire" (a concrete instance of fire) in the same source.

nóre

noun. land

nórima

strong/swift at running

nórima adj. "strong/swift at running" (VT49:29); see nor-

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)

nórë

noun. land, country; †people, race, tribe, land, country, [ᴹQ.] region where certain people live, [ᴱQ.] nation; [Q.] †people, race, tribe, [ᴹQ.] folk, [ᴱQ.] family

ruinë

fire, a blaze

ruinë noun "a fire, a blaze" (PE17:183). Compare nárë.

sá

fire

sá noun "fire" (LT1:265; "Qenya" spelling sâ. Rather nárë in LotR-style Quenya.)

thosso

fear

†thosso (þossë) noun "fear" in Old Quenya (PE17:87, there spelt with the letter þ, not the digraph th)

uru

fire

uru noun "fire" (LT1:271)

velca

flame

velca ("k") noun "flame" (LT1:260; nár, nárë would be the normal word in Tolkien's later Quenya)

yur-

verb. run

yur- vb. "run" (quoted in form yurin, translated "runs", but within Tolkien's later framework it looks like a 1st person aorist "I run")-QL:106 (cf. entry YUR in Etym)

ñol-

smell

ñol- noun "smell" (VT45:5); strengthened aññol, q.v. Possibly ñol- should be regarded as simply the root underlying olmë, q.v.

úr

fire

úr noun "fire" (UR)This stem was struck out in Etym, but a word that must be derived from it occurs in LotR, so it seems that Tolkien restored it. Early "Qenya" also has Ûr, noun "the Sun" (also Úri, Úrinci ("k"), Urwen) (LT1:271). Cf. Úri.

þossë

noun. fear

latwa

adjective. neither/nor

A neologism for “neither/nor"” coined by Luinyelle posted on 2025-08-11 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), a negation of atwa.

nus

noun. smell

sossë

noun. fear

yúla

adverb. neither, nor