Nénar

water

Nénar noun name of a star (or planet), evidently derived from nén "water" (Silm), tentatively identified with Uranus (MR:435)

Uinen

water

Uinen (Uinend-, as in dative Uinenden) fem. name, used of a Maia, spouse of Ossë (UY, NEN). Adopted and adapted from Valarin (WJ:404), though it is also said that it contains -nen "water" (SA:nen); the latter explanation may be folk etymology. In the Etymologies, the name is derived from the same stem (UY) as uilë "long trailing plant, especially seaweed".

nén

water

nén (nen-) noun "water" (NEN).

nén

noun. water, water, [ᴱQ.] river

The word for “water”, a derivative of the root √NEN of the same meaning (PE17/52; Ety/NEN). Its stem form was nen- (Ety/NEN) and its primitive form was given as ✶nē̆n, the vowel length variation due to distinct subjective nēn versus objective/inflected nĕn- in ancient monosyllables (PE21/64).

Conceptual Development: This word first appeared in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with two senses: “river” and (archaic) “†water”. Tolkien indicated the two senses were based on distinct roots: ᴱ√NEŘE [NEÐE] and ᴱ√NENE respectively, with two distinct stem forms nend- and nēn (QL/64-65). The Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa also mentions the forms nen (nēn-) “water” versus nen(d-) “river” (PME/64-65). In the English-Qenya Dictionary of the mid-1920s Tolkien had both nēn “river” (PE15/76) and nēn “water” (PE15/78), but in the Early Qenya Grammar he had only nēn “water” (PE14/43, 72), also appearing as nen “water” in documents on The Valmaric Script from this period (PE14/110).

In the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s, Tolkien had ᴹQ. nēn “water”, but in this document it had nēn- with long ē in its inflected forms as well (PE21/23). In The Etymologies of the 1930s, however, uninflected nén “water” had a stem form of nen- with short e (Ety/NEN), and the reasons for this variation was discussed in Primitive Quendian Structure: Final Consonants from 1936, the nominative/objective distinction noted above (PE21/64). This seems to be the paradigm Tolkien stuck with thereafter, as evidenced by S. nen “water” rather than ✱✱nîn.

Cognates

• S. nen “water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, [ᴱN.] stream” ✧ PE17/052; SA/nen

Derivations

• ✶nē̆n “water”
  • √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow”
• √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow” ✧ PE17/052; SA/nen

Element in

• Q. Cuiviénen “Water of Awakening” ✧ SA/nen
• Q. Nénar
• Q. nenda “wet”
• Q. nendil “beast that lives in the water”
• Q. Nendili “Water-lovers”
• ᴺQ. nengarmo “otter, (lit.) water-wolf”
• Q. Nénimë “February, *Wet-ness”
• ᴺQ. nenungol “octopus, (lit.) water-spider”
• Q. Nenya “(Ring) of Water” ✧ SA/nen
• Q. Nísinen “*Fragrant Water”
• Q. Uinen ✧ SA/nen

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√NEN > nēn	[nēn]	✧ PE17/052
√nen > nen	[nen]	✧ SA/nen

Variations

• nēn ✧ PE17/052
• nen ✧ SA/nen

linqui

wet

linqui ("q")adj. "wet" (MC:216; Tolkien's later Quenya has linquë.)

linquë

wet

linquë ("q") (1) adj. "wet" _(LINKWI). In early "Qenya", this word was glossed "water" (LT1:262)_, and "wet" was linqui or liquin, q.v.

liquin

wet

liquin ("q")adj. "wet" (LT1:262; Tolkien's later Quenya has linquë.)

mixa

wet

mixa ("ks")adj. "wet" (MISK); later sources have néna, nenya

nenda

adjective. wet

Cognates

• S. nîn “wet, *watery” ✧ PE17/052

Derivations

• ✶nēnā “wet” ✧ PE17/052; PE17/167
  • √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow” ✧ PE17/052; PE17/167
• √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow” ✧ PE17/167

Element in

• ᴺQ. nendalaurë “golden water-flower, yellow iris”
• Q. Nindamos
• Q. Nindatalma “Wetwang, Nindalf” ✧ PE17/052

Elements

Word	Gloss
nén	“water, water, [ᴱQ.] river”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶nēnā > nenya	[nenja]	✧ PE17/052
√NĒ̆N > nenda	[nenda]	✧ PE17/167

