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?)

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).

hondo

noun. [metaphorical] heart, (seat of the) deepest feelings

A variant of hón “(physical) heart” used of more metaphorical expressions which Tolkien said was: “often used as the (seat of the) deepest feelings such as pity or hate parallel to ōre ‘innermost mind’ (NM/176)”. It also appears as in element in compounds such as hondoringa “cold-hearted” (CPT/1298) or sincahonda “flint-hearted” (LotR/979), where such expressions were figurative rather than literal.

hú

noun. hound (or ?heart)

A Quenya word hú glossed as either “hound” or “heart” (according to Christopher Gilson) appearing in rough notes on Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WPP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s exploring the possible origins of S. huorn (PE17/86). This was followed by an unglossed variant form Q. hó, apparently derived from khōgo. Tolkien seems to have vacillated between primitive roots √KHUG/KHOG (the former being the basis for “dog” words in The Etymologies) or √KHON (the basis for “heart” words in The Etymologies), connections that were also pointed out by Christopher Gilson.

Neo-Quenya: Giving the tenuous nature of this word, I’d stick to better defined ᴹQ. huo “dog” from The Etymologies for purposes of Neo-Quenya.

órë

noun. heart (inner mind); warning, caution, (pre)monition, heart (inner mind), *conscience; warning, caution, (pre)monition

The meaning of the Quenya word órë is quite subtle, and does not have a direct equivalent in English. In The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien translated the word as “heart (inner mind)” (LotR/1123), but elsewhere he said that this was a poor translation of the word (VT41/11; NM/220). Tolkien wrote a lengthy essay on the nature of this word, first published in the year 2000 (VT41/11-19) and again in 2021 (NM/219-225). In this essay Tolkien described it as the source of wisdom and moral impulses that informed one’s judgement, so perhaps the closest English equivalent is “conscience”. This is still not quite right, however, since the órë could be the source of negative impulses as well, particularly among Men (VT41/13; NM/223). Furthermore, divine powers such as the Valar could sometimes (but not always) communicate subtly through one’s órë (VT41/15). Galadriel was described as having a particularly noble and generous órë (PM/337).

This word could also be used with the sense “warning, caution” (VT41/15) or even “premonition” (VT41/13). It seems that the órë and its urges was viewed as almost external to the mind itself, as indicated by the phrase órenya quetë nin “my heart tells me” = “I feel compelled to ...”, not unlike the pop-cultural “shoulder angel and devil” whispering into your ear. Tolkien said that in Quenya this word was associated with the sense of √OR “rise” and its urges were seen as rising up within the spirit (VT41/13). Compare this to the words for ordinary feelings, such as fëafelmë “✱(lit.) spirit-impulse”.

The word órë was also the name of tengwa #21 [6] used for a weak and untrilled medial r (LotR/1123), many of which originated from primitive intervocalic [z] or [d]. There is no sign that órë ever had such a consonant medially, however, and it seems this name was chosen simply because it had a medial r.

Conceptual Development: Possible precursors to this word in Tolkien’s earlier writings include ᴹQ. hóre “impulse” from The Etymologies (Ety/KHOR), as well as ᴱQ. ir (ird-) “interior, centre, inwards, inner parts” >> ᴱQ. hir (hird-) “inwards, interior, inside, heart” from Early Noldorin word lists of the 1920s (PE13/144, 161).

hón

noun. heart (physical organ)

The word for the “heart” as a physical organ, as opposed to more metaphorical words like Q. órë and Q. indo. Its stem form was hom- in Tolkien’s later writings (NM/176, PE19/97).

Conceptual Development: The base word for “heart” was quite stable in Tolkien’s mind, but its exact stem form varied. It first appeared as ᴱQ. hon (hond-) “heart” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√HONO, above a longer form hondo (QL/40). It became honde “heart” in Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s (PE16/137), but in the contemporaneous Early Noldorin Word-lists, it was londo (PE13/149, 162).

