nér

man

nér (1) (ner-, as in pl. neri) noun "man" (adult male elf, mortal, or of other speaking race) (MR:213, VT49:17, DER, NDER, NI1, VT45:9; see also WJ:393)

nér

noun. man

nér

noun. man, male person, man, male person; [ᴹQ.] adult male; [ᴱQ.] husband; warrior

The Quenya word for a “man”, or more specifically a person of male gender (WJ/393). This word is derived from the root √N(D)ER, and the é is long in Quenya as a remnant of the lengthened vowel in the primitive subjective form ndēr, but the stem form is ner- because the vowel was not long in ancient inflective forms (PE19/102). Thus the singular is nér but plural neri (MR/213), and likewise for other inflected forms. Nér can be used regardless of species and so is equally applicable to male Elves, Men, or Dwarves, but is unlikely to be used of male animals, for which the word [ᴹQ.] hanu is more applicable.

Conceptual Development: This word was very well established in Tolkien’s mind, appearing as ᴱQ. ner “man, husband” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√NERE (QL/65), though in the contemporaneous Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa it was glossed “warrior, etc.” (PME/65). The long/short vowel variation had emerged by the time the Early Qenya Grammar was written in the 1920s, where Tolkien gave singular nēr but plural nĕri (PE14/43, 72).

The Declension of Nouns from the early 1930s has this same long/short vowel split (PE21/20) as does The Etymologies from later in the 1930s which had ᴹQ. nér with plural neri as derivatives of the root ᴹ√(N)DER (Ety/DER). This remained the case in later writings as well, except that the unstrengthened form of the root changed from ᴹ√DER to √NER (WJ/393), though this only barely matters, since the actual derivatives were all from strengthened √NDER in pretty much all cases from the 1930s forward.

Derivations

• ✶nēr “man, a male person” ✧ WJ/393
  • √N(D)ER “male (person), man” ✧ WJ/393

Element in

• Q. Nerdanel
• Q. nernehta “man-spearhead”
• Q. Nerwen “Man-maiden” ✧ UT/229
• Q. Úner “Noman” ✧ UT/211

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶nere/nēr > nēr	[nēr]	✧ WJ/393

Variations

• ner ✧ UT/211
• Ner ✧ UT/229
• nēr ✧ VT49/17; WJ/393

lér

man

**lér noun "man" (NI1; hypothetical Q form of PQ dēr; the form actually used in Quenya was nér)

vëo

man

†vëo noun "man" (WEG; etymologically connected to vëa "manly, vigorous"; the more neutral word for "man" is nér. According to VT46:21, Tolkien indicated that vëo is an archaic or poetic word.) Tolkien at a later point defined the word as "living creature" (PE17:189). Cf. variant wëo, q.v.

ná-

verb. to be, to be, [ᴱQ.] exist

Changes

• nā → nāner ✧ VT49/09
• nār → năr ✧ VT49/30

Cognates

• Ad. -n “predicate suffix”
• S. na- “to be”

