breth

noun. mast, *fallen nuts or acorns

A word in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “mast” (EtyAC/NEL) related to Ilk. breth “beech-mast”, both derived from the root ᴹ√BERETH “beech” (Ety/BERETH). This word may be the same in both Noldorin and Ilkorin given N. Brethil and N. Brethorn (Ety/NEL; EtyAC/NEL). While breth conceivably could refer to the mast of a ship, it more likely refers to the fallen nuts and acorns of beech, oak and chestnut trees used in ancient times to feed pigs, so “✱fallen nuts or acorns”, one of the senses of the Old English word “mæst”.

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. delmos “beech nuts, mast” likewise related to G. deldron “beech” (GL/30); the second element in this Gnomish word might be G. môs “food”. G. delmos also appeared (unglossed) in the Gnomish Lexicon Slip (PE13/112).

fêr

mast

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

fêr

mast

(feren-, pl. ferin) (beech)

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.

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.

kyulmā

noun. mast

ferna

mast, beechnuts

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

tyulma

mast

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

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.