The most common word for “tooth”, appearing in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a derivative of the root ᴹ√NELEK of the same meaning (Ety/NÉL-EK). See variant N. nêl “tooth” for further discussion.
Noldorin
naith
noun. gore
Cognates
- ᴹQ. nasta “spear-head, spear-point, gore, triangle” ✧ Ety/SNAS
Derivations
Element in
- N. Naith “Angle”
Phonetic Developments
Development Stages Sources ᴹ✶natsai > naith [snatsai] > [snatsī] > [snatsi] > [n̥atsi] > [n̥aθθi] > [n̥eθθi] > [n̥eiθθ] > [n̥aiθθ] > [naiθθ] > [naiθ] ✧ Ety/SNAS
naith
place name. Angle
Elements
Word Gloss naith “gore”
naith
noun. any formation or projection tapering to a point: a spearhead, triangle gore, wedge, narrow promontory
naglath
noun. the teeth
ment
noun. point
ment
noun. point
Cognates
- ᴹQ. mente “point, end, point, end; [ᴱQ.] peak, tip” ✧ Ety/MET
Derivations
- ᴹ√MET “end” ✧ Ety/MET
Element in
- N. Mornvenniath “Black Mountains”
Phonetic Developments
Development Stages Sources ᴹ√MET > ment [mente] > [mentʰe] > [menθe] > [menθ] > [ment] ✧ Ety/MET
naes
noun. tooth
Derivations
Phonetic Developments
Development Stages Sources ᴹ✶nakse > naes [nakse] > [naksa] > [naxsa] > [naisa] > [nais] > [naes] ✧ EtyAC/NAK
nass
noun. point, (sharp) end
nass
noun. angle or corner
carch
noun. tooth, fang
egnas
noun. sharp point
egnas
noun. peak
nagol
noun. tooth
nagol
noun. tooth
Derivations
- ᴹ√NAK “bite”
Element in
- N. Kirith Naglath “Cleft of the Teeth” ✧ WR/137
- N.
Naglath Morn“Teeth of Mordor” ✧ WR/122 (Naglath Morn)
neleg
noun. tooth
neleg
noun. tooth
Cognates
- ᴹQ. nelet “tooth” ✧ Ety/NÉL-EK
Derivations
Element in
- N. Neleglos “White Tooth” ✧ WR/106
- N. Neleg Thilim “Gleaming Tooth” ✧ WR/106
- N. Nelig Myrn “Teeth of Mordor” ✧ WR/113
Phonetic Developments
Development Stages Sources On. neleki > neleg [nelek] > [neleg] ✧ Ety/NÉL-EK Variations
- Neleg ✧ WR/106
nêl
noun. tooth
nêl
noun. tooth
A word appearing as N. nêl “tooth” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from the root ᴹ√NELEK of the same meaning (Ety/NÉL-EK). It was one of a rare set of primitive words with final k, which was lost in very early stages of the language, to produce ON. nele (PE21/56). Its ON. plural was neleki, which produced nelig in the modern form of the language. Since the plural preserved the stop lost in the simplex, an alternate form N. neleg was restored from the plural.
This longer form neleg appeared as an element in a number of names from Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s: {N. Neleg Thilim “Gleaming Tooth” >>} N. Neleglos “White Tooth” (WR/106) and N. Nelig Myrn “Teeth of Mordor” (WR/113). None of these names made it into the published version. However, primitive √nelek “tooth” was mentioned as the basis for Ancient Telerin nele “tooth” in notes from the early 1950s, again with loss of final k and plural neleki (PE21/71-72).
Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I’d use neleg as the ordinary word for “tooth”, and limit nêl to the final element of compounds.
Cognates
- ᴹQ. nelet “tooth” ✧ Ety/NÉL-EK
Derivations
Element in
Phonetic Developments
Development Stages Sources On. nele > nêl [nele] > [nel] > [nēl] ✧ Ety/NÉL-EK
thela
noun. point (of spear)
bennas
noun. angle, corner
bennas
noun. angle
Cognates
- ᴺQ. vennassë “angle”
Variations
- Bennas ✧ TI/238; TII/Bennas
ecthel
noun. point (of spear)
egthel
noun. point (of spear)
Tolkien used various “teeth” words related to the root √NAK “bite” throughout his life. The earliest of these was G. naith “a tooth” from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, where its connection to the early root ᴱ√NAKA “bite” was made more clear by its archaic plural form nacthin (GL/59). In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien had N. naes derived from primitive ᴹ✶nakse under the root ᴹ√NAK “bite” (EtyAC/NAK). As suggested by David Salo (GL/275), another variant ✱nagol “tooth” is suggested by the class plural naglath in the names from Lord of the Rings drafts of 1940s: Naglath Morn “Teeth of Mordor” (WR/122) and Kirith Naglath “Cleft of the Teeth” (WR/137), neither of which made it into the published version.
Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I’d recommend using N. nêl or N. neleg for “tooth” words. Primitive ᴹ✶nakse would likely produce ✱nach rather than naes under Sindarin’s phonetic rules; compare S. ach “neck” < ✶aks[e] (PE17/92). As for N. nagol, it was also likely abandoned.