yesta-

desire

yesta- (1) vb. "desire" (YES, VT46:23; the latter source indicates that Tolkien did write yesta- with a final hyphen, indicating that this is "desire" as a verbal stem, not as a noun).

írissë

desire

Írissë fem. name (PM:345), evidently connected to írë "desire".

írë

desire

írë (1) noun "desire". (ID). In the pre-classical Tengwar system presupposed in the Etymologies, írë was also the name of a long carrier with an i-tehta above it, denoting long í. (VT45:17).

írë

noun. desire, desire, [ᴹQ.] longing

Derivations

• √IR “desire, long for, desire, long for; [ᴹ√] desirable, beautiful”
• √ID “desire, long for” ✧ PE17/112

Element in

• Q. Írildë
• Q. írima “desirable, lovely” ✧ PE17/112
• Q. Írimon
• Q. Írissë “*Desirable Lady”
• Q. Irmo “Desirer”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√ID > ír-	[īde] > [īðe] > [īre]	✧ PE17/112

Variations

• ír- ✧ PE17/112 (ír-)

Irmo

desirer

Irmo masc. name "Desirer", name of a Vala; normally called Lórien, properly the place where he dwells (WJ:402)

milmë

desire, greed

milmë noun "desire, greed" (MIL-IK)

mer-

wish, desire, want

mer- vb. "wish, desire, want" (the form merë given in Etym seems to be the 3rd person sg. aorist, *"wishes, desires, wants"); pa.t. mernë (MER)

mer-

verb. to hope, to hope, [ᴹQ.] wish, desire, want

Derivations

• ᴹ√MER “wish (for), want, desire”

Element in

• Q. merin sa haryalyë alassë nó vanyalyë Ambarello “I hope that you have happiness before you pass from the world” ✧ MS/01
• ᴺQ. mermë “wish”

mer-

verb. wish (for), want

náma

judgement

náma noun "a judgement" or "a desire" (VT41:13)

órë

heart

órë (1) noun "heart" (inner mind), also name of tengwa #21 (Appendix E), "premonition" (VT41:13), "nearest equivalent of 'heart' in our application to feelings, or emotions (courage, fear, hope, pity, etc.)" (VT41:13). The órë apparently defines a person's personality, cf. the description of Galadriel in PM:337, that "there dwelt in her the noble and generous spirit (órë) of the Vanyar". Órenya "my heart" (VT41:11).

elwen

heart

elwen noun "heart" (LT1:255; rather hón or enda in LotR-style Quenya)

enda

heart

enda noun "heart", but not referring to the physical organ; it literally means "centre" (cf. endë) and refers to the fëa (soul) or sáma (mind) itself. (VT39:32)

hón

heart

hón noun "heart" (physical) (KHŌ-N); hon-maren "heart of the house", a fire (LR:63, 73; this is "Qenya" with genitive in -en, not -o as in LotR-style Quenya read *hon-maro?)

meles

love

meles, melessë noun "love" (LT1:262; rather melmë in Tolkien's later Quenya)

melmë

love

melmë noun "love" (MEL)

indo

heart, mood

indo (1) noun "heart, mood" (ID), "state" (perhaps especially state of mind, given the other glosses) (VT39:23), "mind, region/range of thought, mood" (PE17:155, 179), "inner thought, in fea as exhibited in character or [?personality]" (PE17:189). In another post-LotR source, indo is translated "resolve" or "will", the state of mind leading directly to action (VT41:13). Indo is thus "the mind in its purposing faculty, the will" (VT41:17). Indo-ninya,a word occurring in Fíriels Song, translated "my heart" (see ninya). In the compound indemma "mind-picture", the first element would seem to be indo.

-më

suffix. abstract noun

-më (2) abstract suffix, as in melmë "love" (cf. the verb mel-), #cilmë "choice" (possibly implying a verb *cil- "to choose"). According to PE17:68, primitive -mē (and -wē) were endings used to derive nouns denoting "a single action", which may fit the meaning of cilmë (but melmë "love" would normally be something lasting rather than "a single action").

milya-

long for

milya- (2) vb. "long for" (MIL-IK)

mermë

noun. wish

Elements

Word	Gloss
mer-	“to hope, to hope, [ᴹQ.] wish, desire, want”

estelya-

verb. to hope

Elements

Word	Gloss
estel	“hope, trust, *faith”

aníra-

verb. to desire

aníra-

verb. to desire, to desire, *long for

Element in

• S. ar e aníra ennas suilannad mhellyn în phain “and he desires to greet there all his friends” ✧ AotM/062; SD/129
• S. edregol e aníra tírad i Cherdir Perhael (i sennui Panthael estathar aen) Condir i Drann “in especial he desires to see Master Samwise (who should be called Fullwise) Mayor of the Shire” ✧ AotM/062; SD/129

