nir-

verb. press, thrust, force

nasta

spear-head, spear-point, gore, triangle

nasta (1) noun "spear-head, spear-point, gore, triangle" _(SNAS/SNAT; see VT46:14 about second gloss being "spear-point" and not simply "point" as in the printed Etymologies), "prick, point, stick, thrust" (NAS)_

nasta-

prick, sting

nasta- (2) vb. "prick, sting" (NAS)

nir-

press, thrust, force (in a given direction)

nir- vb. "press, thrust, force (in a given direction)" ("Though applicable to the pressure of a person on others, by mind and 'will' as well as by physical strength, [this verb] could also be used of physical pressures exerted by inanimates.") Given as a 1st person aorist nirin (VT41:17). Pa.t. probably *nindë since the R of nir- was originally D (the base is given as NID; compare rer- pa.t. rendë from RED concerning the past tense)

nir-

verb. to press, thrust, force (in a given direction), to press, thrust, force (in a given direction); *to impose (with allative)

@@@ Neo-Quenya sense “to impose” (along with allative) from Röandil in the “Neologism of the Day” series on the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS) on 2023-04-01

Cognates

• S. nidh- “to will” ✧ PE22/165
• T. nid- “urge, press, force” ✧ PE22/165

Derivations

• √NID “force, press(ure), thrust; will, will; force, press(ure), thrust; [ᴹ√] lean against” ✧ PE22/165; VT41/17

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√NID > nirin	[nidin] > [niðin] > [nirin]	✧ PE22/165
√NID > nirin	[nidin] > [niðin] > [nirin]	✧ VT41/17

níre

noun. force

nírë

noun. force

Cognates

• S. nîdh “full vigorous purpose, exertion of will” ✧ PE22/165

Derivations

• √NID “force, press(ure), thrust; will, will; force, press(ure), thrust; [ᴹ√] lean against” ✧ PE22/165

Element in

• Q. nírítë “forceful, exerting great thrust or pressure, driving” ✧ PE22/165

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
√NID > níre	[nide] > [niðe] > [nire]	✧ PE22/165

Variations

• níre ✧ PE22/165

nista

noun. thrust, push, shove

Elements

Word	Gloss
NID	“force, press(ure), thrust; will, will; force, press(ure), thrust; [ᴹ√] lean against”
-dā	“product of an action”

eitha-

verb. to prick with a sharp point, to stab

eitha-

verb. to treat with scorn, insult

nasta

thrust

(vb.) nasta- (i nasta, in nastar) (point, stick, prick)

nasta

thrust

(i nasta, in nastar) (point, stick, prick)**

ercha

prick

(verb) 1) ercha- (i ercha, in erchar), 2) nasta- (i nasta, in nastar) (point, stick, thrust)

nid

root. force, press(ure), thrust; will, will; force, press(ure), thrust; [ᴹ√] lean against

This root first appeared as ᴹ√NID “lean against” in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives like ᴹQ. nirwa/N. nedhw “bolster, cushion” (Ety/NID). This sense may have replaced the deleted entry ᴹ√NID “hurt, injure” with various words of similar form but different meaning (Ety/NID²). In Late Notes on Verb Structure (LVS) from the late 1960s, Tolkien gave a new meaning to this root as follows:

> The basic stem NID- ... meant press, thrust, force (in a given direction) and though applicable to the pressure of a person on others, by mind and “will” as well as by physical strength, could also be used of physical pressures exerted by inanimates ... In T. and S. NID became used exclusively of “rational” purpose and will (PE22/165).

In this sense its derivatives included Q. indo “mind in its purposing faculty, the will”, whose Sindarin equivalent S. inn meant “some particular purpose or intention of an individual”. In Quenya the verb form Q. nir- retained the general meaning of “urge, press, force” for both physical and mental pressure, but in Sindarin the verb forms nídha- and nidh- both had to do with intent, the former very strong in meaning (“I am determined to do it”) but the latter somewhat weaker (“I will do it”).

A different precursor to √NID “press, thrust, force” appeared in a list of roots composed in 1959-60: √NIR “will, intention, conscious resolve to move or do” with derivatives Q. níra “will” and Q. nirmë “act of will”. The first of these words could also be a derivative of √NID, since [[q|intervocalic [d] usually became [r]]] in Quenya. Thus it seems Tolkien decided that Q. nir- was associated with “will” at least a decade before he wrote the note on √NID “press, thrust, force”.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I would stick with the meaning of the root described in LVS from the 1960s, but the words for “cushion” might be salvaged in the sense of a thing that resists pressure. The derivatives of √NIR may likewise be based on √NID.

Derivatives

• ✶indō “interior reflection or mind, the mind in its purposing faculty, the will; mood, heart” ✧ PE22/165; PE22/165
  • Q. indo “(state of) mind, (inner) thought, mood; will, resolve, (state of) mind, (inner) thought, mood; will, resolve; [ᴹQ.] heart” ✧ PE22/165
  • Q. indu- “to will, do on purpose” ✧ PE22/165
  • S. ind “some particular purpose or intention of an individual; heart, some particular purpose or intention of an individual; heart [metaphorical], [N.] inner thought, meaning” ✧ PE22/165
  • T. indo “a particular will or intention of a person” ✧ PE22/165
• Q. indo “(state of) mind, (inner) thought, mood; will, resolve, (state of) mind, (inner) thought, mood; will, resolve; [ᴹQ.] heart” ✧ VT41/17
  • Q. indu- “to will, do on purpose” ✧ PE22/165
• Q. nir- “to press, thrust, force (in a given direction), to press, thrust, force (in a given direction); *to impose (with allative)” ✧ PE22/165; VT41/17
• Q. nírë “force” ✧ PE22/165
• S. nidh- “to will” ✧ PE22/165
• S. nîdh “full vigorous purpose, exertion of will” ✧ PE22/165
• T. nid- “urge, press, force” ✧ PE22/165
• T. níde “full vigorous purpose, exertion of will” ✧ PE22/165

Element in

• ᴺQ. nista “thrust, push, shove”

nasta-

verb. to prick, point, stick, thrust

nasta-

verb. to prick, point, stick, thrust

Cognates

• ᴹQ. nasta- “to prick, sting” ✧ Ety/NAS

Derivations

• ᴹ√NAS “point, sharp end” ✧ Ety/NAS

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√NAS > nasta-	[nasta-]	✧ Ety/NAS

Variations

• nasta ✧ EtyAC/NAS

ercha-

verb. to prick

ercha-

verb. to prick

Changes

• ercha- → ercho ✧ Ety/ERÉK

Cognates

• ᴹQ. erka- “to prick” ✧ Ety/ERÉK

Derivations

• ᴹ√(E)REK “thorn, holly” ✧ Ety/ERÉK

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ√ERÉK > ercho	[erka-] > [erkʰa-] > [erxa-]	✧ Ety/ERÉK