sris

root. snow

An apparently verbal root as √SRIS “snow” appearing in etymological notes from around 1959 with derivatives like Q. hrisse “fall of snow” and Q. hríza “it is snowing”; it replaced a deleted root √SRITH “snow” (PE17/168).

lossē

noun. snow

srith

root. snow

(g)los

root. snow, whiteness

In Tolkien’s writing the root √(G)LOS is mostly used for “snow” but also for “white”. The earliest indications of this root are words from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s such as G. gloss “white, clear white”, G. glost “whiteness” and (possibly) G. glui “snow” (GL/40), indicating an (unattested) early root ✱ᴱ√LOSO of similar meaning. The (plural) adjective ᴱQ. losse “white” appears in the ᴱQ. Oilima Markirya poem of the late 1920s (MC/213), indicating this root spread to other branches of the Elvish languages.

The first clear mention of this root is in The Etymologies of the 1930s where ᴹ√GOLOS is given as the basis for ᴹQ. olos(se) and N. gloss “snow, fallen snow” (Ety/GOLÓS). In later writings the root √LOS appears several times as the basis for snow words (PE17/26, 69, 160-161; RGEO/61). The last mention of this root is in notes on The Rivers and Beacon-hills of Gondor from 1967-69, where Tolkien gave the root as √(G)LOS with the underlying meaning “white”, with two distinct Sindarin derivatives S. loss “snow” [noun] and S. gloss “snow white” [adj.] (VT42/18). Given this l/gl variation in Sindarin, likely the strengthened form √GLOS was a sporadic, Sindarin-only innovation.

lossĭ

adjective. snowy, snow-white

ringi

root. cold

Tolkien used very similar forms for Elvish words for “cold” for all of his life. The earliest iteration of this root was unglossed ᴱ√RIŊI in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like ᴱQ. rin (ring-) “dew” and ᴱQ. ringa “damp, cold, chilly” (QL/80). The root had similar derivatives in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon such as G. rî “coolness, cool” and G. ring “cool, cold” (GL/65). In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien gave the root {ᴹ√RINGĀ >>} ᴹ√RINGI “cold” with derivatives like ᴹQ. ringe/N. rhing “cold” (Ety/RINGI; EtyAC/RINGI). Primitive forms ✶riñgi “chill” and ✶riñgā appeared in Common Eldarin: Noun Structure from the early 1950s (PE21/80), and Christopher Tolkien mentioned √ring as the basis for cold words in the Silmarillion Appendix (SA/ring).

ros-

verb. to rain

rossētā-

verb. to rain

tār(a)-ninqui-tilde

place name. High White Peak

Correction from: discord.com

loss

noun. snow

The usual Sindarin word for “snow” (Let/278; PE17/161; RGEO/62), especially fallen and long-lying snow (VT42/18), derived from primitive ✶lossē (PE17/161) based on the root √(G)LOS (PE17/26; RGEO/62). It sometimes appeared in a shorter form los (PE17/26, 161). See the entry on [s] for a discussion of these long vs. short variations; for purposes of Neo-Sindarin loss is probably preferable.

Conceptual Development: Perhaps the earliest iteration of this word was G. glui “snow” from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, likely related to nearby words like G. gloss “white” (GL/40). In The Etymologies of the 1930s, N. gloss from the root ᴹ√GOLOS was both noun “snow” and adjective “snow-white” (Ety/GOLÓS), but in later writing Tolkien split these into S loss “snow” (see above) and S. gloss “(dazzling) white” (RGEO/62; VT42/18).

los

snow

{ŏ}_ n. _snow. Q. losse. >> glos, glosui, loss, Loss(h)oth

loss

noun. snow

_ n. _snow. Q. losse. >> glos, glosui, los, Loss(h)oth

los

noun. snow

aeglos

proper name. Snow-point

Spear of Gil-galad (S/294), translated “Snow-point” (SI/Aeglos), a compound of aeg “point” and loss “snow” (SA/los). In editions of The Lord of the Rings prior to 2005, this name was spelled Aiglos (RC/231), but Tolkien commented that this was only a variant spelling for English speakers who would have difficulty distinguishing [ae] and [ai] (VT42/11). The word aeglos was also the Sindarin name for a plant, translated “snowthorn”.

aeglos

noun. icicle, (lit.) snow-point; snowthorn (a plant)

A species of plant mentioned in one version of the Narn i Chîn Húrin (UT/99), translated “snowthorn” and described as “like furze (gorse), but larger, and with white flowers” (UT/148 note #14). Aeglos was also the name of the spear of Gil-galad, translated as “Icicle” in The Lord of the Rings index (LotRI/Aeglos); it is possible this word can be used for ordinary icicles as well. In the Silmarillion index, it was translated more literally as “Snow-point” (SA/Aeglos), a combination of aeg “sharp” and loss “snow”.