Elements

Word	Gloss
an	“to, for, to, for; [N. and G.] of”
IR	“desire, long for, desire, long for; [ᴹ√] desirable, beautiful”

Variations

• aníra ✧ VT39/34

ídhra-

verb. to long for, desire

Derivations

• √ID “desire, long for” ✧ PE17/112

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√ID > ídha/íðra	[īdra-] > [īðra-]	✧ PE17/112

Variations

• ídha/íðra ✧ PE17/112 (ídha/íðra)

ídhra

long for

{ð} v. long for, desire. >> ídha, ídhril. This gloss was rejected.

gûr

noun. heart (in the moral sense), counsel

ídha

long for

v. long for, desire. >> ídhra, ídhril. This gloss was rejected.

aníra

desire

(vb.) aníra- (i aníra, in anírar);

aníra

desire

(i aníra, in anírar);

íra-

verb. to desire

Derivations

• √IR “desire, long for, desire, long for; [ᴹ√] desirable, beautiful”

îr

sexual desire

(VT46:23)

mavras

noun. desire, eager longing

Elements

Word	Gloss
mavor	“appetite”

iest

wish

(noun) iest, pl. ist

iest

wish

pl. ist

mer-

verb. to hope, wish, desire, want

Derivations

• ᴹ√MER “wish (for), want, desire”

nest

heart

(core, center), pl. nist. Also notice the prefix hû- apparently meaning ”heart”..

gûr

heart

(i ’ûr, construct gur), pl. guir (i nguir = i ñuir). Note: A homophone means ”death”, but has different mutations. (VT41:11).

hûn

heart

1) (physical heart) hûn (i chûn, o chûn, construct hun), pl. huin (i chuin), 2) (inner mind) gûr (i **ûr, construct gur), pl. guir (i nguir = i ñuir). Note: A homophone means ”death”, but has different mutations. (VT41:11). 3) ind (inner thought, mind, meaning), no distinct pl. form;, coll. pl. innath. 4) nest (core, center), pl. nist. Also notice the prefix hû**- apparently meaning ”heart”..

hûn

heart

(i chûn, o chûn, construct hun), pl. huin (i chuin)

ind

heart

(inner thought, mind, meaning), no distinct pl. form;, coll. pl. innath.

cil-

verb. choose

iesta-

verb. to wish

Derivations

• ᴹ√YES “desire”

meleth

love

(noun) meleth (i veleth), pl. melith (i melith)

meleth

love

(i veleth), pl. melith (i melith)

uiveleth

hJrな$3F noun. eternal love, love that will last for ever

The prefix ‘ui-’ that means eternal plus lenited form of meleth (love) ‘veleth’.

mela

love

(vb.) mela- (i vela, i melar), pa.t. melant (VT45:34)

mela

love

(i vela, i melar), pa.t. melant (VT45:34)

mîl

love

mîl (i vîl) (affection, kindness), no distinct form in pl. except with article (i mîl), coll. pl. míliath

mîl

love

(i vîl) (affection, kindness), no distinct form in pl. except with article (i mîl), coll. pl. míliath

zîr-

verb. *to love, desire

An Adûnaic verb appearing as an element in various compounds as -zîr or zîr- (SD/389, 423). The verb was not translated, but its primitive root form ZIR is glossed “love, desire”, so this verb probably has a similar meaning.

Several authors have suggested (EotAL/ZIR, NBA/20) that the verb stem is zir- with a short vowel. However, the vowel is long in the participle form zîrân “beloved”, and there are tentative examples where a verb with a short vowel would retain that short vowel in the agental/participle form: magân “✱builder”. I therefore think that the verb stem is likelier to be zîr-.

Carl Hostetter and Patrick Wynne suggested (AAD/25) that it may be related to the Middle-Period Elvish root ᴹ√SER.