In the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s it was ᴹQ. hón “heart” with stem form hom- (PE21/23), but in The Etymologies written around 1937 it was derived from the root ᴹ√KHŌ-N “heart (physical)” (Ety/KHŌ-N). In 1968 notes on gender, hón the “physical organ heart” again had a stem form hom-, and in green ink addendums to the Outline of Phonology (OP2) from around 1970, Tolkien gave the primitive form as ✶khō̆m (PE19/97 and 98 note #142). In this last note, Tolkien said it “is not the physical heart, but ‘the interior’ used of the whole range of emotions or feelings”; this seems to be the only place Tolkien indicated this word was metaphorical in nature rather than referring to the physical organ.

Huorë

heart-vigour, courage

Huorë masc. name "Heart-vigour, courage" (KHŌ-N)

Naira

heart of flame

Naira (1) noun "Heart of Flame", a name of the Sun (MR:198)

enda

noun. heart; centre, heart; centre, *interior

A word clearly derived from the root √ENED “middle”. In the context of Elvish psychology, Tolkien described it as:

> This we translate “heart”, though it has no physical reference to any organ of the hröa [body]. It means “centre”, and refers (though by inevitable physical allegory) to the fëa [spirit] or sáma [mind] itself, distinct from the periphery (as it were) of its contact with the hröa (VT39/32).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would assume this word can also be used physically to refer to the “interior” of something.

holmo

adverb. from the heart

from the heart, sincerely

holmo

adverb. sincerely, heartily, sincerely, heartily; (lit.) from the heart; [ᴹQ.] from the middle

An adverb in green-ink revisions from around 1970 to the Outline of Phonology (OP2). Its meaning is probably “sincerely, heartily”, but the second word is difficult-to-read (PE19/97). It was derived from ✶khomlō, originally an ablative form meaning “from the heart”. In this note Tolkien said ✶khō̆m “is not the physical heart, but ‘the interior’ used of the whole range of emotions or feelings”, but this is a reversal of his earlier ideas, since usually Tolkien described √KHOM as the physical rather than emotional heart.

Conceptual Development: Tolkien had more literal ᴹQ. holmo “from the middle” and ᴹQ. †humpe “in the middle” (the latter marked archaic) in the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s (PE21/23).

Neo-Quenya: Despite the usual non-emotional meaning of its root, I would retain the meaning of the adverb holmo “sincerely, heartily” as the result of some semantic drift, used of actions performed enthusiastically and with conviction.

hondo-ninya

my heart

hondo-ninya noun "my heart", changed to indo-ninya (FS, earlier version)

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.

indo

noun. (state of) mind, (inner) thought, mood; will, resolve, (state of) mind, (inner) thought, mood; will, resolve; [ᴹQ.] heart

órenya quetë nin

my heart tells me

hó

noun. hound (or ?heart)

sustanë manwëo súlë ten i indo sindicollo ar he lastanë ar carnes

*the spirit of Manwe blew unto the heart of Thingol and he listened and did it

órenya quéta nin

my heart is saying to me

hûn

noun. *heart

A noun appearing as N. hûn in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “heart (physical)” derived from the root ᴹ√KHŌ-N of the same meaning (Ety/KHŌ-N). This word was not used metaphorically; a metaphorical or emotional “heart” would be S. gûr or ind. Similar but unglossed forms hôn or hûn derived from ✶khōn- appeared in Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WPP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/86), which could be later iterations of the Noldorin “heart” word. A prior word S. hû in the same notes was glossed “hound” or “heart” according to Christopher Gilson.

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. {hond >>} honn “heart” which Tolkien specified was “not used metaphorically, for which ilf is used” (GL/49). It was likely based on the early root ᴱ√HONO from which the Early Qenya word for “heart” was derived (QL/40). In Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s, Tolkien again had hond “heart” (PE13/147), but it was deleted and replaced by ᴱN. lhonn “heart” (PE13/149). The initial h was restored in The Etymologies of the 1930s, as noted above.

