Select Elvish Words 9.22: to Cut

9.22 to Cut

Q. aucir- v. “to cut off (and get rid of or lose a portion)”

A verb in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 translated “cut off so that a portion is lost or no longer available” (WJ/365) and “cut off and get rid of or lose a portion” (WJ/368), a combination of au- “away (from the speaker)” and cir- “cut” (WJ/365, 368).

Q. cir- v. “to cut, [ᴱQ.] cleave; *to separate from”

A verb for “to cut, cleave”. Its root √KIR is well established and has the same basic meaning (PE17/73; Ety/KIR). In notes for drafts of the Earendel (Poem) from around 1930, ᴱQ. kiri- was glossed “cleave” (PE16/100), and its past form was used in this sense in the finished version of the poem as part of the phrase langon veakiryo kírier “the throat of the sea-ship clove [the waters]” (MC/216). The best evidence for its meaning “cut” in later notes is in the pair of prefixed verbs aucir- and hócir- “cut off” in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 (WJ/365, 368).

This verb also appeared in the versions of the Markirya poem from the 1960s in the phrase métima hrestallo círa “leave the last shore” (MC/221). Helge Fauskanger suggested that in this context it might mean “sail” as in “*cut through the water” (AL/Markirya, QQ/círa). However, I think the intended meaning is actually “leave = cleave (from)”, in combination with ablative hrestallo “[from] the last shore”.

Neo-Quenya: Based on the above, I think cir- has the connotation of “cut [completely]”, so as to cleave apart the thing cut, as opposed to rista- “cut [into]”. As such I think cir- can also be used metaphorically to mean “*separate from” when combined with the ablative.

Q. hócir- v. “to cut off (so as to have or use a required portion)”

A verb in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 translated “cut off a required portion, so as to have it or use it” (WJ/366) and “cut off, so as to have or use a required portion” (WJ/368), a combination of hó- “away (towards the speaker)” and cir- “cut” (WJ/366, 368).

ᴹQ. rista n. “cut”

A noun for “a cut” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√RIS “slash, rip” (Ety/RIS). It was also an element the name ᴹQ. Latimberista, Quenya equivalent of S. Imladris, in a page of rejected notes from 1948 (PE22/127). It might reappear in some later notes as well; see Q. rista- “to cut” for further discussion.

ᴹQ. rista- v. “to cut”

A verb appearing as ᴹQ. rista- “cut” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√RIS “slash, rip” (Ety/RIS).

A similar set of forms “rista & risse, rinse” appeared in notes on Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s derived from √RIS “cut” as part of a discussion of the etymology of S. Imladris (PE17/87). These could be various noun or adjective forms, equivalent to the final element of Imladris, but in that note Tolkien said that Sindarin element was derived from primitive ✶rinsa “cleft, cloven, separate”. Therefore, I think these Quenya forms might instead be a formative or causative verb rista- “*to cut” with strong pasts risse or rinse.

Neo-Quenya: Given the uncertain nature of the forms from WP, I would assume rista- is (or became) an ordinary weak verb for purposes of Neo-Quenya, with a past form *ristane. Given the meaning of its 1930s root (“slash, rip”), I would further assume its connotation is “cut [into]” as opposed to Q. cir- “cut completely, cut apart”

S. criss n. “cleft, [N.] cut, slash, [G.] gash; ⚠️[N.] pass, [G.] gully, ravine”

A word for a “cleft, cut, slash” (PE21/81; Ety/KIRIS) derived from √KIRIS, a blend of the roots √KIR and √RIS (PE17/87).

Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to G. criss “cleft, gash, gully” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s where it was probably already a derivative of the early root ᴱ√KIRISI as suggested by Christopher Tolkien (GL/27; LT2A/Cris Ilbranteloth). In the Name-list to The Fall of Gondolin Tolkien gave cris with the definition “a cleft, ravine, or narrow way of waters with high walls” (PE15/21), and in this period it typically appeared in this shorter form within names like G. Cris Ilbranteloth or G. Cris Thorn.