Conceptual Development: G. helfingl or helfin(n) was the word for “icicle” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s (GL/48), probably a combination of ᴱ√HELE “freeze” with G. fingl “tress”.

amon uilos

place name. Hill of Ever-snow

The Sindarin name of the mountain Q. Oiolossë (S/37). The first element is amon “hill” and the second element Uilos “Ever-snow” is the cognate of its Quenya name.

Conceptual Development: The earliest form of this name was N. Amon Uilas with an a corresponding to earlier ᴹQ. Ialasse (SM/81), but it was revised to N. Amon Uilos in Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s (LR/210). This form of the name also appeared in The Etymologies (Ety/OY).

nimphelos

proper name. Pale ?Snow

The great pearl given as a reward to the Lord of the Dwarves of Belegost (S/92), elsewhere described as the name of a plant (PE17/168). Its initial element is the archaic form †nimp “pale, pallid” (SA/nim, PE17/168). David Salo proposed that the entire name was archaic in form, and that the final element was loss “snow” (GS/364).

uilos

place name. Ever-snow

Sindarin name for Mount Q. Oiolossë (PE17/26), usually appearing in the fuller name Amon Uilos. It is a combination of ui “ever” and loss “snow”.

Conceptual Development: In The Etymologies from the 1930s, this name first appeared as (rejected) N. Guilos from the root ᴹ√GEY (Ety/GEY), revised to Uiloss from the root ᴹ√EY (Ety/EY) and finally N. Uilos from the root ᴹ√OY (Ety/OY), with essentially the same derivation as its later Sindarin name.

Amon Uilo

noun. mount of ever-white snow

amon (“hill, steep-sided mount”), #ui (stem of uireb “eternal”) + loss (“snow”) The final s in loss is dropped at the end of a polysyllable [HKF].

Lossoth

the unfriendly Northern folk who lived in the snow

_ pl2. n. _the unfriendly Northern folk who lived in the snow. >> hoth

uilos

noun. ever-white snow

#ui (stem of uireb “eternal”) + loss (“snow”) Final s in loss is dropped at the end of a polysyllable [HKF].

glos

adjective. snow white

_ adj. _snow white. Q. losse. >> glosui, los

glosui

adjective. snow white

_ adj. _snow white. Q. lossea. >> glosui, los

gloss

adjective. (dazzling) white, (dazzling) white, [N.] snow-white, [G.] clear white; [N.] snow

glosui

adjective. snow white

Ras Arphain

noun. high snow peak

ras (“horn, mountain peak”), ar(a) (here: “high”) + phain (“white”) #The second element is an alternative spelling of fain.

gloss

adjective. snow-white, dazzling-white

loss

noun. snow (especially fallen or long-lying snow)

uilos

noun/adjective. always white, ever white as snow

lossen

adjective. snowy

A word for “snowy” mentioned in passing in The Road Goes Ever On, adjectival form of S. loss “snow” (RGEO/62).

lossen

adjective. snowy

loss

snow

(fallen snow) loss (construct los; pl. lyss if there is a pl.) (RGEO:61-62, Letters:278, VT42:18) (Note: homophones mean ”flower” [more commonly loth] and ”wilderness”.).

loss

snow

(construct los; pl. lyss if there is a pl.) (RGEO:61-62, Letters:278, VT42:18) (Note: homophones mean ”flower” [more commonly loth] and ”wilderness”.).

glosta-

verb. to snow

A neologism for “to snow” coined by Fiona Jallings, based on the root √(G)LOS “snow, whiteness”.

fanuilos

proper name. Bright (Angelic) Figure upon Uilos

A title of Elbereth appearing in the poem A Elbereth Gilthoniel (LotR/238) and Sam’s related invocation for her aid (LotR/729). This name is a combination of the elements fân “cloud; bright thing”, ui “ever” and loss “snow, snow-white”.

