Quenya 

tye

you, thou, thee

tye pron. "you, thou, thee", 2nd person intimate/familar (LR:61, 70, Arct, VT49:36, 55), corresponding to formal/polite lye. According to VT49:51, tye was used as an endearment especially between lovers, and (grand)parents and children also used it to address one another ("to use the adult lye was more stern"). Tyenya "my tye", used = "dear kinsman" (VT49:51). The pronoun tye is derived from kie, sc. an original stem ki with an added -e(VT49:50). Stressed tyé; dual tyet "the two of you" (VT49:51 another note reproduced on the same page however states that tye has no dual form, and VT49:52 likewise states that the 2nd person familiar "never deleloped" dual or plural forms). Compare the reflexive pronoun intyë "yourself". Possibly related to the pronominal stem KE (2nd person sg.), if tye represents earlier *kye.

tye

pronoun. you (familiar), thee

Quenya [PE17/075; PE22/166; VT49/50; VT49/51] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-tyë

you, thou

-tyë pronominal ending "you, thou" (VT49:48, 51), 2nd person familiar/intimate: carityë *"you do" (VT49:16; the corresponding formal/polite ending is -l, -lyë, cf. PE17:135 where Tolkien states that hiruvalyë "thou shalt find" from Namárië would be hiruvatyë if the polite pronoun were replaced by the familiar one). Compare the independent pronoun tye. In VT49:51, Tolkien denies that the ending -tyë has any short form (see, however, -t # 3). Cf. natyë "you are"; see #1. Compare tye, -tya.

-tyë

you

-t (3) reduced pronominal affix of the 2. person, "you" (sg.), the long form being -tyë (both endings are listed in VT49:48). See heca regarding the example hecat (WJ:364). However, in a later source, Tolkien denies that -tyë has any short form (VT49:51, 57). The status of the ending -t is therefore doubtful.

-tyë

suffix. you (familiar)

Quenya [PE17/057; PE17/058; PE17/075; PE22/161; VT49/16; VT49/48; VT49/51] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-ntyë

you

[-ntyë "you", abandonded pronominal ending for 2nd person pl. familiar (VT49:49)]

nai eru tye mánata

God bless you

tyéta-

verb. to address somebody informally using tye

A neologism coined by Luinyelle posted on 2024-04-13 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), a verb form of tye “you (familiar)”. Compare French “tutoyer” (address using “tu”).

Quenya Group: Eldamo - neologism/reconstructions. Published by

-nya

my

-nya pronominal suffix, 1st person sg. possessive, "my" (VT49:16, 38, 48), e.g. tatanya "my daddy" (UT:191, VT48:17), meldonya "my [male] friend" (VT49:38), meldenya "my [female] friend" (Elaine inscription), omentienya "my meeting" (PE17:68), tyenya "my tye" (tye being an intimate form of "you"), used = "dear kinsman" (VT49:51, 56). This ending seems to prefer i as its connecting vowel where one is needed, cf. Anarinya "my sun" in LR:72, so also in hildinyar "my heirs". It was previously theorized by some that a final -ë would also be changed to -i- before -nya, but the example órenya "my heart [órë]" indicates that this is not the case (VT41:11).

lye

thou/thee, you

lye pron. "thou/thee, you", 2nd person sg. formal/polite (corresponding to familiar/intimate tye, q.v.) (VT49:36) It seems the original stem-form was le (VT49:50), distinct from de as a plural "you", but when initial d became l and the forms threatened to fall together, le was apparently altered to lye by analogy with the ending -lyë and the emphatic pronoun elyë. Stressed lyé (VT49:51). For lye as object, cf. nai Eru lye mánata "God bless you" (VT49:39). Allative lyenna "to you, upon you" (VT49:40-41). Compare the reflexive pronoun imlë "yourself, thyself", q.v. (it did not have to be *imlyë, for the corresponding pl. pronoun indë "yourselves" is distinct anyhow).

