Account “Aldaleon”

Hey! My name is nick, I love your work on this site but I have a question. When looking at some texts in the tengwar script, I noticed that the vowels are being placed above the consonant that comes before it instead of the one that comes after. Is there reason for this? I don't notice it in any of Tolkien's work. (Primarily in the one ring and inscriptions above and below the title pages of his books)

Hello Nicholas

What you are observing is the Classical Mode that is used for Quenya, in which the tehtar (vowel marks) are placed above the preceding consonant. The ring inscription (Black Speech) and the title page inscription (English) use the General Mode. Read section two of Appendix E for details.

Here’s a relevant excerpt from Appendix E:

• The vowels were in many modes represented by tehtar, usually set above a consonantal letter. In languages such as Quenya, in which most words ended in a vowel, the tehta was placed above the preceding consonant; in those such as Sindarin, in which most words ended in a consonant, it was placed above the following consonant. [The Lord of the Rings, Appendix E, p. 1121]

Thanks!!