Derivations

• √NĀ “be (the same as another), exist” ✧ PE17/093

Element in

• Q. á hyamë rámen úcarindor “pray for us sinners” ✧ VT43/34
• Q. aistana elyë imíca nísi “blessed art thou amongst women” ✧ VT43/30; VT43/30
• Q. alasaila ná lá carë tai mo nave mára “it is unwise not to do what one judges good” ✧ PE22/154; VT42/33
• Q. alcar mi Tarmenel na Erun “glory [be] to God in the highest” ✧ VT44/34; VT44/34
• Q. A (ná) calima lá B “A is brighter than B; (lit.) A is bright beyond B” ✧ PE17/090; PE17/090
• Q. A anamelda na ar ilyan “A is dearest of all” ✧ PE17/057
• Q. A anamelda na epë B “A is dear before B” ✧ PE17/057
• Q. A anamelda na ep’ ilya “A is dearest of all” ✧ PE17/057
• Q. A arimelda na epe B “A is (very much) [dearer] than B” ✧ PE17/057 (A arimelda na epe B)
• Q. A arimelda na ilyaron “A is dearest of all” ✧ PE17/057
• Q. á na márië “be well” ✧ PE17/162
• Q. aranielya na tuluva “thy kingdom come” ✧ VT43/14; VT43/14
• Q. Átaremma i ëa han Eä “our Father who art in Heaven” ✧ VT43/13
• Q. cemendë tambe Erumandë “on Earth as [it is] in Heaven” ✧ VT43/16
• Q. cé tulis, ní nauva tanomë “*if he/she comes, I will be there” ✧ VT49/19
• Q. cé tulis, tanomë nauvan “*if he/she comes, I will be there” ✧ VT49/19
• Q. eldar ataformaiti “the Elves were ambidexters” ✧ VT49/09; VT49/09; VT49/09; VT49/09
• Q. essë úpa nas “he is dumb” ✧ PE17/126
• Q. i Héru aselyë “the Lord is with thee” ✧ VT43/30
• Q. lá carita i hamil mára alasaila ná “not to do (in this case) what you judge good (would be) unwise” ✧ PE22/154; VT42/33
• Q. lá caritas alasaila cé nauva “not doing this may be/prove unwise” ✧ PE22/154; VT42/34
• Q. lá caritas, navin, alasaila ná “not doing this would be (I think) unwise” ✧ PE22/154; VT42/33
• Q. násië “but deliver us from evil: Amen” ✧ VT43/23
• Q. mára ná “it is good” ✧ PE17/093
• Q. ná “yes, it is so, it is a fact”
• Q. na airë esselya “hallowed be thy name” ✧ VT43/14
• Q. na carë indómelya “thy will be done” ✧ VT43/15
• Q. nai “maybe; be it that, may it be that; perhaps, it may be, there is a chance or possibility, maybe; be it that, may it be that; perhaps, it may be, there is a chance or possibility; [ᴱQ.] remoter possibility” ✧ RGEO/60; VT49/28
• Q. naitë “true” ✧ VT49/28
• ᴺQ. nalumë “sometime(s)”
• Q. namárië “farewell, (lit.) be well, let it be well (to you)” ✧ PE17/058; PE17/059; PE17/059; PE17/074
• Q. námo “person, somebody (unnamed)”
• Q. náner ataformaitë ve fírimor quetir “*were ambidextrous as mortals say” ✧ VT49/10
• ᴺQ. nanomë “someplace, somewhere”
• Q. nanwa “existing, actual (true), existing, actual (true), *real; [️ᴱQ.] being” ✧ VT49/30
• Q. nár (naitië) “they are (indeed = truly)” ✧ PE22/166
• Q. násië “*amen, (lit.) may it be so”
• Q. násan “*amen, (lit.) may it be so”
• Q. nás mára nin “I like it” ✧ VT49/30
• Q. nassë “nature, true-being, *essence; person, individual” ✧ VT49/30
• Q. návë “being”
• Q. nésë nórima rocco “he was a horse strong/swift at running” ✧ VT49/29
• Q. quí(ta) la tuldes, nánë márië (nin) “[if he had not come], it was well to me (I was glad)” ✧ PE22/158
• Q. roccor i Erulingaron márë nár (ma naitë)? “the horses of the Rohirrim are good (are they not, lit. is it true)” ✧ PE22/166
• Q. savin Elessar ar i nánë aran Ondórëo “I believe that E[lessar] really existed and that he was a King of Gondor” ✧ PE22/158; VT49/27
• Q. sínen i·anda nyarnë metta ar taina andaurenya na quanta “*with this the long tale ends and my extended long day is complete” ✧ Minor-Doc/1955-CT
• Q. sí vanwa ná, Rómello vanwa, Valimar! “now lost, lost to those from the east is Valimar!” ✧ LotR/0377; RGEO/58
• Q. sí vanwa ná, Rómello vanwa, Valimar! “now lost is, [to one] from the East lost, Valimar!” ✧ RGEO/59
• Q. umbë nin i hríve nauva urra (si loa) “I have a feeling that winter will be bad (this year)” ✧ PE22/168
• Q. yá hríve menë, ringa ná “when winter comes/arrives/is with us, it is cold” ✧ VT49/23 (yá hríve tene, ringa ná)
• ᴺQ. yonávë “company, *companionship, camaraderie”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√NĀ > ná	[nā]	✧ PE17/093

