larmindon

place name. Larmindon

An earlier name for Amon Lhaw appearing in Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s (TI/364), apparently a combination of some form of the root ᴹ√LAS having to do with hearing and mindon “tower”, as suggested by Roman Rausch (EE/2.61).

lament of atalante

Lament of Atalante

This text appears in two different stories by Tolkien, both published posthumously: the “Lost Road” (LR/36-104) and “The Notion Club Papers” (SD/145-327). In both stories, a modern Englishmen retrieves the text from visions of the ancient past. The text summarizes the tale of the fall of Númenor. Tolkien did not himself name the text, but it has been called “Atalante”, “Atalante Fragments” or the “Lament of Atalante” in the literature, the last of these names being adopted here.

There are five basic versions of this text, some with minor variations:

• The very first version of this text is in the draft of the Lost Road (LR/56). It differs considerably from later versions.

• The second version appears in the final revision of the Lost Road (LR/47). Most of the elements of this version are retained in some form in all later versions.

• The third version is in the first draft of “The Notion Club Papers” (SD/310).

• The fourth version can be seen in later revisions for “The Notion Club Papers” story. This version has not been published, but can be reconstructed from Christopher Tolkien’s notes (SD/311). It differs from the final form in only a few points.

• The fifth version appears in the final revision of “The Notion Club Papers” (SD/246-7). It appears in two places, a typescript version (SD/246-7) and manuscript version (VT24/7-8) that differ only in their English translation.

There is considerable variation between the different versions of the text and there is no definitive version, since the stories where it appeared were unfinished. The presentation of the poem here is an amalgam of elements from the different versions written by J.R.R. Tolkien, illustrating as many features of the different versions as possible while remaining internally consistent.

This presentation of the Lament is compiled from the phrases appearing in at least one version of the text, with a preference for later forms over earlier ones. Further discussion of the textual history can be found in the analysis of the individual phrases. A more extensive analysis of the text can be found in the article “AF” by Aleš Bičan.

lambe

noun. language, tongue

laurealassion ōmar mailinon

laurealassion ōmar mailinon

lak-

prefix. a large amount of (any amount less than the whole)

A prefix for “a large amount” in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/100).

landa

noun. plain

A noun for “a plain” in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) of the 1940s derived from ᴹ√LAD “lie flat, be flat” with variants landa and lanna (PE22/126), the latter probably derived from ✱ladna with the voiced stop d becoming a nasal before nasal n. It might simply be the noun form of adjective ᴹQ. landa “wide” from The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/LAD).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I’d stick to the form landa, which appears in an inflected form landannar “to the plains” early in QVS (PE22/125).

lat-

verb. to be extended, stretch; to be situated (of an area), lie (of lands or regions), to be extended, stretch, [ᴱQ.] spread, extend; [ᴹQ.] to be situated (of an area), lie (of lands or regions)

A verb meaning “be extended, stretch, be situated (of an area)” appearing in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) of 1948 based on the root ᴹ√LAT of similar meaning (PE22/126). Tolkien also said that “kaita- to lie is in Q. only used of persons or animals that are lying down (as in bed, asleep or sick). ‘Lie’ said of land or regions is √LAT” (PE22/126).

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. lāta- “spread, extend, lie (of country)” under the early root ᴱ√LAHA (QL/50).

Neo-Quenya: In Tolkien’s later writings caita- was applied to some inanimate things, such as mornië caita “darkness lies” (RGEO/59), so I would assume the statement from QVS given above applies only to flat geographical features like regions or seas. Note that other geographic features either “sit” if short (cities or hills) or “stand” if tall (towers or mountains) (PE22/126), so I would not use caita- to describe any geography.

I would also assume lat- can apply to non-geographical things in the senses “extend, stretch, spread”.

lasse

noun. leaf

latina

adjective. open, free, cleared (of land)

lairesse nihare to tarassi, yu unta hrívesse landannar

in the summer I live in [i.e. on] the hills [as a rule], and come down to the plains in the winter

lalallo

adverb. from no place

lanna

noun. plain

lah-

verb. to kick

A verb meaning “kick” in the Quenya Verbal System of 1948 based on the root ᴹQ. LAKH of the same meaning (PE22/102-103).

lav-

verb. to yield, allow, grant, to yield, allow, grant; to afford (+ dative)

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “yield, allow, grant” derived from the root ᴹ√DAB “give way, make room, permit, allow” (Ety/DAB).

Neo-Quenya: In a 2025-03-10 post to the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), Luinyelle suggest it might also mean “afford” in the sense “have the means to do something”, for example: ece men lave immen homanca coa “we can afford to buy as house, (lit.) it is possible for us to allow ourselves to buy a house”.

lamorni

collective name. Talking Trees

An earlier term for the huorn appearing in Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s glossed “Talking Trees” (WR/50), apparently a combination of some form of the root ᴹ√LAM having to do with language and the plural of orne “tree”, as suggested by Roman Rausch (EE/3.3).

lanat

noun. weft, weft, *woof

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “weft” derived from the root ᴹ√LAN “weave” (Ety/LAN).