Possible Etymology: In his notes in the song-cycle The Road Goes Ever On, Tolkien translated the name as “bright spirit clothed in ever-white” (RGEO/63), but elsewhere his translation referred to the mountain Uilos: “Figure (bright and majestic) upon Uilos” (PE17/26) or to snow: “Bright angelic figure ever-white (as snow)” (PE17/180). No doubt the final element of this name at least alluded to the snowy mountain of Valinor where Elbereth made her home.

The initial element fân is similarly complicated to translate. In ordinary Sindarin speech the word had come to mean “cloud”, but its meaning was also influenced by Q. fana “(radiant) figure”, a term used for the bodily forms assumed by the Valar (RGEO/66, PE/173-6). It is this second meaning that applies to this name.

nítha-

verb. to snow, hail, rain

Lossoth

snow-men

(a northern people living near the bay of Forochel) Lossoth (a coll. pl.)

gloss

white as snow, dazzling white

(in compounds -los), lenited ’loss; pl. glyss.

gloss

white as snow, dazzling white

(in compounds -los), lenited ’loss; pl. glyss.  

gloss

white as snow, dazzling white

gloss (in compounds -los), lenited loss; pl. glyss.

gloss

white as snow, dazzling white

gloss (in compounds -los), lenited loss; pl. glyss.

loss

fallen snow

(construct los; pl. lyss if there is a pl.) (RGEO:61-62, Letters:278, VT42:18) (Note: homophones mean ”flower” [more commonly loth] and ”wilderness”.)

loss

fallen snow

loss (construct los; pl. lyss if there is a pl.) (RGEO:61-62, Letters:278, VT42:18) (Note: homophones mean ”flower” [more commonly loth] and ”wilderness”.)

lossoth

snow-men

(a coll. pl.)

uilos

always snow-white

(name of Mount Taniquetil, or Oiolossë)

uilos

always snow-white

Uilos (name of Mount Taniquetil, or Oiolossë)

nínim

snowdrop

(”white tear”), no distinct pl. form; coll. pl. nínimmath. – The niphredil seems to be a flower similar to the snowdrop (no distinct pl. form; coll. pl. niphrediliath)

lossen

snowy

(pl. lessin, for archaic lössin). Adj.

lossen

snowy

lossen (pl. lessin, for archaic lössin). Adj.

nim

adjective. white

nich

noun. frost

A neologism for “frost”, cognate of Q. nixë of the same meaning (WJ/417), that assumes a phonetic development similar to that of S. ach vs. Q. akse (axë) “neck” (PE17/92); see the entry on how [[os|[p], [t], [k] spirantalized before [s]]] in (Old) Sindarin.

edlothia-

verb. to blossom, flower

The sentence from WR/293 is hardly legible and is not translated, but this word is however a plausible form

fain

noun/adjective. white

fain

noun/adjective. cloud

glawar

blossom

n. (golden) blossom. Q. loar, lávar.

glân

adjective. white, [bright shining] white; [N.] clear; [G.] pure, †bright; [ᴱN.] clean

laer

noun. summer

lúth

noun. blossom

_ n. Bot. _blossom, inflorescence. >> Lúthien

nim

white

_adj. _white. >> Nimbrethil

nim

white

_adj. _white (usual word). >> nimp, nimras

ring

adjective. cold

silivren

adjective. (white) glittering

uilos

noun/adjective. a small white everlasting flower also called simbelmynë or "evermind"

dannen

fallen

dannen (lenited dhannen, pl. dennin); see FALL. Notice the homophone dannen ”ebb, low tide”, which however has different mutations.

dannen

fallen

(lenited dhannen, pl. dennin); see

dannen

fall

”ebb, low tide”, which however has different mutations.

edlothia

blossom

(verb) #edlothia- (i edlothia, in edlothiar) (flower);

edlothia

blossom

(i edlothia, in edlothiar) (flower);

edlothiad

blossoming

(flowering), pl. edlothiaid if there is a pl.

faen

white

(radiant). No distinct pl. form.

fain

white

; no distinct pl. form.

glân

white

1. glân (clear), lenited lân, pl. glain. (UT:390, VT45:13). Note: a homophone means ”hem, border”. 2) nimp (nim-) (pale); no distinct pl. form. 3) faen (radiant). No distinct pl. form. 4) fain; no distinct pl. form.

glân

white

(clear), lenited ’lân, pl. glain. (UT:390, VT45:13). Note: a homophone means ”hem, border”.

