Adûnaic

-ma

suffix. instrumental (draft)

The suffix used for the draft-instrumental case, translated “with” (SD/438). In a later conceptual stage, it became the ordinary prepositional suffix -mâ. Carl Hostetter and Partick Wynne suggested (VSH/33, AAD/19) that the deleted form -men on SD/311 is a separate prepositional suffix “on” related to ᴹQ. men “place”, but I believe it is a variant of the plural instrumental form -main.

Adûnaic [SD/311; SD/438] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-mâ

preposition. with

A prepositional suffix translated “with” (SD/247, 429).

Conceptual Development: At an earlier conceptual stage, it was the grammatical inflection -ma used for the draft-instrumental (SD/438).

Adûnaic [SD/247; SD/429] Group: Eldamo. Published by

bârim an-adûn yurahtam dâira sâibêth-mâ êruvô

Lords of [the] West, they rent [the] Earth with assent from Eru

The 4th phrase of the Lament of Akallabêth (SD/247). One major conceptual change from earlier versions was that the subject of the sentence was plural Bârim an-Adûn (“Lords of the West”) instead of the earlier singular Bârun an-Adûn (“Lord of the West”). It seems that Tolkien decided that the drowning of Númenor was attributed to all of the Valar rather than just Manwë. A similar change from singular to plural was made in the corresponding Quenya sentence: herunūmen >> númeheruvi.

The subject Bârim of this sentence is the subjective plural of bâr “lord”. It is modified by the adjectival phrase an-Adûn “of the West”, with the genitive prefix an- “of” added to the noun adûn. The verb has the 3rd-plural suffix yu- “they”. In the grammatical rules of Lowdham’s Report this makes the subject emphatic, with a meaning more like “It was the Lords of the West who broke the Earth...” (SD/429).

The verb form rahtam is the aorist tense of rahat- “to break” with the verb plural suffix -m. The object of the sentence, dâira “Earth”, is in the normal-case.

The base sentence is modified by the prepositional phrase sâibêth-mâ Êruvô “with assent from Eru”. The combination sâibêth-mâ is the word sâibêth “assent” and the prepositional suffix -mâ “with”. The final word Êruvô is the name Êru and the prepositional suffix -ô “of”, with the usual glide-consonant [w] (which was sometimes written “v” as mentioned on SD/434) between the u and the following suffix.

Adûnaic [SD/247; SD/249; SDI2/Bârim an-adûn; VT24/12] Group: Eldamo. Published by

bārun an-adūn {urahhata >>} urahta dāira sāibēth-mā ēruvō

bārun an-adūn {urahhata >>} urahta dāira sāibēth-mā ēruvō

The second draft of the 4th phrase of the Lament of Akallabêth (SD/312). The key difference between it and final version is that its subject is singular (Manwë only) rather than plural (all of the Valar). Thus, it uses the singular subjective Bârun rather than the later plural Bârim and the pronoun suffix u- “he” instead of later yu- “they”. In this version, Tolkien initially wrote a past tense form of the verb rahhata before replacing it with the aorist form rahta used in the final version.

pâ

noun. hand

A noun translated “hand”, given as an example of an apparent Adûnaic uniconsonantal noun, which had a biconsonantal-root but lost one of its consonants from its ancient form ✶Ad. paʒa (SD/416, 426).

Adûnaic [SD/416; SD/426] Group: Eldamo. Published by

sulum

noun. mast

A noun translated “mast” illustrating the development of Primitive Adûnaic palatals, or c-series (SD/419). This example may also be related to the draft (?Adûnaic) name for the Pillar of Heaven Meneltyūlā, which contains a word much like the cognate of sulum: Q. tyulma.

thâni

noun. land

A noun translated “land” (SD/435) appearing in the Adûnaic names for the Blessed Realm: Amatthâni and thâni’nAmân. Its Primitive Adûnaic form was also ✶thāni, though its primitive was glossed “realm" (SD/420).

zâyan

noun. land

An Adûnaic word for “land” (SD/423). It has an irregular plural form zâin which is the result of the phonetic change (SD/423): [[pad|medial [w] and [j] vanished before [u] and [i]]]. Thus, the archaic plural changed from †zâyîn > zâîn > zâin.

Conceptual Development: In earlier names this word appeared as zen (SD/378, 385).

Adûnaic [SD/423; SD/429; SD/435] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Quenya 

-ma

suffix. instrumental

ma

something, a thing

ma, (1) neuter personal pronoun "something, a thing" (VT42:34). It may occur (with the meaning "thing") in the ejaculation yé mána (ma) = "what a blessing" or "what a good thing!"" (VT49:41) (2) Ma has also been theorized to be a particle used to turn declarative statements into yes/no questions.

ma

pronoun. something, a thing; anything

Quenya [PE17/162; PE22/154; VT42/34; VT47/37] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ma

adverb. interrogative particle

The base element for Quenya interrogatives, used to form questions. Add ma at the beginning of a declarative statement turns it into a question: carnelyes “you did it” becomes ma carnelyes “did you do it?”. See the entry on interrogative pronouns for more details.