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s glossed had ᴱQ. ’winda “woof” and ᴱQ. ’wiste “weft” under the early root ᴱ√GWIÐI (QL/103).

lanne

noun. tissue, cloth

A word in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “tissue, cloth” based on the root ᴹ√LAN “weave” (Ety/LAN).

lanwa

noun. loom

A noun for “loom” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√LAN “weave” (Ety/LAN).

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. ’windele “loom” under the early root ᴱ√GWIÐI (QL/103).

lanya-

verb. to weave

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “weave” under the root ᴹ√LAN of the same meaning (Ety/LAN).

lapsa-

verb. to lick (frequentative)

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “to lick (frequentative)” under the root ᴹ√LAB “lick” (Ety/LAB). Its derivation is not given, but it is probably from primitive ✱lab-ta, with the bt unvoicing to pt and then pt becoming to ps. This second sound change was abandoned by Tolkien in his later writings, so I’d avoid using this verb for purposes of Neo-Quenya, but you might use it if you assumed it was derived from ✱lab-sa. Alternately, you might use a different frequentative form like ✱laláva- or ✱lalappa-.

lapse

noun. babe

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “babe” derived from the root ᴹ√LAP (Ety/LAP). The root was unglossed in The Etymologies, but in notes both before and after the 1930s this root had glosses like “enfold” and “fold”, so perhaps lapse meant something like “✱swaddled one”; hat-tip to Lokyt for this suggestion.

lar

noun. fat, riches [richness?], fat, richness, riches

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “fat, riches” derived from the root ᴹ√LAR “rich, fat” (EtyAC/LAR). In their Addenda and Corrigenda to the Etymologies, Carl Hostetter and Patrick Wynne suggest that the gloss “riches” was perhaps intended to be “richness” since another word ᴹQ. larma in the same entry was originally glossed “fat, richness” before being revised to “(pig?)-fat, flesh”.

Conceptual Development: When this entry was first written, the root forms were ᴹ√LAR/LAS and the gloss of lar was “Fortune (good), prosperity, Bliss” (EtyAC/LAR). When Tolkien updated this root to be “fat, rich” he seems to have restored the early root ᴱ√LARA from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s whose derivatives also had to do with “fat” (QL/51).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would use this word to refer to fat (fattiness) or richness in the taste of food as in “the richness (lar) of the soup”. I would use ᴹQ. larma to refer to specific piece of fat within flesh as in “cut the fat (larma) from the meat”.

larma

noun. (?pig-)fat, flesh, fat [as a substance], (?pig-)fat, flesh

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “(?pig-)fat, flesh” under the root ᴹ√LAR “rich, fat” (EtyAC/LAR); the first half “pig” of the first word in the gloss was unclear.

Conceptual Development: When this entry was first written, the root forms were ᴹ√LAR/LAS and this word was glossed “a lucky event, (?pleasure, mirth)”; the last two words in the gloss were unclear (EtyAC/LAR). When Tolkien updated this root to be “fat, rich” he seems to have restored the early root ᴱ√LARA from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s whose derivatives also had to do with “fat” (QL/51).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes Neo-Quenya, I would use this word to primarily refer to “fat” as a substance, either living or unliving, especially fat used in the preparation of food. For “flesh” in general as part of a body I would use Q. hrávë.

lastalaika

masculine name. sharp-ears

A name appearing only in The Etymologies from the 1930s (Ety/LAS²), compound of lasta “ear” and laika “sharp”.

Conceptual Development: A possible precursor to this name, ᴱQ. lastalaike “sharpsighted”, appeared in an early word list (PE15/68).

latta

noun. strap

A noun for “strap” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√LATH (Ety/LATH).

Conceptual Development: A possible precursor is ᴱQ. līmen “thong, band” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√LIMI (QL/54).

lavaralda

noun. tree with long green leaves with golden undersides and pale flowers with a yellow flush

A species of tree in Númenor “with long green leaves with golden undersides and pale flowers with a yellow flush” (LR/57), a combination of lávar “golden flower” and alda “tree”.

laime

noun. shadow (cast by an object or form), shade

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s variously glossed “shade”, “shadow (cast by an object or form)”, and “shadow cast by a thing” under different iterations of the root ᴹ√DAY “shadow” (Ety/DAY; EtyAC/DAY). This root was primarily used for N. dae “shadow” in N. Dor-Daedeloth “Land of the Shadow of Dread”; in later writings the Dae- element in that name seems to have become dae(r) “great” (WJ/183), so I suspect ᴹ√DAY “shadow” and its derivatives were abandoned.

laira

adjective. shady

An adjective in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “shady” under the root ᴹ√DAY “shadow” (Ety/DAY; EtyAC/DAY). This root was primarily used for N. dae “shadow” in N. Dor-Daedeloth “Land of the Shadow of Dread”; in later writings the Dae- element in that name seems to have become dae(r) “great” (WJ/183), so I suspect ᴹ√DAY “shadow” and its derivatives were abandoned.

laive

noun. ointment

A word for “ointment” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶laibē under the root ᴹ√LIB (Ety/LIB²). The (archaic?) form laiwe appeared in notes written around 1940 as a cognate to N. glaew (TMME/53).

