masse

noun. handful

handful, share, (just) portion, capacity

masse

interrogative. where

massë

bread

massë noun "bread" (as a material), variant of massa, q.v. (PE17:52). Notice that *massë has also been extrapolated as a question-word "where?"

massë

noun. bread

massë

noun. handful, portion, share, capacity; the personal measure or capacity of a man, a talent, portion, share; capacity, [ᴹQ.] measure; the personal measure or capacity of a man, a talent; [Q.] †handful

A word for “portion, share, capacity” and “measure” (PE19/74 and note #74), originally with the sense “handful” (PE19/100-101 note #154). It might also be used for “the personal measure or capacity of a man, a talent” (PE19/101 note #154). It was derived from primitive ✶mahsē.

Conceptual Development: This word has a complex history, due to shifting ideas of its phonological development. ᴹQ. masse first appeared in the Outline of Phonetic Development (OP1) from the 1930s where it was glossed “handful, share, just portion (in distribution), measure or capacity (of a person)”, derived from ᴹ√MAƷ “hand” and illustrating the sound change whereby “ʒs gave hs which however became ss (not ks)” (PE19/48). In the first layer of Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s, Tolkien gave it the same derivation and said that it originally meant “handful” but that its PQ meaning was “share; a just portion (in distribution); the personal measure or capacity of a man; a talent” (PE19/100-101 note #154).

In Common Eldarin: Noun Structure, also from the early 1950s, Tolkien first gave masse “originally handful” (PE21/70-71 note #7), but in that document changed its primitive form to ✶mahsi with a modern form of Q. makse and a new meaning: “handiness” (PE21/70). This reflects a new conception of primitive Elvish where the ancient velar spirant was voiceless h rather than voiced ʒ, and a new phonetic development hs > ks. Tolkien made the same alterations in OP2, changing ʒ to h with a new word mare “skill of hand, handiness, dexterity” reflecting a loss of weak h (PE19/74 note #35), but he then restored the sound change of hs to ss (PE19/74 note #34), reintroducing masse “handful, measure, etc.”. In green-ink notes from around 1970 he revised the gloss to “handful, portion, share, capacity” (PE19/74 note #35).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would use masse with a blending of its meanings in the 1930s, 50s and 70s, originally with the sense “handful”, but extended to primarily mean “measure, capacity” as well as “portion, share”. It can also be applied metaphorically to a person to mean “the personal measure or capacity of a man”, hence = “a talent, ability”, as in ma masserya (ná) “what is his/her measure [talent]”.

Changes

• masse → masse “handful, measure” ✧ PE19/074

Derivations

• ✶maha “hand, the manager” ✧ PE19/074
  • √MAH “handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use, handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use; [ᴹ√] hand; [ᴱ√] grasp” ✧ VT47/18; VT47/18
  • √MAG “good (physically); to thrive, be in a good state, good (physically); to thrive, be in a good state; [ᴹ√] use, handle” ✧ VT47/18
• ✶maʒsē “handful” ✧ PE19/101
  • √MAH “handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use, handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use; [ᴹ√] hand; [ᴱ√] grasp” ✧ PE19/100; PE21/70

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶mā̆ha > masse	[mahse] > [masse]	✧ PE19/074
✶maʒ-sē > mahsē > massē > masse	[maɣsē] > [mahsē] > [massē] > [masse]	✧ PE19/101

Variations

• masse ✧ PE19/074; PE19/074 (masse); PE19/101 (masse)

massa

bread

#massa noun "bread" (massamma "our bread", VT43:18); massánië "breadgiver", used as a title of the highest woman among any Elvish people, since she had the keeping and gift of the coimas (lembas). Also simply translated "Lady" (PM:404)

massa

noun. bread

A word for “bread” appearing as massa (VT43/12) or massë (PE17/52) in Tolkien’s later writings, most notably as an element in Q. massánië “breadgiver” (PM/404). It was in competition with, and possibly replaced, the word masta “bread”. The distinction between the two was discussed in notes from 1960s (PE17/52):

> Assume a Primitive Eldarin derivation ✱mbassē “(baked) bread”. The other derivatives were ✱mbasta with short final, an infinitive or verbal noun formation denoting a single action of the stem .. and ✱mbazdā denoting the passive result of the action, and when used substantivally a single product of this: mbazda would thus mean baked or a baked thing ... In Quenya we have masse “bread” as a material, and masta “a cake or loaf” (zd > st).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I prefer to use massa as the typical word for “bread” rather than massë, to avoid conflict with other words like [ᴹQ.] masse “where”. I would also use masta as a more general word for baked goods, including bread but also other baked things like cakes and loafs.

