12.54 to Measure
- Q. lár n. “league; †stop, pause”
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A Númenórean unit of measure that was translated as “league”, 5000 rangar in length or about 5277 yards, which is very close to an English league = 3 miles or 5280 yards (UT/279, 285). Its original meaning was “stop, pause” as this is the distance where forced marches usually stopped for a rest, and thus it was likely derived from the root ᴹ√DAR “stay, stop” (Ety/DAR).
- ᴹQ. lesta n. “measure”
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A word for “measure” in ᴹQ. Fíriel’s Song from the 1930s, appearing only in its instrumental form lestanen “in measure” (LR/72).
Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. talma “a weight, measure” under the early root ᴱ√TALA “support” (QL/88), a word also appearing in the contemporaneous Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa with the gloss “weight” (PME/88).
- Q. ranga n. “yard, full pace”
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A Númenórean measure roughly equal to a single pace of an army on the march (UT/285). Its proper meaning is “a full pace”. Tolkien gave a rough translation of “yard”, but due to the longer Númenórean stride the actual length of a ranga is about 38 inches rather than the 36 inches of an English yard. Two rangar (6 foot 4 inches) was said to be the approximate height of a man of the Dúnedain, but they were considerably taller than most men of Middle Earth.
- ᴹQ. rangwe n. “fathom”
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A noun for a “fathom” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶rakmē under the root ᴹ√RAK “stretch out, reach” (Ety/RAK). It is unclear whether this was an English fathom (6 feet) or some Middle Earth measure of similar length.
- S. daur n. “measure”
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A Númenórean unit of measure that was translated as “league”, 5000 [Q.] rangar in length or about 5277 yards, which is very close to an English league = 3 miles or 5280 yards (UT/279, 285). Its original meaning was “stop, pause” as this is the distance where forced marches usually stopped for a rest, and thus it was likely derived from the root ᴹ√DAR “stay, stop” (Ety/DAR).
- N. rhaew n. “fathom”
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A noun for a “fathom” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶rakmē under the root ᴹ√RAK “stretch out, reach” (Ety/RAK). It is unclear whether this was an English fathom (6 feet) or some Middle Earth measure of similar length.
Neo-Sindarin: Many Neo-Sindarin writers adapt this word as ᴺS. raew “fathom” for purposes of Neo-Sindarin as suggested in Hiswelókë’s Sindarin Dictionary (HSD), since the unvoicing of initial r to rh was a feature of Noldorin of the 1930s but not Sindarin of the 1950s and 60s.