Conceptual Development: In the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s Tolkien had ᴱQ. oine “unguent” and ᴱQ. oinalis (oinaliss-) “ointment”, both under the early root ᴱ√OẎO (QL/71). ᴱQ. oine “unguent” also appeared in the contemporaneous Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa (PME/71).

laiwa

adjective. sickly, sick, ill

An adjective appearing as ᴹQ. laiwa “sickly, sick, ill” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶slaiwā under the root ᴹ√SLIW “sickly” (Ety/SLIW). The ancient initial sl became voiceless hl, which was then voiced to l as was generally the case in The Etymologies.

Neo-Quenya: In Tolkien’s later writing, he usually retained hl- in spelling if not pronunciation; see the entry on how initial voiceless nasals and liquids were voiced for discussion. As such, most Neo-Quenya writers adapt this word as ᴺQ. hlaiwa.

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had the word ᴱQ. leuke (leuki-) “sick, ill; pallid, wan” under the similar but earlier root ᴱ√LEẆE (QL/53).

laka

much (abundant), a great quantity

An adjective for “much” in the sense “much (abundant), a great quantity” in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/104). This adjective is used when a quantity rather than a countable set of things, as in i atan harya laca malta “the man has much gold”. It can used with a partitive genitive as well, in the singular or the plural laca malto “a great quantity of gold” or lacar malto “great quantities of gold”. Note that lacar uses a noun plural rather than an adjective plural, because in this context it is being used substantively.

lalámen

adverb. *aiming at nothing

A correlative combination appearing as {laqámen >>} lalámen in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/112 and note #149), combinations of ᴹQ. alla “none” and the allative suffix ᴹQ. men- “aim”.

lantaner turkildi nuhuinenna

the Lordly Men [Númenóreans] fell under shadow

|1|2|3|4-5| |lantie|lantier|{lantier >>}|lantaner| | |turkildi| |nu huine|unuhuine|nuhuinenna|

laqalka

adjective. *no quantity

A correlative combination appearing as aláqa or laqalka in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/108), combinations of ᴹQ. laqa “none” and ᴹQ. -lka “quantity”. Tolkien then deleted these forms saying “negative {hardly >>} not used” (PE23/108 and note #101).

lassekanta

adjective. leaf-shaped

An adjective for “leaf-shaped” in The Etymologies of the 1930s, a combination of ᴹQ. lasse “leaf” and ᴹQ. -kanta “-shaped” (Ety/KAT).

latimberista

place name. Rivendell

A Quenya name for Imladris(t) (Rivendell) given on a rejected paged of linguistic notes from the 1940s (PE22/127). The elements of this Quenya name are the same as its Noldorin cognate: Tolkien stated that is initial element is latimbe “glen” (√LAT + imbe), and its final element is clearly rista “cut”. On the same page, Tolkien stated that this name was not used in practice, and was replaced the Quenyarized form of the Noldorin name: Imbeláris.

lala-

verb. to deny

lango

noun. throat

lango

noun. broad sword; prow of a ship

lanko

noun. throat

laqe[t]-

verb. [unglossed]

lau(me)

adverb. no, no indeed not, on the contrary

lav-

verb. to lick

lá

adverb. no, not

lá

interjection. (?please)

la-

prefix. no, none, not any

laiqa

adjective. green

laqe

pronoun. nobody

lau(w)e

?. [unglossed]

laika

adjective. keen, sharp, acute

laike

noun. acuteness, keenness of perception

laiqeldar

collective name. Green-elves

laiqendi

collective name. Green-elves

laire

noun. summer

lamba

noun. tongue

lamma

noun. sound

lamya-

verb. to sound

landa

adjective. wide, wide, [ᴱQ.] broad

lanta-

verb. to fall

lasselanta

noun. leaf-fall, autumn; October

lasta

noun. listening, hearing

lasta-

verb. to listen; to hear

lauka

adjective. warm

laure

noun. gold

laurelin

proper name. Song of Gold

lai

adverb. very

laire

noun. poem

laita-

verb. to praise; ?live

@@@ possibly also “live” in drafts of the praises at the field of Cormallen as suggested by Lokyt in Discord, 2012-11-11

laitalle, laitalle

praise them

laite

noun. colour

laka malto

a great quantity of gold

lakar malto

great quantities of gold

lam-

verb. to call [out to]

laman

noun. tame beast

lanta

noun. fall

lapsa

noun. licking up (food or drink), gluttonous eating

las

interjection. mark you, I tell you, if you can believe me

latimbe

noun. glen

latta

noun. hole, pit

laurea

adjective. *golden

lauta-

verb. to abound

lavar

noun. *(golden) blossom

loa

noun. year

la há

(it is) not that!

