ne (3) ??? = n- in n-alalmino (Narqelion)
Quenya
-ne
i love
ne
ne
-nyë
i do
-nyë, 1st person sg. pronominal suffix "I"; also short form -n (q.v.). Carin or carinyë *"I do" (VT49:16). With object -s following in utúvienyes "I have found it" (see tuv-). It may be that Tolkien at one point considered nye (or ne, inyë) as an independent emphatic pronoun "I", but this was struck out (VT49:49).
ne
that
ne (2) conj. "that" (as in "I know that you are here") (PE14:54), evidently replaced by i in Tolkiens later Quenya (see i #3).
ne
scent
ne (1) noun (or root?) "scent" (PE17:100)
nessë
noun. past tense, (lit.) nē-ness
An archaic term for the “past tense”, a neologism coined by Röandil on 2023-08-10 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), an abstract noun based on the ancient past element ✶nē. In modern Quenya it would be vanwalussë.
né
adverb. ago, behind (earlier time); yes (it was so)
Soronto
eagle
Soronto (þ?), masc. name, seems to incorporate soron "eagle"; the ending -to is rare (occurs in suhto, q.v.), here apparently used to derive a masculine name.
Soronúmë
eagle
Soronúmë (prob. þ) (name of a constellation, apparently incorporating soron "eagle") (SA:thoron)
ane-
was
#ane-, form of copula "was" when pronominal endings follow: anen "I was", anel "you were", anes "(s)he/it was" (VT49:28, 29); see ná #1.
auta
particle. ago
auta
adverb. ago
enge
adverb. ago
ago, once, in the past
engë
was
engë vb. "was", "existed", past tense of ëa, q.v. (VT43:38, VT49:29)
i
pronoun. that
i, antevokaliskt in
conjunction. that
imi
in
imi prep. "in"; see mi (VT43:30)
imi
preposition. in, in, [ᴱQ.] inside
lelta-
verb. send
#lelta- vb. "send", attested in the past tense with pronominal suffixes: leltanelyes "you sent him" (VT47:21)
lemen
cardinal. five
lemen, alternative cardinal "five" (VT48:6, 20); the word normally appears as lempë, but compare lemenya below.
lemen
cardinal. five
lemnë
cardinal. five
lempë
cardinal. five
lempë cardinal "five" (LEP/LEPEN/LEPEK, GL:53, VT42:24, VT47:10, 24); lempëa ordinal "fifth", an analogical formation replacing older lemenya, in turn altered from the historically "correct" form lepenya because of analogy with the cardinal lempë "five" (VT42:25; Vanyarin Quenya maintained lepenya, VT42:26)
lempë
cardinal. five
lenta-
verb. send
[#lenta- vb. "send", attested in the past tense with pronominal suffixes: lentanelyes "you sent him". Changed by Tolkien to #lelta-, q.v. (VT47:22, 21)]
menta-
verb. send, cause to go
menta- (1) vb. "send, cause to go" (in a desired direction) (VT41:6, VT43:15). A similar-sounding primitive verb mentioned in PE17:93 is said to have past and perfect forms that would produce Quenya *mennë*, eménië, but here Tolkien seems to be discussing a distinct intransitive verb "go" and its Sindarin descendants, and Quenya menta- rather belongs to the causative (transitive) verbs which according to the same source has "weak" past-tense forms (in -në, hence mentanë "sent", and likely ementië** as perfect "has sent").
mi
in, within
mi prep. "in, within" (MI, VT27:20, VT44:18, 34, VT43:30; the latter source also mentions the variant imi); mí "in the" (Nam, RGEO:66; CO gives mi; the correct forms should evidently be mi = "in" and mí = mi i "in the"; VT49:35 also has mí with a long vowel, though the gloss is simply "in"). Used in PE17:71 (cf. 70) of people clad "in" various colours, e.g. mi mísë "in grey". Allative minna "to the inside, into" (MI), also mina (VT43:30). The forms mimmë and mingwë seem to incorporate pronominal suffixes for "us", hence ?"in us", inclusive and exclusive respectively. The pronoun -mmë denoted plural inclusive "we" when this was written, though Tolkien would later make it dual instead (see -mmë). Second person forms are also given: mil or milyë *"in you" (sg.), millë "in you" (pl.) (VT43:36). A special use of mi appears in the phrase Wendë mi Wenderon "Virgin of Virgins" (VT44:18); here mi appears superfluous to achieve the desired meaning, but this combination of singular noun + mi + plural genitive noun may be seen as a fixed idiom expressing that the initial noun represents the most prominent member of a class.
mi
preposition. in, in, [ᴹQ.] within
The Quenya preposition for “in”, very well attested. It was derived from the root √MI of the same meaning (PE17/92; VT43/30; VT47/30). In The Etymologies of the 1930s ᴹQ. mi was glossed “in, within” under the root ᴹ√MI “inside” (Ety/MI).
