nelya

third

nelya adj. "third" (VT42:25; also neldëa). Pl. Nelyar "Thirds", the original name of the Teleri (or rather the direct Quenya descendant of the original Primitive Quendian name) (WJ:380).

nelya Archaic

ordinal. third

nelya-

verb. to thicken, congeal

There was a set of possible verb forms lelya, nelya, delta, delya (the last two probably primitive forms) appearing in a note probably from the mid-1960s, with a difficult-to-read gloss that seems to be something like “thick, thicken & congeal” according to Christopher Gilson (PE17/17). This note included the root √DEL “thick, dense”; the form nelya hints at a possible root change to √NDEL, or it could some sort of assimilation/disimilation of ancient d to n rather than the usual change of initial d to l. All these verb forms were rejected along with the root √DEL.

Neo-Quenya: Since we have no other words of similar meaning in Tolkien’s later writings, I would salvage ᴺQ. nelya- “to thicken, congeal” for purposes of Neo-Quenya, and assume it is derived from a Neo-Root ᴺ√NDEL “thick, dense”.

neldëa

ordinal. third

The usual Quenya word for “third” was neldea as an adjectival form of neldë, along with an alternate (archaic?) form nelya of the same meaning (VT42/25).

Conceptual Development: In the Early Qenya Grammar (EQG) of the 1920s, ᴱQ. nelya was the normal word for “third” (PE14/51, 82).

neldëa

third

neldëa ordinal "third" (VT42:25); also nelya. Cf. neldë.

nelya-

verb. to thicken, congeal

neldë

cardinal. three

neldë cardinal "three" (SA:neldor, NÉL-ED, VT47:11, VT48:6). Eleni neldë "three stars", archaic elenion neldë = *"of stars three". Genitive "of 3 stars" = elenion neldë (for archaic elenion neldëo) (VT49:45; see 54 regarding neldion as the gen. pl.) Cf. also nelya, neldëa, Neldië.

neldë

cardinal. three, three; [ᴱQ.] four

The Quenya word for “three” derived from √NEL(ED) of the same meaning (VT47/10-11; Ety/NEL).

Conceptual Development: This use of nelde for “three” dates back all the way to Early Qenya Grammar (EQG) of the 1920s (PE14/49, 82). However, in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s ᴱQ. nelde was “four”, appearing under the early root ᴱ√NELE “point” and serving as the basis for the word ᴱQ. neldenelqa “square” (QL/65). In this 1910s document, ᴱQ. ole was “three” derived from the early root ᴱ√OLO “tip” (QL/69).

olë

cardinal. three

olë (2) cardinal "three" (LT1:258; in LotR-style Quenya Tolkien replaced this "Qenya" form with neldë)

nelya

ordinal. third

nelet

cardinal. three

nel

root. three, three; [ᴱ√] point, *(tri)angle

This root served as the basis for Elvish words for “three” for much of Tolkien’s life. However, in its earliest appearance in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, ᴱ√NELE was glossed “point” with derivatives like ᴱQ. neldor “beech”, ᴱQ. nele “tooth” and ᴱQ. nelt “corner”, while the derived numeral was ᴱQ. nelde “four” (QL/65). The contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon also had G. nel “point, end, tip, jutting end” (GL/60), and G. deldron “beech” was almost certainly derived from a strengthened form of the root ndel- (PE11/8; GL/30). ᴱQ. nelde “three” first appeared in the Early Qenya Grammar of the 1920s (PE14/49, 82).

In the first layer of The Etymologies of the 1930s, this root was glossed “point, triangle” (EtyAC/NEL), but Tolkien changed the gloss of ᴹ√NEL to “three” and gave it two extended roots ᴹ√NELED (also “three”) and ᴹ√NELEK “tooth” (Ety/NEL, NELEK). In this revised paradigm, probably “tooth” was derived from the sense “triangle”. In The Etymologies of the 1930s, Ilk. neldor “beech” was still derived from this root, but was said to refer to the “three trunks” of Hirilorn.

In later writings from the 1950s and 60s, the gloss of √NEL was consistently “three” (WJ/421; VT42/24; VT47/10-11), and the extended form √NELED “three” appeared regularly as well (VT42/24; VT47/11). √NELEK “tooth” also appeared in several documents from the 1940s and 50s (PE19/58; PE21/56, 71).

enel

masculine name. Three

nelede

cardinal. three

nel

three, tri

;

nail

ordinal. third

nail Archaic

ordinal. third

neil

ordinal. third

neled

cardinal. three

neledh

cardinal. three

neledh

cardinal. three

{ð}_ card. _three. Q. nelde. Fcan, canad, nel

neledh

cardinal. three

The Sindarin word for “three” was neledh (PE17/95; VT48/6), sometimes shorted to nêl (VT42/25). It was derived from the root √NELED (VT42/24; VT47/11).

Conceptual Development: The Etymologies of the 1930s also had N. neledh “three” under the root ᴹ√NEL, but in that document the modern form was neled patterned after canad “four” (Ety/NEL). This modern form replaced a deleted variant {neleth} (EtyAC/NEL).

neleg

ordinal. third

nelui

ordinal. third

nelui

ordinal. third

The Sindarin word for “third”, an adjectival form of nel(edh) “three” in notes from the late 1960s using the adjectival suffix -ui (VT42/25). It replaced an archaic form neil or nail. In an earlier version of this document the colloquial form was neleg “third”, but this form was deleted (VT42/10).

nêl

cardinal. three

nêl

cardinal. three

nail

third

nail, nelui

nail

third

nail, nelui.

nail

third

nelui

nêl

cardinal. three

nêl (note: a homophone means ”tooth”), also neled, archaic neledh.

nêl

three

(note: a homophone means ”tooth”), also neled, archaic neledh.

neled

cardinal. three

neled

cardinal. three

neledh

cardinal. three

neledh

cardinal. three