Yára-noldorin

noun. Old Noldorin

Old Noldorin

onórë

sister

onórë noun "sister" (of blood-kin) (THEL/THELES, NŌ; both of these entries in the Etymologies as reproduced in LR have the reading "onóne", but the "Old Noldorin" cognate wanúre listed in the entry THEL/THELES seems to indicate that the Quenya word should be onórë; the letters n and r are easily confused in Tolkien's handwriting. There is no clear evidence for a feminine ending -në in Quenya, but -rë is relatively well attested; cf. for instance ontarë.) A later source gives the word for "sister" as nésa instead.

osellë

sister, [female] associate

osellë (þ) noun "sister, [female] associate" (THEL/THELES, WŌ). Cf. otorno.

seler

sister

seler (þ) (sell-, as in pl. selli) noun "sister" (THEL/THELES). In a later source, the word nésa (q.v.) appears instead, leaving the conceptual status of seler uncertain.

nésa

sister

nésa (Þ) noun "sister" (VT47:14); this form from a late source possibly replaces earlier seler and onórë, q.v.

nésa

noun. sister

A word for “sister” coined by Tolkien in notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals from the late 1960s, based on the root √NETH of similar meaning (VT47/12, 14). It had a diminutive/affectionate variant nettë used as a play name for the fourth finger in several places in these notes (VT47/12; VT48/6), but I prefer to mainly use nettë for “(little) girl” in Neo-Quenya (VT47/10, 15, 33).

Conceptual Development: The Etymologies of the 1930s had ᴹQ. seler “sister” from the root ᴹ√THEL or THELES (Ety/THEL), and the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. heresse “sister” from the early root ᴱ√HESE (QL/40). See those entries for discussion.

Cognates

• S. nîth “sister” ✧ VT47/14
• T. néþa “sister” ✧ VT47/14

Derivations

• ✶nēthā “sister” ✧ VT47/14
  • √NETH “(young) woman, female person; sister; fresh, lively, merry, (young) woman, female person; sister; fresh, lively, merry; [ᴹ√] young” ✧ VT47/12

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶nēthā > néþa > nésa	[nētʰā] > [nēθā] > [nēθa] > [nēsa]	✧ VT47/14

nethel

noun. sister

A word for “sister” coined by Tolkien in notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals from the late 1960s, based on the root √NETH of similar meaning and replacing the archaic form of the word †nîth (VT47/12, 14). The diminutive/affectionate form nethig “[little] sister” was used as a play name for the fourth finger (VT48/6); Tolkien considered an alternate diminutive netheg (VT47/14, 32) and also considered giving this diminutive an alternate meaning “little girl” (VT47/15, 33); see S. neth for discussion.

Conceptual Development: The Etymologies of the 1930s had N. thêl “sister” from the root ᴹ√THEL or THELES (Ety/THEL), and the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. hethir “sister” from the early root ᴱ√HESE [HEÞE] (GL/48; QL/40). See those entries for discussion.

nethig

noun. "litte sister"

First given in the manuscript as netheg in VT/47:14-15, but see especially VT/48:17 n. 13 for discussion

nethig

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

First given in the manuscript as netheg in VT/47:14-15, but see especially VT/48:17 n. 13 for discussion

nîth

noun. sister

nîth

noun. sister

Cognates

• Q. nésa “sister” ✧ VT47/14

Derivations

• ✶nēthā “sister” ✧ VT47/14
  • √NETH “(young) woman, female person; sister; fresh, lively, merry, (young) woman, female person; sister; fresh, lively, merry; [ᴹ√] young” ✧ VT47/12

Element in

• S. nethel “sister” ✧ VT47/14

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶nēthā > nîth	[nētʰā] > [nētʰa] > [nēθa] > [nīθa] > [nīθ]	✧ VT47/14

neth

noun. sister

neth

noun. girl (in her teens, approaching the adult)

neth

sister

1) neth (also used = ”girl”). (VT47:14-16, 33; VT48:6), pl. nith. Notice the homophone neth ”young”. Also nîth (no distinct pl. form though the plural article with show pluarlity when the noun is definite: in nîth) (VT47:14). 2) gwathel (i **wathel), pl. gwethil (in gwethil). 3) muinthel (i vuinthel), pl. muinthil (i muinthil), more usual than the shorter form thêl (stem thele-), pl. theli. In “Noldorin”, the pl. was thelei** (LR:392 s.v. THEL).

néþa

noun. sister

Cognates

• Q. nésa “sister” ✧ VT47/14

Derivations

• ✶nēthā “sister” ✧ VT47/14
  • √NETH “(young) woman, female person; sister; fresh, lively, merry, (young) woman, female person; sister; fresh, lively, merry; [ᴹ√] young” ✧ VT47/12

Variations

• nēþa ✧ VT47/14

nēthā

noun. sister

Derivations

• √NETH “(young) woman, female person; sister; fresh, lively, merry, (young) woman, female person; sister; fresh, lively, merry; [ᴹ√] young” ✧ VT47/12

Derivatives

• Q. nésa “sister” ✧ VT47/14
• Q. nettë “(little) girl, sister (diminutive), daughter, pretty little thing, (little) girl, sister (diminutive), ️daughter, pretty little thing” ✧ VT47/14
• S. nîth “sister” ✧ VT47/14
• T. néþa “sister” ✧ VT47/14

Element in

• ✶netthi “girl approaching the adult, sister (diminutive)” ✧ VT47/14

Variations

• nēthā ✧ VT47/14

muinthel

noun. sister

muinthel

noun. sister

thêl

noun. sister

thêl

noun. sister

A word for “sister” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from the root ᴹ√THEL or THELES of the same meaning, with an irregular plural thelei (Ety/THEL). It had a more elaborate form muinthel, the equivalent of muindor “(dear) brother”, with an initial element muin “dear”.

Neo-Quenya: In notes from the late 1960s, Tolkien introduced a new word nethel for “sister” from the root √NETH (VT47/14). However, I think thêl and related words might be retained to mean a “metaphorical sister”, a close female associate who may or may not be related by blood, as with such words as gwathel “[sworn] sister, associate”. In this paradigm, I would assume muinthel still refers to a sister by blood, with an added connotation of strong affection. I think it’s best to assume the irregular Noldorin plural pattern was reformed to the normal Sindarin plural thîl.

Cognates

• ᴹQ. seler “sister” ✧ Ety/THEL

Derivations

• On. thele “sister” ✧ Ety/THEL
  • ᴹ√THEL(ES) “sister” ✧ Ety/THEL
  • ᴹ✶thelese “*sister” ✧ Ety/THEL
  • ᴹ√THEL(ES) “sister” ✧ Ety/THEL

Element in

• N. muinthel “sister” ✧ Ety/THEL

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
On. thele > thêl	[θele] > [θel] > [θēl]	✧ Ety/THEL

gwathel

noun. sister, associate