8.565 Thorn
- ᴱQ. ekkia adj. “thorny”
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A word appearing as ᴱQ. ekkia “thorny” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, an adjectival form of ᴱQ. ekke (ekki-) “thorn” (QL/35).
Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would update this word to ᴺQ. eccoia “thorny” based on the later word [ᴹQ.] ecco for “thorn”.
- ᴹQ. ekko n. “spine, thorn, point”
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A noun for “spine” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√EK (Ety/EK; EtyAC/EK). In The Etymologies as published in The Lost Road it was given the gloss “spear” (LR/355), but Carl Hostetter and Patrick Wynne corrected this to “spine” in their Addenda and Corrigenda to the Etymologies (VT45/12). In notes on The Feanorian Alphabet from this same time period, ekko was glossed “point, spine, thorn” (PE22/23).
Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon and Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa of the 1910s had ᴱQ. ekke (ekki-) “thorn” derived from the early root ᴱ√EKE (QL/35; PME/35). Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s had ᴱQ. ehta as a cognate to ᴱN. aith “thorn” in a draft entry (PE13/136), likely based on *ekta.
- ᴹQ. erka n. “prickle, spine”
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A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “prickle, spine” derived from the root ᴹ√EREK “thorn” (Ety/ERÉK).
- Q. necel n. “thorn”
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A word for “thorn” in notes on the Words, Phrases and Passages from The Lord of the Rings from the late 1950s or early 1960s, derived from the root √NEK having to do with angles (PE17/55).
- G. aithos n. “thorn bush”
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A noun appearing as G. aithos “thorn-bush” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, a combination of G. aith¹ “thorn” and G. tath “hedge”, derived from primitive ᴱ✶eχt·taþ· (GL/18). This word also appeared in Gnomish Lexicon Slips modifying that document (PE13/108).
Neo-Sindarin: I would adapt this word as ᴺS. eithos “thorn bush” for purposes of Neo-Sindarin, since the diphthong ai was ei in non-final syllables in Sindarin of the 1950s and 60s. I would re-etymologize this word as a combination of the later words [N.] êg “thorn” (< √EK) and [N.] toss “bush”, where primitive ekt- became eith-.
- N. ech n. “spine, *spiny quill or bristle”
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A noun for “spine” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√EK (Ety/EK; EtyAC/EK). In The Etymologies as published in The Lost Road it was given the gloss “spear” (LR/355), but Carl Hostetter and Patrick Wynne corrected this to “spine” in their Addenda and Corrigenda to the Etymologies (VT45/12). Given the root’s association with pointed things, this word likely means “spine” in the sense of “*spiny quill or bristle” in a plant or animal, and not “spine” as in “vertebrae”.
- N. êg n. “thorn”
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A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “thorn” under the root ᴹ√EK (Ety/EK). In The Etymologies this root was glossed “spear”, but I think this gloss applied only to the extend form of the root √EKTE/EKTI, because elsewhere √EK had other glosses like “sharp, (sharp) point, thorn” (WJ/365; VT48/25; PE22/127).
Conceptual Development: In the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, G. eg merely meant “point” (GL/32) while G. aith was “thorn” (GL/18), both from the early root ᴱ√EKE or ᴱ√EHE having to do with points (GL/31; QL/35). In Gnomish Lexicon Slips this became G. aithr “thorn” which also had an archaic sense “†sword” (PE13/108), a word that also appeared as ᴱN. aithr “thorn, [archaic] †sword” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/136).
- ᴱN. eitheb n. “thorny, *(orig.) full of points; ⚠️sharp”
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A word appearing as {aitheb >>} eitheb “thorny” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/142). In the contemporaneous Early Noldorin Dictionary it was glossed “thorny, sharp” (PE13/158). It was an adjectival form of ᴱN. aith “thorn, †spear”.
Conceptual Development: Similar words in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s include G. aithra “piercing, sharp; thorny” and G. aithog “thorny”, both based on G. aith “thorn” (GL/18). Gnomish Lexicon Slips modifying that document had {aithreg >>} G. aitheb “sharp, piercing” (PE13/108).
Neo-Sindarin: Since the noun [N.] aith/eith “spear-point” reappeared in Tolkien’s later writing, I would retain ᴺS. eitheb “thorny” for purposes of Neo-Sindarin, perhaps with an original sense “*full of points”. However, I would not use this word for “sharp”, since there are other later words with this meaning like S. aeg.