lemen

cardinal. five

lemen, alternative cardinal "five" (VT48:6, 20); the word normally appears as lempë, but compare lemenya below.

lemen

cardinal. five

lemnë

cardinal. five

lempë

cardinal. five

lempë cardinal "five" (LEP/LEPEN/LEPEK, GL:53, VT42:24, VT47:10, 24); lempëa ordinal "fifth", an analogical formation replacing older lemenya, in turn altered from the historically "correct" form lepenya because of analogy with the cardinal lempë "five" (VT42:25; Vanyarin Quenya maintained lepenya, VT42:26)

lempë

cardinal. five

Cognates

• S. leben “five” ✧ PE17/095; VT48/06
• T. lepen “five” ✧ VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24; VT48/06

Derivations

• √LEPEN “five” ✧ PE17/095
• ✶lepene “five” ✧ PE17/095; VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24
  • √LEPEN “five” ✧ VT47/24

Element in

• Q. lempëa “fifth” ✧ VT42/26
• ᴺQ. lepenquain “fifty”
• ᴺQ. lepenquëan “fifty”
• Q. lepenquë “*fifteen”
• Q. lepesta “one fifth”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√LEPEN > lepne > lempe	[lepne] > [lenpe] > [lempe]	✧ PE17/095
✶lepen > lempe	[lepne] > [lenpe] > [lempe]	✧ PE17/095
✶lepene > lepne > lempe	[lepene] > [lepne] > [lenpe] > [lempe]	✧ VT42/24
✶lepene > lepne > lempe	[lepene] > [lepne] > [lenpe] > [lempe]	✧ VT47/10
✶lepenē̆ > lepnē > lempe	[lepenē] > [lepnē] > [lenpē] > [lempē] > [lempe]	✧ VT47/24

Variations

• lempe ✧ PE17/095; PE17/095; VT42/24; VT42/25; VT42/26; VT47/10; VT47/24
• lemne ✧ PE17/095
• lemen ✧ VT48/06

leben

cardinal. five

leben

cardinal. five

Cognates

• Q. lempë “five” ✧ PE17/095; VT48/06
• T. lepen “five” ✧ VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24

Derivations

• ✶lepene “five” ✧ PE17/095; VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24
  • √LEPEN “five” ✧ VT47/24

Element in

• S. Lebennin “Five Rivers” ✧ PE17/095
• ᴺS. lephaen “fifty”
• S. levnui “fifth” ✧ VT42/25
• ᴺS. paeleben “fifteen”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶lepen > leb(en	[lepene] > [lepen] > [leben]	✧ PE17/095
✶lepene > leben	[lepene] > [lepen] > [leben]	✧ VT42/24
✶lepene > leben	[lepene] > [lepen] > [leben]	✧ VT47/10
✶lepenē̆ > leben	[lepene] > [lepen] > [leben]	✧ VT47/24

Variations

• leb(en ✧ PE17/095

leben

cardinal. five

leben;

leben

five

;

lepen

cardinal. five

Cognates

• Q. lempë “five” ✧ VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24; VT48/06
• S. leben “five” ✧ VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24

Derivations

• ✶lepene “five” ✧ VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24
  • √LEPEN “five” ✧ VT47/24

Element in

• T. lepenya “fifth” ✧ VT42/25

lepen

root. five

√LEPEN was the most common root for “five” in Tolkien’s writings, but he explored a variety of other options. Its earliest iteration appeared in the Qenya and Gnomish lexicons as ᴱ√LEH (QL/52) or ᴱ√LEF “half” (GL/53), so I think the actual early form was ✱ᴱ√LEǶE [lexʷe]. At this early stage it had derivatives with the meanings “five”, “ten”, and “half”, but in later writings “ten” became ᴹ√KAYAN >> √KWAY(AM) and “half” became √PER.

In The Etymologies of the 1930s the root appeared as ᴹ√LEPEN “five” with variant ᴹ√LEPEK, but ᴹ√LEPEK had no derivatives (Ety/LEP). √LEPEN appeared again in a list of numbers from the late 1950s or early 1960s beside a variant √LENEP; again the variant had no clear derivatives (PE17/95). √LEPEN reappeared in numeric discussions from the late 1960s (VT42/24; VT47/10). In these late discussions Tolkien said that “five” most likely originally from ✱lepem as an ancient plural of √LEP, but it seems this became √LEPEN already in Common Eldarin (CE), given that the Sindarin word for “five” remained S. leben; Tolkien gave varying explanations for this CE sound change, either as dissimilation from p (VT47/26 note 2) or with final -m > -n being the regular phonetic development (VT47/24).

Derivatives

• ✶lepene “five” ✧ VT47/24
  • Q. lempë “five” ✧ PE17/095; VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24
  • S. leben “five” ✧ PE17/095; VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24
  • T. lepen “five” ✧ VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24
• Q. lempë “five” ✧ PE17/095
• ᴺS. lebem “fifteen”

Element in

• ✶lepenya “5th” ✧ VT42/26

Variations

• LENEP ✧ PE17/095; PE17/159; PE17/160
• lepen ✧ VT42/24; VT42/26; VT42/26
• lepem ✧ VT42/26 (lepem); VT47/16; VT47/24 (lepem); VT47/27

lepene

noun. five

Derivations

• √LEPEN “five” ✧ VT47/24

Derivatives

• Q. lempë “five” ✧ PE17/095; VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24
• S. leben “five” ✧ PE17/095; VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24
• T. lepen “five” ✧ VT42/24; VT47/10; VT47/24

Element in

• ᴺQ. lempellumë “five times”
• ᴺQ. lependórë “quintillion”

Variations

• lepen ✧ PE17/095
• lepenē̆ ✧ VT47/24

lenep

root. five

lepem

root. five

lheben

cardinal. five

lheben

cardinal. five

Cognates

• ᴹQ. lempe “five” ✧ Ety/LEP

Derivations

• ᴹ√LEPEN “five” ✧ Ety/LEP

Element in

• N. Lebennin “Seven Streams”
• N. Lhefneg “Fifth”
• N. lheben teil brann i annon ar neledh neledhi gar godrebh “five foot high the door and three may walk abreast” ✧ TAI/150

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√LEPEN > lheben	[lepene] > [lepen] > [l̥epen] > [l̥eben]	✧ Ety/LEP