narta-

kindle

narta- vb. "kindle" (VT45:37)

tunda-

kindle

tunda- vb. "kindle" (LT1:270; rather tinta- or narta- in Tolkien's later Quenya)

turu-

kindle

turu- (2) vb. "kindle" (a "Qenya" form from LT1:270; rather narta- or tinta- in LotR-style Quenya)

-ldë

kindler

-ldë (2) feminine agental suffix. Tolkien at one point commented that Vardas title Tintallë "Kindler" should be Tintaldë because the ending -llë was rather the suffix for plural "you" (PE17:69). Since this pronominal suffix -llë was later revised to -ldë, it is now the ending of Tintaldë itself that would be potentially problematic.

Tintallë

kindler

Tintallë noun "Kindler", a title of Varda who kindled the stars (TIN, Nam, RGEO:67). From tinta- "kindle, make to sparkle" (MR:388). According to PE17:69, the form "should be Tintalde", apparently because -llë was at the time the ending for plural "you" and Tintallë could be taken as meaning *"you kindle" rather than as a noun "Kindler". However, Tolkien later changed the pronominal suffix, eliminating the clash of forms while leaving Tintallë correct (after the revision, it was *tintaldë itself that would be the verb "you kindle").

Tintanië

kindler

Tintanië noun "Kindler" = Varda (TIN; Tintánië under TAN, which according to VT46:17 Tolkien interpreted both as "Star-maker" and "Star-making")

calta-

verb. to kindle, to kindle, [ᴹQ.] (cause to) shine, light up, [ᴱQ.] set light to

This causative verb meaning “kindle, cause to shine” was based on the root √KAL “light; shine” and had a lengthy history in Tolkien’s Elvish languages. ᴱQ. kalta- “kindle, set light to” first appeared in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√KALA “shine golden” (QL/44), but in The Etymologies of the 1930s ᴹQ. kalta- was only glossed “shine” (Ety/KAL). However in the Quenya Verbal System of the 1940s kaltā́ was given as an example of causative verbs and glossed “cause to shine, light up, or kindle (lamp etc.)” (PE22/114). In Common Eldarin: Verb Structure from the early 1950s (primitive) kalta- was glossed “cause to shine, kindle” (PE22/156). This verb also appeared in Late Notes on Verb Structure (LVS) from 1969 as an element in the adjective Q. lacaltaima “not possible to be kindled”.

Derivations

• ✶kalta- “cause to shine, kindle”
  • √KAL “light; shine, be bright, light; shine, be bright, [ᴱ√] shine golden” ✧ PE22/129

Element in

• Q. lacaltaima “not possible to be kindled” ✧ PE22/156

Variations

• kalta- ✧ PE22/156

-llë

one of several suffixes indicating feminine agent

-llë (1) "one of several suffixes indicating feminine agent", as in Tintallë "kindler" vs. the verb tinta- "to kindle". In the source _(PE17:69) _Tolkien noted that -llë was little used because of the clash with the pronominal ending -llë (see #2 below), but the latter ending was later revised.

tinta-

kindle, cause to sparkle

tinta- vb. "kindle, cause to sparkle", cf. Tintallë (TIN, SA:tin, MR:388)

tinta-

verb. to kindle, cause to spark, to kindle, cause to spark, [ᴹQ.] make to spark

A word for “to kindle, cause to spark” (MR/388; PE17/69), a causative verb form based on the root √TIN (PE17/22, 69). Its most notable use is in the name Tintallë “(Star) Kindler” for Varda.

Conceptual Development: ᴹQ. tinta- “to kindle, make to spark” appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s with the same derivation (Ety/TIN), and the verb’s introduction probably coincided with Tolkien’s invention of Varda’s sobriquet.

Neo-Quenya: For purpose of Neo-Quenya, I’d limit this verb’s use to “kindle” = “make a spark”. For “kindle” = “set on fire” I’d instead use [ᴹQ.] narta-.