Variations

• ná ✧ LotR/0377; PE17/090; PE17/093; PE22/154; PE22/167; VT42/33; VT49/09; VT49/23
• na ✧ Minor-Doc/1955-CT; PE17/057; PE17/074; PE17/074; PE17/090; PE17/162; VT43/13; VT43/30
• nā ✧ PE17/058; RGEO/59; VT49/09 (nā); VT49/28; VT49/30
• nā- ✧ PE22/166; VT49/27; VT49/28 (nā-)
• nā̀ ✧ RGEO/58
• Nā ✧ RGEO/60
• nā̆ ✧ VT49/30
• nār ✧ VT49/30 (nār)

adanadar

noun. man, one of the Fathers of Men

adanath

noun. men

dîr

noun. man, man, [N.] adult male; agental suffix

A word for “man” as a male person, attested only as an element in compounds or as (archaic?) ndir (PE17/60). This word likely refers to male individuals of all races including Elves, Men, Dwarves and so forth, much like its Quenya cognate Q. nér. This word must have been derived from the primitive subjective form ✶ndēr of the root √N(D)ER “male person”, where the ancient long ē became ī, and the initial cluster nd- became d-, though the ancient cluster would still be reflected in mutated forms, such as in i nîr “the man” rather than ✱✱i dhîr.

Conceptual Development: Perhaps the earliest precursor to this word is (archaic) G. †drio “hero, warrior” with variants driw, driodweg and driothweg, a cognate of ᴱQ. nēr (GL/22). This Gnomish word was derived from primitive ᴱ✶n’reu̯, where the initial nr- became dr-. At this early stage, the root was unstrengthened ᴱ√NERE (QL/65), as reflected in (archaic) ᴱN. nîr “hero, prince, warrior-elf” in the Early Noldorin Dictionary of the 1920s (PE13/164).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s the root became ᴹ√DER “adult male, man” of any speaking race and the derived form was N. dîr (Ety/DER). However, in this document Tolkien said:

> EN †dîr surviving chiefly in proper names (as Diriel older Dirghel [GYEL], Haldir, Brandir) and as agental ending (as ceredir “doer, maker”) ... In ordinary use EN has benn [for “man”] (properly = “husband”).

Thus in the scenario described in The Etymologies, dîr “man” was archaic and used only as an element in names or as a suffix. In ordinary speech it was replaced by N. benn, which used to mean “husband” but now meant “man”, while the word for “husband” became N. hervenn (Ety/BES). It is unlikely Tolkien imagined this exact scenario in later Sindarin, however, since the 1930s root for benn was ᴹ√BES “wed”, but by the 1960s the root for husband/wife/marry words had become √BER.

Neo-Sindarin: Since the status of N. benn is questionable given ᴹ√BES >> √BER, many Neo-Sindarin writers prefer to use S. ✱dîr as the Sindarin word for man. I am of the opinion that both dîr and benn are acceptable for “man, male person”. This is because I prefer to retain ᴹ√BES as the root for “marry, wed”, since it is the best basis for attested husband/wife words in (Neo) Sindarin.

Derivations

• ✶ndē̆r “man”
  • √N(D)ER “male (person), man”

Element in

• S. Borondir “?Steadfast-man”
• S. Brandir “*Noble Man”
• S. condir “mayor, *(lit.) chief-man”
• S. curunír “wizard, wizard, [N.] man of craft”
• S. dagnir “slayer, bane”
• S. Dírhael “*Wise Man”
• S. dírnaith “wedge-shaped battle-formation, (lit.) man-spearhead”
• S. Emeldir “Manhearted, *Manly-mother”
• S. Haldir
• S. Handir
• S. Hathaldir
• S. Hatholdir “*Axe-man”
• S. herdir “master”
• S. Lindir
• S. Othrondir “?Stronghold Man”
• S. randir “wanderer, wandering man, pilgrim” ✧ PE17/060
• S. Thorondir “*Eagle-man”