Derivations

• √Ad. ZIR “love, desire” ✧ SD/423

Element in

• Ad. Aphanuzîr “?Bliss-friend” ✧ SD/389
• Ad. Nimruzîr “*Elf-friend” ✧ SD/389
• Ad. nimruzîr “Elf-friend”
• Ad. zîrân “beloved”

Variations

• zīr/zîr ✧ SD/423

id

root. desire, long for

Derivatives

• Q. írë “desire, desire, [ᴹQ.] longing” ✧ PE17/112
• Q. írima “desirable, lovely” ✧ PE17/112
• S. ídhra- “to long for, desire” ✧ PE17/112

Element in

• Q. Irildë “?Beloved Brilliance” ✧ PE17/112; PE17/112
• S. Idril ✧ PE17/112; PE17/112

ir

root. desire, long for, desire, long for; [ᴹ√] desirable, beautiful

Tolkien experimented with a variety of roots for “desire, desirable”, some in connection to the name Idril. Perhaps the earliest iteration of this root is indicated by the Gnomish word G. irn “desired, wished for” (GL/52), but given its other related forms such as G. îr- “will, intend to”, G. irm “wish, intention, resolve” and ᴱQ irya “wish” (GL/52; PE13/116), the (unattested) early root ✱ᴱ√IRI probably meant “wish, intend”.

In The Etymologies of the 1930s there was a root ᴹ√ĪR “desirable, beautiful”, but it had no derivatives (EtyAC/ĪR). Elsewhere in the document ᴹQ. íre “desire” was derived from the root ᴹ√ID (Ety/ID), perhaps a new iteration of the (hypothetical) early root ✱ᴱ√ITI “precious”. This second root ᴹ√ID had various derivatives having to do with both thoughts and desires, such as ᴹQ. indo “heart, mood”, N. ind “inner thought, meaning, heart”, ᴹQ. írima “lovely, desirable”, and N. idhren “pondering, wise, thoughtful”. Among its derivatives Tolkien also gave N. Idhril, untranslated but probably meaning “✱Desirable One”.

The problem with this last derivation is that in the contemporaneous narratives, Tolkien generally gave her name as Idril (SM/36, LR/141), which was the form of her name dating all the way in The Lost Tales of the 1910s (LT2/164). When writing the appendices to The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien again used Idril (LotR/1034).

This form of the name could not be derived from √ID, and Tolkien wrestled with this question in his Notes on Names (NN) written in 1957 (PE17/112). Acknowledging the problem, Tolkien first considered introducing a new root √IT “(great) enhancement” to serve as the basic of Idril, but he reversed himself, giving √ID “desire, long for” as a better basis for the name, saying: “Decision: [S.] íđril, Q Írilde”. But then he crossed all this through, and considered reintroducing √IT with a modified meaning “repeat, multiply” (PE17/112).

Based on The Shibboleth of Fëanor written 1968, it seems Tolkien stuck with the notion of basing Idril on a √IT, though he revised the meaning of the root again to “glitter” or “sparkle” (PM/363). As for √ID, the meaning “desire” seems to have been transferred back to √IR, which Tolkien gave with the gloss “desire” in notes on roots having to do with “beautiful” written in 1959-60 (PE17/155). Also, around 1957 Tolkien introduced a new root √IN-I-D to serve as the basis for Q. indo “mind” (PE17/155). The various words having to do with “thoughts” derived from 1930s ᴹ√ID may have been transferred to √IN-ID, a possibility suggested by Elaran in a Discord chat on January 26, 2018. If so, Tolkien may have abandon √ID, using only √IR and √INID going forward.

Assuming the above reasoning is correct, the conceptual development would be 1910s ✱ᴱ√IRI “wish, intend” >> 1930s ᴹ√ID “desire, thoughts” >> 1957 √ID “desire” >> 1959 √IR “desire”, with thought words transferred to √IN-ID (later √I-NID) and the name Idril transferred to √IT “glitter”.

Derivatives

• Q. írë “desire, desire, [ᴹQ.] longing”
• Q. írima “desirable, lovely” ✧ PE17/155; PE17/155
• ᴺS. íra- “to desire”
• ᴺS. irn “desired, wished for”

Element in

• S. aníra- “to desire, to desire, *long for”
• S. írui “desirable, lovely” ✧ PE17/155

ndilā

verb. love, be devoted to

mel

root. love, love, [ᴹ√] love (as friend)

This root was the basis for Elvish “love” words for all of Tolkien’s life. The root first appeared as ᴱ√MELE “love” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like ᴱQ. mel- “to love”, ᴱQ. meles(se) “love”, and ᴱQ. melin “dear, beloved” (QL/60). In the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon it had similar derivatives like G. mel- “love” and G. melon “dear, beloved” (GL/57).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien specified that ᴹ√MEL meant “love (as friend)”, and for the first time it included the derivative N. mellon “friend” (Ety/MEL); Gnomish “friend” words from the 1910s were mostly based on G. ged (GL/38). However, the same entry included ᴹQ. melindo/ᴹQ. melisse “lover” (male and female), so it seems even in the 1930s it could refer to romantic love (Ety/MEL). The root continued to appear in Tolkien’s later writings associated with “love” (PE18/46, 96; PE17/41; VT39/10).