Variations

• nenya ✧ PE17/052
• ninda ✧ PE17/052
• nēna ✧ PE17/167

nenya

wet

nenya adj. "wet" (PE17:52), also néna, q.v. Nenya as the name of a Ring of Power seems to imply *"(thing) related to water", since this Ring was associated with that element (SA:nen).

nenya

adjective. wet

ninda

adjective. wet

néna

wet

néna adj. "wet" (PE17:167). Cf. nenya, mixa.

néna

adjective. wet

wet

wet

wet, see we #2

ëar

sea

ëar noun "sea" (AYAR/AIR [gives also dat. sg. ëaren],WJ:413; see Letters:386 for etymology). Not to be confused with the pl. form of the verb ëa "be, exist". Pl. ëari "seas" (FS, LR:47); Eär "the Great Sea" (cf. ëaron "ocean"), ablative Eärello "from the Great Sea", et Eärello "out of the Great Sea" (EO). Eärë noun "the open sea" (SD:305). Compound ëaruilë noun "seaweed" (UY). Found in proper names like Eärendil "Sea-friend", Eärendur masc. name, *"Sea-servant"; in effect a variant of Eärendil(Appendix A). Eärendur was also used ="(professional) mariner" (Letters:386).Fem. name Eärwen "Sea-maiden" (Silm); Eärrámë "Sea-wing", "Wings of the Sea", name of Tuor's ship (RAM, AYAR/AIR, SA)

ëar

noun. sea, great sea, sea, great sea, [ᴹQ.] open sea; water

The most common Quenya word for “sea”, derived from the root √GAYAR (or sometimes √AYAR), where the vowel combination was the result of the frequent Quenya sound change whereby aya > ëa.

Conceptual Development: As an element in the name ᴱQ. Earendel, this word first appeared as ᴱQ. ea or ᴱQ. earen “eagle” (QL/34). But by the 1940s Tolkien changed the form and meaning of this name to ᴹQ. Earendil “Friend of the Sea” (SD/237), and the word ᴹQ. ear “sea” appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a derivative of ᴹ√AYAR (Ety/AY). In The Notion Club Papers of the 1940s it had the form eare and the gloss “open sea” (SD/241, 305). The first appearance of the “sea” meaning of this word seems to be in a word-list associated with the Ambarkanta “Shape of the World” from the early 1930s, where ear had the glosses “water, sea” (SM/241), though in later writings only “sea” remained.

Cognates

• S. gaear “sea” ✧ Let/386; PE17/027; PM/363; RGEO/65; SA/ëar; WJ/400
• T. gaiar “Great Sea” ✧ PM/363

Derivations

• √AY(AR) “sea” ✧ Let/386
• √GAY(AR) “awe, dread; astound, make aghast; sea” ✧ PE17/027
• ✶gayār “sea, the terrifier” ✧ PM/363; WJ/400
  • √GAY(AR) “awe, dread; astound, make aghast; sea” ✧ PE17/027; PM/363; WJ/400

Element in

• Q. Eälótë “*Sea Flower”
• Q. Eämbar “Sea-dwelling”
• Q. ëar amortala “the seas heaving” ✧ MC/222
• Q. ëar-celumessen “in the flowing sea” ✧ MC/222
• ᴺQ. ëarel “starfish, (lit.) sea-star”
• Q. ëaren “ocean, great sea” ✧ PE17/027; PM/363
• Q. Eärendil “Lover of the Sea” ✧ PE17/027; PM/363; RGEO/65; SA/ëar
• Q. Eärendur “Mariner, *(lit.) Servant of the Sea”
• Q. ëarendur “(professional) mariner, *(lit.) servant of the sea”
• Q. ëar falastala “the sea surging” ✧ MC/222
• ᴺQ. ëarina “of the sea”
• Q. Eärnil “*Lover of the Sea”
• Q. Eärnur “*Servant of the Sea”
• ᴺQ. ëarra “seal, sea lion”
• Q. Eärrámë “Sea-wing” ✧ SA/ëar
• ᴺQ. ëarsil “pearl, (lit.) sea-sheen”
• ᴺQ. ëassar “pearl, (lit.) sea-pebble/stone”
• Q. Eärwen “*Sea-maiden”
• Q. et Eärello Endorenna utúlien “Out of the Great Sea to Middle-earth I am come” ✧ LotR/0967; PE17/103

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√AYAR > ëar	[ajar] > [ear]	✧ Let/386
√GAY(AR) > ëar	[gajar] > [ɣajar] > [ɣear] > [ear]	✧ PE17/027
✶Gayar- > Eär	[gajar] > [ɣajar] > [ɣear] > [ear]	✧ PM/363
✶gayār > ëar	[gajār] > [ɣajār] > [ɣear] > [ear]	✧ WJ/400

Variations

• Eär ✧ PM/363; PMI/Eär
• eär ✧ WJ/413

airë

sea

airë (2) noun "sea" (the form airen is given, intended as a genitive singular when Tolkien wrote this; in LotR-style Quenya it would rather be a dative sg.) (AYAR/AIR; cf. airon)

airë

noun. sea

An archaic word for “sea” which fell out of use to due conflict with “holy” words like aira or airë; it was a noun form of primitive ✶gaı̯ră (PE17/27). The more common modern word for “sea” is ëar.

