sapthân

noun. wise man, wizard

A noun translated “wise man, wizard” given as an example of the phonetic development of primitive aspirates in contact with stops (SD/421). According to Tolkien, it was pronounced [safθān], indicating that the combination pth would be pronounced as a voiceless labial fricative [f] followed by a voiceless dental fricative [θ]. Given the phonetic rules of Adûnaic, most voiceless stops would be pronounced as fricatives before another fricative in Classical Adûnaic.

Derivations

• ✶Ad. saphdān “wise man, wizard” ✧ SD/421

Elements

Word	Gloss
saphad-	“to understand”
-ân	“agental suffix”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶Ad. saphdān > sapthān	[sapʰdān] > [sapʰtʰān] > [sapʰθān] > [safθān]	✧ SD/421

Variations

• sapthān ✧ SD/421