laka malta

much (abundant) gold

lalanna

adverb. *to nowhere

lalasse

adverb. nowhere

lalme

noun. elm-tree

lamba

noun. hammer

lan

adverb. not (at all)

larka

adjective. swift, rapid

mólanoldorin

proper name. Language of enslaved Noldor

A name for the dialect of the Noldor enslaved by Morgoth in linguistic notes from the 1930s, replacing a rejected form Múlanoldorin (LR/177). Both forms appeared in The Etymologies (Ety/MŌ), where it seems to be a compound of móla “enslaved” and Noldorin.

kalaqenderin

proper name. languages of the Elves of Light

A term for the languages of the ᴹQ. Kalaqendi in linguistic notes from the 1930s, first written Valinórea (PE18/24).

alat-

prefix. large, great in size

allanome(s)

adverb. *no place

A correlative combination appearing as {láqa(n)nome >>} allanome(s) in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/112 and note #143), combinations of ᴹQ. alla “none” and ᴹQ. nome “place”.

allanomello

adverb. from no place

tella

adjective. hindmost, last

alla

none, nothing, none, nothing, *no [adj.]

A negative adjective appearing as {(a)láqa >>} alla in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/105 note #67), so probably meaning “✱no” as in alla Elda pole quete “no Elf can say”. It can also be used pronominally to mean “nothing”, and for this function it has a variant lála (PE23/104). For example: merin alla “I want nothing”, or merin alla sino “I want none of this”.

allana

none at all

A more emphatic variant of ᴹQ. alla “none” (PE23/105 note #67).

allane

pronoun. nobody, nothing (no thing), no one

The correlative combinations ᴹQ. {aláqe, lāqe >>} alle, allane “nobody, nothing, no one” appeared Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/103 and note #41), proniminal forms of ᴹQ. alla “none”. There was also an archaic variant form †lálane and a more elaborate form ᴹQ. láqane “nobody, at all”. Drafts has laqe “nobody” in the phrase ᴹQ. tasse ni·kenne laqe imma “there I saw nobody whatsoever” (PE23/101-102 note #36).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I would use ᴺQ. alquen for “nobody, no one”, inspired by Q. ilquen “everbody”. Other neologisms for “nobody” include ᴺQ. alaquen from the NQW and ᴺQ. úquen from ABNW (ABNW) from the early 2000s. For “nothing” I would just use ᴹQ. alla.

allanima

adjective. of no sort, of no kind

The correlative combination ᴹQ. {aláqima >>} allanima or lálima “of no sort” appeared in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/107 and note #88), combinations of ᴹQ. alla “none” and ᴹQ. -ima “sort”. Drafts had láqima “of no kind” (PE23/106 note #80).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I would update this to ᴺQ. alaitë “of no kind, of no sort” using the later suffix -itë.

allanna

adverb. *to nowhere

A correlative combination appearing as {láqanna >>} allanna or lalanna in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/112 and note #145), combinations of ᴹQ. alla “none” and the allative suffix ᴹQ. -nna.

allaro

adverb. *for no reason

A correlative combination appearing as {láqaro >>} allaro in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/112 and note #149), combinations of ᴹQ. alla “none” and ᴹQ. -ro “reason”.

allasse

adverb. nowhere

A correlative combination appearing as {láqas(se), aláqas >>} lalasse, allasse, alas “nowhere” in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/111 and note #139), combinations of ᴹQ. alla “none” and the locative suffix ᴹQ. -sse.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I would just use allasse “nowhere”.

lálan

adverb. at no time

sóla

?. [unglossed]

(a)larka

adjective. swift, rapid

alalme

noun. elm-tree

ala

noun. day

a laituvar, laituvar

praise them

allan(an)

adverb. never, at no time

halla

adjective. naked

kala

noun. light

nilaistama

noun. something/body or other

valariande

place name. Beleriand

ólama

noun. consonant

alama

noun. [unglossed]

alaryas

adverb. *on no day

alas

adverb. nowhere

allanan

adverb. at no time

lálane

pronoun. nobody, nothing (no thing), no one

lálar

adverb. *on no day

fine

noun. larch

A word for “larch” [a type of pine tree] in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from ᴹ✶spinē under the root ᴹ√SPIN (Ety/SPIN).

