lanya-

weave

lanya- (2) vb. "weave" (LAN)

sinya

new

sinya adj. "new" (SI)

were-

weave

were- vb. "weave" (cited as a derivative of the root WER "twine, weave" and maybe a primitive form rather than a Quenya word). (PE17:33)

winya

new, fresh, young

winya (1) adj. "new, fresh, young" _(VT45:16; though the entry including this form was struck out in the Etymologies, _vinya "new" is a valid word in Tolkien's later Quenya, and it is meant to represent older winya. Compare winyamo, q.v.)

cîr

adjective. renewed

cýr

adjective. renewed

gwain

adjective. new

sain

adjective. new

cîl

renewal

(i gîl; no distinct pl. form except with article: i chîl) (VT48:8)

cîr

renewed

clashes with the word for ”ship”.s

cîw

new

(lenited gîw; no distinct pl. form) (fresh)

cýron

new moon

(i gýron), pl. cýroen (i chýroen). Archaic ✱cýraun, spelt cýrawn in the source (VT48:7).

eden

new

(begun again), pl. edin

gwain

new

1) #gwain (gwin-), lenited wain, pl. gwîn. Isolated from the month-name Narwain, ”new sun” (where #gwain appears in lenited form). The form gwîn ”young” listed in VT46:22 would have to be taken as a pl. form, if it is to be the cognate of Quenya vinya. 2) cîw (lenited gîw; no distinct pl. form) (fresh), 3) eden (begun again), pl. edin; 4) sain (sin-), lenited hain; pl. sîn;

gwain

new

(gwin-), lenited ’wain, pl. gwîn. Isolated from the month-name Narwain, ”new sun” (where #gwain appears in lenited form). The form gwîn ”young” listed in VT46:22 would have to be taken as a pl. form, if it is to be the cognate of Quenya vinya.

sain

adjective. new

sain

new

(sin-), lenited hain; pl. sîn

siniath

news

(tidings) (i siniath).

wir

root. weave, twine, weaving with cross-threads or withes

Tolkien used a variety of similar roots for Elvish words having to do with “weaving”, many of them tied to the name of Q. Vairë. The earliest of these was a pair of roots ᴱ√GWERE “whirl, twirl, twist” and unglossed {ᴱ√WIÐI >>} ᴱ√GWIÐI in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, the latter with derivatives like ᴱQ. ’winda “woof” and ᴱQ. ’windele “loom” (QL/103-104). The connection between ᴱ√GWERE and weaving is more obvious in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon where Tolkien said that ✶gwer- “wind, turn, bend” was often used as “plait or weave”, much like ✶gwidh- (GL/46). The most notable weaving word derived from 1910s ✶gwer- was G. Gwerlum “Gloomweaver” (GL/46).

Nothing of this blended paradigm remained in The Etymologies of the 1930s, where Tolkien instead had ᴹ√WEY “wind, weave” as the basis for ᴹQ. Vaire/N. Gwîr “Weaver”, and in this document the root was blended with ᴹ√WAY “enfold” in Quenya because wei > wai (Ety/WEY). Tolkien seems to have abandoned this phonetic rule by the time he wrote his Quenya Notes (QN) from 1957, where he instead said:

> Owing to the use of gwae / gwaew “wind” as in Gwaehir, we must have √WAYA = blow, or be disturbed. √WAYA cannot therefore be used = “weave”, and Vairë has no connexion with winds or stories. EITHER Vairë must become name of Osse’s wife: Q váya is used of sea (as waters, motion). OR Vairë’s name be changed: sc. to Vérë, √WER- “twine, weave”, were-, weave (PE17/33).

Ultimately Tolkien made neither of these changes to Vairë, and this section was rejected. In a set of roots from December 1959 (D59) Tolkien said “√WIRI, weave; hence Vaire (literally ‘weaving’), not from WAY” (PE17/191). The name Q. Vairë “Ever-weaving” was also derived from √WIR in notes associated with the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 (VT39/10). However, in notes from the late 1960s Tolkien said “weaving with cross-threads or withes was represented by the distinct base {WAY >>} WIG, often in strengthened form waig-” (VT42/10 and VT42/29 note #27). So it seems Tolkien continued to vacillate on the weaving roots.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I think the 1959-60 root form √WIR lets us salvage the largest number of words, and it is not clear how Vairë would be derived from late-60s waig-.

Changes

• WAY → WIG ✧ VT42/12

Derivatives

• ✶Wairē “Weaver”
  • Q. Vairë “Weaver, Ever-weaving”
• Q. Vairë “Weaver, Ever-weaving” ✧ PE17/033; PE17/191; VT39/10
• Q. were- “to weave” ✧ PE17/033
• ᴺS. gwir- “to weave”
• ᴺS. gwiril “spindle”

Element in

• ᴺQ. vircolca “basket, (lit.) woven-box”
• ᴺQ. vírina “woven”
• ᴺS. gwer- “to weave, wind, spin, twist”

Variations

• WER ✧ PE17/033 (WER); PE17/191
• WIRI ✧ PE17/158; PE17/191
• WIG ✧ VT42/12
• WAY ✧ VT42/29 (WAY)

eden

adjective. new, begun again

sein

adjective. new

sein

adjective. new

Cognates

• ᴹQ. sinya “new, new, *current” ✧ Ety/SI

Derivations

• ᴹ√SI “this, here, now” ✧ Ety/SI

Element in

• N. siniath “news, tidings” ✧ Ety/SI
• N. sinnarn “novel tale” ✧ Ety/SI

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√SI > sein	[sinja] > [senja] > [senia] > [seni] > [sein]	✧ Ety/SI
ᴹ√SI > sîn	[sinji] > [sini] > [sin] > [sīn]	✧ Ety/SI