goloth

flower

(i ’oloth) (collection of flowers), pl. gelyth (i ngelyth = i ñelyth). Archaic pl. gölyth. Also in the form gwaloth (i ’waloth), pl. gwelyth (in gwelyth). Also goloth.

helch

bitterly cold

(lenited chelch; pl. hilch);

hell

9j¸$ noun. frost

laer

summer

laer (no distinct pl. form). Note: a homophone means ”song”.

laer

summer

(no distinct pl. form). Note:  a homophone means ”song”.

loth

blossom

loth (see

loth

blossom

(see

nimp

white

(nim-) (pale); no distinct pl. form.

rim

cold pool/lake

; no distinct pl. form except with article (idh rim), coll. pl. rimmath. Note: a homophone means ”crowd, great number, host”.

ring

cold

(adj.) ring (no distinct pl. form),

ring

cold

(no distinct pl. form)

silivren

glittering white

(lenited hilivren; pl. *silivrin**). *Verb

ui

always

ui (ever); also used as adj. ”everlasting, eternal”.

ui

always

(ever); also used as adj. ”everlasting, eternal”.

uil-

verb. to rain

fáwë

snow

fáwë vb. "snow" (GL:35; rather lossë in Tolkien's later Quenya)

lossë

snow

lossë (1) noun "snow" or adj. "snow-white" (SA:los, MC:213, VT42:18); losselië noun"white people" (MC:216, PE16:96)

niquë

snow

niquë (2) ("q")noun "snow" (NIK-W)

hrissë

noun. fall of snow

A word for “fall of snow” appearing beside deleted {hritse “fall”} in notes from around 1959, derived from the root √SRIS “snow” (PE17/168). Note that this word is for a “snow fall”, basically a noun form of the verb †hríza “it is snowing” (ᴺQ. hrísa). The word for the “snow” itself, especially after it is already fallen, is lossë.

hristil

noun. snow (?peak)

A word for a “snow peak” in notes from around 1959, though the second word of the gloss is unclear (PE17/168). Its initial element is the root √SRIS “snow”, and its second element is likely √TIL “point”.

hriz-

verb. to snow

In notes written around 1959, Tolkien experimented with various roots for impersonal “snow” verbs, first giving the aorist form of a derived verb Q. hrisya “it snows” < hriþya from the root √SRITH, then the present tense form of a basic verb Q. hríza “it is snowing” from the root √SRIS (PE17/168).

Neo-Quenya: The basic verb form †hriz- is likely archaic, since z usually became r in Quenya’s phonetic development. In this case, though, I suspect the medial z dissimilated back to s after the hr, since Quenya disliked repeated r’s (PE19/73-74). This occurred, for example, with the verb ras- “stick out” < †raz- < √RAS.

Thus, I would use modern Quenya hrise “[it] snows”, hrinse “[it] snowed”, ihrísie “[it] has snowed”. Since this is an impersonal verb, no explicit subject is required.

lossë

noun/adjective. snow, fallen snow; snow-white, snowy

The general Quenya word for “snow” derived from the root √(G)LOS (PE17/26; VT42/18), more specifically “fallen snow” (RGEO/61), as opposed to a “snow fall” or “✱falling snow” which is hrissë (PE17/168). At various points Tolkien said this word could also be used as an adjective “snowy, snow-white” (RGEO/61; PE17/161), but I would do so only in poetry or in compounds. For more ordinary speech, I would use the adjective form lossëa for clarity (PE17/71, 161; VT42/18). Strictly speaking, the noun and adjective forms of lossë have distinct primitive origins: ✶lossē “snow” vs. ✶lossĭ “snowy, snow-white” (PE17/161), so the stem form of the adjective would be lossi-.

Conceptual Development: In The Etymologies of the 1930s there was a word ᴹQ. olosse “snow, fallen snow” derived from the root ᴹ√GOLOS; Tolkien modified the entry to mark this form as poetic (†) and gave it a variant olos (Ety/GOLÓS).

niqu-

verb. to be chill, cold, freeze (of weather), snow

A verb in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 glossed “be chill, cold (of weather)” (WJ/417). It also appeared in some etymological notes from around 1959 as a derivative of the root √NIK(W) and with the glosses “to snow, it is chill, it freezes” (PE17/168). In this 1959 note Tolkien gave several inflected forms making it clear nicu- was an impersonal verb: nīqua “it is freezing”, nicune “it snowed, froze”.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I’d mostly use nicu- as an impersonal verb for cold weather: nique “it is cold, it is freezing”. For the freezing of water or similar substances, I’d use ᴺQ. hel-. For “to snow” I’d use ᴺQ. hris-, a modernization of archaic †hriz-.