In notes from 1959, Tolkien elaborated on the precise sense of √MEL and its role in romantic and non-romantic love:

> Love, which Men might call “friendship” (but for the greater strength and warmth and permanency with which it was felt by the Quendi) was represented by √mel. This was primarily a motion or inclination of the fëa [“spirit”], and therefore could occur between persons of the same sex or different sexes. It included no sexual or procreative desire, though naturally in Incarnates the difference of sex altered the emotion, since “sex” is held by the Eldar to belong also to the fëa and not solely to the hröa [“body”], and is therefore not wholly included in procreation ... The “desire” for marriage and bodily union was represented by √yer; but this never in the uncorrupted occurred without “love” √mel, nor without the desire for children. This element was therefore seldom used except to describe occasions of its dominance in the process of courting and marriage. The feelings of lovers desiring marriage, and of husband and wife, were usually described by √mel. This “love” remained, of course, permanent after the satisfaction of √yer in the “Time of the Children”; but was strengthened by this satisfaction and the memory of it to a normally unbreakable bond (NM/20).

Thus √MEL was close in sense to Greek “philia”, used of friendship, whereas √YER was used of “eros” or sexual desire. But in Elvish thinking, √MEL was essential for romantic love, and √YER only arose from that. Furthermore, √YER was not the most important element in the love between romantic partners, as the period of procreation and child-rearing took up a relatively small portion of Elvish lives. It was the more enduring feeling of friendship between lovers that really mattered, and thus √MEL was used of both non-romantic and romantic love, though it had not particular sexual connotation.

Derivatives

• ✶melā- “to love”
  • Q. mel- “to love”
• ✶melnā “dear, beloved” ✧ PE17/041
  • Q. melda “dear, beloved, beloved, dear, [ᴹQ.] sweet” ✧ PE17/041; PE17/056
  • S. mell “dear, beloved” ✧ PE17/041
• Q. emel “love [abstract]” ✧ NM/016
• Q. málo “friend, comrade” ✧ PE18/096
• Q. méla “loving, affectionate” ✧ VT39/10
• Q. meldë “*friend (f.)”
• Q. meldo “friend, lover”
• Q. melmë “love (a particular case [between two people])” ✧ NM/016
• ᴺQ. melta- “to enamour”
• ᴺQ. melu- “to fall in love”
• Q. melya- “[unglossed], *to be in love”
• S. mel- “to love”
• S. mellon “friend” ✧ SA/mel
• T. mála “loving, affectionate” ✧ VT39/10

Element in

• ✶Melyanna “Dear Gift” ✧ SA/mel
• Q. meletheldë “love-sister” ✧ NM/016
• Q. melotorno “love-brother” ✧ NM/016

Variations

• mel ✧ NM/016; NM/020
• mel- ✧ SA/mel

melā

verb. love

îr

noun. sexual desire

baudh

noun. judgement

baudh

noun. judgement

Derivations

• ᴹ✶bād- “judgement” ✧ Ety/BAD
  • ᴹ√(M)BAD “duress, prison, doom, hell; *judge” ✧ Ety/BAD
• ᴹ✶mbād- “judgement, sentence” ✧ EtyAC/MBAD
  • ᴹ√(M)BAD “duress, prison, doom, hell; *judge” ✧ EtyAC/MBAD

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ✶bād- > bauð	[bāda] > [bǭda] > [bouda] > [bouða] > [bauða] > [bauð]	✧ Ety/BAD

Variations

• bauð ✧ Ety/BAD; EtyAC/MBAD (bauð)

iest

noun. wish

iest

noun. wish

Derivations

• ᴹ√YES “desire” ✧ Ety/YES

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√YES > iest	[jesta] > [jest]	✧ Ety/YES

meleth

noun. love

meleth

noun. love

Cognates

• ᴹQ. melme “love” ✧ Ety/MEL

Derivations

• ᴹ√MEL “love (as friend)” ✧ Ety/MEL

Element in

• ᴺS. melethel “darling, sweetheart”
• ᴺS. melethor “lover”
• N. melethril “lover (f.)” ✧ Ety/MEL
• N. melethron “lover (m.)” ✧ Ety/MEL

Elements

Word	Gloss
MEL	“love (as friend)”
-th	“abstract noun”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√MEL > meleth	[melette] > [melettʰe] > [meleθθe] > [meleθθ] > [meleθ]	✧ Ety/MEL

hûn

noun. heart (physical)

mel-

verb. to love

mîl

noun. love, affection

hartha-

verb. to hope

Element in

• N. harthad “hope” ✧ SD/062

Variations

• Hartha- ✧ SD/062 (Hartha-)