Quenya [PE17/068; PE22/160; PE22/161; PE22/166; PM/357; PM/395] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ma

conjunction. whether; {frågemarkör}

Quenya [PE 22:160, 166] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

ma

something, a thing

Quenya [PE 22:154] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

má

hand

má noun "hand" (MA3, LT2:339, Narqelion, VT39:10, [VT45:30], VT47:6, 18, 19); the dual "a pair of hands" is attested both by itself as mát (VT47:6) and with a pronominal suffix as máryat "his/her (pair of) hands" (see -rya, -t) (Nam, RGEO:67). The nominative plural form was only máli, not **már (VT47:6), though plurals in -r may occur in some of the cases, as indicated by the pl. allative mannar "into hands" (FS). Mánta "their hand", dual mántat "their hands" (two hands each) (PE17:161). Cf. also the compounds mátengwië "language of the hands" (VT47:9) and Lungumá "Heavyhand" (VT47:19); also compare the adj. -maitë "-handed". See also málimë.

tyulma

noun. mast

This was the Quenya word for “mast” for much of Tolkien’s life. It first appeared as ᴱQ. tyulma “mast” in Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√TYULU “tall” (QL/50). It was ᴱQ. tyulme “mast” [with an e] in notes associated with a draft of the ᴱQ. Earendel (Poem) from around 1930 (PE16/100); in the final poem it appeared in its nominative plural form tyulmin “masts” (MC/216). In The Etymologies from 1937 it was again ᴹQ. tyulma “mast” derived from primitive ᴹ✶tyulmā under the root ᴹ√TYUL “stand up (straight)” (Ety/TYUL).

At some point Tolkien changed the form of its root without changing the word itself. In notes on the Adûnaic language from this period Tolkien gave its primitive form of ᴹQ. tyulma “mast” as ᴹ✶kyulumā (SD/419). The primitive form ᴹ✶kyulma “mast” also appeared in an earlier document Primitive Quendian Structure: Final Consonants dated “Apr. 28 [19]36” (PE21/55 note #1, PE21/65) and as ᴹ✶kı̯ulmā “mast” in Notes for Qenya Declensions from the 1940s (PE21/68). Notes on Common Eldarin: Noun Structure from the early 1950s had both primitive ✶kjulmā “mast” (PE21/74) and Q. tyulma “mast” (PE21/80).

Neo-Quenya: Tolkien’s change of √TYUL to √KYUL is in keeping with his abandonment of palatalized dentals in Ancient Elvish; see the discussion of phonetic developments in Ancient Telerin for details. This has no effect on Quenya word forms, since ancient *ky* became *ty* in that language branch. It does affect Sindarin forms, however, and I prefer to retain earlier palatalized dental roots like √TYUL to preserve words like [N.] tulus “poplar-tree”, also derived from this root.

-ndor

land

-ndor, final element in compounds: "land" (Letters:308, UT:253)

-nen

suffix. instrumental

Quenya [PE17/062; PE21/79] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Amarië

good

Amarië fem. name; perhaps derived from mára "good" with prefixing of the stem-vowel and the feminine ending -ië (Silm)

ala-

good

ala- (3), also al-, a prefix expressing "good" or "well" (PE17:146), as in alaquenta (q.v.) Whether Tolkien imagined this ending to coexist with the negative prefix of the same form (#2 above) is unclear and perhaps dubious.

an sí varda, tintallë, elentári ortanë máryat oiolossëo ve fanyar

for now Varda, Star-kindler, Star-queen [has] lifted up her (two) hands from Mount Everwhite like (white) clouds

The 9th and 10th phrases of the prose Namárië, corresponding to the 9th and 10th lines of the poem. They are combined here for purposes of discussion because Tolkien moved words between the two lines. Tolkien dramatically reorganized the text from the poetic version as follows:

> an sí Tintallë Varda Oiolossëo ve fanyar máryat Elentári ortanë >>

an sí Varda, Tintallë, Elentári ortanë máryat Oiolossëo ve fanyar

Tolkien grouped together the three names of Varda (Varda, Tintallë, Elentári) as the subject of the phrase. He moved the object máryat “her (two) hands” immediately after the verb, which is the usual Quenya word order. He also moved the two modifying clauses, Oiolossëo “from Mount Everwhite” and ve fanyar “like (white) clouds”, to the end.

The revised Quenya ordering would match the poetic English translation quite closely if the phrase “from Mount Everwhite” were moved closer to the end:

> “for now the Kindler, Varda, the Queen of the Stars from Mount Everwhite has uplifted her hands like clouds” »»»

“✱for now Varda, the Kindler, the Queen of the Stars has uplifted her hands from Mount Everwhite like clouds”

as

with

as prep. "with" (together with), also attested with a pronominal suffix: aselyë "with thee" (VT47:31, VT43:29). The conjunction ar "and" may also appear in assimilated form as before s; see ar #1.

as

with

o (2) prep. "with" (MC:216; this is "Qenya"; WJ:367 states that no independent preposition o was used in Quenya. Writers may rather use as.) See ó- below.

as

preposition. with

cambë

noun. hand, (hollow of) hand

car-

with

#car- (2) prep. "with" (carelyë "with thee"), prepositional element (evidently an ephemeral form abandoned by Tolkien) (VT43:29)

ferna

mast, beechnuts

ferna noun "mast, beechnuts" (PHER/PHÉREN)

lé

with

lé (2) prep. "with" (PE17:95)

lé

preposition. with

The preposition lé “with” was mentioned in a (rejected) etymology of S. di “with” in Tolkien’s notes on Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WPP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/94), from the phrase le nallon sí __di__’nguruthos (LotR/729), usually translated “here overwhelmed in dread of Death, I cry”. In this note, Tolkien eventually decided that S. (n)di actually meant “beneath”, and its Quenya equivalent was Q. nî.

Conceptual Development: Prepositional ᴹQ. le also appeared in the Lament of Atalante from the 1940s, in the phrase ᴹQ. Númeheruvi arda sakkante __le__néme Ilúvatáren “the Lords of the West broke the world by [or with] leave of Ilúvatar” (SD/246, 310). Here “with” seems to be used in the instrumental sense “by means of”.