niquis

noun. snowflake, ice-flake; petal (loose) of a white flower; frost-patterns, snowflake, ice-flake; petal (loose) of a white flower; frost-patterns, [ᴱQ.] snow

A noun in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 glossed “frost-patterns” (WJ/417). It also appeared in some etymological notes from around 1959 with the stem forms niquiss- or niquits-, where it was derived from the root √NIK(W) (PE17/168). In those 1959 notes it was glossed “ice-flake or snowflake - also petal (loose) of a white flower”. In both documents, it had a variant form niquessë of similar meaning, where the second element was modified by association with quessë “feather”, thus literally “chill feather” (WJ/417; PE17/168).

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. niqis (niqiss-) “snow” under the early root ᴱ√NIQI “white” (QL/66).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I’d mostly use niquis(s-) for “snowflake” or “ice-flake”, and metaphorically for the loose petal of a white flower. I’d use the variant niquessë for “frost pattern” and more loosely for “snowflake”. For “frost” itself I’d use nixë. This is mainly to help differentiate these otherwise very similar words.

oiolossë

place name. Ever (Snow) White

Another name for Taniquetil (LotR/377, S/37) variously translated as “Everlasting Whiteness”, “Ever-snow”, “Ever-white” or “Ever-snow-white”. This name is a compound of oi(o) “ever” and lossë “snow, snow-white” (RGEO/61).

Conceptual Development: In Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s, this name first appeared as ᴹQ. Ialasse “Everlasting Whiteness” (SM/81). A similar form ᴹQ. Iolosse appeared in The Etymologies (Ety/EY, GEY) and possibly also in the Silmarillion texts (LR/210), but it was rejected and replaced by its final form ᴹQ. Oiolosse (Ety/OY, LR/209).

Iolossë

everlasting snow

[Iolossë] place-name "Everlasting Snow" = Taniquetil (GEY, EY; changed to Oiolossë)

fauta-

verb. to snow

fauta- vb. *"to snow" (actually glossed fauta = "it snows") (GL:35)

hrissë

fall of snow

hrissë noun "fall of snow" (PE17:168), possibly also the past tense of #hriz-, q.v.

hristil

snow [?peak]

hristil noun "snow [?peak]" (PE17:168)

hriz-

verb. to snow

#hriz- vb. "to snow", impersonal, given in the form hríza "it is snowing". Normally z would turn to r in Exilic Quenya, but since two r's close to one another were disliked, it may be that hriz- became *hris- instead (compare razë "sticks out" becoming rasë instead of **rarë, PE19:73) Past tense hrinsë (with s from the original root SRIS) and another form which the editor tentatively reads as hrissë (the development ns > ss is regular). (PE17:168)

is

light snow

is noun "light snow" (LT1:256)

lossëa

snow-white

lossëa adj. "snow-white" (so in VT42:18; this would be an adjective derived from lossë "snow", but elsewhere, Tolkien implies that lossë itself can also be used as an adjective "snow-white"; see lossë #1 above)

lossëa

adjective. snowy, (snow) white

A word for “snowy” or “snow-white”, an adjective form of lossë “snow” (PE17/161; VT42/18). In one place it was simply glossed “white” (PE17/71), though in most places the generic Quenya word for “white” is ninquë.

Conceptual Development: In some poems from written around 1930, Tolkien used similar words for “white” in a couple places, for example in the phrase ᴱQ. ondoli losse karkane “the white rocks snarling” from the Oilima Markirya poem (MC/213); here the word for “white” might be the plural of an adjective ᴱQ. lossa as suggested by Gilson, Welden and Hostetter (PE16/84). An element losse “white” also appears in the phrase ᴱQ. losselie telerinwa “the white people of the shores of Elfland” from the Nieninqe poem (MC/216). However, for this most part in the earliest period, losse was use for “flower” words; see that entry for discussion.

nicu-

verb. be chill, cold (of weather); to snow, it is cold, it freezes

nicu- ("k")vb. "be chill, cold (of weather); to snow, it is cold, it freezes" (WJ:417, PE17:168): 3rd sg. aorist niquë (q.v.) "it snows or freezes", present níqua "it is freezing", pa.t. nicunë "it snowed, froze" (PE17:168)

níquetil

snow peak

níquetil noun "snow peak" (PE17:168), stem probably *níquetild-, cf. Taniquetil, q.v.

