quén

one, (some)body, person, individual, man or woman

quén (quen-, as in pl. queni; as final element in compounds -quen) noun "one, (some)body, person, individual, man or woman", pl. queni = "persons", "(some) people", "they" with the most general meaning (as in "they [= people in general] say that..."). The element is combined with noun and adjective stems in old compounds to denote habitual occupations or functions, or to describe those having some notable (permanent) quality; examples include roquen, ciryaquen, arquen, q.v. Also in aiquen "whoever", ilquen "everybody" (WJ:361 cf. 360, 372).

er

one, alone

er cardinal "one, alone" (ERE, VT48:6, VT49:54), in an early source also adv. "only, but, still" (LT1:269); Eru er "one God" (VT44:17; er was here emended by Tolkien from erëa, which seems to be an adjectival form *"one, single".)

a

cardinal. one

erëa

cardinal. one

erëa adj.? "one" or *"single", apparently an adjectival form (see er) (VT44:17)

min

cardinal. one

min numeral "one", also minë (VT45:34, VT48:6)

min

cardinal. one, one, [ᴱQ.] one (in a series), the first

Cognates

• S. min “one, one, [G.] single” ✧ PE17/095; VT48/06
• T. min “one” ✧ VT48/06

Derivations

• ✶min “one”
  • √MIN “one, first of a series, one, first of a series; [ᴹ√] stand alone, stick out”

Element in

• ᴺQ. millumë “once, one time”
• ᴺQ. mindórë “million”
• Q. minya “first; eminent, prominent”

minë

cardinal. one

minë numeral "one", also min (MINI, VT45:34)

mir

cardinal. one

mir (2) cardinal "one" (LT1:260; in LotR-style Quenya rather minë)

mo

one, someone, anyone

mo, indefinite pronoun "one, someone, anyone" (VT42:34, VT49:19, 20, 26)

-ben

suffix. obsolete except in few names

suff. obsolete except in few names. >> pen-

pen

pronoun. one, somebody, anybody

Usually enclitic and mutated as ben.2

pen

pronoun. one, somebody, anybody, one, somebody, anybody; [N.] Elf

A Sindarin pronoun with the sense “one, somebody, anybody” appearing in the Quendi and Eldar essay of 1959-60, also used as a suffix in words like orodben “mountaineer” and rochben “rider” (WJ/376), originally “✱mountain-person” and “✱horse-person”. It was thus more narrow in scope than its Quenya cognate quén “person”. Hints of this word can be found in other late writings, such as in the final element in Morben (PE17/141; EtyAC/MOR), originally “Dark-elf” but later expanded to include any people who are not among the Celbin “✱Light folk”, which applied to “peoples in alliance in the War against Morgoth” (WJ/377).

Conceptual Development: In The Etymologies of the 1930s, N. penn meant “Elf” in the compound N. Morbenn “Dark-elf”, though this word was rejected (EtyAC/MOR). The word N. penn, plural i-phinn “the Elves” also appeared in notes on Ælfwine’s spelling from around 1937-8 (PE22/67). This Noldorin form was thus a cognate of ᴹQ. Qende “Elf”, though elsewhere the usual cognate was N. penedh (Ety/KWEN(ED)); see the entry on S. penedh for further discussion. However, the later Sindarin pronoun/suffix “had no special association with Elves” (WJ/376).

Cognates

• Q. quén “person, individual, man or woman; one, somebody” ✧ WJ/361

Derivations

• ✶kwende “speaker, elf” ✧ PE17/141
  • √KWENED “spoken, articulate, spoken, articulate; [ᴹ√] Elf” ✧ PE17/137
  • √KWEN “speak with rational words” ✧ PE19/093
    • √KWE “vocal speech” ✧ WJ/392
  • √KWEN “speak with rational words” ✧ PE17/140; WJ/360
  • √KWE “vocal speech” ✧ WJ/392
• ✶kwēn “person, one, (some)body” ✧ WJ/360
  • √KWEN “speak with rational words” ✧ WJ/360; WJ/392
  • √KWE “vocal speech” ✧ WJ/392
• √KWEN “speak with rational words” ✧ WJ/376
  • √KWE “vocal speech” ✧ WJ/392