The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. le “with (accompaniment)” under the early root ᴱ√LĒ (QL/52). Le was also mentioned in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon as the equivalent of G. li “with (of accompaniment only)”, but also used to mean “and” between nouns (GL/54). In this period the instrumental preposition seems to be ᴱQ. ma, which appeared in a few phrases from ᴱQ. Sí Qente Feanor from the 1910s: ᴱQ. __ma__lto ísier i nosta “✱by those from whom this birth was known” and ᴱQ. nalto fustúme __ma__ Melkon “✱they can be smelled out by Melko” (PE15/32). Compare G. ma “with instrument or by agent” from the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon (GL/55).

Neo-Quenya: I would retain ᴺQ. lé for purposes of Neo-Quenya as a rarely-used instrumental preposition meaning “with, by (means of)”, reconceived as a derivative of √LEÑ “✱way, method, manner” (PE17/74).

ma caruvalwë ohta

shall we make war

Quenya [PE22/161; PE22/162] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ma varda enquantuva i yulma nin sí

will Varda now refill the cup for me?

má

noun. hand

hand

Quenya [PE 18:35] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

má

noun. hand

Quenya [PE 22:160] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

má

noun. hand

The most common Quenya word for “hand”, which Tolkien usually derived from a root √MAH or √MAƷ “hand; handle, wield”. The weak consonant h or ʒ in the root was lost very early, so that primitive ✶mā was one of a rare set of ancient monosyllabic nouns ending in a vowel. Tolkien said that of the various hand words, má was “the oldest (probably) and the one that retained a general and unspecialized sense - referring to the entire hand (including wrist) in any attitude or function” (VT47/6).

As a part of the body, má “hand” was usually referred to in the singular (má) or dual (mát). This was true when referring to the hands of groups of people as well. For example, to say that “the Elves raised their hands”, you would say either i Eldar ortaner mánta (singular, one hand each) or i Eldar ortaner mántat (dual, both hands each), with the possessive suffix -nta “their”.

The plural form már “hands” (or archaic †mai) was almost never used, in part because it conflicted with Q. már “dwelling”. The singular form was also used in general statements and proverbs: “hand is cleverer than foot” má anfinya epe tál (ná). A collection of otherwise unrelated hands would likely use the partitive-plural form: máli “some hands”, which in this case could also serve as the general plural (VT47/12 Note 2). See the discussions on PE17/161 and VT47/6 for more information.

This word is also unusual in that it retains its long vowel before consonant clusters in inflected forms such as mánta “their hand” (PE17/161) or márya “his/her hand” (PE17/69). As Tolkien described it:

> Lá is usually shortened to la before 2 consonants, according to the usual Q. procedure, but the long vowel can be retained, especially for additional emphasis, as in other cases where pronominal affixes follow a long vowel, as in márya “his hand” (PE22/160).

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to ᴱQ. mā “hand” from Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, derived from the early root ᴱ√MAHA “grasp” (QL/57). ᴹQ. má “hand” also appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√MAƷ “hand” (Ety/MAƷ). Tolkien mentioned this word with great frequency, usually derived from √MAH or √MAƷ (as noted above) though he sometimes considered deriving it from √MAG instead.

Quenya [LotR/0377; PE17/069; PE17/070; PE17/130; PE17/135; PE17/161; PE17/162; PE19/100; PE19/102; PE19/106; PE22/160; PE23/144; RGEO/58; RGEO/59; VT39/09; VT39/11; VT47/03; VT47/06; VT47/12; VT47/18; VT47/19; VT49/10] Group: Eldamo. Published by

málimë

noun. wrist, (lit.) hand-link

A word for “wrist” in notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals from the late 1960s, a combination of má “hand” and limë “link”, hence “(lit.) hand-link” (VT47/6).

Conceptual Development: There was a similar word in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s: ᴱQ. marikta “wrist”, a combination of suffixal ᴱQ. má “hand(s)” and some derivative of the early root ᴱ√RIKI “✱twist” (QL/57, 80), perhaps “✱hand-joint”.

mára

adjective. good

Quenya [PE 22:154, 166] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

nonda

hand, especially in [?clutching]

nonda noun "hand, especially in [?clutching]" (VT47:23; Tolkien's gloss was not certainly legible)

nór

land

nór noun "land" (stem nor-, PE17:106) this is land as opposed to water and sea (nor in Letters:308). Cf. nórë.

nór

noun. land

A term for “land” as in “(dry) land as opposed to the sea”, mentioned in the Quendi and Eldar essay of 1959-60 (WJ/413) and again in notes from around 1968 (PE17/106-107).

Possible Etymology: In the Quendi and Eldar essay this term was derived from primitive ✶ndōro, but in the aforementioned 1968 notes Tolkien clarified that its stem form was nŏr-. This means it was probably derived from ancient ✱ndŏr-, where the long vowel in the uninflected form was inherited from the Common Eldarin subjective form ✱ndōr, a phenomenon also seen in words like nér (ner-) “man”. I prefer this second derivation, as it makes the independent word more distinct from the suffixal form -ndor or -nóre used in the names of countries.

Quenya [PE17/106; PE17/107; WJ/413] Group: Eldamo. Published by

nóre

noun. land

Quenya [PE 22:116, 124] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

nórë

land

nórë noun "land" (associated with a particular people) (WJ:413), "country, land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live, race, clan" (NŌ, NDOR, BAL), also used = "race, tribe, people" (SA:dôr, PE17:169; however, the normal word for "people" is lië). Early "Qenya" hasnórë "native land, nation, family, country" (in compounds -nor) (LT1:272)

roccor i erulingaron márë nár (ma naitë)?

the horses of the Rohirrim are good (are they not, lit. is it true)

tyulma

mast

tyulma noun "mast" _(TYUL, SD:419). "_Qenya" pl. tyulmin "masts" in MC:216; read *tyulmar in LotR-style Quenya.

yé mána (ma)

what a blessing, what a good thing!

