ita-

sparkle

ita- 1) vb. "sparkle" (SA:ril, PM:363)

tintina-

sparkle

tintina- vb. "sparkle" (actually glossed "it sparkles") (TIN)

tinwë

spark

tinwë noun "spark" (gloss misquoted as "sparkle" in the Etymologies as printed in LR, see VT46:19), also "star"; pl. tinwi "sparks", properly used of the star-imagines on Nur-menel (q.v.). Cf. nillë. (TIN, MR:388) In early "Qenya", tinwë was simply glossed "star" (LT1:269, cf. MC:214). In one late source, the meaning of tinwë is given as "spark", and it is said that this word (like Sindarin gil) was used of the stars of heaven "in place of the older and more elevated el, elen- stem" (VT42:11).

ita-

verb. to sparkle

Derivations

• √IT “glitter, shine, shimmer, twinkle” ✧ PM/363

Element in

• Q. Itarillë “*Sparkling Brilliance” ✧ SA/ril

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√it > ita-	[ita-]	✧ PM/363

tintila-

twinkle

tintila- vb. "twinkle", present (or maybe rather aorist) pl. tintilar (Nam, RGEO:67)

hísë

blinking

hísë (3) adj.? "blinking" (?) (MC:214) A "Qenya" form possibly obsoleted by #1 above.

tintila-

verb. to twinkle, sparkle, glitter, give tremulous light, †tremble

A verb appearing in the Namárië poem, where Tolkien translated it as “tremble” (LotR/377). It is clear form his writings elsewhere that this a poetic rendering, and the actual meaning of the word is “twinkle, give tremulous light” (PE17/66) or “sparkle, glitter” (RGEO/61). It seems to be a combination of the roots √TIN “sparkle” and √THIL “shine silver” (PE17/66), and so is especially appropriate for describing starlight.

Conceptual Development: In The Etymologies from the 1930s, there was a similar verb ᴹQ. tintina- “to sparkle”, likely a reduplication of the root ᴹ√TIN “sparkle”. For Neo-Quenya writing, it is probably preferable to use the better known tintila-.

Cognates

• ᴺS. tinthiltha- “to twinkle, *sparkle”

Element in

• Q. tintilar lirinen ómaryo Airë-tário ✧ PM/364
• ᴺQ. tintilië “sparkling, twinkling”
• Q. yassen tintilar i eleni “wherein the stars tremble” ✧ LotR/0377; RGEO/58
• Q. yassen tintilar i eleni “in which twinkle the stars” ✧ RGEO/59

Elements

Word	Gloss
TIN	“sparkle, spark, sparkle, spark, [ᴱ√] twinkle, [ᴹ√] emit slender (silver pale) beams”
THIL	“shine silver; white light”

gil-

prefix. spark

_ pref. _spark, often used for 'star'. Form of gail/geil in compounds. >> gail, geil, Gilgalad

tin

noun. spark

_ n. _spark, sparkle (esp. used of the twinkle of stars). >> ithildin

tîn

spark

n. spark, star. Q. tinwe spark (Poet. star).

tinu

noun. spark, small star

tin

noun. spark, sparkle, twinkle of stars

tîn

noun. spark, sparkle, twinkle of stars

A word for “spark, sparkle, twinkle of stars” appearing as an element in S. ithildin “moon-star” (PE17/39, 66). Tolkien sometimes gave it the form tĭn (PE17/39) and sometimes tîn (PE17/66). It was derived from the root √TIN “sparkle, spark” (PE17/66). Primitive ✶tĭnĭ “spark” from Common Eldarin: Noun Structure of the early 1950s may be its ancient form (PE21/80).

In one place Tolkien gave the form tim “spark” as another name for (apparent) stars, but its final m is hard to explain (MR/388; PE17/22). In notes associated with The Shibboleth of Fëanor from 1968 Tolkien said “In the Northern dialect, however, in final position only, C.E. tw > dw, dw > ðw, thw > þw, nw became b, v, f, m” (VT41/8). Thus, tim may be the North Sindarin equivalent of Q. tinwë. However, in the document where it appeared, tim was clearly marked “S” for Sindarin. This form could also be a remnant of Gnomish or Ilkorin tim (see below).

Conceptual Development: The earliest precursor of this word was G. tim “spark, gleam, (star)” in the Gnomish Lexicon of 1910s, derived from the early root ᴱ√tin- (GL/70), cognate to ᴱQ. tinwe (QL/92). In the Gnomish period, [[g|final [nw] became [m]]], as discussed by Roman Rausch in his Historical Phonology of Goldogrin (HGP/§2.7). This was not true later, since in The Etymologies of the 1930s, N. tinw “spark, small star” was the cognate for ᴹQ. tinwe and the form tim was Ilkorin, all of these under the root ᴹ√TIN “sparkle” (Ety/TIN). In his later writings, Tolkien had the forms tin, tîn and tim, as noted above. Thus while the root and basic meaning of this word were quite stable, its form went through a number of variations.

Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I’d use the form tîn since short vowels generally lengthened in monosyllables. I think properly it has the meaning “spark(le)” but metaphorically can apply to stars. For the ordinary word for “star”, I’d use gil.