Variations

• ndir ✧ PE17/060

na-

verb. to be

Changes

• dôd → dád ✧ VT44/22
• dád → hae ✧ VT44/22
• hae → no ✧ VT44/24

Cognates

• Q. ná- “to be, to be, [ᴱQ.] exist”

Derivations

• √NĀ “be (the same as another), exist”

Element in

• S. no aer i eneth lín “hallowed be thy name” ✧ VT44/24
• ᴺS. novaer “goodbye, farewell, (lit.) be well”
• ᴺS. navaer “farewell, (lit.) be well”
• S. sí il chem en i Naugrim en ir Ellath thor den ammen “*now all (?hands) of the Dwarves and Elves will be (?against) to us” ✧ VT50/23

Variations

• dôd ✧ VT44/22 (dôd)
• dád ✧ VT44/22 (dád)
• hae ✧ VT44/22 (hae)

adan

noun. man, one of the Second People (elvish name for men)

drû

noun. wild man, Wose, Púkel-Man

In PE/11:31, an older Gnomish word drû, drui meant "wood, forest", and in PE/13:142, the early Noldorin word drú was assigned the meaning "dark". Drû pl. Drúin later came to be used for the name of the Woses, with other derivatives (Drúadan, etc.). "Wose" is actually the modernization of an Anglo-Saxon word wasa only found in the compound wudu-wasa "wild man of the woods", cf. UT/385 sq. In the drafts of the "Ride of the Rohirrim" in WR/343-346, the Woses first appeared as "the dark men of Eilenach". Though internally said to derive from drughu in their own tongue, Tolkien's choice for the Sindarin name of the Woses was apparently influenced by earlier meanings assigned to this word

Dúnadan

noun. Man of the west, Númenórean

drúadan

noun. wild man, one of the Woses

adan

man

(pl. Edain; the coll. pl. Adanath is attested). The word Adan came to be used primarily of a member of the Three Houses of the Edain, not of the mortal race of Men in general.

dîr

man

1) (adult male of any speaking race) dîr (dír-, also agentive ending -dir or -nir; with article, i nîr, hard mutation as in o ndîr), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ndîr); coll. pl. díriath. Also benn (i venn, construct ben), pl. binn (i minn). The latter is in archaic language used = "husband" (the etymological meaning). The ending -we in names may also express ”being, man, person”. 2) (mortal human as opposed to Elf) Adan (pl. Edain; the coll. pl. Adanath is attested). The word Adan came to be used primarily of a member of the Three Houses of the Edain, not of the mortal race of Men in general.

dîr

man

(dír-, also agentive ending -dir or -nir; with article, i nîr, hard mutation as in o ndîr), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ndîr); coll. pl. díriath. Also benn (i venn, construct ben), pl. binn (i minn). The latter is in archaic language used = "husband" (the etymological meaning). The ending -we in names may also express ”being, man, person”.

curunír

man of craft

(i gurunír, o churunír) (wizard), no distinct pl. form except with article (i churunír), coll. pl. ?curuníriath.

bôr

trusty man

(boron-) (i vôr, construct bor) (steadfast man, faithful vassal), pl. *b**ŷr* for older beryn, i meryn (archaic böryn, i möryn). In ”Noldorin”, the older pl. forms were berein, beren.

thalion

dauntless man

(hero), pl. thelyn. Also used as an adj. ”dauntless, steadfast, strong”. 

firion

mortal man

(pl. firyn).

rhavan

wild man

(?i thravan or ?i ravan – the lenition product of rh is uncertain), pl. rhevain (?idh revain) (WJ:219). – The following terms apparently apply to ”men” of any speaking race:

dúnadan

man of the west

(i Núnadan), pl. Dúnedain (i Ndúnedain) (WJ:378, 386).