ó

with, accompanying

Quenya [PE 22:162] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

Ma istanyel?

t# `B81D5Ì$jÀ interrogative. Do I know you?

Translates officially as: Do I know (formal) you?

Quenya [Ety/IS.032; EtyAC/IS.025; EtyAC/IS.026] ista- to know lye - you. Group: Neologism. Published by

ur(u)ma

noun. coal, charcoal

@@@ Discord 2022-04-10

Quenya Group: Eldamo - neologism/reconstructions. Published by

Primitive elvish

-mā

suffix. instrumental suffix

Primitive elvish [PE17/044; PE17/068; PE17/108; PE17/180; PE18/101; PE22/138; PE22/149; PE23/144; VT47/19; VT47/20; WJ/416] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ma

root. interrogative base, interrogative base; [ᴱ√] root of indef[inite]

This root is the basis for Elvish question words. When it first appeared in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, Tolkien said ᴱ√MA was the “root of indef[inites]” (GL/55), and it served as the basis for the indefinitive suffix G. -(u)m and ᴱQ. -(u)ma (GL/55; PE14/42, 71). In the Gnomish Lexicon, question words were derived from the root ᴱ√DO instead: G. don “who”, G. dos “when”, G. dui “where”, etc. (GL/30). There are no signs of interrogative ᴱ√DO in Tolkien’s later writings, but indefinite -(u)ma survived until at least the late 1940s (PE23/99, 105).

By the time Tolkien wrote the ᴱQ. Oilima Markirya poem around 1930, Quenya question words also generally began with ma-: ᴱQ. man kiluva kirya ninqe? “Who shall see a white ship?” (MC/213). This remained true thereafter, and the same seems to be true of Sindarin as well, though we have far fewer examples: S. man agorech?, untranslated but apparently: “✱and said Rían to Tuor: what have we done?” (VT50/5). The “interrogative base” √MA is mentioned in Quenya Notes from 1957 (QN: PE17/162) and again in notes from around 1968 (VT47/19).

√MA was not completely divorced from indefinites in Tolkien’s later writings, however, given late 1940s indefinite suffix -(u)ma (PE23/99, 105) and his use of Q. ma for an indefinite neuter pronoun “(some)thing” as opposed to the indefinite personal pronoun Q. mo “(some)one” (PE22/154; VT42/34). The exact relationship of interrogative √MA with these indefinite forms is not entirely clear, however.

Primitive elvish [PE17/161; PE17/162; PE23/135; PE23/144; VT47/19] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mā

noun. hand

Primitive elvish [PE19/074; PE19/102; PE21/70; VT47/06; VT47/07; VT47/18; VT47/34; VT47/35] Group: Eldamo. Published by

kalma

noun. a light

Primitive elvish [PE18/089] Group: Eldamo. Published by

dē

preposition. with

Primitive elvish [PE17/095] Group: Eldamo. Published by

kyulmā

noun. mast

Primitive elvish [PE21/74] Group: Eldamo. Published by

labmā

noun. *(physical) tongue

Primitive elvish [WJ/416] Group: Eldamo. Published by

manrā

adjective. good

Primitive elvish [PE17/162] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mat-

verb. to eat

Primitive elvish [PE17/131; PE18/106; PE22/129; PE22/130; PE22/131; PE22/132; PE22/134; PE22/136; PE22/139; PE22/157; VT39/09] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mā-limi

noun. wrist, (lit.) hand-link

Primitive elvish [VT47/06] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ndorē

noun. land

Primitive elvish [Let/384; PE17/106; PE17/107; PE17/164; PE19/076; SA/dôr; VT42/04; WJ/413] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ndōro

noun. land

Primitive elvish [WJ/413] Group: Eldamo. Published by

phanmā

noun. veil, screen

Primitive elvish [PE17/176; PE17/180] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tegmā

noun. direct[ion], process

Primitive elvish [PE18/104; PE19/082; PE19/097] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tekma

noun. pen

Primitive elvish [PE17/044] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tekmā

noun. letter

Primitive elvish [PE17/043; PE17/044; PE18/104] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Sindarin 

ma

adjective. good

_ adj. _good. Archaic and obsolete except as interjection 'good, excellent, that's right'.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:162] < *_magā_ < MAGA to thrive, be in good state. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

ma

interjection. good, excellent, that’s right

Sindarin [PE17/162] Group: Eldamo. Published by

amar

chiefly used later of the inhabited regions of the great land masses not including Aman or Eressea

n. chiefly used later of the inhabited regions of the great land masses not including Aman or Eressea (or usually even Númenor). . This gloss was rejected.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:124] < _ammar_. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

bain

good

_ adj. _good, wholesome, blessed, fair (esp. of weather). . This gloss was rejected.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:149] < ƀan fair. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

cam

noun. hand

Sindarin [Ety/361, Ety/371, S/429] Group: SINDICT. Published by

camm Archaic

noun. hand

di

preposition. with

_ prep. _with. Q. lé.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:95] < _dē_. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

di

preposition. with

Sindarin [PE17/095] Group: Eldamo. Published by

dor

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor

Sindarin [Ety/376, S/430, WJ/413, Letters/417, VT/45:38, R] Group: SINDICT. Published by

dôr

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor

Sindarin [Ety/376, S/430, WJ/413, Letters/417, VT/45:38, R] Group: SINDICT. Published by

dôr

noun. land, land, [N.] region where certain people live, [ᴱN.] country; [G.] people of the land

