2.33 to Wed, Marry
- ᴱQ. verin n. “married”
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An adjective appearing as ᴱQ. verin “married” in the English-Qenya Dictionary of the 1920s, with a stem -nd (PE15/75).
Neo-Quenya: I would adapt this word as ᴺQ. verin “married” for purposes of Neo-Quenya, but ignore the stem verind- since suffixal -in is common for adjectives in Tolkien’s later writings, but -ind is not.
- ᴹQ. vesta- n. “to wed, *marry”
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Tolkien used a variety of similar verbs for “to marry” throughout his life. The earliest of these was ᴱQ. vesta- “to wed” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√VEŘE [VEÐE] (QL/101). This verb reappeared in the English-Qenya Dictionary with the gloss “join (others) in marriage”, where Tolkien said it could be used reflexively to mean “get married”, and reflexively with the ᴱQ. va preposition to mean “get married with …” (PE15/75). The verb ᴹQ. vesta- “to wed” reappeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a derivative of the root {ᴹ√BED >>} ᴹ√BES of the same meaning (Ety/BES).
Up until this stage, all the primitive “marry” roots produce vesta- in combination with the verbal suffix -ta: all of VEÐ+tā, BED+tā, BES+tā > vesta-. At some point in the late 1960s, Tolkien decided the root for “marriage” words was √BER, and he coined a new pair of “marry” verbs based on this root: transitive Q. verta- “to give in marriage (a) to (b), or to take as husband or wife to oneself” and intransitive Q. verya- “to marry (of husband and wife), be joined to” (VT49/45). The form verta- rather than ᴱQ./ᴹQ. vesta- is a consequence of this new version of the root.
Neo-Quenya: For purpose of Neo-Eldarin, I prefer to retain the 1930s form of the root ᴹ√BES in order to keep attested Sindarin/Noldorin forms. As such I would use the 1930s verb form ᴹQ. vesta- for “to wed, marry”. Note that while late 1960s intransitive Q. verya- is compatible with ᴹ√BES, it clashes with 1930s ᴹQ. verya- “to dare” (< ᴹ√BER “valiant”). Therefore I would use vesta- both transitively and intransitively for “to marry”, though in the intransitive past I’d treat it as a half-strong verb: verenten “I got married” vs. vestanen verunya “I married my husband”.
- ᴺS. besta- n. “to wed, marry”
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A neologism for “to wed, marry” coined by Fiona Jallings, appearing in from the VinQuettaParma Wiki (VQP). It was based on the 1930s root ᴹ√BES; this relatively early root is more compatible with attested Sindarin/Noldorin husband and wife words.
2.34 Wedding, Marriage
- Q. veryanwë n. “wedding”
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A word for “wedding” in notes from 1968, a combination of the root √BER “man/wife” and Q. yanwë “joining” (VT49/44-45).
Conceptual Development: The earliest precursor of this word was ᴱQ. vestale “wedding” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, a noun form of vesta- “to wed” under the early root ᴱ√VEŘE [VEÐE] (QL/101). ᴹQ. vestale “wedding” reappeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s, also related to vesta- “to wed”, but under the 1930s root ᴹ√BES (Ety/BES).
Neo-Quenya: For purpose of Neo-Eldarin, I prefer to retain the 1930s form of the root ᴹ√BES in order to keep attested Sindarin/Noldorin forms. However, veryanwe could still be derived form this root, from *bes+yanwē, since s > z > r before y. Thus veryanwë “wedding” is compatible with my preferred “marriage” root and I recommend its use. ᴹQ. vestale “wedding” might also remain valid as a variant.
- ᴹQ. vesta n. “matrimony, [ᴱQ.] state of marriage”
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A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “matrimony” derived from the root ᴹ√BES “wed” (Ety/BES). The same word ᴱQ. vesta appeared in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with the gloss “state of marriage”, but there it was based on the early root ᴱ√VEŘE [VEÐE] (QL/101). It was also mentioned as a cognate of ᴱN. gwedhw “matrimony” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s, but there it was a derivative of ᴱ√wed- (PE13/146).
- ᴺS. best n. “marriage, matrimony, wedlock, ⚠️wedding”
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A neologism coined by Fiona Jallings in the VinQuettaParma Wiki (VQP), the equivalent of ᴹQ. vesta “matrimony”. Fiona proposed that this word could meaning either “marriage” or “wedding”, but I prefer ᴺS. bestad for “wedding” and would reserve ᴺS. best for “marriage, matrimony, wedlock” = “the state of marriage”.
- ᴺS. bestad n. “wedding, (lit.) a marrying”
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A neologism for “wedding” coined by Fiona Jallings in the VinQuettaParma Wiki (VQP), the gerund of the neologism ᴺS. besta- “to wed, marry” and thus more literally “a marrying”.
2.341 Married Couple
- ᴹQ. veru n. “husband and wife, married pair”
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A noun appearing as ᴹQ. veru “husband and wife, married pair” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶besū under the root ᴹ√BES “wed” (Ety/BES). It seems to be an intrinsically dual word. It also appeared as an element in the name ᴹQ. Are Veruen “Day of the Spouses”, but under the entry where this word appeared the form was derived from ᴹ✶Bedū, reflecting a variant (and apparently abandoned) root ᴹ√BED (Ety/LEP).
Conceptual Development: The dual form ᴱQ. veringwi “husband and wife” appeared in the Early Qenya Grammar of the 1920s (PE14/77). The same form appeared in the English-Qenya Dictionary of the same period with the gloss “married pair, husband and wife”, where it was apparently related to the adjective ᴱQ. verin “married” (PE15/75).
Neo-Quenya: ᴹQ. veru “married pair” collides with the later word Q. veru “husband”, so for purposes of Neo-Quenya I would adapt the Early Quenya form as ᴺQ. verinu “married pair” to reflect later Quenya dual formations.