An indirect object is a noun that the action indirectly affects. In English, this is marked with a "to" or a "for," or, we just put the indirect object before the direct object.
The adjective for this is "dative", so you'll see the indirect object sometimes described as "the dative pronoun" or "the dative noun".
A ditransitive verb is one that needs two objects: a direct object and an indirect object, so Indirect objects usually come up with regards to these verbs.
In Sindarin, the indirect object is marked with the preposition an "to/for" and anin "to/for the." Here is the mutation chart for an. For the mutation chart for anin, look to the Definite Prepositions lesson.
| Letter | → | Result | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voiceless Stops | |||
| AN+C | → | A CH | cerin → a cherin to a mound |
| AN+P | → | A PH | perian → a pherian to a hobbit |
| AN+T | → | A TH | talan → a thalan to a tree-house |
| Voiced Stops | |||
| AN+B | → | AM B | bâd → am bâd to a path |
| AN+G | → | AÑ G | glân → añ glân to a hem |
| AN+GW | → | AN 'W | gwaun → an 'waun to a goose |
| Fricatives | |||
| AN+H | → | AN CH | ham → an cham to a chair |
| AN+S | → | AN H | sigil → an higil to a necklace |
| Nasal | |||
| AN+M | → | AM M | mirian → am mirian to a silver coin |
| Voiced Approximant | |||
| AN+R | → | ADH R | raef → adh raef to a net |
| Voiceless Approximants | |||
| AN+HW | → | AN 'W | hwand → an 'wand to a sponge |
| AN+LH | → | AN 'L | lhaw → an 'law to a pair of ear |
| AN+RH | → | AN 'R | rhoss → an 'ross to a whisper |
| Ancient Nasal-Stops | |||
| AN+B | → | AM B | bauglir → am bauglir to a tyrant |
| AN+G | → | AÑ G | golovir → añ golovir to a Silmaril |
The indirect object usually goes after the verb and direct object. As long as it is marked with an you can put it anywhere in the sentence, except between a verb and its direct object. Putting it at the beginning of the sentence puts emphasis on it, drawing attention to who the action is to or for.
Amathon aun *gorf gelebren añ Glaewen. - Amathon gave a silver ring to Glaewen.
Amathon añ Glaewen aun *gorf gelebren. - Amathon gave to Glaewen a silver ring.
Añ Glaewen Amathon aun *gorf gelebren. - To Glaewen Amathon gave a silver ring.
Dative pronouns can be deceptive. The preposition an is prefixed onto the pronoun, making it look like another word. Here is a brief list of all the dative pronouns.
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| First person exclusive | annin to/for me | ammen to/for us (not you) |
| First person inclusive | *anwen to/for you and us | |
| Informal second person | *achin to/for you (informal) | - |
| Formal second person | *anlen to/for you (formal) | *anden to/for y'all |
| Third person | *athen to/for him/her/it | *athin to/for them |
| Near Demonstrative | *assen to/for this | *assin to/for these |
| Far Demonstrative | assan to/for that | *assain to/for those |
| Interrogative | *amman to/for what/who | |
De cherir ammen. - They do it to us.
Ammen de cherir. - To us they do it. (It is us that they do it to.)
You can leave an out of the indirect object (as long as it isn't a pronoun, and only if the verb is actually ditransitive) but if you do, you must place it after the verb and direct object. In English we switch the word order, so be careful of this.
Amathon aun *gorf gelebren Glaewen. - Amathon gave Glaewen a silver ring.
When the intransitive verb's indirect object is a pronoun, something interesting can happen. It can be treated like an accusative pronoun, placed directly before the verb, causing Nasal Mutation with its -N. When this happens, it even loses an and is indistinguishable from an accusative pronoun.
For example, these two sentences mean the same thing:
Ivreth cân achin. - Ivreth calls to you.
Ivreth gi chân. - Ivreth calls to you.
For imperative statements with indirect objects, either the dative or the accusative could come first, because the dative marked by an is free to roam around the sentence.
Cuio anwen, melethrilig! - Live for us, my love!
Melloneg, anno anin adar g�n ant. - My friend, give a gift to your father.