8.66 Acorn ᴹQ. ferna n. “mast, beechnuts” A word in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “mast, beechnuts” under the root ᴹ√PHER(EN) “beech” (Ety/BERETH). Most likely the gloss “mast” refers to the fallen nuts or acorns used in ancient times to feed pigs, which was one of the senses of
Select Elvish Words
Studies on selected elvish words to sort out their semantics.
Select Elvish Words 8.655: Tree (other) – Sindarin
8.655 Tree (other) S. faran n. “rowan, *ash” A Sindarin word for a “rowan” [a species of ash tree], cognate to Q. farnë and derivative of √PHAR(AN) (PE17/83), possibly a later iteration of N. †fêr “beech-tree” from the root ᴹ√PHER(EN) (Ety/PHER). Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had
Select Elvish Words 8.655: Tree (other) – Quenya
8.655 Tree (other) Q. culumalda n. “laburnum, *(lit.) orange-tree” Quenya name for a “laburnum” described as “a tree with hanging yellow blossoms (prob[ably] a laburnum) growing in Ithilien espec[ially] at Cormallen” (RC/626). Helge Fauskanger suggested it is probably [ᴹQ.] culuma “orange” + alda “tree” (QQ/culumalda). Q. farnë (farni-) n. “ash,
Select Elvish Words 8.635-8.64: Elm, Pine
8.635 Elm Q. alalvëa adj. “having many elms” A word meaning “having many elms” in notes from 1959, an elaboration of alvë “elm” (PE17/146). Q. alvë n. “elm” A word appearing as alve or albe “elm” in notes from 1959, derived from the root √ALAB of similar meaning (PE17/146, 153).
Select Elvish Words 8.62-8.63: Beech, Birch
8.62 Beech ᴹQ. feren (fern-) n. “beech-tree” A word for “beech-tree” in The Etymologies of the 1930s with variants feren and ferne derived from primitive ᴹ✶pheren based on the root ᴹ√PHER(EN) “beech” (Ety/BERÉTH; PHER). Its plural form was ferni < *fer(e)nī due to the affect of the Quenya syncope. It
Select Elvish Words 8.61: Oak
8.61 Oak ᴹQ. lindornea adj. “having many oaks” A word in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “having many oak-trees” or “having many oaks”, a combination of ᴹQ. lin- “many” and an adjectival form of ᴹQ. norno “oak”, where the more ancient initial consonant d- was preserved/restored in the compound
Select Elvish Words 8.60: Tree (generic)
8.60 Tree (generic) Q. alda n. “tree, ⚠️[ᴱQ.] branch” The basic Quenya word for “tree” (LotR/1113), derived from primitive ✶galadā and very well attested. This word dates all the way back to the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s where ᴱQ. alda “tree” appeared under the early root ᴱ√ALA² “spread” (QL/29).
Select Elvish Words 8.599: Flower (other) – Sindarin
8.599 Flower (other) S. eirien n. “daisy” A word for “daisy” as the name of one of the daughters of Samwise (SD/126). Its origin is unclear, but David Salo suggested it might be a loan from Q. Arien “Sun-maiden” (GS/228). Conceptual Development: In the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s the
Select Elvish Words 8.599: Flower (other) – Quenya
8.599 Flower (other) ᴱQ. fumella n. “(red) poppy, *(lit.) flower of sleep” A noun appearing as ᴱQ. {fūmella >>} fumella or fūmelot “poppy” in the Qenya Lexicon, with an initial element ᴱQ. fúme “sleep” and a second element of either the suffix -lla or a reduced form of ᴱQ. lóte
Select Elvish Words 8.575-8.59 Lily, Rose, Violet
8.575 Lily Q. indil n. “lily, other large single flower” A Quenya noun for “lily” or more generally any “large flower”, cognate of Ad. inzil. Conceptual Development: This word appeared in two forms with competing etymologies. In the early 1950s, it appeared as Q. insil, a loan word from Atani