Comments by Röandil
These are the 10 posts of 143 by Röandil.
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Translation Help
Here’s what I’d do!
QUENYA
Nai sercenya nauva (i) atalantë cottotyaiva/cottolyaiva/cottoldaiva.
[Che il-mio-sangue sia (la) rovina dei-tuoi-nemici.]
lit. “Be-it-that my-blood will-be ruin of-your-enemies.”- Quenya’s “you” is just like Italian’s, so cottotyaiva = dei tuoi nemici, cottolyaiva = dei Loro nemici, and cottoldaiva = dei vostri/Loro nemici.
SINDARIN
No i-hereg nín i-dhant i-chyth gín/lín/dhín.
[Che il-sangue mio (sia) la-rovina dei-nemici tuoi.]
lit. “Be the-blood my the-ruin of-the-enemies your.”- As above, gín = tuoi, lín = Loro, and dhín = vostri/Loro.
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Translation for a new learner
I'm far from expert when it comes to Sindarin, so do wait for other opinions, but I thought I'd take a crack:
Taur/Eryn Tîn Glaur
lit. "Forest/Wood (of) Sparks (of) Gold"
I went with glaur (n.) "gold (light or colour)" because ruin (adj.) "glowing, fiery red" seemed a tad foreboding. My instinct is to combine those last two for something like Glorthín, Glordín, or Tinglor, but since the ordering and mutation depend on compound age, I'll leave that for more seasoned hands.No i chirathol i mâr îdh a glass.
lit. "May you find the house of repose and joy."
I'm more confident here, but again, wait for a second opinion!
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How to study Quenya
Very often it's the addition of an agental suffix, essentially meaning "one who [verb]s."
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How to study Quenya
There's a link to the most current Quenya "textbook" of sorts, Atanquesta, pinned in this thread. That's a good place to start!
For "traveler," I would say lelyar, as in your username.
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Sindarin translation
We have barwen from Tolkien as a Gnomish (read: very early draft Sindarin) word for "homestead," but that -wen suffix doesn't hold up in the later conception.
I'd recommend simple Bar Iaur "Old House" or Bardh Iaur "Old Home" here. If we wanted to update the abstract noun, perhaps Bar(dh)as Iaur, but I offer that only as a tentative second choice.
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Phrase “How to Thank in Sindarin” by Elaran
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Phrase tense and lenition help
I see! The Council of Elrond lessons are rather quite outdated, and I (and many other Elvish enthusiasts) advise strongly against the Weebly and its lessons.
Fiona Jallings's A Fan's Guide to Neo-Sindarin is currently the best resource available for learning a version of the language vetted by the active Elvish language community. It's available from major outlets, and she's at work on a second edition with great updates. If you're interested in serious and active study, we'd be happy to have you in our Discord server, as well.
The current consensus is that Sindarin uses the gerund in this environment, yes, but doesn't undergo vocalic mutation as a verbal object (so we don't expect something like merin *ngeliad).
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Phrase tense and lenition help
Which lessons are you using? Many online resources are unfortunately out of date and can be quite misleading.
There are a few processes at work here. We call the change from in pith > i phith nasal mutation, that is, a mutation caused by the nasal consonant n as the two words became closely associated in speakers' thought. The change from peth "word" to pith "words" is variously called ablaut, vowel change, or i-affection. Long story short, when an i occurs in an affix, it can affect the other vowels within a word. Among other things, this process is the basis for Sindarin plural formation, which all reliable courses should discuss in detail.
I would say Melin geliad for "I love to learn."
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Phrase “How to Thank in Sindarin” by Elaran
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Phrase tense and lenition help
This is a great first effort! For “We will learn the language of the Elves,” I would say Geliathab/Geliathof i lam in Edhil.
Some notes indicate that very late in his life, Tolkien imagined Sindarin to have an inclusive first-person plural suffix -(a)b and exclusive -(o)f. Geliathab would then mean “we (including you) will learn,” while geliathof would be “we (but not you) will learn.” Some authors forgo this distinction and just use -(o)f, while others stick to the previously known -(a)m. I maintain the distinction in my own translation.
We have lam from Tolkien for “language,” so I’d use that here. With your approach — “the words of the Elves” — note that the original “word” is rather peth, which pluralizes to pith “words,” and then mutates in pith > i phith “the words.”