olos

snow, fallen snow

†olos (2) noun "snow, fallen snow" (prob. oloss-, cf. the longer form olossë below; this form should be preferred since olos also = "dream, vision") (GOLOS)

olossë

snow, fallen snow

†olossë noun "snow, fallen snow" (GOLÓS, LOT[H])

nixë

noun. frost; ice-flake or snow-flake

A noun in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 glossed “frost” (WJ/417). It also appeared in some etymological notes from around 1959 as a variant of niquis “ice-flake or snowflake” under the root √NIK(W) (PE17/168).

Conceptual Development: The word for “frost” was ᴹQ. helor in the Declension of Nouns of the early 1930s and ᴹQ. helle in The Etymologies of the mid-to-late 1930s, both based on the short root ᴹ√KHEL “freeze” (Ety/KHEL). In The Etymologies Tolkien deleted this short root and its derivatives, retaining only longer ᴹ√KHELEK, and in later writings Tolkien seems to have decided “frost” was based on √NIK(W) instead.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I’d limit nixë to “frost” and use niquis for “snowflake” to help differentiate the two words.

hrisya-

verb. to snow (impersonal)

niquë

noun. cold, cold; [ᴹQ.] snow

nicu-

verb. to be chill, cold, freeze (of weather), snow

niquis

frost-patterns; ice-flake or snowflake also petal (loose) of a white flower

niquis noun "frost-patterns; ice-flake or snowflake also petal (loose) of a white flower" (stem niquits- or niquiss-), also niquessë by association with quessë "feather" (WJ:417, PE17:168). In early "Qenya", the gloss was simply "snow" (LT1:266).

hwarrissë

noun. blizzard, (lit.) blowing fall of snow

A neologism coined by Luinyelle posted on 2023-11-04 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), a combination of hwá “violent wind” and hrissë “fall of snow”.

hris-

verb. to snow

tiquilin

noun. thaw, melting snow, slush

Taniquetil

high white horn

Taniquetil (Taniquetild-), place-name: the highest of the mountains of Valinor, upon which were the mansions of Manwë and Varda. Properly, this name refers to the topmost peak only, the whole mountain being called Oiolossë (SA:til). The Etymologies has Taniquetil, Taniquetildë ("q") (Ta-niqe-til) ("g.sg." Taniquetilden, in LotR-style Quenya this is the dative singular) "High White Horn" (NIK-W, TIL, TA/TA3, OY). Variant Taníquetil with a long í, translated "high-snow-peak"(PE17:26, 168).

hlar-

verb. hear

hlar- verb "hear", future tense hlaruva "shall hear" in Markirya. Since the original root is SLAS, this verb may have the past tense *hlassë (for slansē) in more classical forms of Quenya, perhaps re-formed as *hlarnë (or *hlarrë, for hlazze) in spoken Noldorin Quenya. Compare #hriz- "snow" (root SRIS) with past tense hrinsë/hrissë, as well as Tolkien's remarks in PE19:99.

lairë

summer

lairë (1) noun "summer" (Letters:283, VT45:26), in the calendar of Imladris a precisely defined period of 72 days, but also used without any exact definition (Appendix D). Oiolairë "Eversummer", name of a tree (UT:167), see also Coron Oiolairë. Lairelossë noun *"Summer-snow", name of a tree (UT:167), perhaps with white flowers.

lossë

blossom

lossë (2) noun "blossom" ("usually, owing to association with olosse snow, only used of white blossom") (LOT(H) )

taniquetil

place name. High White Peak

Tallest mountain in the world, where Manwë and Varda made their home (S/26). The name was adapted from its Valarin name of unknown meaning (PE17/168, 186), perhaps Val. Dahanigwishtilgūn (WJ/417). The Valarin name was altered to give it meaning as Quenya word. In Ancient Quenya, the name became ✶tār(a)-ninqui-tilde “High White Peak” (PE17/186). Taniquetil was thereafter interpreted as a compound of tar- (ta-) “high”, ninquë “white” (or niquë “cold, snow”) and tildë “point”, once its true origin was obscured.