Sindarin [Let/417; Let/427; MR/200; PE17/133; PE17/164; PE23/139; RC/384; S/121; S/188; SA/dôr; SI/Doriath; UT/245; UTI/Doriath; WJ/192; WJ/370; WJ/413] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mab-

noun. a hand-full, complete hand (with all five fingers)

Sindarin [Ety/371, VT/45:32, VT/47:6-7] Group: SINDICT. Published by

maer

good

_ adj. _good.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:162] < MAY. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

maer

good

adj. good, proper, excellent. Q. mára good, proper, Q. maira excellent. >> mae-. This gloss was rejected.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:172] < (A)MAY suitable, useful, prosper, serviceable, right. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

maw

noun. hand

Sindarin [VT/47:6] Group: SINDICT. Published by

maw Archaic

noun. hand

The Sindarin equivalent of Q. má, likewise derived from the root √MAH or √MAƷ “hand; handle, wield” (PE17/162; VT47/6). However, in Sindarin this word was archaic, used only in poetry, having been replaced in ordinary speech by other words like S. mâb and (less often) cam. Other remnants of this word can be seen in compounds like molif “wrist, (orig.) hand link” and directional words like forvo and harvo for left and right hand side.

Conceptual Development: In the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, G. mô from the early root ᴱ√MAHA was the normal word for “hand”, replacing mab “hand” (&lt; ᴱ√MAHA) which in this document Tolkien decided was instead an irregular dual form of mô (GL/55). It had also had an irregular plural mabin based on this dual, replacing an older plural †maith. In the Gnomish Grammar, its archaic form was †mâ, with the usual Gnomish sound change of *ā* to *ō* (GG/14), as opposed to later Sindarin/Noldorin *ā* to *au*, spelt -aw when final. Tolkien seems to have abandoned mô as a non-archaic word for “hand” early on, preferring ᴱN. mab “hand” by the 1920s and introducing N. cam “hand” in the 1930s.

Sindarin [PE17/162; VT47/06; VT47/18] Group: Eldamo. Published by

molif

noun. wrist, (lit.) hand-link

A word for “wrist” in notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals from the late 1960s, a combination of (archaic) †maw “hand” and lîf “link”, hence “(lit.) hand-link” (VT47/6).

Conceptual Development: There was a similar word in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s: G. {mabrid &gt;&gt;} mabrin(d) “wrist”, a combination of G. mab “hand(s)” and G. grinn “ankle, wrist” (GL/42, 55).

mâb

noun. a hand-full, complete hand (with all five fingers)

Sindarin [Ety/371, VT/45:32, VT/47:6-7] Group: SINDICT. Published by

mâb

noun. hand, hand, [N.] grasp

The typical Sindarin word for “hand” (VT47/7, 20), usable in almost any context. It is most notable as an element in the name Mablung “Heavy Hand” (VT47/8). See below for a discussion of its etymology.

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, where G. mab “hand” appeared as a derivative of the early root ᴱ√MAPA “seize” (GL/55). Tolkien then revised the gloss to “hands”, saying instead it was an irregular dual of G. mô “hand”. The word reverted to singular ᴱN. mab “hand” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/149). These early versions of the word were already an element of Mablung “Heavy Hand(ed)” (LT2/38; LB/311), but also of Ermabwed “One-handed” (LT2/34; LB/119).

In the 1930s it seems Tolkien decided Ilk. mâb “hand” was primarily an Ilkorin word, and the usual word for “hand” in Noldorin was N. cam. Compare Ilkorin Ermabuin “One-handed” and Mablosgen “Empty-handed” with Noldorin Erchamion and Camlost of the same meaning. In The Etymologies of the 1930s, Tolkien had N. mab “grasp” under the root ᴹ√MAPA “seize”, but the version of the entry with that word was overwritten (EtyAC/MAP), leaving only the Ilkorin form mâb. In this period, Mablung may also have been an Ilkorin name.

After Tolkien abandoned Ilkorin in the 1950s, he kept S. Erchamion and Camlost based on cam, but also kept Mablung “Heavy Hand” which must have become Sindarin. In his later writings Tolkien again revisited the etymology of S. mâb “hand”. In a note from Jan-Feb 1968, he wrote:

> It [Q. má = “hand”] did not survive in Telerin and Sindarin as an independent word, but was replaced by the similar-sounding but unconnected C.E. makwā, Q. maqua, T. mapa, S. mab, of uncertain origin, but probably originally an adjectival formation from MAK “strike” ... (VT47/19).

This sentence was struck through, however. In drafts of notes on Elvish Hands, Fingers and Numerals written in or after 1968, Tolkien again derived mâb from √MAP (VT47/20 note #13), but in the final version of these notes he made the remarkable decision to discard this root despite it being a stable part of Elvish for nearly 50 years, declaring it was used only in Telerin and not Quenya or Sindarin (VT47/7). He coined a new etymology for S. mâb “hand” based on ✶makwā “handful” = ✶mā + ✶kwā (VT47/6-7), a variation on the above etymology from √MAK.

Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I prefer to ignore Tolkien’s 1968 removal of √MAP “seize”, and so would continue to derive S. mâb “hand” from that root. However, its ancient meaning may have been “✱grasp”, and its eventual use as “hand” might have been influenced by ancient ✶makwā “handful”.