Conceptual Development: In the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, the preposition mi appeared (untranslated) in the phrase ᴱQ. Uole·mi·Kūme “Moon King” = “✱Uole in the Moon” (QL/48). The main dictionary had the adverb ᴱQ. imi “in, inside” under the early root ᴱ√IMI (QL/42). In one place in Tolkien’s later writings from the 1950s, the preposition mi “in” had the variant form imi as well (VT43/30).
mitta-
verb. to insert, to insert; [ᴹQ.] to come in, [ᴱQ.] enter (intr.)
A verb glossed “insert” in notes from the 1950s derived from the root √MI “in” (VT43/30). ᴹQ. mitta- was also glossed “insert” in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 (PE22/110), but in some sentences in the same document it was translated “come in” used intransitively: ᴹQ. á he mittar “let them come in” and mitt’ā́ “come in!” (PE22/106). It was used to mean “get in” in a phrase from Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC), also from 1948, in the phrase: me·mittanelme i·mbarenna “we got into the house” (PE23/97), with the thing entered in the allative and a reflexive pronoun -lme “us” as the object. In its early appearance in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, ᴱQ. mitta- was glossed “enter (intr.)” and derived from the early root ᴱ√MĪ (QL/61).
Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would assume mitta- can be used intransitively for “enter [= insert oneself]” and transitively for “insert”, with the thing inserted as the direct object and the thing entered in the allative. Hence mittanen latil i fendenna “I inserted a key into the door” but mittanen i fendenna “I entered [inserted myself] into the door”. With no object or allative, it simply means “go/come in”.
n-alalmino
n-alalmino
n-alalmino ??? (twice in Narqelion; perhaps ne + alalmino)
ne(re)sta
fraction. one ninth
ne-súmë
ne-súmë
ne-súmë ??? (Narqelion)
neresta
one ninth
neresta fraction "one ninth" (1/9), also nesta, nersat. (VT48:11)
nersat
one ninth
nersat fraction "one ninth" (1/9), also neresta, nesta (VT48:11)
nersat
fraction. one ninth
nesta
one ninth
nesta fraction "one ninth" (1/9), also neresta, nersat (VT48:11)
ni
pronoun. me, I
ná-
verb. to be, to be, [ᴱQ.] exist
The basic Quenya verb for “to be”, based on the root √NĀ (PE17/93). It was typically used as the copula equating a noun to another noun or an adjective:
> √NA joining adjs./nouns/pronouns in statements (or wishes) asserting (or desiring) a thing to have a certain quality, or to be the same as another (PE22/147).
In many circumstances this verb was optional:
> As a copula “be, is” is not usually expressed in Quenya where the meaning is clear: sc. in such expressions as “A is good” where the adjective (contrary to the usual order in Quenya of a qualifying adjective) follows: the normal Quenya for this is A mára (PE17/93).
For further discussion see the entry on the Quenya copula.
Conceptual Development: This verb dates back all the way to the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, where it was given as the early root ᴱ√NĀ “be, exist” (QL/64). This verb and its root appeared regularly throughout Tolkien’s writings thereafter, but at times Tolkien considered alternative verbs for “to be”; see the entry ëa- for further discussion.
nánë
was
nánë vb. "was", náner "were"; see ná #1
né
verb. was
was
né
was
né vb. "was"; see ná #1. Also used as interjection "yes" when the meaning is "it was so, it was as you say/ask" (VT49:31). Pl. nér "were", dual nét (VT49:30). Nésë "he was" (VT49:29), though Tolkien elsewhere stated that né did not "take any inflection of person" (VT49:31), pronominal endings rather being added to ane- (the form anes *he was" is attested). Anda né "long ago" (VT49:31).