Conceptual Development: This name dates back to the earliest Lost Tales (LT1/58), and ᴱQ. Taniqetil “Lofty Snowcap” appeared in the Qenya Lexicon where it was a compound of ᴱQ. tá “high” and ᴱQ. niqetil “snow cap” (QL/66, 86; LT1A/Taniquetil). ᴹQ. Taniqetil “High White Horn” appeared in The Etymologies from the 1930s as a compound of ᴹ✶tāna “✱high” (Ety/TĀ), ᴹQ. ninqe “white” (Ety/NIK-W) and ᴹQ. tilde “horn” (Ety/TIL). The concept of the Valarin origin of this name did not emerge until the 1950-60s (PE17/168, 186; WJ/416-7).

In The Etymologies, Tolkien indicated that its (ᴹQ) genitive form was Taniqetilden (Ety/TIL, EtyAC/TIL), so that its stem form would be Taniqetild-, which was also its stem form in the Qenya Lexicon (QL/87). In the 1950s, Tolkien gave its ancient form as ✶tār(a)-ninqui-tilde (PE17/186), further supporting a stem-form of Taniquetild-.

nixë

frost

nixë noun "frost" (WJ:417); previously described as a synonym of niquis "ice-flake or snowflake", q.v. (PE17:168)

lairë

noun. summer

fanoiolossë

 proper name. bright (angelic) figure upon uilos

An adaptation of the Sindarin title for Varda, Fanuilos.

Ellairë

summer

Ellairë alternative name of June (PM:135); evidently incorporating lairë "summer"; the el- part is probably an assimilated form of er-, an element meaning one or first, June being the first summer month.

fána

white

fána, fánë (1) adj. "white" (Markirya - fánë as a sg. form in may be a misreading). Compare fanya.

fána

adjective. white, white; [ᴹQ.] cloud

@@@ as suggested by Helge Fauskanger, the form fánë “white” in the Markirya poem may be a slip or misreading

fánë

adjective. white

hlasta-/lasta-

verb. hear

illumë

always

illumë adv. "always" (VT44:9)

laire

noun. summer

ninquë

white, chill, cold, palid

ninquë adj. "white, chill, cold, palid" (WJ:417, SA:nim, PE17:168, NIK-W - spelt "ninqe" in Etym and in LT1:266, MC:213, MC:220, GL:60), pl. ninqui in Markirya. Compounded in Ninquelótë noun "White-Flower" (SA:nim), = Sindarin Nimloth, the White Tree of Númenor; ninqueruvissë ("q") "white-horse-on" _(MC:216; this is "Qenya", read _ninqueroccossë or *ninquiroccossë in LotR-style Quenya). Normally ninquë would be expected to have the stem-form ninqui-, given the primitive form ¤ninkwi; Ninquelótë rather than *Ninquilótë must be seen as an analogical form.

ringa

cold

ringa adj. "cold" (Markirya); the Etymologies gives ringë (RINGI), but it seems that ringa is to be preferred (cf. Ringarë below). Yá hrívë tenë, ringa ná "when winter comes, it is cold" (VT49:23). According to VT46:11, Tolkien originally used the form ringa in Etym as well; later he would restore it. - In early "Qenya", ringa is glossed "damp, cold, chilly" (LT1:265)

ringa

adjective. cold, cold, [ᴱQ.] chilly; damp

ringë

cold

ringë adj. "cold", also ringa (which form is to be preferred; cf. Ringarë in LotR). In the Etymologies as printed in LR, ringë is also given as a noun "cold pool or lake (in mountains)", but according to VT46:11 this noun should read ringwë. (RINGI)

ten-

verb. hear

ten- (4) vb. "hear", future tense tenuva (MC:213; in Tolkien's later Quenya, "hear" is hlar-)

ul-

verb. to rain

An impersonal verb for “rain” attested only in its future form uluva “it is going to rain, it will rain” (PE22/167). Its aorist form is probably ✱ule “[it] rains”, its past form probably ✱úle “[it] rained”, and its perfect ✱úlie “[it] has rained”; as an impersonal verb, no explicit subject is required in Quenya. It is clearly derived from the root √UL “pour (out), flow” (WJ/400; PE17/168) and it seems that its primitive form originally meant “pour” (PE22/133), but elsewhere Tolkien gave the Quenya verb for “pour, flow” as ulya- (Ety/ULU).