Conceptual Development: ᴹQ. aire “sea” appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a derivative of ᴹ√AYAR (Ety/AY); it appeared beside a form ᴹQ. airen that might be a genitive form, or might be a longer form; see the entry on ᴹQ. airon for discussion.

Cognates

• S. gaear “sea” ✧ PE17/027

Derivations

• ✶gayār “sea, the terrifier” ✧ PE17/027
  • √GAY(AR) “awe, dread; astound, make aghast; sea” ✧ PE17/027; PM/363; WJ/400

Element in

• Q. airon “ocean” ✧ PE17/027

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶gaı̯ră > aire	[gaira] > [ɣaira] > [aira]	✧ PE17/027

Variations

• aire ✧ PE17/027 (aire)

airen

noun. sea

celusindi

river

celusindi _("k")_noun "river" (LT1:257; hardly a valid word in Tolkien's later Quenya, where the terms sírë and sirya appear instead)

nen

river

nen noun "river" (LT1:248), "river, water" (LT1:262) (In Tolkien's later Quenya, nén with a long vowel means "water", but hardly "river" - that is sírë.)

nuinë

suffix. river

Element in

• ᴺQ. nuinerocco “hippopotamus, (lit.) river-horse”

sindi

river

sindi noun "river" (LT1:265; rather sírë in LotR-style Quenya)

sirya

river

#sirya noun "river", attested in the dual form siryat (VT47:11). Compare sírë.

sír

river

sír noun "river", shorter form of sirë (PE17:65, VT49:17)

sír(ë)

noun. river, river, [ᴱQ.] stream

The most common Quenya word for “river”, derived from the root √SIR “flow”.

Conceptual Development: This word first appeared as ᴱQ. sīre “stream” as a derivative of ᴱ√SIŘI [SIÐI] (QL/84), and this form and gloss also appeared in the contemporaneous Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa (PME/84). The form ᴹQ. siri- “river” appeared in the Declension of Nouns (DN) from the early 1930s, along with uninflected sire with short i and various inflected forms with siry- (PE21/10). The form sīre “river” with long ī appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a derivative of ᴹ√SIR “flow” (Ety/SIR; EtyAC/SIR). In several notes from the mid-1960s, it appeared in monosyllabic form sír (PE17/65) or sīr (VT49/17), but it had dual form siryat from the late 1960s implying a stem form of sirĭ- and a development similar to that of DN from the early 1930s (VT47/11).

Neo-Eldarin: Its form síre is probably better known and more commonly used in Neo-Quenya. For example this is the typical form in Helge Fauskanger’s NQNT (NQNT).

Cognates

• S. sîr “river, stream”

Derivations

• √SIR “flow”

Element in

• ᴺQ. anasirë “tributary”
• Q. caitas lá i sír “it is beyond the river” ✧ PE17/065
• Q. caitas palla i sír “it is far beyond the river” ✧ PE17/065
• Q. imbë siryat “between two rivers” ✧ VT47/11
• ᴺQ. lantasírë “waterfall, (lit.) falling river”
• Q. lendes lann’ i sír “he came (to a point) beyond the river” ✧ PE17/065
• Q. lendes pallan(na) i sír “he came (to a point) far beyond the river” ✧ PE17/065
• Q. Siril

Variations

• sír ✧ PE17/065
• sīr ✧ VT49/17

sírë

river

sírë noun "river" (SIR, VT46:13), "stream" (LT1:265). Also short form sír, q.v.Compare #sirya.