Sindarin [PE23/144; VT47/06; VT47/07; VT47/19; VT47/20] Group: Eldamo. Published by

na

preposition. with, by (also used as a genitive sign)

Sindarin [Ety/374, LotR/I:XII] Group: SINDICT. Published by

na

preposition. to, towards, at

Sindarin [Ety/374, LotR/I:XII] Group: SINDICT. Published by

bâr

land

(dwelling, house, home, family; earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.

cam

hand

  1. cam (i gam, o cham), pl. caim (i chaim), coll. pl. cammath; 2) mâb (i vâb; construct mab), pl. maib (i maib). 3) Archaic †maw (i vaw), pl. moe (i moe). A homophone means ”soil, stain”. (VT47:6) 4) (fist) dond (i dhond; construct don), pl. dynd (i nynd), coll. pl. donnath (VT47:23).

cam

hand

(i gam, o cham), pl. caim (i chaim), coll. pl. cammath

camlann

of the hand

(i gamlann, o chamlann), pl. cemlain (i chemlain).

crûm

left hand

(i grûm, o chrûm, construct crum), pl. cruim (i chruim), coll. pl. crummath. Also ✱hair (i chair), no distinct pl. form (not even with article). Note: hair is also used = ”left” as adjective. Cited in archaic form heir (LR:365 s.v. KHYAR).

dond

hand

(i dhond; construct don), pl. dynd (i nynd), coll. pl. donnath (VT47:23).

dôr

land

  1. dôr (i nôr, construct dor) (dwelling place, region), pl. dŷr (i ndŷr), coll. pl. dorath (WJ:413), 2) bâr (dwelling, house, home, family; earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.

dôr

land

(i nôr, construct dor) (dwelling place, region), pl. d&#375;r (i nd&#375;r), coll. pl. dorath (WJ:413)

forgam

right-handed

(pl. fergaim, for archaic förgeim)

fuir

right hand

pl. f&#375;r. Also used as adj. &quot;right, north&quot; (VT42:20). In ”Noldorin” the word appeared as (”foeir” =) föir, feir (LR:382 s.v. PHOR).

fêr

mast

(of a beech, not on a ship) †fêr (feren-, pl. ferin) (beech)

fêr

mast

(feren-, pl. ferin) (beech)

maer

good

_(”useful” of things _ not of moral qualities) maer (lenited vaer, no distinct pl. form) (fit, useful). For ”good” as an adjective describing human qualities, the word fael ”fair-minded, just, generous” may be considered.

maer

good

(lenited vaer, no distinct pl. form) (fit, useful). For ”good” as an adjective describing human qualities, the word fael ”fair-minded, just, generous” may be considered.

maw

hand

(i vaw), pl. moe (i moe). A homophone means ”soil, stain”. (VT47:6) 

mâb

hand

(i vâb; construct mab), pl. maib (i maib).

na

with

(in instrumental sense?) na (followed by lenition), with article nan (followed by ”mixed mutation”, according to David Salos reconstruction). The preposition has various meanings: ”with, by, near” and also ”to, toward, at; of”

na

with

(followed by lenition), with article nan (followed by ”mixed mutation”, according to David Salo’s reconstruction). The preposition has various meanings: ”with, by, near” and also ”to, toward, at; of”

nand

wide grassland

(construct nan) (valley), pl. naind, coll. pl. **nannath **(VT45:36);

parth

enclosed grassland

(i barth, o pharth) (field, sward), pl. perth (i pherth);

tolf

noun. mast

A neologism coined by Gilruin and Cellindir, posted on 2022-03-27 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS) as the Sindarin equivalent of Q. tyulma “mast” as derived from primitive ᴹ✶tyulmā. If you instead assume that the primitive form is ✶kyulmā as it was in Tolkien’s later writing, then the (Neo) Sindarin form would be [ᴺS.] colf, but I prefer tolf for better compatibility with attested words like [N.] tulus “poplar” from the same root. See Q. tyulma for further discussion.

Sindarin Group: Eldamo - neologism/reconstructions. Published by

Noldorin 

an-

prefix. with, by

Noldorin [Ety/374] Group: SINDICT. Published by

cam

noun. hand

Noldorin [Ety/361, Ety/371, S/429] Group: SINDICT. Published by

cam

noun. hand

Noldorin [Ety/KAB; Ety/LAD; Ety/MAƷ; EtyAC/KAB; PE21/60] Group: Eldamo. Published by

camb

noun. hand

Noldorin [Ety/361, Ety/371, S/429] Group: SINDICT. Published by

camm

noun. hand

Noldorin [Ety/361, Ety/371, S/429] Group: SINDICT. Published by

camm Archaic

noun. hand

dor

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor

Noldorin [Ety/376, S/430, WJ/413, Letters/417, VT/45:38, R] Group: SINDICT. Published by

mō

noun. hand

ON. hand

Noldorin [PE 18:35] Group: Mellonath Daeron. Published by

na

preposition. with, by (also used as a genitive sign)

Noldorin [Ety/374, LotR/I:XII] Group: SINDICT. Published by

na

preposition. to, towards, at

Noldorin [Ety/374, LotR/I:XII] Group: SINDICT. Published by

Black Speech

sha

preposition. with

Black Speech [LotR/0445; PE17/079; PM/083] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Khuzdûl

mazarb

noun. records, documents

Khuzdûl [LotR/0321; LotRI/Chamber of Mazarbul; LotRI/Mazarbul; PE17/047; PMI/Mazarbul; RSI/Mazarbul; TII/Mazarbul] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Primitive adûnaic

paʒ

root. hand

A Primitive Adûnaic root glossed “hand”, the basis for the noun pâ of the same meaning (SD/416).

Primitive adûnaic [SD/416] Group: Eldamo. Published by

paʒa

noun. hand

The Primitive Adûnaic form of the noun pâ “hand” (SD/426).

Primitive adûnaic [SD/426] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Telerin 

camba

noun. hand

mapa

noun. hand

Telerin [PE23/144; VT47/06; VT47/07; VT47/19; VT47/20] Group: Eldamo. Published by

má Archaic

noun. hand

Telerin [VT47/06; VT47/18] Group: Eldamo. Published by

má

preposition. by (hand of), of agent

málimë

noun. wrist, (lit.) hand-link

Nandorin 

dóri-

noun. land

Isolated from Lindórinan. The independent form of the word may differ; it is unclear where the i of the compound Lindórinan comes from. In the Etymologies, the Eldarin words for "land" are derived from a stem NDOR "dwell, stay, rest, abide" (LR:376).