Element in

• ᴺS. alphen “no one, nobody”
• ᴺS. alben “no one”
• S. arphen “noble, knight” ✧ WJ/376
• S. Calben “*Light One” ✧ WJ/362; WJ/376
• ᴺS. ilphen “everyone”
• S. Morben “*Dark-folk” ✧ PE17/141; WJ/362; WJ/376
• ᴺS. narphen “character [of a story]”
• S. orodben “mountaineer, one living in the mountains” ✧ WJ/376
• S. pengolodh “teaching sage, doctor (of lore), teacher of lore, teaching sage, doctor (of lore), *professor”
• S. rochben “rider” ✧ WJ/376
• ᴺS. úben “nobody, no one”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶kwenedē > pen-	[-kwende] > [-pende] > [-pend] > [-penn] > [-pen]	✧ PE17/141
✶kwēn > pen	[kwene] > [pene] > [pen]	✧ WJ/360
√KWEN > pen	[kwene] > [pene] > [pen]	✧ WJ/376

Variations

• pen- ✧ PE17/141
• pen ✧ WJ/362; WJ/376

pen-

obsolete except in few names

pref. obsolete except in few names. >> -ben

min

fraction. one (first of a series)

min

cardinal. one, one, [G.] single

Cognates

• Q. min “one, one, [ᴱQ.] one (in a series), the first” ✧ PE17/095; VT48/06

Element in

• S. Miniel “Vanyar”
• S. minlamad “?alliteration, (lit.) first-echoing”
• S. minui “first” ✧ VT42/25
• S. minuial “(dawn) twilight”

Variations

• min ✧ PE17/095; VT48/06
• mîn ✧ VT42/25

mîn

fraction. one (first of a series)

pen

cardinal. one

(indefinite pronoun) (= somebody, anybody) pen (WJ:376); lenited ben. According to one interpretation of the phrase caro den i innas lín from the Sindarin Lords Prayer (VT44:23), this could mean *”let one do your will”, with den (perhaps a lenited form of *ten) as the indefinite pronoun ”one”. However, others interpret den as the accusative form of the pronoun ”it”: ”Do it [, that is:] your will”.

pen

one

(WJ:376); lenited ben. According to one interpretation of the phrase caro den i innas lín from the Sindarin Lord’s Prayer (VT44:23), this could mean ✱”let one do your will”, with den (perhaps a lenited form of ✱ten) as the indefinite pronoun ”one”. However, others interpret den as the accusative form of the pronoun ”it”: ”Do it [, that is:] your will”.

eru

the one

isolated from

min

cardinal. one

1) (number ”one” as the first in a series) min, mîn (VT48:6), Note: homophones include the noun ”peak” and the adjective ”isolated, first, towering”. 2) (number) êr, whence the adjectival prefix er- (alone, lone); 3)

min

one

mîn (VT48:6), Note: homophones include the noun ”peak” and the adjective ”isolated, first, towering”.

êr

one

whence the adjectival prefix er- (alone, lone)

er

cardinal. one

Cognates

• Q. er “one, alone, one, alone; [ᴱQ.] only, a single” ✧ VT48/06

min

cardinal. one

Cognates

• Q. min “one, one, [ᴱQ.] one (in a series), the first” ✧ VT48/06

ash

cardinal. one

Element in

• Bs. ash nazg durbatulûk “one ring to rule them all” ✧ LotR/0254; PE17/011
• Bs. ash nazg gimbatul “one ring to find them” ✧ LotR/0254; PE17/011
• Bs. ash nazg thrakatulûk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul “one ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them” ✧ LotR/0254; PE17/011

ash

cardinal. one

imin

masculine name. One

Element in

• Q. Imillië “Company of Imin”

min

cardinal. one

Derivations

• √MIN “one, first of a series, one, first of a series; [ᴹ√] stand alone, stick out”

Derivatives

• Q. min “one, one, [ᴱQ.] one (in a series), the first”

Element in

• ✶Imin “One” ✧ WJ/421
• ✶Iminye ✧ WJ/421

Variations

• Min ✧ NM/060

min

fraction. one (first of a series)

min

cardinal. one

Cognates

• ᴹQ. min “one” ✧ Ety/MINI

Derivations

• ᴹ√MIN “stand alone, stick out” ✧ Ety/MINI

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√MINI > min	[mini] > [mine] > [min]	✧ Ety/MINI