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Select Elvish Words 3.75: Deer, Elephant, Camel

3.75 Deer

S. aras n. “deer, hart, *stag”
A word in the name Cabed-en-Aras “Deer’s Leap” (S/224; UT/150). Its primitive form ✶aras(sō) was translated “hart” (PE21/82), so this word probably refers to a male deer.

3.77 Elephant

ᴹQ. andamunda n. “elephant”
A noun for “elephant” in The Etymologies of the 1930s, a combination of ᴹQ. anda “long” and an adjectival form of ᴹQ. mundo “snout” (Ety/MBUD), hence literally “long snouted”.

Conceptual Development: In the Quenya Lexicon of the 1910s, Tolkien gave ᴱQ. hunto “elephant” (QL/41).

N. annabon n. “elephant”
A noun for “elephant” in The Etymologies of the 1930s, a combination of N. ann “long” and N. bonn “snouted”, from primitive ᴹ✶andambundā (Ety/MBUD). Its historical development would have produced **annammonn, but Tolkien said it was with “with dissimal[itive] alter[ation] of medial mb” (EtyAC/MBUD). The similar forms {Andabund >>} Andrabonn for “elephant” appeared in Lord of the Rings drafts of the 1940s.

Conceptual Development: In the Quenya Lexicon of the 1910s, Tolkien gave G. funt as the equivalent of ᴱQ. hunto “elephant” (QL/41).

3.78 Camel

ᴱQ. ulumpe n. “camel”
A word appearing as ᴱQ. ulumpe or ulun (ulunt-) “camel” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/97). The contemporaneous Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa had ulump(e)- “camel” (PME/97). Under the early root ᴱ√KUPU “hump” Tolkien had a different form ᴱQ. kuptulo for “camel”, but this was deleted (QL/49).

Neo-Quenya: I think this word may be preserved as ᴺQ. ulumpë “camel” based on a Neo-Root ᴺ√LUP “hump”.

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