13.11 Amount, Quantity
- Q. nonwë n. “calculation, sum, *total”
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The original layer of Outline of Phonology (OP2) from the early 1950s had nonwe “calculation, a sum” derived from primitive ✶notmē based on the root √NOT, where ancient tm > dm > nw (PE19/85-86 note #79). By the 1960s, Tolkien decided that ancient tm > tw, and the section where nonwe appeared was deleted (PE19/85 and note #77).
Neo-Quenya: I prefer to ignore this particular revision to Quenya phonology and would use ᴺQ. nonwë “calculation, sum, *total” for purposes of Neo-Quenya. If you prefer Tolkien’s 1960s sound changes, this word would be notwë in the later system.
Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. qotta “sum, number, account, total” under the early root ᴱ√QOTO (QL/78).
- Q. nótië n. “*counting”
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A word implied by maquanotie (VT47/10) and kaistanótie (VT48/11) from the late 1960s, both meaning “decimal system”. Helge Fauskanger suggested that nótie may mean “counting” (QQ/nótië), as in “*hand-counting” and “*ten-counting” respectively.
- Q. únotë(a) adj. “not counted, uncounted”
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A word appearing as au- or únote(a) “not counted, uncounted” in notes from 1959 (PE17/144), based on √NOT “count”.
- Q. únótima adj. “numberless, innumerable, countless, ⚠️hard/difficult/impossible to count”
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A word for “numberless, countless” appearing in its plural form únótime from the Namárië poem in the phrase: yéni únótimë ve rámar aldaron “long years numberless as the wings of trees” (LotR/377; RGEO/58). Tolkien described the etymology of this word in various places as a negation of nótima “countable” using the negative prefix ú-, so more literally meaning “*uncountable”.
Conceptual Development: In the brief period around 1969 where Tolkien made lá the primary negative in Quenya, he redefined únótima as “hard/difficult to count” (PE22/156, 160); it also had this gloss in notes from 1967 (PE17/62). In a (rejected) page within Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959, Tolkien instead had urunóte or urnótima based on the prefix ur(u)- (PE17/172), elsewhere glossed “hard, difficult” (PE17/154). In The Etymologies of the 1930s, Tolkien gave ᴹQ. avanóte “without number, numberless” under the root ᴹ√AWA “away, forth; out” (Ety/AWA).
- S. arnediad adj. “unnumbered, [N.] without reckoning, numberless, innumerable, countless, endless”
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A Sindarin word for “unnumbered” appearing in its archaic form arnoediad [arnœdiad] in the name Nirnaeth Arnoediad “[Battle of] Tears Unnumbered” and in its modern form in the variant name Dagor Arnediad (WJ/28). The e vs. archaic œ is the result of the Sindarin sound change of [œ] to [e] occurring sometime in the First Age. This word is a combination of ar- “without” and the gerund of the verb nedia- “to count”, so more literally “*without count” or “countless”.
Conceptual Development: The modern and archaic forms N. arnediad and N. arnœdiad appeared in in The Etymologies of the 1930s with the translations: “without reckoning, numberless” (Ety/AR²) and “innumerable, countless, endless” (Ety/NOT). This was also the form used in the narratives of the 1930s and later. Prior to this point, Tolkien used numerous earlier forms:
- The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. udathnarol and udathriol “countless” as a combination of negative prefix G. u- and adjective forms of the verb G. tath- “count” (GL/74), with udathriol also appearing in the contemporaneous Lost Tales (LT2/84). Udathriol also appeared briefly in the Lays of Beleriand (LB/21 note #13), but underwent a number of changes in that narrative (see below).
- Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s had ᴱN. inathui and {inathadwed >} inathadren “innumerable” as a combination of negative prefix ᴱN. i- and an adjectival form ᴱN. nath “number” (PE13/148). A similar form unothradin appeared in the Lays of Beleriand (LB/6).
- These Early Noldorin Word-lists also had ᴱN. ornoth “numberless” as a combination of ᴱN. or- “without” and ᴱN. noth “number”, with variants únoth “without number, countless” and onath “numberless” (PE13/151, 155). Ornoth and únoth also appeared in the Lays of Beleriand (LB/59, 79).
- The Lays of Beleriand also had Nirnaith Dirnoth “Unnumbered Tears” (LR/136), a form that reappeared in Silmarillion narratives from around 1930 as {Nirnaith Irnoth >>} Nirnaith Dirnoth before being revised to Nirnaith Arnediad (SM/312).
- Tolkien used arnediad or arnoediad thereafter.
- S. pennod adj. “without count, *impossible to count”
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A compound appearing in Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959 glossed “without count” as a combination of pen “without” and nod- “count”. In this note Tolkien said pen- when used in this way was “referring principally to (complete) impossibility”, so pennod means “*impossible to count”.
- S. pennoediad adj. “innumerable”
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A word appearing in Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959 glossed “innumerable” as a combination of pen “without” and the gerund of noedia- “to count”. The oe [œ] is archaic and the modern form would be pennediad.
- G. tast n. “total, amount”
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A word appearing as G. tast² “total, amount” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s based on G. tath- “count” (GL/69), clearly based on the early root ᴱ√TAÞA (QL/90).
Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin I would update this word ᴺS. nost “total, amount” taking the later root √NOT “count” and combining it with the suffix ✶-dā “product of an action” (with t-d > st), so originally “*a product of counting”.
- S. únodui adj. “countless, *uncountable”
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A word glossed “countless” in Definitive Linguistic Notes (DLN) from 1959, a combination of negative prefix ú-, nod- “count”, and the suffix -ui “having quality” (PE17/144), so more literally “*un-count-able”.