Cognates

• S. bas(t) “bread”

Derivations

• ✶mbassē “(baked) bread” ✧ PE17/052
  • √MBAS “bake, bake, [ᴱ√] cook; [ᴹ√] knead” ✧ PE17/051

Element in

• Q. ámen anta síra ilaurëa massamma “give us this day our daily bread” ✧ VT43/18
• Q. coimas “life-bread, lembas”
• Q. massánië “Lady, breadgiver”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶mbassē > masse	[mbassē] > [massē] > [masse]	✧ PE17/052

Variations

• masse ✧ PE17/052

isse

where

maxë

noun. handiness

Changes

• mare → masse “skill of hand, handiness, dexterity” ✧ PE19/074
• masse → makse ✧ PE21/70

Derivations

• ✶mahsi “handiness” ✧ PE21/70
  • √MAH “handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use, handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use; [ᴹ√] hand; [ᴱ√] grasp” ✧ PE21/70
• ✶maʒsē “handful” ✧ PE21/71
  • √MAH “handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use, handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use; [ᴹ√] hand; [ᴱ√] grasp” ✧ PE19/100; PE21/70

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶mahsi > makse	[mahsi] > [maksi] > [makse]	✧ PE21/70
✶maʒsē > masse	[maɣsē] > [mahsē] > [massē] > [masse]	✧ PE21/71

Variations

• mare ✧ PE19/074 (mare)
• makse ✧ PE21/70
• masse ✧ PE21/70 (masse)

masta

noun. bread

masta

cake or loaf

masta noun "cake or loaf" (PE17:52), in an earlier source defined as "bread" (MBAS, PM:404; later sources have massa or massë for this meaning). Mastamma "our bread" in Tolkiens translatation of the Lords Prayer (VT43:18). In the Etymologies, Tolkien emended the gloss of masta from "dough" to "bread" (VT45:33).

-ndor

land

-ndor, final element in compounds: "land" (Letters:308, UT:253)

nór

land

nór noun "land" (stem nor-, PE17:106) this is land as opposed to water and sea (nor in Letters:308). Cf. nórë.

nór

noun. land

A term for “land” as in “(dry) land as opposed to the sea”, mentioned in the Quendi and Eldar essay of 1959-60 (WJ/413) and again in notes from around 1968 (PE17/106-107).

Possible Etymology: In the Quendi and Eldar essay this term was derived from primitive ✶ndōro, but in the aforementioned 1968 notes Tolkien clarified that its stem form was nŏr-. This means it was probably derived from ancient ✱ndŏr-, where the long vowel in the uninflected form was inherited from the Common Eldarin subjective form ✱ndōr, a phenomenon also seen in words like nér (ner-) “man”. I prefer this second derivation, as it makes the independent word more distinct from the suffixal form -ndor or -nóre used in the names of countries.

Derivations

• ✶ndorē “land” ✧ PE17/106; PE17/107
  • √NDOR “land; hard, firm; [ᴹ√] dwell, stay, rest, abide” ✧ PE17/106; PE17/107
  • √DOR “hard, tough, dried up, unyielding”
  • √DOR “hard, tough, dried up, unyielding” ✧ WJ/413
• ✶ndōro “land” ✧ WJ/413
  • √DOR “hard, tough, dried up, unyielding” ✧ WJ/413

Element in

• Q. nortil “cape (of land)”
• ᴺQ. salquenor “grassland, meadow”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶ndōr > nōr	[ndōr] > [nōr]	✧ PE17/106
✶NDŌR/NDŎR- > nôr	[ndōr] > [nōr]	✧ PE17/107
✶ndōro > nór	[ndōro] > [ndōr] > [nōr]	✧ WJ/413

