sir-

verb. flow

sir- (1) vb. "flow" (SIR)

sir-

verb. flow

sir

hither

sir (2), also sira, adv. "hither" (primitive ¤sida, ¤sidā) (VT49:18)

sirya-

verb. to flow, to flow [smoothly]

This verb first appeared in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 as an example of ya-formative half-strong verb ᴹQ. siry(a)- “flow” (PE22/114), though its primitive form ᴹ✶siryă “flow smoothly” appeared a bit earlier in Quendian & Common Eldarin Verbal Structure (EVS1) from the late 1940s (PE22/98). This verb may have replaced the basic verb ᴹQ. sir- “flow” from The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/SIR), but see Conceptual Development below.

The verb sirya- continued to appear [albiet without translation] as an example of half-strong verb conjugation in Tolkien’s writings in the 1960s with a past form sirinye (PE17/77; PE22/164). In one place he conjugated it as a weak verb from primitive ✱siryā with weak past siryane (PE22/156), but this may have been a transient or experimental idea.

Conceptual Development: QVS from 1948 has a present-tense form síra as part of the sentence númen Endorello isse sí Vaia síra “westward of Middle-earth where now Ocean flows” (PE22/126). It is not entirely clear which verb it is the present tense for. It looks like the present tense of the basic verb ᴹQ. sir- “flow” from the 1930s, but could have been intended to be the present of the sirya- “flow” instead, since that is the verb for “flow” everywhere else in QVS.

Based on the discussion of half-strong verbs QVS, I would expected the present tense of sirya- to be the long imperfect ✱siryalya; compare the present imperfect taltalya “am slipping down” for half-strong talta- (PE22/115). Such long imperfects were used for the present tense of verbs with otherwise defective presents, the main example being a-verbs such as fara- “hunt” whose present was faralya “is hunting” (PE22/116). But Tolkien also said “some verbs make a strong present, so ōla-, is growing [from ola-]”. Thus síra might be an example of such a strong present for half-strong sirya.

Neo-Quenya: For purpose of Neo-Quenya, I would assume sirya- was the most common Quenya verb for “to flow”, conjugated as a ya-formative half-strong verb. I would further assume that, like in EVS1, sirya- has the implied meaning of “flow [smoothly]”. However, I would assume ᴹQ. sir- is a less commonly used verb for “flow”, especially applicable when flows are turbulent or not continuous, as in the “the Ocean is flowing [síra]” in the sentence given above. For example, Helge Fauskanger used sir- “flow” in his NQNT (NQNT).

sir(a)

adverb. hither

An (archaic?) word for “hither” appearing in a list of demonstratives from 1968, based on primitive ✶sidā̆ with the ancient allative suffix ✶-da (VT49/18).

lutta-

verb. flow, float

lutta- vb. "flow, float" (LT1:249)

lutu-

verb. flow, float

lutu- vb. "flow, float" (LT1:249)

simen

hither

simen adv. "hither" (VT49:33), símen "here" (FS; cf. sinomë in EO). Compare tamen.

simen

adverb. hither

A word for “hither” appearing in a list of demonstratives from 1969 (VT49/33), a combination of si “this” and men “way”. The form sîmen appeared Late Notes on Verb Structure (LVS) from 1969 next to sinomë, so that context it might have meant “✱here, in this place”.

sirya

verb. flow

sir

root. flow

The root √SIR and similar roots meant “flow” for most of Tolkien’s life. The earliest form of this root was ᴱ√SIŘI [SIÐI] “flow” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with variant sini and derived forms like ᴱQ. sindi “river” and ᴱQ. síre “stream” (QL/84). The latter word became “river” in Tolkien’s later writings, and words appearing in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon like G. sîr “river” and G. siriol “flowing” (GL/67-68) rather than ✱✱sidh- indicate Tolkien very early revised the root to ✱ᴱ√SIRI. Indeed, the root was ᴹ√SIR “flow” in The Etymologies of the 1930s, and the root appeared with this form and essential meaning several times in Tolkien’s later writings (PE22/127, 135).

sirya-

verb. to flow, to flow [smoothly]

sidā̆

adverb. hither

siria-

verb. to flow

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s appearing as its Noldorin-style infinitive sirio “flow”, derived from ON. sirya- under the root ᴹ√SIR “flow” (Ety/SIR). In this document, its Quenya equivalent was ᴹQ. sir- “flow” (Ety/SIR), but by 1948 Tolkien had introduced ᴹQ. sirya- “flow” as well (PE22/114).

siria-

verb. to flow

rhib-

verb. to flow like a (torrent ?)

The reading of the gloss is uncertain

rib-

verb. to flow like a (torrent ?)

The reading of the gloss is uncertain

nev

hither

(adj. pref.) nev- (near, on this side). Also used as a preposition nef ”on this side of”.

nev

hither

(near, on this side). Also used as a preposition nef ”on this side of”.

rimma

flow like a torrent

(i rimma, idh rimmar)

siria

flow

(vb.) siria- (i hiria, i siriar).

siria

flow

(i hiria, i siriar).