karak

root. *sharp fang, spike, tooth, [ᴹ√] sharp fang, spike, tooth

Christopher Tolkien gave this root as carak- in the Silmarillion appendices as the basis for Q. carca/S. carch “fang” along with various related words (SA/carak). Its origin dates all the way back to the earliest version of the language: its first iteration was (unglossed) ᴱ√KṚKṚ in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, already the basis for ᴱQ. karka/G. carc “fang” (QL/48; GL/25), though its other derivatives were more variable in form due to the vagaries of the phonetic developments of syllabic ṛ in Early Qenya and Gnomish. After Tolkien dropped syllabic consonants from the vowel system of Primitive Elvish, the root became ᴹ√KARAK “sharp fang, spike, tooth” in The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/KARAK). The frequent appearance of its derivatives in later writings indicate its continued validity.

Derivatives

• Q. caraxë “*jagged hedge of spikes, [ᴹQ.] jagged hedge of spikes, [ᴱQ.] row of spikes or teeth”
• Q. carca “fang; [sharp] rock, fang, [ᴹQ.] tooth, [ᴱQ.] tusk; [Q.] rock” ✧ SA/carak
• S. carach “jaws, rows of teeth”
• S. carch “fang, fang, [N.] tooth” ✧ SA/carak

Element in

• Q. Helcaraxë “Grinding Ice” ✧ SA/carak
• S. Caragdûr “*Dark-spike” ✧ SA/carak

Variations

• carak- ✧ SA/carak