né
was
né vb. in pa.t. "was"; see ná #1.
quéne
noun. petrel
sa
conjunction. that
sana
that
savin elessar ar <u>i</u> nánë aran ondórëo
that
i (3) conj. "that". Savin Elessar ar i nánë aran Ondórëo "I believe that Elessar really existed and that [he] was a king of Gondor" (VT49:27), savin…i E[lesarno] quetië naitë *"I believe that Elessars speaking [is] true" (VT49:28) Also cf. nai, nái "be it that" (see nai #1), which may seem to incorporate this conjunction.
sor
eagle
sor, sornë noun "eagle" (LT1:266); rather soron in LotR-style Quenya
sorno
eagle
sorno (þ) noun "eagle" (archaic thorno) _(Letters:427). Also soron. Early "Qenya" has sor, sornë (LT1:266)_
sorno
noun. eagle
soron
eagle
soron (or sornë) (þ) noun "eagle", before an ending sorn- as in pl. sorni, "gen.sg....sornen"; in LotR-style Quenya this would be the dative singular instead (THOR/THORON). SD:290 has the pl.soroni "eagles", changed to sorni as in the Etymologies. Early "Qenya" has the forms sor, sornë (LT1:266)
soron
noun. eagle
The Quenya word for “eagle”, appearing in a number of compounds, derived from primitive ✶thorono and the root ᴹ√THOR(ON) “come swooping down” (PE22/159; Let/427; Ety/THOR; PE21/33). It had couple variants such as sorno (Let/427) and sorne (Ety/THOR), but consistently appeared as soron- in compounds. Its stem form isn’t entirely clear: its most common plural form was sorni (Ety/THOR; SD/290), which is the expected result from the Quenya syncope, but in one place it had the plural soroni and the presence of the variant sorne muddies the waters.
Conceptual Development: This word appeared as ᴱQ. sorne or sor (sorn-) “eagle” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s derived from the early root ᴱ√ŠORO [ÞORO] (QL/86). The form sorn- “eagle” also appeared in the Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa where Tolkien indicated the primitive form was sorni- (PME/86). The form ᴱQ. soron appeared in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s as a cognate of ᴱN. thorn “eagle” (PE13/154), and Tolkien mostly stuck with that form thereafter, though he occasionally used variants like sorne and sorno as noted above.
In the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s, Tolkien listed a large number of declined forms for ᴹQ. soron “eagle”, and those declensions used soron- (or sorun-) as their base. In The Etymologies of the 1930s, however, Tolkien gave plural sorni and genitive sornen indicating a stem form sorn-, but that document also gave sorne as an alternate form of soron “eagle”. Nevertheless, I think from the 1930s forward, it is more likely that Quenya syncope would have come into play in the declension of this word, so it would have plural sorni, dative sornen, ablative sornello, etc. The only noun case where the primitive stem would be preserved would be possessive soronwa.
ta
that, it
ta (1) pron. "that, it" (TA); compare antaróta** "he gave it" (FS); see anta-. The forms tar/tara/tanna "thither", talo/tó "thence" and tás/tassë* "there" are originally inflected forms of this pronoun: "to that", "from that" and "in that" (place), respectively. Compare "there" as one gloss of ta (see #4).
tana
that
tana (1) demonstrative "that" (said to be "anaphoric") (TA). According to VT49:11, tana is the adjective corresponding to ta, "that" as a pronoun.
tana
that
A word for “that” appearing in a list of demonstratives from 1968, an adjectival form of ta “that” (VT49/11). This adjective also appeared in notes on the Common Eldarin Article (CEA) from 1969 (PE23/135). Similarly formed ᴹQ. tana appeared in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/85, 104-105) where it could also be used both adjectivally (“that”) and substantively (“that fact”). ᴹQ. tana “that” also appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s but in that document Tolkien said it was “anaphoric” (Ety/TA), as opposed to later when Q. sana was used for anaphoric that (PE16/97; PE23/104).
