A Primitive Adûnaic root glossed “one, alone” (SD/432), likely the basis for Êru “God” (the One) and probably related to the Primitive Elvish root √ER of the same meaning.
Primitive adûnaic
gimil
root. *star
Variations
- GIM’L ✧ SD/434
Derivatives
Inflections
Word Form Gloss Source IGIML vowel-prefixion - ✧ SD/422 GIMLI vowel-suffixion - ✧ SD/422; SD/425 -GMIL vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422 IGMIL vowel-prefixion vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422; SD/425 DA-GMIL vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422 GIMLA subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/422; SD/425 GIMLU subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/422; SD/425 GIMAL subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/425 GIMIL full-form - ✧ SD/425 GIMUL subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/425 GĒMIL a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 GIMĒL a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 IGMĒL a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 GIMMIL consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 GIMILLA consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425
ʔir
root. one, alone
Variations
- ?IR ✧ SD/432
Derivatives
- Ad. Êru “God (the Omnipotent)”
saphdān
noun. wise man, wizard
The primitive form of sapthân “wise man, wizard”, derived from the root ✶Ad. √SAPHAD (SD/421). Its final element -ān may be a primitive form of the agental suffix -ân.
Derivatives
- Ad. sapthân “wise man, wizard” ✧ SD/421
nakh
root. come, approach
A Primitive Adûnaic root glossed “come, approach” (SD/416), no doubt the basis for the verb nakh- “to come”.
Derivatives
- Ad. nakh- “to come”
saphad
root. understand
A Primitive Adûnaic root glossed “understand” (SD/416), the basis for the verb saphad- “to understand” and the noun sapthân “wise man” (SD/421).
Derivatives
- Ad. saphad- “to understand” ✧ SD/421
Element in
- ✶Ad. saphdān “wise man, wizard” ✧ SD/421
bith
root. say
A root glossed “say” (SD/416), from which bêth “expression, saying, word” is most likely derived. It may be related to the Primitive Elvish root √KWET; see the entry on bêth for further discussion.
Derivatives
Derivations
khaw
noun. crow
A Primitive Adûnaic word glossed “crow” (SD/426). Tolkien gave two primitive forms of this word, khāw and khăw, which could just be variant forms of the same root *KHAW. A more intriguing possibility is that khāw is actually the subjective form of khăw, since this would indicate that this subjective formation dates back to the primitive stages of the language. As evidence of this, the derived plural khāwī(m) (SD/426) does resemble the Classical Adûnaic subjective plural.
Contradicting this conjecture is the fact that khaw, as an animal name, should be declined as a common-noun, using the common subjective suffix -an. Elsewhere, though, Tolkien declined some animal names as if they were neuter nouns, for example narîka as the subjective plural of #narak (SD/251). Perhaps not all animals were common nouns, or perhaps Tolkien’s ideas for the subjective tense were not fully formed when these examples were written.
Variations
- khăw ✧ SD/426
Derivatives
- Ad. khô “crow” ✧ SD/426; SD/426
Inflections
Word Form Gloss Source khāw subjective - ✧ SD/426 khăwī plural - ✧ SD/426
izray
noun. *sweetheart, beloved
The primitive form of izrê “sweetheart, beloved” (SD/424), probably derived from the root ✶Ad. √ZIR. The actual primitive word was more likely *izrai, produced via a-fortification from the biconsonantal vowel-suppression form *izri. Its plural form izray+yi is also attested.
Derivatives
- Ad. izrê “sweetheart, beloved” ✧ SD/424
Derivations
- √Ad. ZIR “love, desire”
Inflections
Word Form Gloss Source izray+yi plural - ✧ SD/424
dawar
root. *gloom
The root from which dâur “gloom” is derived (SD/423), perhaps with a similar meaning.
Derivatives
dāw’r
noun. gloom
A Primitive Adûnaic word glossed “gloom” (SD/423), the only attested example of a single-vowel-form for a triconsonantal-root. Ordinarily such a form would not be possible, since final consonant clusters did not appear in Primitive Adûnaic (SD/418, 426). It is possible that such forms were valid in the case of medial semi-vowels [w] and [j], however, since [[ad|[w] and [j] became [u] and [i] before consonants and finally]], thereby preventing a cluster from forming.