No Nandorin word is there listed, but Sindarin dor is derived from primitive ndorê. Notice, however, that Tolkien many years later derived the Eldarin words for "land" from a stem DORO "dried up, hard, unyielding" (WJ:413). However, this later source does confirm that the Primitive Quendian form was ndorê, now thought to be formed by initial enrichment d > nd. This is defined as "the hard, dry land as opposed to water or bog", later developing the meaning "land in general as opposed to sea", and finally also "a land" as a particular region, "with more or less defined bounds".

Whether dóri- actually comes from ndorê is highly doubtful (this would rather yield *dora in Nandorin), but it must be derived from the same set of stems.

Nandorin [H. Fauskanger (LR:376, WJ:413)] < Lindórinan. Published by

Beware, older languages below! The languages below were invented during Tolkien's earlier period and should be used with caution. Remember to never, ever mix words from different languages!

Early Quenya

-ma

suffix. passive participle

Early Quenya [PE14/056] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-ma

suffix. a; some, certain

ma

adverb. *interrogative particle

Early Quenya [PE16/077] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ma

preposition. *by

Early Quenya [PE15/32] Group: Eldamo. Published by

wingil

noun. (sea) nymph; (lit.) foam-maiden

Early Quenya [LT1A/Wingilot; LT1I/Wingildi; LT2I/Wingildi; MC/216; PE14/010; PE14/042; PE14/043; PE14/044; PE14/071; PE14/072; PE14/074; PE15/75; PE15/77; PE16/090; PE16/092; PE16/100; PE16/104; PME/104; QL/104] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-(u)ma

suffix. a, an; some, certain

Early Quenya [PE14/042; PE14/071; PE15/67] Group: Eldamo. Published by

kaimasan

noun. bed-room, bed-chamber

Early Quenya [PE14/042; PE14/071; PE15/70; QL/046] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ma-

prefix. together, in one

Early Quenya [GL/40] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ma kaire laiqen ondolissen kirya maita?

*does a ship lie maimed on green rocks?

The tenth phrase (lines 19-20) of the intermediate version of the *Oilima Markirya* poem (PE16/77). The first word is the interrogative particle ma followed by the present 3rd-singular feminine form of the verb kaya- “to lie”. The subject of the phrase is kirya “ship”, followed by the modifying adjective maita “maimed” and preceded by the clause laiqen ondolissen, the locative plural of the adjective laiqa “green” and the noun ondo “rock”.

This phrase corresponds to the lines of the English translations of the poem LA2a-LA2b (PE16/68-9): “who shall heed a dead ship/drowned boat lying on the green rocks”. It also resembles the seventeenth line in the first English translation LA1a (PE16/67): “a ship lay upon the green rocks”.

Alternate Interpretations: In their original article, Gilson, Welden and Hostetter suggested this phrase might be “What maimed ship lies upon the green rocks?” where the initial element ma was “what”. In a Discord conversation from 2023-04-23, Christopher Gilson also suggested the possibility “what lies on green rocks, a maimed ship?”, pointing out that since kirya maita falls on the next line, there could be an omitted comma.

Decomposition: Broken into its constituent elements, this phrase would be:

> ma kai-re laikve-n ondo-li-ssen kirya maita = “✱does lie-she green-(plural) rock-(plural)-on ship maimed”

Alternate Interpretations: In their original article, Gilson, Welden and Hostetter suggested this phrase might be “What maimed ship lies upon the green rocks?” where the initial element ma is “what”. In a Discord conversation from 2023-04-23, Christopher Gilson also suggested the possible interpretation “what lies on green rocks, a maimed ship?”. Since kirya maita falls on the next line, there could be an omitted comma: ma kaire laikven ondolissen, kirya maita? I find Gilson’s 2023 suggestion to be quite plausible.

Early Quenya [PE16/077] Group: Eldamo. Published by

makte Archaic

noun. hand

Early Quenya [QL/057] Group: Eldamo. Published by

makte

noun. hold, grip, power, possession

A word appearing as ᴱQ. makte “hold, grip, power, possession” in the Qenya Lexicon under the early root ᴱ√MAHA “grasp” (QL/57). It had a stem form maksi-, the result of the sound change whereby [[eq|[ti] became [si]]]. Beside it Tolkien wrote hte, probably indicating an alternate form [ma]hte as suggested by the editors. Elsewhere in the same entry, ᴱQ. makte was glossed “hand”, but that use was marked as archaic (†) and was apparently supplanted by ᴱQ. mā “hand” (which remained the normal Quenya “hand” word for the rest of Tolkien’s life).

Neo-Quenya: Since √MAH survived in Tolkien’s later writings as the basic for hand words, I would retain ᴺQ. mahtë for purposes of Neo-Quenya with the primary sense “hold, grip, ✱grasp”, metaphorically also “power [over], possession”.