Neo-Sindarin: In Tolkien’s later writings, the primitive root for this word sometimes became √khōm (NM/176; PE19/102; PE21/71), which in Sindarin would produced hû. However, I would retain the form hûn as a Sindarin-only variant; compare to the root √TAM which had a Sindarin variant √TAN.

gûr

noun. heart (inner mind)

A word for “heart (inner mind)” in notes from the late 1960s, equivalent to Q. órë (VT41/11). In the original article published in VT41 in July 2000, Carl Hostetter gave its primitive form as ʒōrē, but in his later book The Nature of Middle-Earth published in 2021, he corrected this to gōrē (NM/219).

Conceptual Development: Early Noldorin word-lists from the 1920s had N. gir glossed “interior, centre, inwards, inner parts” (PE13/144) or “inwards, interior, inside, heart” (PE13/161).

hû

noun. hound (or ?heart), hound, [N.] dog; S. ?heart

A noun appearing as N. hû “dog” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√KHUG “bark, bay” (Ety/KHUGAN). The same form hû appeared in rough notes on Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WPP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s with a gloss that might be “hound” or might be “heart”, according to Christopher Gilson (PE17/86). This later hû form was derived from ✶khōgo, which makes me think “hound” is the more likely meaning given the primitive form’s resemblance to ᴹ√KHUG.

Conceptual Development: G. hû “dog” also appeared in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s (GL/49), but in this period was probably derived from the early root ᴱ√SAẆA (QL/82).

Húrin

noun. strong heart

hûr (“vigour, fiery spirit”) + ind (“inner thought, mind, heart”)

Inglor

noun. golden heart

in(d) (“heart, meaning, inner thought”) + glaur (“golden”) [Etym. ID-]

Túrin

noun. victorious heart

tûr (“mastery,victory”) + ind (“inner thought, heart, mind”)

saelind

feminine name. Wise-heart

A wise woman of the Edain, her name is translated “Wise-heart” (MR/305, WJ/233), a combination of sael “wise” and ind “heart”.

Conceptual Development: Her name was initially Saelon (MR/360, WJ/233) and also appeared as Saelin (WJ/230).

guren bêd enni

my heart tells me

ind

noun. some particular purpose or intention of an individual; heart, some particular purpose or intention of an individual; heart [metaphorical], [N.] inner thought, meaning

guren

noun. my heart

Apparently the word gûr.1 with a suffixed possessive. See lammen for a similar form

gûr

noun. heart (in the moral sense), counsel

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”..

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

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

ind

heart

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

hond

noun. (emotional) heart, (seat of the) deepest feelings

A neologism of uncertain origin posted on 2024-08-16 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), derive from ✶khomdō and the equivalent to Q. hondo.

inglor

masculine name. *Heart of Gold

In Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s, this name appeared as the true Elvish name of Felagund “Lord of Caves”, which was his title as the lord of Nargothrond (LR/116). In The Etymologies, Inglor was given as a derivative of ᴹ✶Indo-ʒlaurē, in effect a compound of N. ind “heart” and N. glaur “gold”, so “✱Heart of Gold”.

Conceptual Development: See S. Felagund for a discussion of the conceptual development of this and related names, and see S. Inglor for the later developments of this name.

nest

noun. ?heart, core

A word that is an element in N. Forannest as the name of the north gates of Rammas in drafts of The Lord or the Rings (WR/354; 357 note #17). It had the forms nesta, nethra, nest and the difficult-to-read gloss “heart, core”. It is probably related the root ᴹ√NED “middle, centre” from The Etymologies (Ety/NÉD).