-lyë

thou, you

-lyë pronominal ending "thou, you" (VT49:48), 2nd person sg. formal/polite: hiruvalyë "thou shalt find" (Nam, RGEO:67), carilyë *"you do" (VT49:16). Long form of -l, q.v. The ending also occurs in alyë, the imperative particle a with a pronominal suffix (VT43:17); see a #3. The intimate/familiar ending corresponding to polite/formal -lyë is -tyë, q.v

-tya,

your, thy

-tya, pronominal ending, 2nd person sg. intimate/familiar "your, thy" (VT49:16, 38, 48); compare -tyë

-cca

your

[-cca ("k") ?"your", apparently an abandoned 2nd person plural or dual possessive (VT49:49). Compare -lca.]

-lca

your

[-lca ("k") ?"your", apparently an abandoned 2nd person plural possessive (VT49:49). Cf. -cca.]

-lda

your

-lda (1) "your", 2nd person pl. possessive suffix (VT49:16). Onnalda *"your child" (VT49:42). In an earlier manuscript, this ending was used for singular "you" instead, attested in the phrase Arwen vanimalda "Arwen your beauty", sc. "O beautiful Arwen", and in meletyalda "your majesty" (WJ:369) Arwen vanimalda was however changed to Arwen vanimelda in the second edition of LotR, Tolkien reinterpreting the last word (see vanimalda). The ending for singular "your" appears as -lya elsewhere. (LotR1:II ch. 6)

-ldë

you

-ldë (1) pronominal suffix "you", 2nd person pl. (VT49:51; carildë *"you do", VT49:16). This ending Tolkien revised from -llë in earlier sources (VT49:48, cf. PE17:69).

-llo

you

[-llo (2) "you", dual; abandoned pronominal ending. Also written -illo. (VT49:49)]

-llë

you

-llë (2) abandoned pronominal ending "you", 2nd person pl. (VT49:48); Tolkien later revised this ending to -ldë.

-lyë

you, thou

-l or -lyë (VT49:48, 51), pronominal endings for 2nd person sg. polite/formal "you, thou": caril or carilyë *"you do" (VT49:16), hamil "you judge" (VT42:33), anel "you were" (see #1); see -lyë for further examples. These endings may also be added to pronouns (etel/etelyë or mil, milyë; see et, mi). In one source, -l is rather used as a reduced affix denoting plural "you"; see heca! (WJ:364)

-ndë

you

[#-ndë (2) pronominal suffix for dual "you", as in carindë *"you (two) do". Tolkien changed the ending to -stë (VT49:33)]

-nya

suffix. my

Quenya [PE17/057; PE17/067; PE17/132; PE17/190; VT49/16; VT49/38; VT49/48] Group: Eldamo. Published by

-sta

your

-sta (1) "your", dual 2nd person possessive pronominal ending: "of you two" (VT49:45, 16), cf. -stë (q.v.) Genitive -sto in veryanwesto "of your wedding" (VT49:45) and tengwiesto "of your reading" (VT49:47), allative -stanna in parmastanna "on your book" (VT49:47). An archaic ending of similar form could also be the third person dual "of the two of them" (but according to VT49:51, the corresponding subject ending was changed to -ttë, and then the ending for "their" would presumably become -tta)

-stë

you

-stë "you", 2nd person dual pronominal ending (VT49:51, 53), e.g. caristë "the two of you do" (VT49:16). Tolkien first wrote carindë, but changed the ending (VT49:33). The ending -stë is derived from earlier -dde (VT49:46, 51). An archaic ending of similar form could also be the third person dual, "the two of them" (but see -ttë #1).

-t

suffix. you (familiar)

alyë

you

alyë imperative particle with ending -lyë "you"; see a #3.

ilcë

you

ilcë ("k") (2) *"you", emphatic pronoun of the 2nd person pl. familiar, apparently a form abandoned by Tolkien. An alternative form incë was also listed; a query appears between the forms (VT49:48).

incë

you

incë ("k") *"you", emphatic pronoun for 2nd person pl. familiar, apparently a form abandoned by Tolkien. It is listed as an alternative to ilcë in the source, a query appearing between the forms (VT49:48, 49). The word could also be read as intë (VT49:49)

le

you

le, pronominal element "you", (originally) the "reverential 2nd person sing" (RGEO:73, VT49:56). However, singular le was apparently altered to lye (q.v.), and le took on a plural significance (le for pl. "you" is apparently derived from de, the ancient 2nd person pl. stem, VT49:50-51). Stressed (VT49:51), dual let "the two of you" (ibid.). At certain points in Tolkiens conception, le was still sg. "thou" rather than pl. "you". It is attested as an ending in the imperative form antalë "give thou" (VT43:17); see anta-. The form ólë in VT43:29 apparently means *"with thee"; according to Tolkiens later system, it would rather mean "with you" (pl.) Compare aselyë "with thee" (sg.) in a later source (see as).