Conceptual Development: ᴱQ. fine “larch” also appeared in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/38), and it appeared again in Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s (PE16/140).

orqin

proper name. language of the Orcs

Term for the language of the Orcs in linguistic notes from the 1930s (LR/178). It seems to be an adjectival form of orko (orku-) “Orc”.

alta

adjective. large, great in size

andóre

place name. Land of Gift

avarin

proper name. language(s) of the Avari

heri

noun. lady

hosta

noun. large number

ingolonde

place name. Land of the Gnomes

má

noun. land, region

naire

noun. lament, sorrow, sorrow, *sadness, lament

nissa

noun. lady

nóre

noun. land, country, region where certain people live; clan, race, folk, kindred

palúrien

feminine name. Lady of the Wide Earth, Bosom of the Earth

tasarinan

place name. Land of Willows

valinor

place name. Land of the Valar

vóre

noun. lasting

@@@ apparently a noun, as suggested by Helge Fauskanger (QQ/vórë)

yenya

noun. last year

úra

adjective. large

kalumet

noun. lamp

nui

noun. lament

allo

adverb. from no place

A correlative combination appearing as allo or lalallo in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/112), combinations of ᴹQ. alla “none” and the ablative suffix ᴹQ. -llo.

kulo

noun. flame

A word for “flame” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√KUL “golden-red”, but this word was deleted (EtyAC/KUL).

naina-

verb. to lament, to lament, *mourn

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s appearing as (nai)naina- “lament” derived from the root ᴹ√NAY of the same meaning (Ety/NAY). In The Etymologies as published in The Lost Road Christopher Tolkien gave the form as naina- (LR/375), but Carl Hostetter and Patrick Wynne corrected this to (nai)naina- in their Addenda and Corrigenda to the Etymologies (VT45/37). The ongoing validity of this verb is indicated by the noun form nainië “lament” in the title of Galadriel’s poem: Altariello nainië Lóriendesse (RGEO/58).

Conceptual Development: A likely precursor is ᴱQ. nyéna- “lament” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√NYE(NE) “bleat” (QL/68).

Neo-Quenya: In a 2024-11-03 post on the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), Luinyelle suggested this verb might also mean “✱mourn”.

sulpa-

verb. to lap up, drink greedily, to lap up, drink greedily; [ᴱQ.] to lick, sup, lick up, sup up; to sip, taste; to drink

A verb glossed “to lap up, drink greedily” in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) of the late 1940s as an example of a talat-stem verb (PE22/114-115), perhaps derived from a variant ✱ᴹ√SULUP of the root ᴹ√SALAP “lick up” in The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/SÁLAP).

Conceptual Development: This verb appeared as ᴱQ. sulp- “lick, sup, lick up, sup up” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√SḶPḶ (QL/84). In the Early Qenya Grammar of the 1920s it was glossed “drink” (PE14/58) and in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s it was glossed “sips, tastes” (PE13/149).

tyulusse

noun. poplar-tree

A word for a “popular-tree” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶tyulussē under the root ᴹ√TYUL “stand up (straight)” (Ety/TYUL). ᴱQ. tyulusse “poplar” also appeared several times in Tolkien’s writings in the 1910s and 20s, already derived from the early root ᴱ√TYULU (QL/50; PME/50; PE16/139).

Conceptual Development: See the root ᴹ√TYUL for a discussion of later evolutions of its primitive forms.

lára

adjective. flat

-rin

suffix. -ian, racial-adjective, language

ailin

noun. pool, lake

esse

noun. place

hisilóme

place name. Twilit Mist, Land of Mist

kalma

noun. light, lamp

móta-

verb. to labour, toil, to labour, toil, *work

nome

noun. place

nár(e)

noun. flame

oia

adverb/adjective. everlasting

qesta

noun. speech, language

qetil

noun. tongue, language, talk

sanya

adjective. regular, law-abiding, normal

sanye

noun. rule, law

voronwie

noun. endurance, lasting quality

vórea

noun/adjective. continuous, enduring, lasting; continuant

(nai)naina-

verb. to lament

lára

noun. grave

A rejected noun for “grave” in a deleted entry in The Etymologies written around 1937 for the root ᴹ√DAG “dig” (EtyAC/DAG).

Conceptual Development: There was a word ᴱQ. kaune “grave” in the Qenya Lexicon and Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa of the 1910s based on the early root ᴱ√KAVA which also meant “dig” (QL/45; PME/45). In the first version of the ᴱQ. Oilima Markirya poem and its drafts written around 1930, Tolkien used ᴱQ. sapsa or sapta for “grave” (MC/221; PE16/75), a word that is clearly based on another root meaning “dig”: ᴱ√SAPA.

Neo-Quenya: Since √SAP appeared in Tolkien’s later writings with the same or similar meaning (PE19/86), I’d adapted ᴺQ. sapta for “grave”, along with the meaning “(delved) hole, pit”; see that entry for discussion.

lár-

verb. to happen

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s appearing in its aorist form láre “happen” under the root ᴹ√LAR/LAS having to do with luck and fortune, but this entire entry was marked through and replaced with a new root ᴹ√LAR “rich, fat” (EtyAC/LAR).

lárea

adjective. fat, rich

A word in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “fat, rich”, the adjectival form of ᴹQ. lar under the root ᴹ√LAR “rich, fat” (EtyAC/LAR).