lutta-

flow, float

lutta- vb. "flow, float" (LT1:249)

lutu-

flow, float

lutu- vb. "flow, float" (LT1:249)

missë

wet, damp, rain

[missë] adj.ornoun "wet, damp, rain" (VT45:35)

váya

sea

váya noun "sea" (considered as "waters, motion"). The wording of the source indicates that Tolkien only tentatively considered such a word (PE17:33)

vëa

sea

vëa (3) noun "sea" (MC:213, 214, 216; possibly obsoleted by #1 and #2 above, though some argue that the initial element of the late names Vëantur and Vëandur [q.v.] could be vëa #3 rather than #2 (it can hardly be #1) . In any case, the normal word for "sea" in LotR-style Quenya seems to be ëar.) Inflected vëan "sea" (MC:220), vëar "in sea" (a "Qenya" locative in -r, MC:213), vëassë "on sea" (MC:220). Cf. also vëaciryo.

sir-

flow

sir- (1) vb. "flow" (SIR)

sir-

verb. flow

sirya

verb. flow

hlóna

river, especially given to those at all seasons full of water from mountains

[hlóna (2) noun "a river, especially given to those at all seasons full of water from mountains" (VT48:27; the word is marked with a query and the note containing it rejected; it was apparently replaced by lón, q.v.)]

nen

water

{ĕ}_ n. _water, lake. Q. nén. >> nîn

aer

noun. sea

Tolkien changed this word several times, see aear , gaear

nen

noun. waterland

aear

noun. sea

Tolkien changed this word several times, see gaear

aear

Sea

_n. _Sea, especially the Great (Western) Sea. Q. ear. nef aear, sí nef aearon lit. 'beyond the Sea, here beyond the Great Sea'. >> gaear, gaer

aear

noun. sea

gaer

noun. sea

gaer

Sea

_n._Sea, especially the Great (Western) Sea. Shorter form of gaear.Q. aire (obsolete). >> aear, gaear

gaer

noun. sea

lorn

noun. quiet water

nîn

adjective. wet, watery

gaear

noun. sea

gaear

Sea

_n. _Sea, especially the Great (Western) Sea. Shorter form gaer. Q. ear. >> aear, gaer

gaear

noun. sea

A word for “sea” variously attested as gaear (PE17/027; PM/363; WJ/400), gaer (PE17/27; PE17/149), and aear (Let/386; RGEO/65) in later writings. Of these, I prefer gaear for purposes of Neo-Sindarin, reduced to gaer in compounds.

Possible Etymology: The presence or absence of the initial g- depends on whether the word’s root is √AY(AR) (as it appears in The Etymologies and some later writings) or √GAY(AR) (as it appears in other later writings). See the entry of the root √GAY(AR) for a discussion of this vacillation. Similarly, the form gaer appears primarily as an element in compounds, and can be explained as a reduced form of gaear in that context. For these reasons, this entry uses gaear as the ordinary Sindarin word for “sea”. This has the additional advantage of disambiguating it from the adjective gaer “dreadful”.

Conceptual Development: This word appeared as N. oer or oear “sea” in The Etymologies of the 1930s, reflecting the Noldorin sound change of ai to oe (Ety/AY). However name for the “Great Sea” was N. {Belegar >>} Belegaer in the narratives of this period (LR/19), and the name N. Rhûnaer “Eastern Sea” appeared in draft Lord of the Rings maps from 1943 (TI/307). The element N. oer did appear in the day-of-the-week name N. Aroeren “✱Sea-day” in drafts of The Lord of the Rings appendices, but this was revised to S. Oraeron (PM/130, 138).

Cognates

• Q. airë “sea” ✧ PE17/027
• Q. ëar “sea, great sea, sea, great sea, [ᴹQ.] open sea; water” ✧ Let/386; PE17/027; PM/363; RGEO/65; SA/ëar; WJ/400

Derivations

• √AY(AR) “sea” ✧ Let/386
• √GAY(AR) “awe, dread; astound, make aghast; sea” ✧ PE17/027; PE17/149; SA/gaer
• ✶gayār “sea, the terrifier” ✧ PE17/027; PM/363; WJ/400
  • √GAY(AR) “awe, dread; astound, make aghast; sea” ✧ PE17/027; PM/363; WJ/400

Element in

• S. Aerandir “Sea-wanderer”
• S. Belegaer “Great Sea” ✧ PM/363; SA/ëar; SA/gaer
• S. gaearon “ocean, (lit.) great sea” ✧ PE17/027; PE17/149; PM/363; RGEO/65
• S. Gaerdil “*Sea-lover” ✧ PE17/027
• ᴺS. gaeruil “seaweed”
• S. Gaerys “Ossë” ✧ SA/gaer
• ᴺS. gaessarn “pearl, (lit.) sea-pebble”
• S. nef aear, sí nef aearon “here ... beyond the Sea, beyond the wide and sundering Sea” ✧ LotR/0238; PE17/027; RGEO/63; RGEO/64
• S. Tirith Aear “Sea-ward Tower”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶gaı̯ră > gaer	[gaira] > [gair] > [gaer]	✧ PE17/027
✶Gayar- > gaear	[gaiara] > [gaiar] > [gaear]	✧ PM/363