ninya

my

ninya _possessive pron _occurring in Fíriel's Song, evidently meaning "my"; see indo-ninya. It may be derived from the dative form nin "for me" by adding the adjectival ending -ya. Compare menya, q.v.

ná-

verb. to be, to be, [ᴱQ.] exist

The basic Quenya verb for “to be”, based on the root √ (PE17/93). It was typically used as the copula equating a noun to another noun or an adjective:

> √NA joining adjs./nouns/pronouns in statements (or wishes) asserting (or desiring) a thing to have a certain quality, or to be the same as another (PE22/147).

In many circumstances this verb was optional:

> As a copula “be, is” is not usually expressed in Quenya where the meaning is clear: sc. in such expressions as “A is good” where the adjective (contrary to the usual order in Quenya of a qualifying adjective) follows: the normal Quenya for this is A mára (PE17/93).

For further discussion see the entry on the Quenya copula.

Conceptual Development: This verb dates back all the way to the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, where it was given as the early root ᴱ√ “be, exist” (QL/64). This verb and its root appeared regularly throughout Tolkien’s writings thereafter, but at times Tolkien considered alternative verbs for “to be”; see the entry ëa- for further discussion.

Quenya [LotR/0377; Minor-Doc/1955-CT; PE17/057; PE17/058; PE17/059; PE17/074; PE17/090; PE17/093; PE17/126; PE17/162; PE22/154; PE22/158; PE22/166; PE22/167; PE22/168; RGEO/58; RGEO/59; RGEO/60; VT42/33; VT42/34; VT43/13; VT43/14; VT43/15; VT43/16; VT43/23; VT43/30; VT43/34; VT44/34; VT49/09; VT49/10; VT49/19; VT49/23; VT49/27; VT49/28; VT49/29; VT49/30] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tatanya

my father

tatanya "my father" or "my daddy" (UT:190)

Primitive elvish

-nyā

pronoun. my

Primitive elvish [PE23/128; PE23/129] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Telerin 

de

pronoun. you

nia

pronoun. my

Sindarin 

-d

suffix. you

2nd du. pron. suff. #you (two). Q. -star.See paradigm PE17:132.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:132] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-dh

suffix. you

{ð} 2nd du. pron. suff. #you (two). Q. -star.See paradigm PE17:132.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:132] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-dh

suffix. you

{ð} 2nd sg. pron. suff. #you. Q. -tar.See paradigm PE17:132.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:132] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-dhir

suffix. you

{ð} 2nd pl. pron. suff. #you. Q. -ltar.See paradigm PE17:132.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:132] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-eg

suffix. your

_2nd sg./pl. poss. suff. your.Maybe the familiar form of this suff. See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Later -gen_. >> -el, -gen

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:46] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-el

suffix. your

_2nd sg./pl. poss. suff. _your. Maybe the polite form of this suff. See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Later -lein. >> -eg, -lein

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:46] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-en

suffix. my

_1st sg. poss. suff. my.See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Later -nin_. >> lammen, -nin

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:46] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-gen

suffix. your

_2nd sg. poss. suff. your.Maybe the familiar form of this suff. See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Earlier -eg_. >> -eg

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:46] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

-lein

suffix. your

_2nd sg. poss. suff. your.Maybe the polite form of this suff. See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Earlier -el_. >> -el

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:46] -. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

ci

thou

{k} _pron. _thou. Lenited in _gī _as in mae g(ī)' ovannen 'well [art] you met'.