Conceptual Development: When this entry was first written, root forms were ᴹ√LAR/LAS, this word had two forms lára and lárea, and its gloss was “blessed” (EtyAC/LAR). When Tolkien updated this root to be “fat, rich” he seems to have restored the early root ᴱ√LARA from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s whose derivatives also had to do with “fat” (QL/51). As such, the 1930s word lárea “fat, rich” seems to be a later iteration of ᴱQ. {larda >>} laruke “fat, rich” from this 1910s root.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes Neo-Quenya, I would use this word to refer to the rich taste of food, especially richness as derived from fat (including from substances like butter or even vegetable fats), such as “this soup is rich (tastes good because of fats)” = sina sulpa lárëa (ná). For “fatty” of actual flesh or meat I would instead use ᴺQ. larmëa.

(a)láqainen

adverb. by no means

A correlative combination appearing as {láqainen >>} ᴹQ. (a)láqainen “by no means” in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/111), a combination of ᴹQ. láqa “none” and the instrumental suffix ᴹQ. -nen.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I would update this to ᴺQ. allanen “by no means” using later ᴹQ. alla “none”, also from DRC.

(a)láqalde

adverb. in no way, by no method, nohow

A correlative combination appearing as {láqalde >>} ᴹQ. (a)láqalde “in no way, by no method, nohow” in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/111), a combination of ᴹQ. láqa “none” and ᴹQ. -l(de) “way”.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I would update this to ᴺQ. allë “in no way” using later ᴹQ. alla “none” also from DRC, along with the later suffix -llë.

alfírima

adjective. immortal

An adjective for “immortal” in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 appearing only in its plural form alphírimar, using the adjective plural formation of QVS (PE22/124). Its more typical Quenya adjective plural form would be alfírime. It also appeared in a noun plural form Alphírimor “Immortals”. It is a combination of ᴹQ. fírima “mortal” with the negative prefix ᴹQ. al-.

Conceptual Development: In The Etymologies of the 1930s the word for “immortal” was ᴹQ. ilfirin, a combination of ᴹQ. il- “not” and firin “dead (by natural cause)” (Ety/PHIR).

all(an)ar

adverb. *on no day

The correlative combination ᴹQ. {(a)láqanar >>} allanar or allar appeared in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 along with variants lálar and {láqanaryas >>} alaryas (PE23/109 and note #114), basically combinations of ᴹQ. alla “none” and ᴹQ. -ar(yas) “days”.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I would update this to ᴺQ. alaurë “on no day” using later aurë for “day”.

alli

no [not any quantity]

A plural variant of ᴹQ. alla “none”, as in ᴹQ. sisse alli neri “there are no men here, (lit.) here [are] no men” (PE23/108 note #96). Likely it can also be used as a pronoun: cenin alli “I see none (of a group)”. It has a variant allina, presumably only adjectival: ✱alline neri “no (quantity of) men”. Strictly speaking alli is a combination of ᴹQ. alla “none” and the suffix ᴹQ. -lli(ni) “quantity”, so actually “✱not any quantity”.

arkimbele

place name. Rivendell

A Quenya name for Imladris(t) (Rivendell) appearing only in the locative form Arkimbelesse “at Rivendell” in linguistic notes from the 1940s (PE22/125). The etymology of the name is unclear, but it may be a combination of arka “narrow” and imbe “dell” as suggested to me by Lokyt in a Discord conversation from 2021-08-25.

hiswa

adjective. grey, grey [of weather], *foggy, overcast; [ᴱQ.] dim, fading

This word is glossed “grey” in The Etymologies, but perhaps means “✱foggy, overcast”, since Sindarin cognate hethw means “foggy, obscure, vague” and related noun hiswë means “fog”. @@@

hui

proper name. Night

A name for (Primordial?) Night appearing in The Etymologies from the 1930s as a derivative of the root ᴹ√PHUY, along with its (archaic?) variant Fui (Ety/PHUY).

Conceptual Development: This name is most likely a remnant of the name ᴱQ. Fui from the earliest Lost Tales, where it was another name for the goddess ᴱQ. Nienna (LT1/66, LT1A/Fui). According to the Qenya and Gnomish Lexicons from the 1910s, this earlier version of the name is derived from the root ᴱ√ǶUẎU (GL/36, QL/38).

imbeláris

place name. Rivendell

A Quenya name for Imladris(t) (Rivendell) given on a rejected page of linguistic notes from the 1940s (PE22/127), simply a Quenyarized form of the Noldorin name.

indis

feminine name. Bride

A name for Nessa (Ety/NĪ¹) meaning “Bride” (Ety/I², NDIS, NETH). See Q. Indis for the later use of this name for the wife of Finwë.

linya

noun. pool

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “pool” derived from the root ᴹ√LIN of the same meaning (Ety/LIN¹).

Conceptual Development: A similar word ᴹQ. linde “pool” appears in the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s (PE21/10), but this word is probably best avoided, as it clashes with Q. lindë “singing, song” (PE17/80).

lokse

noun. hair, hair [in general]

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “hair” derived from the root ᴹ√LOKH (Ety/LOKH).