Conceptual Development: In the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, the verb for “it rains” was (3rd-singular) ᴱQ. uqin from the early root ᴱ√UQU “wet” (QL/98). This verb reappeared as uqe or úqe “it rains” in the Early Qenya Grammar of the 1920s, having become an impersonal verb (PE14/56, 85). Another impersonal verb for “to rain” appeared in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948: ᴹQ. kelya “(it) sends running down = it rains” from the root √KEL (PE22/114). The form uluva mentioned above appeared in Late Notes on Verbs from 1969 (PE22/167).

Neo-Eldarin: Based on attested forms I would limit ul- for “rain” as an impersonal verb only, and for “pour” would use ulya-. Interestingly, the Noldorin word for “rain” is eil [ᴺS. uil] from ᴹ✶ulyā-, so I think Quenya and Sindarin/Noldorin made different choices for which ancient verb became impersonal “rain”.

vora

always

vora, vorë adv. "always"; see voro

yelwa

cold

yelwa (2) adj. "cold" (LT1:260 this "Qenya" word is apparently obsoleted by # 1 above. In LotR-style Quenya, the regular term for "cold" seems to be ringa.)

gloss

noun/adjective. snow, snow-white

guilos

place name. ever-snow

uilos

place name. Everlasting Snow

gloss

adjective. snow-white, dazzling-white

brassen

adjective. white-hot

dannen

noun. fallen

dannen

adjective. fallen

The passive participle of the verb N. dant- “fall” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√DA(N)T (Ety/DAT).

Neo-Sindarin: The later Sindarin form of the verb is danna- whose passive participle would ordinarily be dannannen; compare covannen the passive participle of cova- (PE17/158). But I think dannen “fallen” may remain viable as a reduction of dannannen. Another possibility is ✱dannan; compare the archaic passive participle of †covan(n) of cova- (PE17/158).

eil-

verb. to rain

An impersonal verb appearing as N. eil “it is raining” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶ulyā- (> œil > eil) under the root ᴹ√ULU “pour, flow” (Ety/ULU; EtyAC/ULU). This verb is abnormal in that its final a disappeared rather than surviving as it usually did for derived verbs, giving eil rather than ✱elia-, ✱eilia- or ✱eila-. However, as an impersonal verb there would never be any pronominal suffix to help preserve the final a by analogy, which explains the vowel loss.

Conceptual Development: The verb for “rain” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s was G. ubra-, probably related to G. ub “wet, moist, damp” (GL/74).

Neo-Sindarin: In Sindarin, the likely development of primitive ✶ulyā would be to ✱oly(a) > ᴺS. uil “it rains”; I believe this form was first suggested by Helge Fauskanger in his Parviphith Edhellen wordlist. Compare ᴺS. uil to: S. ruin “fiery red” < (perhaps) ✱runyā and S. fuir “north” < (perhaps) ✱phoryā, and see the entry on how [[s|[œi] became [ui] or [y]]] for further discussion. Any inflected forms would probably restore the stem, such as (hypothetical) intransitive past and future forms ✱eilias “it rained” and ✱eiliatha “it will rain”).

fein

noun/adjective. white

fein

noun/adjective. cloud

gwaloth

noun. blossom, collection of flowers

This form replaced deleted goloth in the manuscript of The Etymologies, see VT/45:29. The deleted form is however also later attested in VT/42:18

helch

noun. bitter cold

hell

noun. frost

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “frost” derived from the root ᴹ√KHEL “freeze”, but Tolkien deleted this short root and its derivatives, keeping only the longer form ᴹ√KHELEK (Ety/KHEL).

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had a number of similar “frost” related words: G. heloth “frost”, G. hîl {“ice-cold, icy” >>} “frost” as well as G. helfileg “frost on panes, etc.” (GL/48-49), all based on the early root ᴱ√HELE “freeze”, the last with the added element G. fileg “fern”.

Neo-Sindarin: Tolkien probably deleted N. hell “frost” because he abandoned the short root ᴹ√KHEL, but short √KHEL did reappear in later writings (PE17/116), so it is tempting to restore hell “frost” as well. However, this conflicts with other attested words like N. hell “naked”, so I think it is better to use a neologism like ᴺS. nich for “frost”; see that entry for discussion.

loer

noun. summer

rhing

adjective. cold

rhing

adjective. cold

nimbi

adjective. white

nimbi

adjective. white

About Nimrodel: "Nim is evidently the Telerin word nimbi 'white'." >> Nimrais >> Nimrodel