gondolin

place name. Heart of Hidden Rock

huor

masculine name. heart-vigour, courage

hûn

noun. heart (physical)

ind

noun. inner thought, meaning, heart

hûn

noun. heart (physical)

ind

noun. inner thought, meaning, heart

inn

noun. inner thought, meaning, heart

inn

noun. inner thought, meaning, heart

nesta

noun. ?heart, core

nethra

noun. ?heart, core

in(id)

root. mind, (inner) thought, inmost heart, inner senses

A root appearing in various notes written around 1957 connected to the mind (PE17/145, 155, 189; UT/400; VT43/16). Its most notable derivatives are Q. indo/S. ind “(state of) mind”. In The Etymologies of the 1930s, ᴹQ. indo “heart, mood” and N. ind “inner thought, meaning, heart” were instead derived from the root ᴹ√ID; this 1930s root was unglossed but had derivatives connected to both thoughts and desires, such as ᴹQ. íre “desire, longing” (Ety/ID).

Tolkien introduced a new derivation of indo from √IN(ID) in Quenya Notes written in 1957 (PE17/145, 189):

> IN-I-D, mind, inner thought. These refer to the movements or activities of the fëa or “spirit” (rational soul). indo, inner thought, in fea as exhibited in character or [?personality]. indóme, settled character, also used of the “will” of Eru (PE17/189).

The root √IN- “inmost heart, thought, mind” with extended forms √INID and √INIS also appeared in contemporaneous Notes on Names (NN), again as the basis for indo (PE17/155).

Tolkien coined yet another etymology of Q. indo in notes written in 1969, deriving it from √NID “force, press(ure), thrust” (PE22/165). This new derivation doesn’t necessarily invalidate √INID, but rather gives a new basis for the root itself as an vocalic augment of √NID rather than an extended form of √IN-.

khom

root. heart (physical organ)

This root has a fairly long history as the basis for Elvish words for the physical heart (as opposed to metaphorical). Its earliest appearance was as ᴱ√HONO in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivative ᴱQ. hon (hond-) “heart” (QL/40), as well as G. honn “heart” appearing in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon along with the added note “not used metaphorically, for which ilf is used” (GL/49).

In the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s, Tolkien gave the words as ᴹQ. hōn “heart” with stem-form hom-, indicating that the final consonant of the primitive form was revised to -m. However, in The Etymologies of the mid-to-late 1930s the root was ᴹ√KHŌ-N “heart (physical)” (Ety/KHŌ-N), and in Primitive Quendian Structure from 1936 it was ᴹ✶khōn “heart”, and likewise in Primitive Quendian Structure: Final Consonants (PE22/64) and Notes for Quenya Declensions (PE22/66) from the 1940s, though in the last it was revised to ᴹ✶hōn (PE22/66 note #4).

The form ✶khō-n “heart” reappeared in Common Eldarin: Noun Structure from 1951-2 (PE21/71), but in Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s Tolkien wrote CE ✶khōm “heart” (PE19/102). In notes from 1968 he again gave ✶khom as the basis for the physical heart, though in another note written at the same time, it was ✶khōn or ✶khond (NM/176 and note #2).

In a green-ink marginal note to the Outline of Phonology (OP2), Tolkien wrote:

> Cf. holmo > khomlo “from the heart” us[ed] as adverb, sincerely, (?heartily). N.B. CE khō̆m, heart, is not the physical heart, but “the interior” used of the whole range of emotions or feelings. [It] is distinct from indo (?applied) to interior reflection[?] or mind (PE19/97).

These green-ink revisions were circa 1970, so this may be the last thing Tolkien wrote on the topic. It seems the conceptual history for the forms of this root was 1910s √HON >> early 1930s √HOM >> mid 1930s-early 50s √KHON >> mid 1950s-1970 √KHOM, with a (brief?) flirtation with √KHON in 1968. The switch from physical to metaphorical heart seems to be a very late idea (1970), and I would ignore it for purposes of Neo-Eldarin.

khōm

noun. (physical) heart

gōrē

noun. heart, inner(most) mind

indō

noun. interior reflection or mind, the mind in its purposing faculty, the will; mood, heart

inis

root. inmost heart, thought, mind

khomlō

adverb. from the heart

óre nia pete nin

my heart tells me

órë

noun. heart (inner mind)