Conceptual Development: A similar word ᴱQ. laksa “tress” appeared in a list of body parts from the 1920s (PE14/117).

namba

noun. hammer

A noun for “a hammer” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√NDAM “hammer, beat” (Ety/NDAM). Tolkien wrote an l/ above this word, possibly indicating a variant form lamba (EtyAC/NDAM). This variant is consistent with the alternate form of the root: ᴹ√DAM (EtyAC/NDAM). I would stick to namba “hammer” for purposes of Neo-Quenya.

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. artan (artam-) or tartan “hammer” (QL/32), the second variant also appearing with a stem form tartam- under the early root ᴱ√TARA(MA) “to batter, thud, beat” (QL/89). Other early “hammer” words include ᴱQ. petl “hammer” under the early root ᴱ√PETE (QL/73) and ᴱQ. tonga “a great hammer” under the early root ᴱ√TOŊO “to hammer” (QL/94).

neuma

noun. snare, snare, *noose

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “snare” under the root ᴹ√SNEW “entangle” (Ety/SNEW).

Neo-Quenya: Its Noldorin cognate was also glossed “noose”, so that meaning might apply to neuma as well; this would help distinguish it from later remma “snare” which had more to do with nets.

noldórien

place name. Beleriand

Another name for Beleriand appearing in early Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s (SM/174), a compound of the plural of Noldo and the suffix -ien “land” (Ety/ÑGOLOD).

Conceptual Development: A similar, rejected name ᴱQ. Noldórinan appeared in the list of names that Tolkien considered before adopting Beleriand (LB/160).

panta

adjective. open, open, [ᴱQ.] wide, spreading

An adjective in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶pantā “open” under the root ᴹ√PAT (Ety/PAT).

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. panta “open, wide, spreading” under the early root ᴱ√PATA² or PṆTṆ “open, spread out, show” (QL/72).

pilen

noun. feather

A word for “feather” in the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s (PE21/33-34), probably a later iteration of ᴱQ. pilin “feather” from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/74). The word ᴹQ. pilin was more frequently glossed “arrow”.

solor

noun. surf, surf, [ᴱQ.] surge; wavebreak, coast

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “surf” derived from the root ᴹ√SOL, more specifically from the primitive form ᴹ✶solos (Ety/SOL).

Conceptual Development: The word ᴱQ. solor (solos-) “surf, surge” appeared in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s as a derivative of the root ᴱ√SOLO, alongside a longer variant solosse (QL/85). The long form had the same gloss in the Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa, but the short form solor was glossed “a wavebreak, coast” (PME/85). The form ᴹQ. solor “surf” in The Etymologies was abnormal, in that it showed final -s becoming -r, which may be a remnant of Early Quenya phonology; later on, final s generally survived and medial s became r.

sáva

noun. juice

A noun in The Etymologies of the late 1930s glossed “juice” from the root ᴹ√SAB of the same meaning (Ety/SAB).

Conceptual Development: ᴱQ. văsă “juice” from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s (a cognate to G. gwâs) is a possible precursor (GL/44).

tuvu-

verb. to take, to take, [ᴱQ.] require, cost, receive, accept

The verb ᴱQ. tuvu- appeared in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s glossed “receive, accept, take, require, cost” under the early root ᴱ√TUVU (QL/96). It also appeared in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon with the gloss “receive”, given as the cognate of G. tû- “receive; take; get; become” (GL/71). The verb appeared in the 1920s Early Qenya Grammar as tuv “receive, take”, with past túvie and present tuve or tue, along with an “impersonal” variant tú (PE14/58).

Similar verb forms ᴹQ. tuvo “take” and túvie “took” appeared in the first version of Quenya Personal Pronouns (QPP1) the late 1940s (PE23/92). The aorist verb form tuvo is peculiar, but it may be in that moment Tolkien imagined this was a u-verb tuvu-, and that the aorist forms of such a u-verb was tuvo < ✱tuvŭ rather than tuvu < ✱tuvū as it was in other documents of this period such as the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 (PE22/114).

QVS also introduced a new meaning for ᴹQ. tuve “finds” (PE22/108 note #50) in that document revised to ᴹQ. kime (PE22/108, 125), but later still Q. utúvienyes “I have found it” appeared in The Lord of the Rings. See those entries for further discussion.