N. criss appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “cleft, cut, slash” under the root ᴹ√KIRIS “cut” (Ety/KIRIS). It also appeared under the root ᴹ√KIR with the gloss “cleft, pass”, but this instance was deleted (EtyAC/KIR). S. criss “cleft” was mentioned in passing in Common Eldarin: Noun Structure (EVS2) from the early 1950s as derived from primitive ✶kirissi (PE21/80-81), and it was mentioned as a blending of roots in notes on Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings from the late 1950s or early 1960s as described above (PE17/87). Its use in names diminished over time, however, the only remnant in the final version of The Silmarillion being S. Crissaegrim (S/121).

Neo-Sindarin: In The Etymologies of the 1930s it seems this word was principally used as for a “cleft, cut, slash” independent of geography. I would assume the same is true for purposes of Neo-Sindarin, since criss is used only in a single geographic name in Tolkien’s later writings; S. cirith was use more broadly in geographic features. I would also assume it was a larger and more violent cut (a “gash” or “slash”) compared to S. rest for simple cuts.

G. crista- v. “to slash, cut, slice”

A verb appearing as G. crista- “slash, cut, slice” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, related to G. criss “cleft, gash, gully” (QL/47) and clearly based on the early root ᴱ√KIRISI (QL/47).

Neo-Sindarin: Since both S. criss “cleft” and the root ᴹ√KIRIS survived in Tolkien’s later writings, I think ᴺS. crista- “to slash, cut, slice” can be retained for purposes of Neo-Sindarin. I would further assume it is a larger or more violent cut than rista- “cut”.

N. osgar- v. “to cut round, amputate”

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s appearing in its (Noldorin) infinitive form esgeri “cut round, amputate” and 3rd. sg. osgar under the root ᴹ√OS “round, about” (Ety/OS). It is a combination of N. os- “about” and N. *car- “do, make”, so literally means “*make round/about”. Its inflected present tense forms would still have i-affection in Sindarin, as in *esgerin “I cut round, I amputate”.

S. rest n. “cut”

A noun appearing as N. rhest in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a cognate to ᴹQ. rista “a cut”, both derived from the root ᴹ√RIS (Ety/RIS). It appeared in later writings as an element in the (untranslated) name Eglarest (S/58; WJ/365). In Noldorin, an initial r has unvoiced to rh, but this was not the case in Sindarin, so its independent Sindarin form is probably rest.

N. rhista- v. “to cut; to rend, rip”

A verb appearing in its (Noldorin) infinitive form N. rhisto in The Etymologies of the 1930s as a cognate to ᴹQ. rista- “cut”, both derived from the root ᴹ√RIS (Ety/RIS). In the initial version of this root’s entry it appeared as risto derived from ON. rista- “rend, rip” (Ety/RIS). The original entry was not deleted, and it is not clear if its retention was an oversight or if Tolkien intended both meanings to coexist.

Neo-Sindarin: In Noldorin, an initial r has unvoiced to rh, but this was not the case in Sindarin, so its Sindarin form is probably ᴺS. rista-, as suggested in Hiswelókë’s Sindarin Dictionary (HSD). I would further assume rista- can mean any of “cut, rend, rip”.

S. tewch n. “(?chip)”

A word appearing in Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959 as tewch with an unclear gloss, perhaps “chip” as suggested by Christopher Gilson (PE17/148). It was derived from primitive ✶teswā where the sw became χw, and then the final w became u/w̯ which then intruded into the main syllable in a process parallel to i-intrusion.

Neo-Sindarin: This 1959 note it is the only place Tolkien mentions u-intrusion as a parallel to i-intrusion, so I assume this was a transient idea and the Sindarin form should be ᴺS. techu “chip”.

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. flinc “chip” (GL/35), probably based on the early root ᴱ√FḶKḶ “cleave, hew” (QL/38).