9.76 Basket ᴹQ. kapsa n. “case, vessel, *container” A word in the Declension of Nouns (DN) from the early 1930s glossed “case, vessel” (PE21/20). It appeared in both a short form kas (kaps-) and longer kapsa (PE21/27). It might be derived from ᴹ√KAB “hollow” as suggested by Raccoon in a
Select Elvish Words
Studies on selected elvish words to sort out their semantics.
Select Elvish Words 9.74: Glass
9.74 Glass Q. calca n. “glass” A word for “glass” appearing in notes from around 1968 as a derivative of √KALAK (VT47/35). Conceptual Development: There was a similar form ᴱQ. talqe (talqi-) “glass” in the Qenya Lexicon and Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa of the 1910s (PME/88; QL/88). It
Select Elvish Words 9.71: Potter
9.71 Potter ᴹQ. kemnaro n. “potter” A word for “potter” in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√KEM “soil, earth”, apparently an agental formation based on ᴹQ. kemna “of earth, earthen” (Ety/KEM). It was first written as ᴹQ. {kemenāro}, and there was a line drawn from kemnaro to
Select Elvish Words 9.68-9.69: Lead, Tin
9.68 Lead ᴱQ. kanu n. “lead [metal]” A word appearing as ᴱQ. kanu “lead” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√KANA (QL/44). It was also identified as the source of the k in the name of the magical metal ᴱQ. Tilkal (LT1/100). Neo-Quenya: I retain
Select Elvish Words 9.67: Iron
9.67 Iron Q. anga n. “iron” This was the Quenya word for “iron” for much of Tolkien’s life, derived from primitive ✶angā of the same meaning (PM/347). Conceptual Development: ᴱQ. anga “iron” dates back to the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s (QL/31). In this document it had some competing alternatives:
Select Elvish Words 9.66: Copper, Bronze
9.66 Copper, Bronze Q. calarus (calarust-) n. “polished copper” A noun for “polished copper” in notes from the late 1960s as a combination of cala “light” with urus(t)- “copper” (VT41/10). ᴱQ. kalas (kalass-) n. “brass” A noun appearing as ᴱQ. kalas (kalass-) “brass” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s
Select Elvish Words 9.65: Silver
9.65 Silver ᴹQ. telemna adj. “*of silver” An unglossed adjective in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√KYELEP “silver”, equated to ᴹQ. telpina and an element in the name ᴹQ. Taltyelemna “*Silverfoot” (Ety/KYELEP). It seems to have replaced ᴹQ. telepsa “of silver”, and so probably has a similar
Select Elvish Words 9.64 Gold
9.64 Gold ⚠️ᴹQ. kulu n. “gold (metal)” The Etymologies of the 1930s had a pair of words kulu “gold (metal)” and kulo “gold (substance)” derived from the root ᴹ√KUL of similar meaning (Ety/KUL). However Tolkien revised the meaning of this root to “golden-red” and the derivatives of the root became
Select Elvish Words 9.635: Metal
9.635 Metal ⚠️ᴹQ. rauta n. “metal” A noun for “metal” in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from the root ᴹ√RAUTĀ of the same meaning (Ety/RAUTĀ). In that document, its Noldorin cognate was the basis for the second element of the names Finrod, Angrod and Damrod. In Tolkien’s later writings
Select Elvish Words 9.60-9.62: Smith, Forge, Anvil
9.60 Smith Q. sintamo n. “smith” A word specifically for a “[metal] smith” based on primitive ✶sinkitamo, as opposed to more generic tamo “smith, *builder” which can refer to a variety of craftsman (PE17/107-108). Its initial element seems to be a restoration of ᴱQ. sink “mineral, metal, gem” from the