Derivations

• √TIN “sparkle, spark, sparkle, spark, [ᴱ√] twinkle, [ᴹ√] emit slender (silver pale) beams” ✧ PE17/022; SA/tin

Element in

• Q. Tintallë “(Star) Kindler” ✧ MR/388; PE17/022; PE17/069; PE17/069; PE17/069; PE17/069; SA/tin

Elements

Word	Gloss
tin-	“to spark, glitter, to spark, glitter, [ᴹQ.] glint, [ᴱQ.] gleam, shine as a star”
-ta	“causative verb suffix”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√TIN > tinta-	[tinta-]	✧ PE17/022
√tin- > tinta	[tinta-]	✧ SA/tin

Variations

• tinta ✧ MR/388; MR/471; SA/tin

toniel

noun. kindler

nartha

kindle

(i nartha, in narthar) (VT45:37)

nartha

kindle

nartha- (i nartha, in narthar) (VT45:37)

thoniel

kindler

(feminine) #thoniel (pl. thonil). Isolated from Vardas title Gilthoniel, Star-kindler.

nitir- Reconstructed

verb. to kindle

A verb attested only as an agental-formation in the names Gimilnitîr “Star-kindler” and gimlu-nitîr “kindler of a (particular) star” (SD/428). Thorsten Renk suggested (NBA/32) the base verb is nitir-, and this seems to me to be the likeliest possibility. Andreas Moehn instead suggested (EotAL/NIT’Y) that the verb stem may be nit-, and that the -îr is some kind of feminine agental suffix.

Element in

• Ad. Gimilnitîr “Star-kindler” ✧ SD/428
• Ad. gimlu-nitîr “kindler of a (particular) star” ✧ SD/428

kalta-

verb. cause to shine, kindle

Derivations

• √KAL “light; shine, be bright, light; shine, be bright, [ᴱ√] shine golden” ✧ PE22/129

Derivatives

• Q. calta- “to kindle, to kindle, [ᴹQ.] (cause to) shine, light up, [ᴱQ.] set light to”

than

root. kindle, set light to, fire, light

Tolkien used this root primarily to explain the name S. Gilthoniel “Star-kindler”. In a 1955 letter to David Masson, Tolkien gave √THAN “kindle” as the basis for the perfect participle S. thoniel “kindler”, in contrast to S. thôn < ✶stŏna (PE17/82). In Words, Phrases and Passages in the Lord of the Rings from the late 1950s or early 1960s, Tolkien gave {√TON >> √TÁN >>} √THĂN/THĀN as the basis for the same name, but with the suffix S. -iel being a feminine suffix (PE17/23; MR/388).

The root √THAN from the 1950s might be a restoration of the unglossed root ᴱ√tan- from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like G. tan “firewood” and G. tantha- “set light to, kindle” (GL/69), along with other forms like G. tôn “fire (on a hearth)” and G. tortha- “scorch” (GL/71). This may be reflected in the deleted forms in the aforementioned note: {√TON >> √TÁN >>} √THĂN/THĀN.

Changes

• TON → TÁN ✧ PE17/023
• TÁN → THĂN/THĀN ✧ PE17/023

Derivatives

• S. thoniel “kindler (in the past)” ✧ PE17/082

Element in

• Q. Ilthániel “Starkindler” ✧ PE17/023 (Ilthániel*)
• S. Gilthoniel “Star-kindler” ✧ MR/388; PE17/023
• S. narthan “beacon”
• ᴺS. nethan- “to inspire, kindle inside”

Variations

• thăn/thān ✧ MR/388
• THĂN/THĀN ✧ PE17/023; PE17/187
• TON ✧ PE17/023 (TON)
• TÁN ✧ PE17/023 (TÁN)

nartha-

verb. to kindle

nartha-

verb. to kindle, to kindle, *ignite, inflame, set fire to

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s for “kindle” given in the Noldorin infinitive form nartho and derived from the root ᴹ√NARTA of the same meaning (EtyAC/NARTA). This root is probably just a causative verb formation from ᴹ√NAR “flame, fire”, and thus more literally “✱make fire”. Hence I think this verb can be used in the general sense of “✱ignite, inflame, set fire to”, etc.

Cognates

• ᴹQ. narta- “to kindle, to kindle, *ignite, inflame, set fire to” ✧ EtyAC/NARTA

Derivations

• ᴹ√NARTA “kindle” ✧ EtyAC/NARTA
  • ᴹ√NAR “flame, fire”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√NARTA > nartho	[narta-] > [nartʰa-] > [narθa-]	✧ EtyAC/NARTA