Variations

• aear ✧ Let/386; RGEO/65
• gaer ✧ PE17/027; PE17/149; SA/ëar; SA/gaer

aearon

noun. great sea, ocean

Tolkien changed this word several times, see gaearon

gaeron

noun. great sea, ocean

gaearon

noun. great sea, ocean

limp

adjective. wet

nîn

wet

_ adj. _wet. Q. nenya. >> Nindalf

sîr

noun. river

nen

noun. water (used of a lake, pool or lesser river)

nen

noun. water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, [ᴱN.] stream

A noun for “water”, also regularly applied to bodies of water like lakes, pools and rivers, especially in names like S. Bruinen “Loudwater” (a river) and S. Nen Echui “Water of Awakening” (an inland sea).

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s where {nen >>} G. nenn “water; river” appeared (GL/60), a derivative of the early root ᴱ√NENE “flow” as suggested by Christopher Tolkien (LT1A/Neni Erúmëar; QL/65). ᴱN. nen and nenn appeared in various Early Noldorin documents from the 1920s with glosses like “stream” (PE13/123), “water” (PE13/151), and “water, river” (PE13/164), but in this period Tolkien indicated the primitive form was ninda (PE13/123, 164). This seems to have been a transient idea, since in The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien gave N. nen “water” as a derivative of ᴹ√NEN (Ety/NEN), and this derivation appeared in Tolkien’s later writings as well (PE17/52).

Cognates

• Q. nén “water, water, [ᴱQ.] river” ✧ PE17/052; SA/nen

Derivations

• ✶nē̆n “water”
  • √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow”
• √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow” ✧ PE17/052; SA/nen

Element in

• S. Arnen “Beside the Water”
• S. Bruinen “Loudwater” ✧ SA/nen
• S. Carnen “Redwater”
• S. dannen “ebb, lowtide”
• S. duinen “flood, high tide”
• S. Emyn Arnen “Hills of Arnen” ✧ SA/nen
• S. Harnen “*South Water”
• S. Lebennin “Five Rivers”
• S. Nen Cenedril “Mirrormere, (lit.) Lake Looking-glass”
• S. Nen Echui “Water of Awakening”
• S. Nen Girith “Shuddering Water” ✧ SA/nen
• S. Nen Hithoel “Mist-cool Water” ✧ RC/328; SA/nen
• S. Nen Lalaith “*Water of Laughter”
• S. Nenning “? Water” ✧ SA/nen
• S. Nenuial “Lake Evendim, (lit.) Water of Twilight” ✧ SA/nen
• S. Nîn-in-Eilph “Swanfleet, Waterlands of the Swans” ✧ NM/378
• S. Núrnen “Sad Water, Dead Water” ✧ SA/nen
• S. Ringnen “Chill-water” ✧ VT42/14

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√NEN > nĕn	[nen]	✧ PE17/052
√nen > nen	[nen]	✧ SA/nen

Variations

• nĕn ✧ PE17/052; PE17/077

loen

adjective. soaking wet, swamped

lorn

noun. anchorage, harbour

rib-

verb. to flow like a (torrent ?)

The reading of the gloss is uncertain

duin

noun. (long and large) river (having strong current)

nên

water

nên (lake, pool, stream, waterland), construct nen, pl. nîn. FLOOD-WATER (or ”wash”) iôl (pl. ŷl) (RC:334, VT48:33).

nên

water

(lake, pool, stream, waterland), construct nen, pl. nîn.

aear

sea

aear (ocean); pl. aeair. The shorter form aer (for N oer) is maybe best avoided since it can be confused with aer "holy", unless the latter is actually a lenited form of gaer. Forms with g-, representing an alternative concept of the word for ”sea”: gaear (i **aear) (ocean), pl. gaeair (i ngaeair = i ñaeair) (PM:363), also gaer (i **aer, no distinct pl. form except with article: i ngaer = i ñaer), but homophones of the latter mean "reddish, copper-coloured, ruddy" and also "dreadful, awful, fearful; holy".

