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Select Elvish Words 6.21-6.25: Cloth, Wool, Silk

6.21 Cloth

ᴹQ. lanne n. “tissue, cloth”

A word in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “tissue, cloth” based on the root ᴹ√LAN “weave” (Ety/LAN).

ᴱQ. lapil n. “swathe, flowing cloth”

A word appearing as ᴱQ. lapil “a swathe, a flowing cloth” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√LAPA “enfold” (QL/51).

Neo-Quenya: The root √LAP “fold, bend” reappears in Tolkien’s later writings, so I’d retain ᴺQ. lapil “swathe, flowing cloth” for purposes of Neo-Quenya, used of both a broad area of some covering or crop (“swathe”) as well as a large piece of loose cloth.

ᴹQ. talat n. “sheet”

A word for “sheet” in the Declension of Nouns (DN) from the early 1930s of unclear derivation.

Conceptual Development: In Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s, ᴱQ. talat was “dry land” (PE16/139). The word talat also appeared (unglossed) in notes on The Feanorian Alphabet from the mid-to-late 1930s (PE22/20).

6.22 Wool

ᴱQ. oalle n. “blanket”

A word appearing as ᴱQ. oalle “blanket” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, an elaboration of ᴱQ. oa “wool” (QL/71).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quena, I would update this word to ᴺQ. töallë “blanket” based on the later word [ᴹQ.] toa “woollen” (Ety/TOW).

ᴹQ. n. “wool”

A noun in The Etymologies of the late 1930s glossed “wool” and derived from the root ᴹ√TOW (Ety/TOW).

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon and Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa of the 1910s had ᴱQ. oa “wool” under the early root ᴱ√OWO (QL/71). This became ᴱQ. toa in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon, cognate to G. “wool” from primitive ᴱ✶tou̯ (GL/71). ᴹQ. “wool” first appeared in the Declension of Nouns (DN) from the early 1930s, but there it was an example of a monosyllable ō-noun derived from -ōʒǝ: *tōʒǝ (PE21/40). Compare this to ᴱN. “wool, fleece” from Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s derived from primitive ᴱ✶togō or ᴱ✶togo (PE13/154, 165).

Possible Etymology: The derivation ᴹ√TOW > ᴹQ. in The Etymologies seems to be the result of a sound change whereby stressed ou became ō (vs. unstressed ou becoming ū); this change was mentioned in both the Outline of Phonetic Development (OP1) from the 1930s (PE19/53) and the Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s (PE19/106). However, in Tolkien’s later writing, the usual development of ou was to ū even if the syllable was stressed: compare ✶lou > and ✶lounē̆ > lūn in notes from the late 1960s (PE17/137).

Neo-Quenya: I would retain “wool” for purposes of Neo-Quenya, but would assume it is derived from either * or *togō, similar to its derivation from the earlier 1930s. This also makes it easier to retain ᴱN. “wool” for purposes of Neo-Sindarin.

ᴹQ. toa adj. “of wool, woollen”

An adjective in The Etymologies of the late 1930s glossed “of wool, woollen” and derived from the root ᴹ√TOW (Ety/TOW).

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. oara “of wool”, an adjective form of ᴱQ. oa “wool” under the early root ᴱ√OWO (QL/71).

ᴱQ. ue n. “fleece”

A word appearing as ᴱQ. ue “fleece” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s derived from primitive ᴱ✶ou̯χe, although that the primitive form was marked through (QL/71). It was therefore based on the early root ᴱ√OWO having to do with wool.

Neo-Quenya: The root for “wool” became ᴹ√TOW in The Etymologies of the 1930s, so I would adapt this Early Qenya word as ᴺQ. tuë “fleece”, from primitive *towē where owe > oue > ue (PE19/63).

N. taw adj. “of wool, woollen”

A word appearing in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√TOW, apparently the cognate of the adjective ᴹQ. toa “of wool, woollen” (Ety/TOW).

ᴱN. n. “wool, fleece”

The noun G. {“well” >>} “wool” appeared in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s derived from primitive ᴱ✶tou̯ (GL/71). ᴱN. or “wool, fleece” reappeared in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s as a derivative of ᴱ✶togō or ᴱ✶togo (PE13/154, 165).

Neo-Sindarin: In The Etymologies of the 1930s the basis for “wool” words was still ᴹ√TOW, but in later Sindarin the phonetic developments for tou̯ or tōwo would produce either taw or . Since both these words already existing Tolkien’s later writings with various other meanings, I prefer to retain ᴺS. as the noun “wool, fleece”, and assume it is derived from either * or *tŏg(o).

6.25 Silk

ᴱQ. samin (samind-) n. “silk”

An isolated word with no clear derivation appearing in the Qenya Lexicon and Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa of the 1910s as ᴱQ. samin (samind-) “silk” (QL/81; PME/81).

Neo-Quenya: There is no evidence of this word in Tolkien’s later writings, but there are no other later Quenya “silk” words either, so I’d retain ᴺQ. samin “silk” for purposes of Neo-Quenya.

ᴱQ. saminda adj. “silky”

A word appearing as ᴱQ. saminda or saminwa “silky” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, an adjective form of ᴱQ. samin “silk” (QL/81).

Neo-Quenya: Since I retain ᴺQ. samin “silk” (samind-) for purposes of Neo-Quenya, I’d retain ᴺQ. saminda “silky” as well.

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