Cognates

• Q. tinwë “spark, [apparent] star” ✧ PE17/066
• north S. tim “spark, sparkle (of stars)”

Derivations

• ✶tini “spark”
  • √TIN “sparkle, spark, sparkle, spark, [ᴱ√] twinkle, [ᴹ√] emit slender (silver pale) beams”
• √TIN “sparkle, spark, sparkle, spark, [ᴱ√] twinkle, [ᴹ√] emit slender (silver pale) beams” ✧ PE17/066

Element in

• S. ithildin “magical alloy that glows in moonlight, (lit.) moon-star” ✧ PE17/039; PE17/039; PE17/066
• ᴺS. tiniath “group of stars, star-cluster, constellation”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√TIN > tîn	[tin] > [tīn]	✧ PE17/066

Variations

• tin ✧ PE17/039
• tĭn ✧ PE17/039
• tîn ✧ PE17/066

tint

spark

1) tint (i dint, o thint), no distinct pl. form except with article (i thint), coll. pl. tinnath; 2) tinu (i dinu, o thinu; also -din at the end of compounds), analogical pl. tiny (i thiny). The word is also used =

tint

spark

(i dint, o thint), no distinct pl. form except with article (i thint), coll. pl. tinnath

tinu

spark

(i dinu, o thinu; also -din at the end of compounds), analogical pl. tiny (i thiny). The word is also used =

tinthiltha-

verb. to twinkle, *sparkle

Cognates

• Q. tintila- “to twinkle, sparkle, glitter, give tremulous light, †tremble”

Element in

• ᴺS. tinthilthad “sparkling, twinkling, scintillation”

Elements

Word	Gloss
TIN	“sparkle, spark, sparkle, spark, [ᴱ√] twinkle, [ᴹ√] emit slender (silver pale) beams”
TIL	“point, horn”

tim

small star

(MR:388). Archaic tinw, so the coll. pl. is likely  tinwath. 3)

tithilla-

verb. twinkle

tini

noun. spark

Derivations

• √TIN “sparkle, spark, sparkle, spark, [ᴱ√] twinkle, [ᴹ√] emit slender (silver pale) beams”

Derivatives

• S. tîn “spark, sparkle, twinkle of stars”

Variations

• tĭnĭ ✧ PE21/80

tin

root. sparkle, spark, sparkle, spark, [ᴱ√] twinkle, [ᴹ√] emit slender (silver pale) beams

The root √TIN was connected to Elvish words for twinkle and sparkle for much of Tolkien’s life. The root first appeared as ᴱ√TINI “twinkle” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like ᴱQ. tintya- “sparkle” and ᴱQ. tinwe “star” (QL/92). The root also had derivatives in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon such as G. tim “spark, gleam, (star)” and G. tintiltha- “twinkle” (GL/72). In The Etymologies of the 1930s he had the root ᴹ√TIN “sparkle, emit slender (silver pale) beams” with derivatives like ᴹQ. tin-/N. tinna- “glint” and ᴹQ. tinwe/N. tinw “spark, (small) star” (Ety/TIN). The root √TIN was mentioned regularly in his later writings with glosses like “spark” or “sparkle” (MR/388; PE17/22, 66).

Derivatives

• ✶tini “spark”
  • S. tîn “spark, sparkle, twinkle of stars”
• Q. tin- “to spark, glitter, to spark, glitter, [ᴹQ.] glint, [ᴱQ.] gleam, shine as a star”
• Q. tinta- “to kindle, cause to spark, to kindle, cause to spark, [ᴹQ.] make to spark” ✧ PE17/022; SA/tin
• Q. tinwë “spark, [apparent] star” ✧ MR/388; PE17/022; PE17/066; RGEO/61; SA/tin
• north S. tim “spark, sparkle (of stars)” ✧ MR/388; PE17/022
• S. tîn “spark, sparkle, twinkle of stars” ✧ PE17/066

Element in

• √STIN “grey” ✧ PE17/184
• ✶tindōmi “*twilight”
• Q. tindómë “(starry) twilight, (usually) time near dawn, (starry) twilight, time near dawn, [ᴹQ.] starlit dusk” ✧ SA/tin
• Q. tinta- “to kindle, cause to spark, to kindle, cause to spark, [ᴹQ.] make to spark” ✧ PE17/069
• Q. Tintallë “(Star) Kindler” ✧ PE17/066; RGEO/61
• Q. tintila- “to twinkle, sparkle, glitter, give tremulous light, †tremble” ✧ PE17/066; PE17/066; RGEO/61
• ᴺQ. tinwírë “diamond, (lit.) sparkling gem”
• S. ithildin “magical alloy that glows in moonlight, (lit.) moon-star” ✧ SA/tin
• S. tinnu “*twilight, [N.] (starry) twilight, dusk, early night (without moon)”
• ᴺS. tinthiltha- “to twinkle, *sparkle”
• S. Tinúviel “Nightingale, (lit.) Daughter of Twilight” ✧ SA/tin

Variations

• tin ✧ MR/388
• tin- ✧ RGEO/61; SA/tin

tint

noun. spark

tint

noun. spark

Derivations

• ᴹ√TIN “sparkle, emit slender (silver pale) beams” ✧ Ety/TIN

Element in

• N. Tinfang “Starbeard”

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√TIN > tint	[tinte] > [tintʰe] > [tinθe] > [tinθ] > [tint]	✧ Ety/TIN

gildin

noun. silver spark

tinw

noun. spark, small star