aear

sea

(ocean); pl. aeair. The shorter form aer (for N oer) is maybe best avoided since it can be confused with aer "holy", unless the latter is actually a lenited form of gaer. Forms with g-, representing an alternative concept of the word for ”sea”: gaear (i ’aear) (ocean), pl. gaeair (i ngaeair = i ñaeair) (PM:363), also gaer (i ’aer, no distinct pl. form except with article: i ngaer = i ñaer), but homophones of the latter mean "reddish, copper-coloured, ruddy" and also "dreadful, awful, fearful; holy".

lorn

quiet water

(anchorage, haven, harbour), pl. lyrn (VT45:29).

limp

adjective. wet

limp

wet

(no distinct pl. form).

mesc

wet

1) mesc (lenited vesc, pl. misc). Also spelt mesg. 2) limp (no distinct pl. form). 3)

mesc

wet

(lenited vesc, pl. misc). Also spelt mesg.

nîd

wet

nîd (damp, tearful); no distinct pl. form. 4) nîn (watery); no distinct pl. form. Note: nîn is also used as a noun ”tear”; there is also the possessive pronoun nín ”my”.

nîd

wet

(damp, tearful); no distinct pl. form. 4) nîn (watery); no distinct pl. form. Note: nîn is also used as a noun ”tear”; there is also the possessive pronoun nín ”my”.

celon

river

(i gelon, o chelon), pl. celyn (pl. i chelyn)

duin

river

(long, large river with strong current) duin (i dhuin), no distinct pl. form except with article (i nuin) (VT48:24)

ethir

of a river

(estuary), no distinct pl. form, but coll. pl. ethiriath. Note: a homophone means "spy".

lind

river

”singer” may also be used of rivers (see

sîr

river

1) (also = rill) sîr (i hîr, o sîr), in compounds sir- or -hir or -hír; no distinct pl. form except with article (i sîr), coll. pl. siriath. Note: sîr is also the adverb ”today”. 2) celon (i gelon, o chelon), pl. celyn (pl. i chelyn), 3) The word lind ”singer” may also be used of rivers (see . (WJ.309).

sîr

river

(i hîr, o sîr), in compounds sir- or -hir or -hír; no distinct pl. form except with article (i sîr), coll. pl. siriath. Note: sîr is also the adverb ”today”.

duin

large river

(i dhuin), no distinct pl. form except with article (i nuin), coll. pl. duinath (Names:179, PM:54); compare the river-name Anduin, ”long river”.

rimma

flow like a torrent

(i rimma, idh rimmar)

loen

soaking wet

(swamped), no distinct pl. form.

siria

flow

(vb.) siria- (i hiria, i siriar).

siria

flow

(i hiria, i siriar).

azra

noun. sea

The Adûnaic word for “sea” (SD/429), appearing as azar in some early texts (SD/305). It is fully declined on SD/431.

Element in

• Ad. azra-zâin “sea-lands, maritime regions” ✧ SD/429; SD/435
• Ad. azrîya du-phursâ akhâsada “that [the] seas should gush into [the] chasm” ✧ SD/247
• Ad. azrē nai {phurusam >>} phurrusim akhās-ada “seas might-flow Chasm-into” ✧ SD/311
• Ad. Azrubêl “Sea-lover, Friend of the Sea” ✧ PM/373; SD/305; SD/429

Variations

• azar ✧ PM/373; SD/305

pharaz

noun. sea

A draft word for “sea”, deleted and replaced with azar (SD/305), which later become azra. This word reappeared later with a different meaning: pharaz “gold”.

Changes

• pharaz → azar “sea” ✧ SD/305

Element in

• Ad. Pharazîr “Sea-lover” ✧ SD/305 (Pharazîr*)

Variations

• pharaz ✧ SD/305 (pharaz)

nen

root. water, water, [ᴱ√] flow

A root connected to water and (to a lesser extent) rivers for much of Tolkien’s life. It first appearance was as ᴱ√NENE “flow” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, though Tolkien marked both the root and the gloss with a “?”; it had derivatives like ᴱQ. nen “river, †water” and ᴱQ. nēnu “yellow water lily” (QL/65). Under this entry Tolkien noted that “nen water is perhaps different from nen river, which is from neře” (QL/65); elsewhere in QL Tolkien gave ᴱ√NERE² or ᴱ√NEŘE [NEÐE] as the basis for nen (nend-) “river”, a root he said was often confused with ᴱ√NESE “give to feed; feed, pasture; graze” (QL/66). In the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon he had G. nenn “(1) water, (2) river” and G. nendil “water fay” which were probably a blending of NENE and NEÐE, as well as G. nern “brook” from ✱nere¹ (GL/60), probably corresponding to ᴱ√NERE² from QL.