Sindarin [(PE17 Sindarin Corpus) PE17:17] < _kī_. Group: Parma Eldalamberon 17 Sindarin Corpus. Published by

ci

pronoun. thou

Sindarin [PE17/017] Group: Eldamo. Published by

de

pronoun. you

Sindarin [PE17/026] Group: Eldamo. Published by

le

pronoun. to thee (reverential)

Sindarin [LotR/II:I, LotR/IV:X, RGEO/72-73, Letters/278, L] Group: SINDICT. Published by

na-

verb. to be

A verb for “to be” based on the root √ of the same meaning. This verb is barely attested in the Sindarin language, and the general consensus is that [for purposes of Neo-Sindarin at least] Sindarin omits the verb “to be” in most phrases, such as in naur an edraith ammen “fire [be] for saving us” (LotR/299) or ✱orchal i adan “tall [is] the man”; see the entry on the copula for further discussion.

The clearest attestation of the verb na- is its imperative form no “be!” in the phrase no aer i eneth lín “hallowed be thy name, (lit.) ✱be holy the name your”, from the Sindarin translation of the Lord’s Prayer from the 1950s (VT44/21). This imperative form was preceded by some hard-to-read deleted forms, perhaps {dôd >> dád >> hae >>} no (VT44/22). The d-forms might be eroded/mutated variants of na-. Compare đa in the phrase inn đa v’im “a mind there is in me = I have a good mind (to do so)” in notes from the late 1960s (PE22/165), where đa could be another eroded form of na-. This phrase was first written as inn no v’im (PE22/165 note #108); see the entry for đa for further discussion.

Another clear attestation of na “be” is an apparent future form natho in the untranslated phrase Sí il chem {na} en i naugrim en ir Ellath {natho} thor den ammen in the so-called “Túrin Wrapper” from the late 1950s (VT50/5). This future[?] form natho was deleted and replaced by thor, and a deleted {na} also appears earlier in the phrase, possibly a false start. Carl Hostetter suggested this phrase might mean something like “✱now all (?hands) of the Dwarves and Elves will be (?against) us” (VT50/22-25). If so, it seems the future of na- “be” was constructed from the bare future suffix (a)tha-, manifesting as tho “✱will be”.

Neo-Sindarin: As noted above, for purposes of Neo-Sindarin the general consensus is that this verb is barely used, and is omitted from most “to be” phrases as in the example orchal i adan given above. The verb’s one widely accepted use is as an imperative, such as in no mae “be well”. Based the Túrin Wrapper, I posit that tho can also be used for a future form “will be”, as in i adan tho orchal “the man will be tall”. I likewise posit a (purely hypothetical) past form [ᴺS.] “was”, based on the primitive past-tense element ✶-nē with [[os|long [ē] becoming [ī]]], as in i adan nî orchal “the man was tall”. Neither tho or are widely accepted Neo-Sindarin, however.

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had the verb G. na- “is” (GL/58), clearly based on the early root ᴱ√ “be, exist” (QL/64). This irregular Gnomish verb had some inflected forms: plural nain, participle ol· and past form {ni >>} thi, the last of these being another inspiration for Neo-Sindarin “was”.

Sindarin [VT44/22; VT44/24; VT50/23] Group: Eldamo. Published by

nín

adjective. my

The acute accent in nín has sometimes been regarded as an error for a slanted macron in the manuscript, since all the other attested personal adjectives from Sauron defeated all have a circumflex accent. It was however noted that if the acute accent is confirmed, then this word is probably an enclitic, see HL/73. The acute accent is now confirmed by VT/44

Sindarin [UT/40, VT/44:22] Group: SINDICT. Published by

nín

pronoun. my

Sindarin [UT/040; UT/054; VT44/22] Group: Eldamo. Published by

le

thou

le (attested as dative ”to thee”; possibly also used as nominative/accusative, though an accusative *len ”thee” may be theorized to exist). Genitive lín ”thy”.

le

thou

(attested as dative ”to thee”; possibly also used as nominative/accusative, though an accusative ✱len ”thee” may be theorized to exist). Genitive lín ”thy”.

nín

my

nín (following a noun with article: i adar nín, ”my father”). Not to be confused with nîn ”watery, wet” or as noun ”tear”, or the pl. form of nên ”water”. In a very few attested cases, the pronoun ”my” appears as an ending -en added to a noun (lammen ”my tongue”, guren ”my heart”).

nín

my

(following a noun with article: i adar nín, ”my father”). Not to be confused with nîn ”watery, wet” or as noun ”tear”, or the pl. form of nên ”water”. – In a very few attested cases, the pronoun ”my” appears as an ending -en added to a noun (lammen ”my tongue”, guren ”my heart”).