Neo-Quenya: It is possible that tuvu- “take” was displaced by Q. tuv- “find, discover”. However, we have no good Quenya word for “take”, so for purposes of Neo-Quenya I would retain tuvu- “take” as a u-verb, perhaps related somehow to tuv- “find” after considerable semantic drift. I would also retain the earlier meanings “require, cost”, as in tuvus miriani canta “it costs [takes] four mirian [a Gondorian coin]”. For “receive, accept”, I would instead use the later verb cav-.

vista

place name. Air

Name for the region of Air in Silmarillion notes from the 1930s (SM/236). It is simply vista “air as substance” used as a name.

hana

noun. post

A word for “post” in notes on The Feanorian Alphabet from the 1940s (PE21/33) of unclear derivation, serving as an alternate name for the tengwar halla.

hún

noun. earth, earth, *ground

A word in the Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s with stem form hun- and gloss “earth” (QL/39). It might be a later iteration of ᴱQ. han “ground, earth” from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/39), and if so then hún might also be used as “✱ground”. I think it is useful to assume so for purposes of Neo-Quenya, as the other attested word for “ground”, Q. talan, is probably used more often for “floor”, including floors above the ground level.

nienna

feminine name. Nienna

A powerful female Vala, at this stage the sister of Manwe and Melko (LR/206).

úrien

proper name. Summer

Another name for laire “summer” in drafts of the Lord of the Rings appendices (PM/134). Its initial element seems to be Ûr “Sun”.

il-

prefix. no, not

(a)láqan

adverb. not (at all)

lá-

verb. to not be

valya-

verb. can

alda

noun. tree

eldamar

place name. Elvenhome

láma

noun. ringing sound, echo; sound

lámina

adjective. echoing

lár

noun. ear

nalláma

noun. echo

(a)láqandon

adverb. *like nothing

(a)ranya

adjective. free

-llume

suffix. time, time, [ᴱQ.] times

-n(an)

suffix. time

-on

suffix. great

aika

adjective. sharp

alfírimo

noun. Immortal

alistima

adjective. unknowable, secret

allume

adverb. at no date, *never

anaristya

noun. [unglossed]

apsa

noun. juice

are

noun. day

ava-

prefix. without

elda

noun. Elf

engwa

?. [unglossed]

esse

noun. name

este

feminine name. rest

hyelma

?. [unglossed]

ilfirin

adjective. immortal

indis

noun. bride

kalina

adjective. light

kaltua

?. [unglossed]

kanda

noun. [unglossed]

karpalimaite

noun. [unglossed]

kata

preposition. after

kato

adverb. afterwards

li(n)-

prefix. many

lilta-

verb. to dance

lin-

verb. to sing

linde

noun. pool

lopo

noun. rabbit

luina

adjective. pale

lóna

adjective. dark

mai(y)a

noun. [unglossed]

makil

noun. sword

marta

adverb. home

masta

noun. bread

mirima

adjective. free

má

noun. hand

mána

adjective. blessed

ména

noun. region

nanar

collective name. Green-elves

nandakka-

verb. [unglossed]

nende

noun. pool

nerno

?. [unglossed]

nesse

noun. youth

ninqe

adjective. white

nén

noun. water

nése

noun. youth

nóte

noun. number

númenóre

place name. Westernesse

núre

noun. night

olta-

verb. [unglossed]

palme

noun. surface

pasta

adjective. smooth

pé

noun. mouth

qelle

noun. Autumn

qen

noun. Elf

qende

noun. Elf

qesse

noun. feather

rampa

?. [unglossed]

rína

adjective. crowned

sen

pronoun. them

sinye

noun. evening

sisíria-

verb. [unglossed]

séra

?. [unglossed]

síre

noun. river

tatalta-

verb. [unglossed]

taura

adjective. mighty

thar-

verb. [unglossed]

thar-

verb. to stand

tol-

verb. to stand

toróma

noun. [unglossed]

tundo

noun. hole

tyel

noun. end

tyelima

adjective. final

tári

noun. queen

uinen

feminine name. Uinen

ulunde

noun. flood, flood, *downpour

vaire

feminine name. Weaver

vinye

noun. evening

virya

adjective. fresh

vírie

noun. youth

yat

noun. neck, neck; [ᴱQ.] isthmus

yelme

noun. [unglossed]

yén

noun. year

óma

noun. voice

almárea

adjective. blessed

a

preposition. [unglossed]

alle

pronoun. nobody, nothing (no thing), no one

amaldume

noun. [unglossed]

anto

noun. mouth

assa

pronoun. [unglossed]

asse

pronoun. [unglossed]

asso

pronoun. [unglossed]

au-

prefix. without

ente

pronoun. [unglossed]

ento

pronoun. [unglossed]

ereáma

?. [unglossed]

es

[unglossed]

linin-

prefix. many

lálima

pronoun. of no sort

lámaqenta

proper name. Account of Sounds

lámasampane

proper name. Combination of Sounds

láqallume

adverb. láqallume

láqane

pronoun. nobody at all

mahtya

?. [unglossed]

makal

noun. sword

maldo

noun. [unglossed]

nisse

noun. woman

niule

?. [unglossed]

pite

noun. juice

ranya

adjective. free

sahte

noun. [unglossed]

sarya

noun. [unglossed]

tante

noun. [unglossed]

teuka

?. [unglossed]

timpana

noun. [unglossed]

toina

adjective. [unglossed]

tyue

noun. [unglossed]

té

noun. path

tí

pronoun. them

varinye

noun. [unglossed]

éma

?. [unglossed]