In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien had unglossed ᴹ√NEN with derivatives like ᴹQ. nén/N. nen “water” and ᴹQ. nelle “brook” (Ety/NEN), whereas ᴱ√NERE² and ᴱ√NEÐE from the 1910s seems to have been abandoned. The primitive form √NEN or nē̆n “water” continued to appear regularly in Tolkien’s writings from the 1940s, 50s and 60s (PE17/52, 167; PE19/102; PE21/64, 79).

Derivatives

• ✶nē̆n “water”
  • Q. nén “water, water, [ᴱQ.] river”
  • S. nen “water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, [ᴱN.] stream”
• ✶nēnā “wet” ✧ PE17/052; PE17/167
  • Q. nenda “wet” ✧ PE17/052; PE17/167
  • S. nîn “wet, *watery” ✧ PE17/052
• ✶nenda “water”
• Q. nén “water, water, [ᴱQ.] river” ✧ PE17/052; SA/nen
• Q. nenda “wet” ✧ PE17/167
• Q. nendë “lake, lake, [ᴹQ.] pool” ✧ PE17/052
• ᴺQ. nendo “water mead, *watered plain”
• S. nen “water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, [ᴱN.] stream” ✧ PE17/052; SA/nen

Element in

• ✶nēn-talma “Wetwang, Nindalf” ✧ PE17/167

Variations

• NEN- ✧ PE17/145
• NĒ̆N ✧ PE17/167
• nen ✧ SA/nen

nenda

noun. water

Derivations

• √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow”

Element in

• S. Núrnen “Sad Water, Dead Water” ✧ PE17/087

nē̆n

noun. water

Derivations

• √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow”

Derivatives

• Q. nén “water, water, [ᴱQ.] river”
• S. nen “water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, water; lake, pool; (lesser) river, [ᴱN.] stream”

nēnā

adjective. wet

Derivations

• √NEN “water, water, [ᴱ√] flow” ✧ PE17/052; PE17/167

Derivatives

• Q. nenda “wet” ✧ PE17/052; PE17/167
• S. nîn “wet, *watery” ✧ PE17/052

Variations

• nēna ✧ PE17/167

ay(ar)

root. sea

Changes

• AY(AR) → GAY(AR) ✧ PE17/027

Derivatives

• ✶airō “ocean” ✧ PE18/097
  • Q. airon “ocean” ✧ PE17/149
• Q. ëar “sea, great sea, sea, great sea, [ᴹQ.] open sea; water” ✧ Let/386
• S. gaear “sea” ✧ Let/386

Element in

• Q. ailin “a large lake, (large) lake, [ᴹQ.] pool” ✧ PE17/160
• Q. Eärendil “Lover of the Sea” ✧ Let/386
• S. ael “lake, pool”

Variations

• AYAR ✧ Let/386; PE18/097
• AYA(R) ✧ PE17/149; PE17/160

sir

root. flow

The root √SIR and similar roots meant “flow” for most of Tolkien’s life. The earliest form of this root was ᴱ√SIŘI [SIÐI] “flow” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with variant sini and derived forms like ᴱQ. sindi “river” and ᴱQ. síre “stream” (QL/84). The latter word became “river” in Tolkien’s later writings, and words appearing in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon like G. sîr “river” and G. siriol “flowing” (GL/67-68) rather than ✱✱sidh- indicate Tolkien very early revised the root to ✱ᴱ√SIRI. Indeed, the root was ᴹ√SIR “flow” in The Etymologies of the 1930s, and the root appeared with this form and essential meaning several times in Tolkien’s later writings (PE22/127, 135).

Derivatives

• ✶siru-
• ✶sīru “stream”
• ✶sirya- “to flow, to flow [smoothly]” ✧ PE22/135
  • Q. sirya- “to flow, to flow [smoothly]”
• Q. sír(ë) “river, river, [ᴱQ.] stream”
• S. sîr “river, stream” ✧ SA/sîr
• ᴺS. siriol “flowing, fluent, liquid, melliflous”

Element in

• ᴺS. ethiria- “to flow out”
• S. sirith “flowing” ✧ SA/sîr

Variations

• sir- ✧ SA/sîr

likwis

root. clear, transparent

Derivatives

• ᴺQ. liquis “clarity, transparence, limpidity”

nen

noun. water

Cognates

• ᴹQ. nén “water” ✧ Ety/NEN

Derivations

• ᴹ√NEN “*water” ✧ Ety/NEN
• ᴹ✶nē̆n “water” ✧ PE21/58
  • ᴹ√NEN “*water”