Variations

• nōr ✧ PE17/106
• nôr ✧ PE17/107

nóre

noun. land

nórë

land

nórë noun "land" (associated with a particular people) (WJ:413), "country, land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live, race, clan" (NŌ, NDOR, BAL), also used = "race, tribe, people" (SA:dôr, PE17:169; however, the normal word for "people" is lië). Early "Qenya" hasnórë "native land, nation, family, country" (in compounds -nor) (LT1:272)

bass

noun. bread

In the Etymologies, the word for "bread" is given as bast , Quenya masta, but it seems that Tolkien later changed his mind and updated the word to bass, as shown in Quenya massánie, Sindarin besain, besoneth "bread-giver", and in the mutated form (i)mbas (apparently prefixed with the article). These latter Sindarin forms are however dubious, as we would rather have expected bessain (as a regular cognate of Quenya massánie) and bassoneth (without i-affection), and possibly a different mutation pattern after the article

bassoneth

noun. bread-giver

See bass for a discussion regarding this word

lembas

noun. journey bread made by the Elves

bas(t)

noun. bread

This was the word for “bread” in Sindarin and its conceptual precursors for much of Tolkien’s life, derived from the equally long-lived root √MBAS “bake”. The word dates all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s where G. bast “bread” was derived from the early root ᴱ√M(B)ASA “cook, bake” (GL/22). ᴱN. bast “bread” reappeared in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/138) and appeared again as N. bast “bread” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√MBAS “knead” (Ety/MBAS).

It appeared without a final t in the Sindarin version of the Lord’s Prayer from the 1950s: anno ammen sír i mbas ilaurui vín “give us this day our daily bread” (VT44/21). However the t was restored in the phrase penim vast “we have no bread” from around 1959 (PE17/144). The late vacillations on the presence and absence of t are likely connected to Tolkien challenges with the derivation of lembas; see that entry for discussion. Likewise, the mutated forms mbas vs. vast indicate some late uncertainty on whether the primitive form began with mb- or b-.

Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I would assume the normal form was bast “bread” from ancient mbasta, so that lenited forms show mb-.

Cognates

• Q. massa “bread”
• Q. masta “bread, cake, loaf, bread, cake, loaf, *baked good”

Derivations

• √MBAS “bake, bake, [ᴱ√] cook; [ᴹ√] knead”

Element in

• S. anno ammen sír i mbas ilaurui vín “give us this day our daily bread” ✧ VT44/27
• S. lembas “waybread, journey-bread”
• ᴺS. losbas “ryebread”
• S. penim vast “we have no bread” ✧ PE17/144

bessain

noun. bread-giver

See bass for a discussion regarding this word

dôr

noun. land, land, [N.] region where certain people live, [ᴱN.] country; [G.] people of the land

Cognates

• Q. -ndor “land, country” ✧ SA/dôr

Derivations

• ✶ndorē “land” ✧ PE17/164; SA/dôr; WJ/413
  • √NDOR “land; hard, firm; [ᴹ√] dwell, stay, rest, abide” ✧ PE17/106; PE17/107
  • √DOR “hard, tough, dried up, unyielding”
  • √DOR “hard, tough, dried up, unyielding” ✧ WJ/413

Element in

• S. Arnor “Royal Land”
• S. Balannor “Land of the Valar”
• S. bardor “home land, native land” ✧ PE17/164
• S. Berennyr “Brown Lands”
• S. Dor Caranthir “Land of Caranthir”
• S. Dor-Cúarthol “Land of Bow and Helm”
• S. Dor Daedeloth “Land of Great Dread; Land of Shadow of Horror”
• S. Dor Dínen “Silent Land” ✧ S/121
• S. Dor-en-Ernil “Land of the Prince” ✧ UT/245
• S. Dor Firn-i-Guinar “Land of the Dead that Live” ✧ S/188
• S. dorgannas “shapes of the lands, *geography” ✧ WJ/192
• ᴺS. dorgant “landscape, scene, *(lit.) land-shape”
• S. Dor Gyrth i Chuinar “Land of the Dead that Live” ✧ Let/417
• S. Dor Haeron
• S. Doriath “Land of the Fence” ✧ SA/dôr; SI/Doriath; UTI/Doriath; WJ/370
• S. Dor-i-Ndainn “*Land of the Nandor”
• S. Dor i Thuin
• north S. Dor-lómin “*Echoing-land”
• S. Dorloven “*Echoing Land” ✧ PE17/133
• S. Dor-na-Daerachas “Land of Great Dread”
• S. Dor-nu-Fauglith “Land under Choking Ash”
• S. Dor-Rodyn “*Land of the Valar” ✧ MR/200
• S. Dorthonion “Land of Pines” ✧ RC/384; SA/dôr
• S. Dorwinion “Young-land country, land of Gwinion”
• S. Eglador “Land of the Eglir (Forsaken)”
• S. Elennor “*Elf-land”
• S. Eriador “Lonely Land” ✧ SA/dôr
• S. Gondor “Stone-land” ✧ SA/dôr
• S. Mildor “Wine-land”
• S. Mordor “Black Land” ✧ Let/427; SA/dôr
• S. Pelennor “Fenced Land”
• S. Thonador