Conceptual Development: In the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, ᴱQ. táma was “this” rather than “that” (QL/87). The Early Qenya Grammar (EQG) of the 1920s had ᴱQ. {santa >>} sanda “that” (PE14/55), but drafts of the ᴱQ. Oilima Markirya poem from around 1930 seem to have tanda for “that” (PE16/56-57, 60).
tanya
that
tanya demonstrative "that" (MC:215; this is "Qenya", perhaps corresponding to later tana)
yana
that
yana demonstrative "that" (the former) (YA)
ëa
eagle
ëa (3) "eagle" (LT1:251, LT2:338), a "Qenya" word apparently superseded by soron, sornë in Tolkien's later forms of Quenya.
ëa-
verb. to be, exist, to be, exist, [ᴹQ.] have being, be found extant in the real world
One of two Quenya verbs for “to be”, along with ná-. The verb ëa- is derived from the root √EÑ (PE22/147; VT49/28) and so has an unusual past form enge (VT49/29; PE22/147). Strictly speaking, this verb is used only in statements asserting the actual existence of a thing within the world, so “to exist” is a better translation than “to be”:
> Verb nā- is used to assert qualities etc. of separate things in the Universe, verb eŋa (ëa) to assert their actual real existence extra-mentally (PE22/166 note #113).
As such, the verb ëa- is generally not followed by another assertion:
> Stem of verb “exist” (have being in primary world of history) was √EŊE, distinct from √NA joining adjs./nouns/pronouns in statements (or wishes) asserting (or desiring) a thing to have a certain quality, or to be the same as another. eŋe is not followed by any adj. or noun but only by a[n] adverb (or negated adverb) mainly[?] of time (PE22/147).
Thus one might say Aracorno enge “Aragorn existed” or Aracorno enge andanéya “Aragorn existed long ago”, but to say “Aragorn was tall” or “Aragorn was a Man” you would need to use the verb ná-: Aracorno náne halla, Aracorno náne Atan. See the entry on the copula for a further discussion of how “to be” statements are expressed in Quenya.
Conceptual Development: The verb ᴱQ. ná- “be” dates all the way back to the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/64), but Tolkien often had a second “be” verb, sometimes coexisting with ná and sometimes replacing it. The earliest of these alternate “be” verbs was ᴱQ. ō- “am” under the early root ᴱ√Ō “be, exist” (QL/69), a document that also contained ᴱ√NĀ “be, exist” (QL/64). In the Early Qenya Grammar of the 1920s, the main “to be” verb was ᴱQ. e- (PE14/57).
By the time of The Etymologies of the 1930s, ᴹQ. ná- “be” was restored (Ety/N²), but Tolkien mentioned another root ᴹ√YĒ for “to be” (EtyAC/YĒ), which in the 1930s was the basis for the so-called “stative suffix” ᴹQ. -ie seen in Fíriel’s Song from this period (LR/72). By the 1940s, ᴹQ. ye- seems to have become the ordinary verb for “to be”, most notably in the original layer of composition for the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 (PE22/123 note #130).
In QVS Tolkien revised the verb for “to be” to ëa-, derived from a root ᴹ√Ē or more properly eʒe or eñe (PE22/122). In the revisions to QVS, ëa was used for all “to be” statements, both for existence and for equating to adjectives or other nouns, such as in parka ëa nyé “I am thirsty” (PE22/122). But Tolkien eventually restored ná- “be” again, perhaps in the Namárië poem (LotR/378) where namárië “farewell” = na + márië “be well” (PE17/59, 162).
Tolkien retained ëa-, most notably as the basis for the name of the universe Eä “the World That Is” (S/20; Let/286; MR/39; NM/231). It is not clear when Tolkien decided that ëa- was used for statements of existence only. Its root √EÑ was still glossed “be” in the Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s (PE19/96), and its past form enge was used for “was” in the Alcar i Ataren prayer from later in the 1950s (VT43/36). However, its limitation to existence only was well established by the late 1960s, as described above (PE22/147; VT49/28).
ëaren
eagle
ëaren noun "eagle" or "eyrie" (LT1:251; this early "Qenya" word is evidently no more valid than ëa "eagle" in LotR-style Quenya.)
vanwalussë
noun. past tense
#-ne (4) "I", a 1st person pronominal suffix occurring in the word melánë "I love" (LR:61), but Tolkien later used -n or -nyë for this meaning (melin "I love", VT49:21). It may be that Tolkien at one point considered ne (or nye, inyë) as an independent emphatic pronoun "I", but this was struck out (VT49:49).