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Select Elvish Words 10.41-10.432: to Creep; to Leap; Leaping

10.41 to Creep, Crawl

ᴹQ. hlik- v. “to creep, *sneak”

A verb in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948, glossed “creep” and based on the root ᴹ√SLIK of the same meaning (PE22/113). It also had a frequentative form lilhikke “sneak about”, indicating the base verb may mean “*sneak” as well.

10.43 to Jump, Leap

ᴹQ. kap- v. “to leap, [ᴱQ.] jump”

A verb in the Quenya Verbal System (QVS) from 1948 based on the root ᴹ√KAP “leap”, illustrating the conjugation of basic verbs with stems ending in p (PE22/102). Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s had ᴱQ. kap- “leap” (PE16/132, 134), and the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. kapin “I jump” under the early root ᴱ√KAPA “leap, spring” (QL/45). The survival of related Sindarin words like cabed “leap” in Tolkien’s later writings (S/224) indicate the ongoing validity of Q. cap- “leap”.

ᴱQ. tanta- v. “to bounce, bound, rebound”

A verb appearing as ᴱQ. tanta- “bounce, bound, rebound” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√TṆTṆ (QL/93). The verb tante reappeared in the Early Qenya Grammar based on primitive ✶tṇt- {“dance” >>} “bounce” (PE14/58).

Neo-Quenya: As we have no better options for “bounce”, for purposes of Neo-Quenya I would retain ᴺQ. tanta- “to bounce, bound, rebound” based on the Neo-Root ᴺ√TANTA. This does conflict with the 1960s verb Q. tanta- “to play a harp”, but I prefer 1930s ᴹQ. ñanda- “to harp” instead. For other “dance” verbs see ᴹQ. lilta-.

S. cab- v. “to leap, [G.] jump”

A verb for “to leap” implied by the noun [gerund] cabed “leap” in names like Cabed Naeramarth “Leap of Dreadful Doom” and Cabed-en-Aras “Deer’s Leap” (S/224; UT/150).

Conceptual Development: This verb dates all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, which had G. cab- “jump, leap” (GL/24) clearly based on the early root ᴱ√KAPA “leap, spring” from the contemporaneous Qenya Lexicon (QL/45). The Early Qenya Phonology had ᴱN. hab- “to jump” based on a variant root ᴱ✶skap- (PE14/66), but at some point after this cab- was restored, as implied by N. cabor “frog = *leaper” from The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/KAP).

S. laba- v. “to hop”

A verb for “hop” extracted from the name S. Labadal “Hopafoot” (UT/60). Compare also G. laboth “rabbit” from the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, cognate of ᴱQ. lapatte (GL/52). This was in turn derived from primitive ᴱ✶lapatte in the contemporaneous Qenya Lexicon (QL/51), and thus ultimately connected to the root √LOP. S. laba- “hop” may also be based on a variant of this root.

10.432 Leaping

ᴱQ. kapalima adj. “leaping”

The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had an adjective ᴱQ. kapalima “bounding, leaping” under the early root ᴱ√KAPA “leap, spring” (QL/45). It also had ᴱQ. haloite “leaping” under the early root ᴱ√HALA (QL/39).

Neo-Quenya: Neither of these early words work for purposes of Neo-Quenya, since -ima means “able to done” in Tolkien’s later writings and the root √KHAL changed in meaning. I would blend these into ᴺQ. capaitë “leaping, bounding”, as combination of [ᴹQ.] kap- “jump” with the suffix -itë “apt to do”.

ᴱQ. kapanda n. “jump”

A noun appearing as ᴱQ. kapanda “a jump” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√KAPA “leap, spring” (QL/45).

Neo-Quenya: Since ᴹ√KAP “leap” survived in Tolkien’s later writings, I would retain ᴺQ. capanda “jump” as well for purposes of Neo-Quenya.

ᴱQ. tantara adj. “bouncing, resilient”

A word appearing as ᴱQ. tantara “bouncing, resilient” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, an adjectival form of the verb ᴱQ. tanta- “bounce, bound, rebound” (QL/93-94). Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s instead had tanta “bouncing, resilient” (PE16/142).

Neo-Quenya: Since I retain ᴺQ. tanta- “to bounce, bound, rebound” for purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would retain ᴺQ. tantara “bouncing, resilient” as well.

S. cabed n. “leap”

A noun for “leap” appearing in names like Cabed Naeramarth “Leap of Dreadful Doom” and Cabed-en-Aras “Deer’s Leap” (S/224; UT/150), apparently the gerund of a verb cab- “leap, *jump” based on the root ᴹ√KAP of similar meaning.

Conceptual Development: This root dates all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, and there are similar nouns based on this root appear in Tolkien’s earlier writings: G. camp “leap” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s (GL/24) and ᴱN. cais “leap” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/140). The latter was based on primitive ᴱ✶kapse, with the diphthong ai the result of the vocalization of p to i.

N. thôr adj. “swooping, leaping down”

An adjective in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “swooping, leaping down” derived from the root ᴹ√THOR “come swooping down” (Ety/THOR).

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