Beware, older languages below! The languages below were invented during Tolkien's earlier period and should be used with caution. Remember to never, ever mix words from different languages!

Early Quenya

tye

pronoun. you

Early Quenya [LFC/030] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tye

pronoun. that by you

Early Quenya [PE14/054; PE14/055] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tyenda mar

that house (of yours)

Early Quenya [PE14/055] Group: Eldamo. Published by

mára mesta an ni véla tye ento, ya rato nea

good-bye until I see you next, and I hope it will be soon

This is a sentence in the “Arctic” language written in a supposed letter from Santa from Tolkien to his children in 1929. In form, it resembles the Quenya of this time period, and most scholars consider it an example of that language, though perhaps somewhat simplified. @@@

Early Quenya [LFC/030] Group: Eldamo. Published by

i·mar tye

that house (of yours)

Early Quenya [PE14/055] Group: Eldamo. Published by

e-

prefix. that by you

Early Quenya [QL/034] Group: Eldamo. Published by

e-

verb. to be

Early Quenya [PE14/051; PE14/054; PE14/057; PE16/062; PE16/066; PE16/140; PE16/141; PE16/143] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ena

pronoun. that by you

Early Quenya [QL/034] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ke

pronoun. that by you

tya-

prefix. *your; 2nd sg. possessive

Early Quenya [PE14/054] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ó-

verb. to be

Early Quenya [QL/069] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Qenya 

tye

pronoun. thee, you (familiar)

Qenya [LR/061; PE21/65; PE23/075; PE23/077; PE23/079; PE23/083; PE23/088; PE23/089; PE23/093; PE23/098; PE23/107] Group: Eldamo. Published by

nakuvan tye uvana néra

I will slay thee, wicked man

ye-

verb. to be

Qenya [LR/072; PE22/011; PE22/107; PE22/115; PE22/117; PE22/119; PE22/120; PE22/123; PE23/097; PE23/104] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ke

pronoun. you (familiar)

Qenya [PE22/105; PE22/123; PE22/126; PE22/127; PE23/073; PE23/075; PE23/077; PE23/079; PE23/080; PE23/083; PE23/088; PE23/089; PE23/090; PE23/092; PE23/093; PE23/098] Group: Eldamo. Published by

le

pronoun. you

Qenya [PE22/106; PE22/118; PE22/119; PE22/120; PE22/123; PE22/124; PE22/127; PE23/075; PE23/077; PE23/079; PE23/080; PE23/088; PE23/089; PE23/090; PE23/093; PE23/099; PE23/103; PE23/104] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ná-

verb. to be

Qenya [Ety/N²; PE22/096] Group: Eldamo. Published by

tine

pronoun. that by you

A correlative combination appearing in Demonstrative, Relative, and Correlative Stems (DRC) from 1948 (PE23/102), a pronominal form of ᴹQ. ti “that by you”.

Qenya [PE23/102; PE23/103] Group: Eldamo. Published by

Middle Primitive Elvish

root. to be

Middle Primitive Elvish [EtyAC/YĒ; PE18/060; PE18/084; PE22/123] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ke

pronoun. thou, thee

Middle Primitive Elvish [PE21/65; PE22/095; PE23/074; PE23/088; PE23/089; PE23/093] Group: Eldamo. Published by

eʒ-

verb. to be

Middle Primitive Elvish [PE22/122] Group: Eldamo. Published by

kye

pronoun. thou, thee

Middle Primitive Elvish Group: Eldamo. Published by

ni-ndakubākyē, uklaina ndere

I will slay thee, wicked man

Middle Primitive Elvish [PE21/65] Group: Eldamo. Published by

ē

root. to be

Middle Primitive Elvish Group: Eldamo. Published by

ī

root. to be

Middle Primitive Elvish Group: Eldamo. Published by

Gnomish

na-

verb. to be

Gnomish [GG/09; GL/58] Group: Eldamo. Published by