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶ndor > -dor	[-ndorē] > [-ndore] > [-ndor] > [-dor]	✧ PE17/164
✶ndor > dôr	[ndorē] > [ndore] > [dore] > [dor] > [dōr]	✧ SA/dôr
✶ndorē > dôr	[ndorē] > [ndore] > [dore] > [dor] > [dōr]	✧ WJ/413
✶ndorē > -ndor > -nor/-nnor	[-ndorē] > [-ndore] > [-ndor] > [-nnor]	✧ WJ/413

Variations

• Dor ✧ Let/417; MR/200; PE17/133; S/121; S/188; SI/Doriath; UT/245; UTI/Doriath; WJ/192
• dor ✧ Let/427; RC/384
• -dor ✧ PE17/164
• Dôr ✧ WJ/370

besain

noun. bread-giver

See bass for a discussion regarding this word

besoneth

noun. bread-giver

See bass for a discussion regarding this word

dor

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor

dôr

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor

mas

adverb. where

Derivations

• √MA “interrogative base, interrogative base; [ᴱ√] root of indef[inite]”

bass

bread

bass (i mass, o mbass, construct bas), pl. bais (i mbais). The sg. form with article "imbas" in VT44:23 may be seen as archaic Sindarin, for later *i mas(s) as suggested here. In ”Noldorin”, the word for "bread" was bast (LR:372 s.v. MBAS), but otherwise it would have the same mutations.

bass

bread

(i mass, o mbass, construct bas), pl. bais (i mbais). The sg. form with article "imbas" in VT44:23 may be seen as archaic Sindarin, for later ✱i mas(s) as suggested here. – In ”Noldorin”, the word for "bread" was bast (LR:372 s.v. MBAS), but otherwise it would have the same mutations.

lembas

way-bread, journey-bread

pl. lembais.

ias

adverb. where

nand

wide grassland

(construct nan) (valley), pl. naind, coll. pl. **nannath **(VT45:36);

parth

enclosed grassland

(i barth, o pharth) (field, sward), pl. perth (i pherth);

bâr

land

(dwelling, house, home, family; earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.

dôr

land

1) dôr (i nôr, construct dor) (dwelling place, region), pl. dŷr (i ndŷr), coll. pl. dorath (WJ:413), 2) bâr (dwelling, house, home, family; earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.

dôr

land

(i nôr, construct dor) (dwelling place, region), pl. dŷr (i ndŷr), coll. pl. dorath (WJ:413)

dóri-

noun. land

Isolated from Lindórinan. The independent form of the word may differ; it is unclear where the i of the compound Lindórinan comes from. In the Etymologies, the Eldarin words for "land" are derived from a stem NDOR "dwell, stay, rest, abide" (LR:376).

No Nandorin word is there listed, but Sindarin dor is derived from primitive ndorê. Notice, however, that Tolkien many years later derived the Eldarin words for "land" from a stem DORO "dried up, hard, unyielding" (WJ:413). However, this later source does confirm that the Primitive Quendian form was ndorê, now thought to be formed by initial enrichment d > nd. This is defined as "the hard, dry land as opposed to water or bog", later developing the meaning "land in general as opposed to sea", and finally also "a land" as a particular region, "with more or less defined bounds".

Whether dóri- actually comes from ndorê is highly doubtful (this would rather yield *dora in Nandorin), but it must be derived from the same set of stems.

thâni

noun. land

A noun translated “land” (SD/435) appearing in the Adûnaic names for the Blessed Realm: Amatthâni and thâni’nAmân. Its Primitive Adûnaic form was also ✶thāni, though its primitive was glossed “realm" (SD/420).