Early Quenya [QL/057] Group: Eldamo. Published by

má

noun. hand

Early Quenya [GL/55; LT2A/Ermabwed; PE14/052; PE14/076; PE14/117; PE15/73; PE16/137; QL/057; VT40/08] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mára

adjective. mighty, power[ful], doughty; good, excellent, useful (of things)

Early Quenya [GG/10; LFC/030; PE13/122; PE13/125; PE14/048; PE14/081; PE15/32; PE15/73; PE16/137; PE16/140; PE16/141; QL/057] Group: Eldamo. Published by

nalto fustúme ma melkon i

*they can be smelled out by Melko whom

Early Quenya [PE15/32] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tyulma

noun. mast

Early Quenya [MC/216; PE16/100; PE16/104; QL/050] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tyulme

noun. mast

Qenya 

-ma

suffix. instrumental

ma

adverb. interrogative particle

Qenya [PE22/124; PE23/035; PE23/080; PE23/099; PE23/101; PE23/102; PE23/104; PE23/107; PE23/111; PE23/112] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-(u)ma

suffix. some, a, a certain

Qenya [PE23/092; PE23/099; PE23/100; PE23/101; PE23/102; PE23/105] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-nen

suffix. instrumental

atar·(u)ma

a certain father

eane sasse maire ma

*there was a rose

@@@ ma may be indefinite marker = English “a”

e·kestane ma leqente tana

he asked if you (had) said that

ma le·qente tana

did you say that?

má

noun. hand

Qenya [Ety/MAƷ; EtyAC/MAƷ; LR/072; PE18/035; PE21/40; PE22/021] Group: Eldamo. Published by

má Archaic

noun. land, region

Qenya [PE21/08; PE21/38; PE21/41] Group: Eldamo. Published by

má

what; when

Qenya [PE23/099; PE23/103; PE23/104; PE23/109; PE23/110; PE23/112] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tyulma

noun. mast

Qenya [Ety/TYUL; SD/419] Group: Eldamo. Published by

uma-

prefix. some, a, a certain

The prefix for singular “some” in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/99), used in formations like ᴹQ. umallume “some time” and ᴹQ. umas(se) “✱somewhere”. It is probably related to the interrogative root √MA, which is also the basis for (later) ma “something”. See the entry on correlatives for further discussion.

Qenya [PE23/099; PE23/101; PE23/102] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ve

preposition. with

Middle Primitive Elvish

-mā

suffix. passive suffix, the result of a processs

Middle Primitive Elvish [PE18/051] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mā

noun. land

Middle Primitive Elvish [PE21/38] Group: Eldamo. Published by

kasma

noun. kasma

Middle Primitive Elvish [Ety/KAS] Group: Eldamo. Published by

eñma

?. eñma

Middle Primitive Elvish [PE19/047] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mapā

noun. hand

Middle Primitive Elvish [Ety/MAP] Group: Eldamo. Published by

kyul(u)mā

noun. mast

Middle Primitive Elvish Group: Eldamo. Published by

magā

noun. hand

Middle Primitive Elvish [EtyAC/MAƷ] Group: Eldamo. Published by

maʒ

root. hand

Middle Primitive Elvish [Ety/KHYAR; Ety/MAƷ; Ety/MAK; Ety/PHOR; EtyAC/KHYAR; EtyAC/MAƷ; PE19/048] Group: Eldamo. Published by

māʒ

noun. hand

Middle Primitive Elvish [Ety/DAL; Ety/MAƷ; PE18/035; PE21/58] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tyulmā

noun. mast

Middle Primitive Elvish [Ety/TYUL; PE21/65; PE21/68; SD/419] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Gnomish

ma

preposition. with instrument or by agent

madheg

noun. something

mawr

adjective. good

mora

adjective. good

Gnomish [GG/10; GG/15; GG/16; GL/17; GL/56; GL/57; PE13/115] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mô

noun. hand

Gnomish [GG/14; GL/55; GL/57] Group: Eldamo. Published by

redhos

noun. land

Early Primitive Elvish

ma

root. root of indef[inite]

Early Primitive Elvish [GL/55] Group: Eldamo. Published by

dara(ma)

root. batter, thud, beat

Early Primitive Elvish [LT2A/Dramborleg; QL/089] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tara(ma)

root. to batter, thud, beat

Early Primitive Elvish Group: Eldamo. Published by

ŋu̯a

prefix. together, in one

Early Primitive Elvish [GL/40; GL/41; GL/43; GL/44; LT2A/Golosbrindi] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Early Noldorin

mab

noun. hand

Early Noldorin [LB/056; PE13/124; PE13/149; PE13/156] Group: Eldamo. Published by

maur

adjective. good

Early Noldorin [PE13/122; PE13/124; PE13/125; PE13/150] Group: Eldamo. Published by

môr

adjective. good

Doriathrin

dôr

noun. land

A Doriathrin noun for “land” (EtyAC/NDOR) apparently from primitive ᴹ✶ndorē (Ety/NDOR). If its primitive form indeed had a short [o], then this word may be an example of how short vowels sometimes lengthened in monosyllables in Ilkorin.

Doriathrin [Ety/THŌN; EtyAC/NDOR] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mâb

noun. hand

An Ilkorin and Doriathrin noun for “hand” derived from primitive ᴹ✶mapā (Ety/MAP, EtyAC/MAP), where the [[ilk|voiceless stop [p] voiced to [b] after the vowel]]. Since its primitive form had a short [a] and its Ilkorin form a long [ā] (EtyAC/MAP), this word is an example of how short vowels sometimes lengthened in monosyllables in Ilkorin.

Doriathrin [Ety/KAB; Ety/MAP; EtyAC/MAP] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Old Noldorin 

kamba

noun. hand

Old Noldorin [Ety/MAƷ; EtyAC/MAƷ; PE21/59] Group: Eldamo. Published by

maga

noun. hand

Old Noldorin [EtyAC/MAƷ] Group: Eldamo. Published by

magra

adjective. good

Old Noldorin [EtyAC/MAƷ] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mō

noun. hand

Old Noldorin [Ety/MAƷ; PE18/035] Group: Eldamo. Published by

pherna

noun. mast

Old Noldorin [Ety/PHER] Group: Eldamo. Published by