Derivatives
- Ad. dâur “gloom” ✧ SD/423
Derivations
- √Ad. DAWAR “*gloom” ✧ SD/423
Phonetic Developments
Development Stages Sources √Ad. DAWAR > dāw’r [dāwr] ✧ SD/423
manaw
noun. spirit
The primitive form of manô “spirit” (SD/424). Its plural form manaw+yi is also attested.
Variations
- manaw- ✧ SD/424
Derivatives
- Ad. manô “spirit” ✧ SD/424; SD/424
Inflections
Word Form Gloss Source manaw+yi plural - ✧ SD/424
minil
root. heaven, sky
A Primitive Adûnaic root glossed “heaven, sky” that Tolkien used as an example of an “early borrowing” from Primitive Elvish: the Primitive Elvish root √MENEL became ✶Ad. √MINIL from whatever Avari language influenced Primitive Adûnaic (SD/414).
Derivatives
- Ad. minal “the heavens, sky” ✧ SD/414
Derivations
- ᴹ√MENEL “heaven, sky” ✧ SD/414
Cognates
- ᴹ√MENEL “heaven, sky” ✧ SD/414
Phonetic Developments
Development Stages Sources ᴹ√MENEL > MINIL [menel] > [menil] > [minil] ✧ SD/414
miy
root. small
A root glossed “small” that Tolkien wrote in its full-form ✶Ad. √MIYI (SD/427). For consistency this entry has normalized it to the basic form of biconsonantal roots. Although glossed as “small”, all of its attested derivatives have to do with babies.
Variations
- MIYI ✧ SD/427
Derivatives
Element in
- Ad. mîth “baby girl, maid-child, little girl” ✧ SD/427
sapad
root. ?
An otherwise unexplained root Tolkien gave to illustrate a pronunciation example. It may not be a real root.
Derivatives
- Ad. sapda “[unglossed]” ✧ SD/421
ruth
root. scar, score, furrow
This root, glossed “scar, score, furrow”, appeared as part of a discussion of the origin of the Sindarin word S. ross “foam” appearing in the name Elros “Star-foam” (PM/368-371). Tolkien was uncertain whether this Sindarin word could coexist with its homophone S. ross “copper-coloured”, and investigated the possibility that Elros was instead derived from a Beorian word rôs “foam”. According to Christopher Tolkien, his father was forced to abandon this line of reasoning when he remembered that the unrelated name S. Cair Andros also contained this element, forcing it to be of Sindarin rather than Beorian origin (SD/371).
Despite all this, the related Adûnaic word Ad. roth “foam” survived in The Silmarillion in the Adûnaic name Rothinzil “Foam-flower” of Earendil’s ship. Therefore, perhaps this root remains valid. According to Tolkien, this root originally had to do with ploughs and ploughing, and was later used for the white crest of waves by analogy with the churning dirt of a furrow (PM/376).
Derivatives
- Ad. rôth “foam, white crest of waves” ✧ PM/376
ir
root. *love
A rejected Adûnaic root attested as iri- and having to do with love (SD/305), perhaps related to the Primitive Elvish root ᴹ√IR “desirable, beautiful”.
Variations
iri-✧ SD/305 (iri-)Changes
iri-→ bel- ✧ SD/305Element in
- Ad.
Pharazîr“Sea-lover” ✧ SD/305 (Pharazîr*)
-th
suffix. feminine suffix
A (primitive?) feminine suffix used in the formation of mîth “baby girl” from the root ✶Ad. √MIYI (SD/427). Tolkien stated that that th was one of the “favoured” feminine consonants (SD/427).
Element in
- Ad. mîth “baby girl, maid-child, little girl” ✧ SD/427
bel
root. *befriend, love
This unglossed root appears only as an element in the name Azrubêl “Friend of the Sea, Sea-lover” (SD/305). It has a sense similar to that of ✶Ad. √ZIR “love, desire”. Perhap it is distinct from ✶Ad. √ZIR in that it has more to do with friendship than desire. It could be distantly related to the elvish root √MEL, perhaps ✶mel- > ✶mbel- > ✶bel- in the Avari tongue that influenced Primitive Adûnaic, but this is purely speculative.