beorn

noun. man

The shift of e to eo is strange and has no direct parallels, but compare eo from i in meord "fine rain" (< primitive mizdê). Normally final -ô becomes -â in Nandorin (see golda), but here it is simply lost instead of producing *beorna. C.f. meord the other word where we might have expected to see a final -a (in that case from -ê); it may be that final vowels are lost in words that would otherwise come to have more than two syllables. - The shift of primitive s to r in besnô > beorn may be ascribed primarily to the blending with ber(n)ô, but r from z is seen in meord < mizdê; perhaps the s of besnô first became z and then r. Such developments are common in Quenya.

ner

root. NER

nēr

noun. man, a male person

Derivations

• √N(D)ER “male (person), man” ✧ WJ/393

Derivatives

• Q. nér “man, male person, man, male person; [ᴹQ.] adult male; [ᴱQ.] husband; warrior” ✧ WJ/393

Variations

• ner ✧ PE21/75
• nĕr ✧ PE21/76
• nere/nēr ✧ WJ/393

ndē̆r

noun. man

Derivations

• √N(D)ER “male (person), man”

Derivatives

• S. dîr “man, man, [N.] adult male; agental suffix”

n(d)er

root. male (person), man

This root and ones like it were the basis for Elvish “man” words for much of Tolkien’s life. The earliest form of this root was ᴱ√NERE with derivatives like ᴱQ. ner “man, husband” and ᴱQ. nertu “strength” (QL/65). The latter had a cognate G. nert in contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon, along with a set of related “strength” words (GL/60). But Gnomish also had a set of derivatives based on the elided primitive form ᴱ✶n’reu̯ such as G. †drio “hero” and driog “valiant” (GL/30). Derivatives with an initial n- continued to appear in Early Noldorin word lists from the 1920s, such as ᴱN. †nîr “hero, prince” and ᴱN. ne(i)rion “hero” (PE13/164).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s, the base root was ᴹ√DER “adult male, man (of any race)” with strengthened variant ᴹ√NDER “bridegroom”, but with the Quenya root becoming ᴹ√NĒR “man” under the influence of ᴹ√NĪ “woman” (Ety/DER, NDER, NĒR, NĪ); from this point forward Noldorin/Sindarin derivatives began with d-, such as S./N. dîr “man”. However, in the first version of Tengwesta Qenderinwa from this same period, the primitive root is given as ᴹ√NER “man” (TQ1: PE18/35). On the other hand in Quendian & Common Eldarin Verbal Structure, also from the late 1930s, the root was given as ᴹ√(N)DER “man, male”, again as a strengthening of ᴹ√DER (EVS1: PE22/98).

Starting in the 1950s, Tolkien was more consistent in making the base root √NER with strengthened form √NDER. Tolkien gave √NDER/NER “male person” in Common Eldarin: Verb Structure (EVS2: PE22/133) and Common Eldarin: Noun Structure (PE21/70), both from the early 1950s. In the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 the base root was √NERE, though Tolkien clarified that the base root as referred more specifically to “physical strength and valour” (WJ/393). The root is given as √NER “man, male” in notes from the late 1960s (VT47/33).

Derivatives

• Ad. narû “man, male”
• ✶ndē̆r “man”
  • S. dîr “man, man, [N.] adult male; agental suffix”
• ✶nēr “man, a male person” ✧ WJ/393
  • Q. nér “man, male person, man, male person; [ᴹQ.] adult male; [ᴱQ.] husband; warrior” ✧ WJ/393
• ✶Neresā “she that has manlike valour or strength” ✧ WJ/416
  • Q. Nessa “she that has manlike valour or strength” ✧ WJ/416
• Q. nercë “little man” ✧ VT47/33
• Q. nerdo “large, strong man” ✧ VT47/33

Variations

• ner ✧ PE21/70
• nder ✧ PE21/70
• NDER ✧ PE22/133
• NER ✧ PE22/133; VT47/33; WJ/416
• NERE ✧ WJ/393

forodrim

noun. Northmen

forodwaith

noun. Northmen

forodweith

noun. Northmen

benn

noun. man, male

dîr

noun. man, referring to an adult male (elf, mortal, or of any other speaking race)

forodwaith

noun. the lands of the North

forodweith

noun. the lands of the North