Derivations

• ✶Ad. thāni “realm”

Element in

• Ad. Amatthâni “Blessed Realm, (lit.) Land of Manwë” ✧ SD/435
• Ad. thâni’nAmân “Land of Aman” ✧ SD/435

Variations

• thāni ✧ SD/435

zâyan

noun. land

An Adûnaic word for “land” (SD/423). It has an irregular plural form zâin which is the result of the phonetic change (SD/423): [[pad|medial [w] and [j] vanished before [u] and [i]]]. Thus, the archaic plural changed from †zâyîn > zâîn > zâin.

Conceptual Development: In earlier names this word appeared as zen (SD/378, 385).

Element in

• Ad. azra-zâin “sea-lands, maritime regions” ✧ SD/429; SD/435
• Ad. Yôzâyan “Land of Gift”
• Ad. Abarzâyan “Land of Gift”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
Ad. zāyīn > *zāīn > zâin	[zājīn] > [zāīn] > [zāin]	✧ SD/423

Variations

• zāyan ✧ SD/423

maʒsē

noun. handful

Changes

• maʒsē → mahsi “handful” ✧ PE21/70

Derivations

• √MAH “handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use, handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use; [ᴹ√] hand; [ᴱ√] grasp” ✧ PE19/100; PE21/70

Derivatives

• Q. massë “handful, portion, share, capacity; the personal measure or capacity of a man, a talent, portion, share; capacity, [ᴹQ.] measure; the personal measure or capacity of a man, a talent; [Q.] †handful” ✧ PE19/101
• Q. maxë “handiness” ✧ PE21/71

Variations

• maʒ-sē ✧ PE19/101 (maʒ-sē)

mahsi

noun. handiness

Derivations

• √MAH “handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use, handle, manage, control, wield; serve, be of use; [ᴹ√] hand; [ᴱ√] grasp” ✧ PE21/70

Derivatives

• Q. maxë “handiness” ✧ PE21/70

ndorē

noun. land

Derivations

• √NDOR “land; hard, firm; [ᴹ√] dwell, stay, rest, abide” ✧ PE17/106; PE17/107
  • √DOR “hard, tough, dried up, unyielding”
• √DOR “hard, tough, dried up, unyielding” ✧ WJ/413

Derivatives

• Q. -ndor “land, country” ✧ SA/dôr
• Q. nór “land” ✧ PE17/106; PE17/107
• Q. nórë “land, country; †people, race, tribe, land, country, [ᴹQ.] region where certain people live, [ᴱQ.] nation; [Q.] †people, race, tribe, [ᴹQ.] folk, [ᴱQ.] family” ✧ PE19/076
• S. dôr “land, land, [N.] region where certain people live, [ᴱN.] country; [G.] people of the land” ✧ PE17/164; SA/dôr; WJ/413

Element in

• ✶etlā-ndŏrē “Eglador” ✧ VT42/04; VT42/04
• ✶mbar-ndor “home land, native land” ✧ PE17/164
• Q. Endórë “Middle-earth, (lit.) Middle Land” ✧ Let/384
• Q. Valandor “Land of the Valar” ✧ WJ/413
• S. Ennor “Middle-earth” ✧ Let/384
• S. Eriador “Lonely Land” ✧ VT42/04
• S. Thonador ✧ VT42/04

Variations

• (n)dor ✧ Let/384
• ndōr ✧ PE17/106
• NDŌR/NDŎR- ✧ PE17/107
• ndor ✧ PE17/164; SA/dôr
• ndōrē ✧ PE19/076; VT42/04

ndōro

noun. land

Derivations

• √DOR “hard, tough, dried up, unyielding” ✧ WJ/413

Derivatives

• Q. nór “land” ✧ WJ/413

bast

noun. bread

bast

noun. bread

Cognates

• ᴹQ. masta “bread” ✧ Ety/MBAS

Derivations

• ᴹ√M(B)AS “knead” ✧ Ety/KOR; Ety/MBAS

Element in

• Ilk. basgorn “round bread” ✧ Ety/KOR
• N. basgorn “loaf, loaf, [G.] loaf of bread, [ᴱN.] round loaf, cake” ✧ Ety/MBAS

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√MBAS > bast	[mbasta] > [basta] > [bast]	✧ Ety/MBAS

dor

noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live

The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor