Sindarin 

cam

noun. (cupped) hand, holding hand; handful

A common Sindarin word for “hand”, most notably an element in the names Camlost “Empty-handed” and Erchamion “One-handed”. In drafts of Tolkien’s 1968 notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals, he glossed this word as “handful, holding hand” (VT47/22 note #19). In the final version of these notes, Tolkien said that its Quenya equivalent camba “referred to the whole hand, but as flexed, with fingers more or less closed, cupped, in the attitude of receiving or holding” (VT47/7), and in the Silmarillion Appendix Christopher Tolkien indicated the same was true of the Sindarin word (SA/cam).

However, based on the 1950s phrase sí il chem en i Naugrim en ir Ellath thor den ammen “✱now all (?hands) of the Dwarves and Elves will be (?against) to us” (VT50/5), I think the Sindarin word is more general in meaning, able to refer to a hand in any context, but most specifically an open hand or one holding an object loosely, as opposed to paur for a tightly closed hand. Based on the gloss “handful”, it seems it could also be used as a unit of measure for the contents of a hand (potential or actual): cam miriain “a hand[ful] of coins”.

Conceptual Development: A possible precursor to this word was G. gob “hollow of hand” from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s based on the early root ᴱ√kop- “keep, guard” (GL/40; QL/47). In The Etymologies of the 1930s the word was N. cam “hand” derived from the root ᴹ√KAB “hollow” (Ety/KAB), a form Tolkien retained thereafter. In later notes he usually derived this word from √KAB (VT47/7, 20), though in one place he considered deriving it from √KAM instead (VT47/20); this root change seems to have been a transient idea.

Sindarin [SA/cam; VT47/22; VT50/22] Group: Eldamo. Published by

cam

noun. hand

Sindarin [Ety/361, Ety/371, S/429] Group: SINDICT. Published by

camlost

masculine name. Empty-handed

A name of Beren, an alternate of Erchamion “One-handed” (S/184). This name is a combination of cam “hand” and lost “empty” (SA/cam, Ety/LUS).

Conceptual Development: Beren’s sobriquet “One-handed” dates back to the earliest Lost Tales, but the alternate “Empty-handed” did not appear until Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s. The first version of the name was Ilk. Mablosgen (SM/311), variously revised to Dor. Mablost (LR/405) or N. Camlost (LR/146). All three names appeared in The Etymologies from the 1930s where Tolkien specified their languages as Ilkorin, Doriathrin and Noldorin, respectively (Ety/MAP, KAB, LUS).

In Silmarillion revisions from the 1950s-60s, only S. Camlost appeared, either normally (WJ/51) or in its lenited form Gamlost (WJ/231, 234).

Sindarin [S/184; SA/cam; SI/Camlost; UTI/Camlost; VT47/07; WJI/Camlost] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Camlost (Beren)

noun. empty-handed

cam(b) (“hand”) + lost (“empty”)

Sindarin [Tolkiendil] Group: Tolkiendil Compound Sindarin Names. Published by

camlann

noun. palm of hand

Sindarin [Ety/367, X/ND4] cam+land. Group: SINDICT. Published by

camm

noun. hand

cam

hand

1) cam (i gam, o cham), pl. caim (i chaim), coll. pl. cammath; 2) mâb (i vâb; construct mab), pl. maib (i maib). 3) Archaic †maw (i vaw), pl. moe (i moe). A homophone means ”soil, stain”. (VT47:6) 4) (fist) dond (i dhond; construct don), pl. dynd (i nynd), coll. pl. donnath (VT47:23).

cam

hand

(i gam, o cham), pl. caim (i chaim), coll. pl. cammath

camlann

flat) of the hand

camlann (i gamlann, o chamlann), pl. cemlain (i chemlain).

cambaen

cardinal. forty

Sindarin Group: Eldamo - neologism/reconstructions. Published by

camlann

of the hand

(i gamlann, o chamlann), pl. cemlain (i chemlain).

camlann

noun. palm of hand

Sindarin Group: Eldamo - neologism/adaptations. Published by

camma-

verb. to make fit, suit, accommodate, adapt

Sindarin Group: Eldamo - neologism/reconstructions. Published by

echad

noun. camp

A noun for “camp” appearing as an element in the name Echad i Sedryn “Camp of the Faithful” (UT/153). It might be a combination of √ET “out” and √KHAD “sit”, though if it were it should be ✱✱echadh.

Echad i Sedryn

noun. camp of the faithful

achad (“camp”) + in (pl. genitive article) + sedryn (pl. of sadron “faithful one”)

Sindarin [Tolkiendil] Group: Tolkiendil Compound Sindarin Names. Published by

echad i sedryn

place name. Camp of the Faithful

Túrin’s camp on Amon Rûdh, translated “Camp of the Faithful” (UT/153). This name is a compound of echad “camp”, the elided plural form of i “the” and the plural sedryn of sadron “trusty follower, loyal companion”.

Sindarin [UT/153; UTI/Echad i Sedryn] Group: Eldamo. Published by

echad

noun. camp

Sindarin [UT/431] Group: SINDICT. Published by

mâb

noun. hand, hand, [N.] grasp

The typical Sindarin word for “hand” (VT47/7, 20), usable in almost any context. It is most notable as an element in the name Mablung “Heavy Hand” (VT47/8). See below for a discussion of its etymology.

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, where G. mab “hand” appeared as a derivative of the early root ᴱ√MAPA “seize” (GL/55). Tolkien then revised the gloss to “hands”, saying instead it was an irregular dual of G. “hand”. The word reverted to singular ᴱN. mab “hand” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/149). These early versions of the word were already an element of Mablung “Heavy Hand(ed)” (LT2/38; LB/311), but also of Ermabwed “One-handed” (LT2/34; LB/119).

In the 1930s it seems Tolkien decided Ilk. mâb “hand” was primarily an Ilkorin word, and the usual word for “hand” in Noldorin was N. cam. Compare Ilkorin Ermabuin “One-handed” and Mablosgen “Empty-handed” with Noldorin Erchamion and Camlost of the same meaning. In The Etymologies of the 1930s, Tolkien had N. mab “grasp” under the root ᴹ√MAPA “seize”, but the version of the entry with that word was overwritten (EtyAC/MAP), leaving only the Ilkorin form mâb. In this period, Mablung may also have been an Ilkorin name.

After Tolkien abandoned Ilkorin in the 1950s, he kept S. Erchamion and Camlost based on cam, but also kept Mablung “Heavy Hand” which must have become Sindarin. In his later writings Tolkien again revisited the etymology of S. mâb “hand”. In a note from Jan-Feb 1968, he wrote:

> It [Q. = “hand”] did not survive in Telerin and Sindarin as an independent word, but was replaced by the similar-sounding but unconnected C.E. makwā, Q. maqua, T. mapa, S. mab, of uncertain origin, but probably originally an adjectival formation from MAK “strike” ... (VT47/19).

This sentence was struck through, however. In drafts of notes on Elvish Hands, Fingers and Numerals written in or after 1968, Tolkien again derived mâb from √MAP (VT47/20 note #13), but in the final version of these notes he made the remarkable decision to discard this root despite it being a stable part of Elvish for nearly 50 years, declaring it was used only in Telerin and not Quenya or Sindarin (VT47/7). He coined a new etymology for S. mâb “hand” based on ✶makwā “handful” = ✶ + ✶kwā (VT47/6-7), a variation on the above etymology from √MAK.

Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I prefer to ignore Tolkien’s 1968 removal of √MAP “seize”, and so would continue to derive S. mâb “hand” from that root. However, its ancient meaning may have been “✱grasp”, and its eventual use as “hand” might have been influenced by ancient ✶makwā “handful”.

Sindarin [VT47/06; VT47/07; VT47/19; VT47/20] Group: Eldamo. Published by

maw

noun. hand

The Sindarin equivalent of Q. , likewise derived from the root √MAH or √MAƷ “hand; handle, wield” (PE17/162; VT47/6). However, in Sindarin this word was archaic, used only in poetry, having been replaced in ordinary speech by other words like S. mâb and (less often) cam. Other remnants of this word can be seen in compounds like molif “wrist, (orig.) hand link” and directional words like forvo and harvo for left and right hand side.

Conceptual Development: In the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, G. from the early root ᴱ√MAHA was the normal word for “hand”, replacing mab “hand” (< ᴱ√MAHA) which in this document Tolkien decided was instead an irregular dual form of (GL/55). It had also had an irregular plural mabin based on this dual, replacing an older plural †maith. In the Gnomish Grammar, its archaic form was †, with the usual Gnomish sound change of ā to ō (GG/14), as opposed to later Sindarin/Noldorin ā to au, spelt -aw when final. Tolkien seems to have abandoned as a non-archaic word for “hand” early on, preferring ᴱN. mab “hand” by the 1920s and introducing N. cam “hand” in the 1930s.

Sindarin [PE17/162; VT47/06; VT47/18] Group: Eldamo. Published by

cáfru

noun. ?flea

An unglossed word appearing as S. cāfru in a note from around 1962 derived from primitive (or Old Sindarin) ✶camprû illustrating the loss of nasals before clusters.

Conceptual Development: In a post from a now-defunct forum from 2009, I saw a suggestion that this word was a later iteration of ᴱN. caifr “flea” likewise derived from primitive ᴱ✶kampru, and mentioned in both the Early Qenya Phonology and Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/140; PE14/66). It seems in the 1920s the vanishing m resulted in the diphthong ai, but in the 1920s the long vowel ā.

Neo-Sindarin: I would use the 1962 word as the basis for “flea” in Neo-Sindarin, but it is unusual in that (a) it has a long vowel before a cluster and (b) retains the ancient final vowel u. As such, I would assume the ā shortened and the u vanished, and adapt this word as ᴺS. cafor, with the final r becoming syllabic as usual.

Sindarin [PE17/131] Group: Eldamo. Published by

cab

leap

(i gâb, i chebir), pa.t. camp;

talf

palm

(of hand) 1) talf (i dalf, o thalf), pl. ?telf (i thelf), coll. pl. talvath. Note: a homophone means ”low, flat field; wetland”.2) camlann (i gamlann, o chamlann), pl. cemlain (i chemlain), 3) *plâd (cited as ”plad” in the source) (i blâd, construct plad), (flat of the hand, hand held upwards or forwards, flat and tensed, with fingers and thumb closed or spread), pl. plaid (i phlaid). (VT47:9) PASS THE SENSITIVE PALM OVER A SURFACE, see .

talf

palm

(i dalf, o thalf), pl. ?telf (i thelf), coll. pl. talvath. Note: a homophone means ”low, flat field; wetland”.2) camlann (i gamlann, o chamlann), pl. cemlain (i chemlain), 3)  ✱plâd (cited as ”plad” in the source) (i blâd, construct plad), (flat of the hand, hand held upwards or forwards, flat and tensed, with fingers and thumb closed or spread), pl. plaid (i phlaid). (VT47:9)

-deid

suffix. his

_3rd sg. poss. suff. his, her.See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Earlier -ed_. >> -deith, -dyn, -ed, [[]]

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:46] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-deith

suffix. his

_3rd sg. poss. suff. his, her.See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Earlier -ed_. >> -deid, -dyn, -ed, [[]]

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:46] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-dyn

suffix. his

_3rd sg. poss. suff. his, her.See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Earlier -ed_. >> -deid, -deith, -ed, [[]]

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:46] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

cabed

noun. leap

Sindarin [S/224; UT/150] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mab-

noun. a hand-full, complete hand (with all five fingers)

Sindarin [Ety/371, VT/45:32, VT/47:6-7] Group: SINDICT. Published by

maw

noun. hand

Sindarin [VT/47:6] Group: SINDICT. Published by

men-

verb. to go

Sindarin [PE17/093; PE22/165] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mâb

noun. a hand-full, complete hand (with all five fingers)

Sindarin [Ety/371, VT/45:32, VT/47:6-7] Group: SINDICT. Published by

plad

noun. palm, flat of the hand, hand held upwards or forwards, flat and tensed (with fingers and thumb closed or spread)

Sindarin [VT/47:9] Group: SINDICT. Published by

talf

noun. palm of hand

Sindarin [Ety/353] Group: SINDICT. Published by

tol-

verb. to come

Sindarin [PE17/166; PE22/168; VT44/25; WJ/254; WJ/301] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tolo

verb. come!

Sindarin [VT/44:21,25] Group: SINDICT. Published by

tîn

adjective. his

Sindarin [bess dîn SD/129-31] Group: SINDICT. Published by

tîn

pronoun. his

Non-lenited form suggested by Carl Hostetter (VT31/21).

Sindarin [AotM/062; SD/129] Group: Eldamo. Published by

în

adjective. his (referring to the subject)

Sindarin [SD/129-31] Group: SINDICT. Published by

cabed

leap

(i gabed, o chabed), pl. cebid (i chebid)

cafor

noun. flea

Sindarin Group: Eldamo - neologism/adaptations. Published by

caphaen

cardinal. forty

Sindarin Group: Eldamo - neologism/reconstructions. Published by

crûm

left hand

(i grûm, o chrûm, construct crum), pl. cruim (i chruim), coll. pl. crummath. Also ✱hair (i chair), no distinct pl. form (not even with article). Note: hair is also used = ”left” as adjective. Cited in archaic form heir (LR:365 s.v. KHYAR).

cûn

bent

cûn (bowed, bowshaped), lenited gûn; pl. cuin

cûn

bent

(bowed, bowshaped), lenited gûn; pl. cuin

dond

hand

(i dhond; construct don), pl. dynd (i nynd), coll. pl. donnath (VT47:23).

forgam

right-handed

(pl. fergaim, for archaic förgeim)

fuir

right hand

pl. fŷr. Also used as adj. "right, north" (VT42:20). In ”Noldorin” the word appeared as (”foeir” =) föir, feir (LR:382 s.v. PHOR).

maw

hand

(i vaw), pl. moe (i moe). A homophone means ”soil, stain”. (VT47:6) 

mâb

hand

(i vâb; construct mab), pl. maib (i maib).

tol

come

tol- (i dôl, i thelir). The present tense tôl is attested (WJ:254). MAKE COME, see FETCH

tol

come

(i dôl, i thelir). The present tense tôl is attested (WJ:254).

tín

his

*tín (only attested in lenited form dín, following a noun with article). Possibly, the word also covers ”her(s)” and ”its” as a general 3rd person form. If ”his” refers to the same person as the subject, the form ín* is used instead (e.g. i venn sunc i haw ín** ”the man drank his (own) juice”, but *i venn sunc i haw dín ”the man drank his (somebody elses) juice”.

tín

his

(only attested in lenited form dín, following a noun with article). Possibly, the word also covers ”her(s)” and ”its” as a general 3rd person form. If ”his” refers to the same person as the subject, the form ín is used instead (e.g. ✱i venn sunc i haw ín ”the man drank his (own) juice”, but ✱i venn sunc i haw dín ”the man drank his (somebody else’s) juice”.

ín

his

(pronoun referring to the subject, e.g. ✱i venn sunc i haw ín ”the man drank his [own] juice”, as opposed to ✱i venn sunc i haw dín ”the man drank his [= another’s] juice”)