Element in

• N. Bruinen “Loudwater”
• N. Harnen “*South Water”
• N. Lebennin “Seven Streams”
• N. Nen Girith “Shuddering Water”
• N. Nen-uinel
• N. nenui “wet”
• N. Nenuial “Evendimmer”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√NEN > nen	[nen]	✧ Ety/NEN
ᴹ√NEN > nîn	[neni] > [nini] > [nin] > [nīn]	✧ Ety/NEN

Variations

• nĕn ✧ PE21/58 (nĕn)

aer

noun. sea

nen

noun. waterland

lhorn

noun. quiet water

duin

noun. water, river

Derivations

• Ilk. duin “water, river” ✧ Ety/DUI
  • ᴹ√DUY “*flow” ✧ Ety/DUI

Element in

• N. Anduin “Great River”
• N. Branduin ✧ EtyAC/DUI
• N. Lameduin
• N. Duin Morghul
• N. Ithilduin

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
Ilk. duin > duin	[duin]	✧ Ety/DUI

lhimp

adjective. wet

lhimp

adjective. wet

Cognates

• ᴹQ. linqe “wet, wet, [ᴱQ.] flowing; water, stream” ✧ Ety/LINKWI

Derivations

• ᴹ√LINKWI “*wet” ✧ Ety/LINKWI
  • ᴹ√LIN “pool” ✧ Ety/LIN¹

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√LINKWI > lhimp	[liŋkwi] > [liŋkwe] > [limpe] > [limpʰe] > [limɸe] > [limfe] > [limf] > [l̥imf] > [l̥imp] > [l̥imp]	✧ Ety/LINKWI

mesc

adjective. wet

mesc

adjective. wet

mesg

adjective. wet

mesg

adjective. wet

@@@ mesc may be alternate form

Cognates

• ᴹQ. miksa “wet, wet, *damp” ✧ Ety/MISK; EtyAC/MISK

Derivations

• ᴹ√MISIK “*wet” ✧ Ety/MISK

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√MISK > mesc > mesg	[miska] > [meska] > [mesk] > [mesg]	✧ Ety/MISK
ᴹ√MISK > miss	[misse] > [miss]	✧ Ety/MISK

Variations

• miss ✧ EtyAC/MISK (miss)

nenui

adjective. wet

Element in

• N. Palath Nenui “Wetwang” ✧ TI/268

Elements

Word	Gloss
nen	“water”
-ui	“adjective suffix”

Variations

• Nenui ✧ TI/268

oer

noun. sea

oer

noun. sea

Cognates

• ᴹQ. aire “sea” ✧ Ety/AY
• ᴹQ. ear “(open) sea; water” ✧ Ety/AY

Derivations

• ᴹ√AY(AR) “sea” ✧ Ety/AY; Ety/AY; Ety/UY

Element in

• N. Airlond “(?sea-stead)”
• N. Belegoer “Great Sea” ✧ Ety/AY
• N. oeruil “seaweed” ✧ Ety/UY
• N. Oeros “Osse”
• N. Aroeren “Sea-day”
• N. Rhûnaer “Eastern Sea” ✧ TI/307

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√ÁYAR > oear	[ajar] > [aiar] > [oear]	✧ Ety/AY
ᴹ√AI̯R > oer	[ajr] > [air] > [oer]	✧ Ety/AY

Variations

• oear ✧ Ety/AY
• aer ✧ TI/307 (aer)

sirion

noun. great river

oear

noun. sea

oear

noun. sea

celon

noun. river

sîr

noun. river

sîr

noun. river

Cognates

• ᴹQ. síre “river” ✧ Ety/SIR

Derivations

• On. sīre “river” ✧ Ety/SIR
  • ᴹ√SIR “flow” ✧ Ety/SIR

Element in

• N. Beleghir “Great River”
• N. Calenhir “*Green River”
• N. Narosîr “Redway”
• N. Nanduhiriath “Dimrill-dale” ✧ RS/433
• N. Ossiriand “Land of Seven Rivers”
• N. Sirannon “Gate-stream”
• N. Sirion ✧ Ety/SIR

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
On. sīre > sîr	[sīre] > [sīr]	✧ Ety/SIR

duirro

noun. river-bank

nen

noun. water (used of a lake, pool or lesser river)

lhorn

noun. anchorage, harbour

rhib-

verb. to flow like a (torrent ?)

The reading of the gloss is uncertain

siria-

verb. to flow