This root also contradicts statements by Tolkien elsewhere that Primitive Adûnaic only had the vowels a, i and u. Perhaps it should be *BIL, as with ✶Ad. √BITH “say” the primitive root of Ad. bêth “expression, saying, word”.
Derivatives
- Ad. bêl- “*to befriend, love”
nak
root. ?
An otherwise unexplained root that Tolkien used to illustrate the processes of Primitive Adûnaic word formation (SD/422-3). It may have no real meaning. Even if it were, certainly only a few of its derivatives could be real words in Classical Adûnaic.
Variations
- NAK- ✧ SD/422
Inflections
Word Form Gloss Source NAKA full-form - ✧ SD/422; SD/423 ANAK vowel-prefixion - ✧ SD/422 -NKA vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422 ANKA vowel-prefixion vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422 DA-NKA vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422 NAKI subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/423 NAKU subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/423
zir
root. love, desire
A Primitive Adûnaic root glossed “love, desire”, the basis for the verbal element zîr- of similar meaning and the noun zâir “yearning” (SD/423). It is likely also the basis for the noun izrê “sweetheart, beloved” (SD/424).
Derivatives
kulub
root. *root (as a kind of plant)
One of the Primitive Adûnaic roots Tolkien used to illustrate the processes of Primitive Adûnaic word formation (SD/422-5). It also seems to be the root of words such as kulbu and kulub “root (as a kind of plant)” (SD/431), perhaps an deliberate pun by Tolkien.
Variations
- KUL’B ✧ SD/422
Derivatives
Inflections
Word Form Gloss Source KULUB full-form - ✧ SD/422; SD/425 UKULB vowel-prefixion - ✧ SD/422 KULBU vowel-suffixion - ✧ SD/422; SD/425 -KLUB vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422 UKLUB vowel-prefixion vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422; SD/425 DA-KLUB vowel-suppression - ✧ SD/422 UKULBA vowel-prefixion - ✧ SD/422 KULAB subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/423; SD/425 KULIB subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/423; SD/425 KULBA vowel-suffixion subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/423 KULBI vowel-suffixion subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/423 KULBA subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/425 KULBI subordinate-vowel-variation - ✧ SD/425 Kulbō a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 Kulbā vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 Kulbē a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 Kulbī vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 Kulbū vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 kōlab a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 kōlib a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 kōlub a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 kulōb a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 kulēb a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 kulāb vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 kulūb vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 kulīb vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 uklōb a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 uklūb vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 Kullub consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 Kullab consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 Kullib consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 Kullūb vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 Kullīb vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 Kullāb vowel-lengthening - ✧ SD/425 Kullēb a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 Kullōb a-fortification - ✧ SD/425 kulubba consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 kulubbi consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 kulabbu consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 kulabba consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 kulabbi consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 kulibbu consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 kulibbi consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 kulibba consonant-doubling - ✧ SD/425 kulumba nasal-infixion - ✧ SD/425 kulimba nasal-infixion - ✧ SD/425 kulamba nasal-infixion - ✧ SD/425 uklumba nasal-infixion - ✧ SD/425
amān
masculine name. *Manwë
The primitive form of Amân, the Adûnaic name of Manwë, written in allcaps as AMĀN (SD/420). Usually Tolkien used capitalization for primitive roots, but in this case it is more like to be a form derived from an unattested Primitive Adûnaic root √MAN, probably related to the Primitive Elvish root ᴹ√MAN*.
Variations
- AMĀN ✧ SD/420
Derivatives
- Ad. Amân “Manwë”
Element in
- Ad. Amatthâni “Blessed Realm, (lit.) Land of Manwë” ✧ SD/420
asad
root. ?
An otherwise unexplained root Tolkien gave to illustrate a pronunciation example (SD/421). It may not be a real root. If it is real, it is either a biconsonantal-root with vowel-prefixion or a triconsonantal-root with a lost initial consonant such as [ɣ] or [ʔ].
Derivatives
- Ad. asdi “[unglossed]” ✧ SD/421
kalab
root. fall
A Primitive Adûnaic root gloss “fall” (SD/416) appearing as an element in the name Akallabêth (PM/158) and also most likely the basis for the verb kalab- “to fall (down)”.
Derivatives
- Ad. kalab- “to fall (down)”
Element in
- Ad. Akallabêth “Downfallen” ✧ PM/158
paʒ
root. hand
A Primitive Adûnaic root glossed “hand”, the basis for the noun pâ of the same meaning (SD/416).
Variations
- PA3 ✧ SD/416
Derivatives
paʒa
noun. hand
The Primitive Adûnaic form of the noun pâ “hand” (SD/426).
Variations
- pa3a ✧ SD/426
Derivatives
- Ad. pâ “hand” ✧ SD/426
Derivations
- √Ad. PAƷ “hand”
karab
root. ?horse
An unglossed root (SD/415), likely the basis for the noun karab “horse” (SD/434).
Derivatives
- Ad. karab “horse”
kirib
root. KIRIB
An unglossed root with a different meaning than KARAB (SD/415).
nimir
root. shine
A Primitive Adûnaic root glossed “shine” (SD/416), apparently the basis for Nimir “Elf”.
Derivatives
- Ad. Nimir “Elf, (lit.) Shining One”
thāni
noun. realm
The primitive form of thâni “land”, written in allcaps as THĀNI (SD/420). Usually Tolkien used capitalization for primitive roots, but in this case it is more like to be a form derived from an unattested Primitive Adûnaic root √THAN*.
Variations
- THĀNI ✧ SD/420
Derivatives
- Ad. thâni “land”
Element in
- Ad. Amatthâni “Blessed Realm, (lit.) Land of Manwë” ✧ SD/420
-yī
noun. plural inflection
The likely primitive form of the Classical Adûnaic plural inflection -î- (SD/429), appearing in a few examples of primitive plurals in the form -yi: manaw+yi, izray+yi (SD/424). Tolkien gave no indication of whether the primitive inflection was also used as an infix, as was the case for Classical Adûnaic plurals of strong-nouns.
Variations
- YĪ ✧ SD/424
Derivatives
- Ad. -î- “plural inflection” ✧ SD/424; SD/429
-k
suffix. *masculine suffix
A (primitive?) masculine suffix used in the formation of (male) mîk “baby” from the root ✶Ad. √MIYI (SD/427). Tolkien stated that that k was one of the “favoured” masculine consonants (SD/427).
Element in
- Ad. mîk “*baby boy” ✧ SD/427
ʒu Reconstructed
root. he
A Primitive Adûnaic form attested as u “he” (SD/435), but given the later Adûnaic pronoun Ad. u or hu “he”, the actual primitive pronoun may have been ƷU* [ɣu], *ʔU or HU [xu], as Tolkien indicated in a footnote (SD/433, note #7). The suffix -u was also a common feature of Classical Adûnaic masculine-nouns*.
Variations
- u ✧ SD/435
Derivatives
- Ad. u “he”
-ān Reconstructed
suffix. agental suffix
An apparent primitive form of the Classical Adûnaic agental suffix -ân, attested in the Primitive Adûnaic word saphdān = SAPHAD + -ān (SD/421).
Derivatives
- Ad. -ân “agental suffix”
Element in
- ✶Ad. saphdān “wise man, wizard” ✧ SD/421
hi Reconstructed
root. she
A Primitive Adûnaic form attested as i “she” (SD/435), but given the later feminine pronoun Ad. hi, the actual primitive pronoun must have been *HI [xi]. The suffix -i was also a common feature of Classical Adûnaic feminine-nouns.
Variations
- i ✧ SD/435
Derivatives
- Ad. hi “she”
One of the roots Tolkien used to illustrate various processes of Primitive Adûnaic word formation (SD/422-5). It also seems to be the basis of words related to stars, such as gimli.