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rvinyar Tengwar
Number 50 March
· 2013
Contents
Departments
Editor's Musings
Welcome at long last to the long-awaited fiftieth issue of Vinyar Tengwar!
I must of course apologize for the. exceedingly long time that has passed
since the previous issue was published, and I thank my subscribers for your
long patience. The past years have been the busiest of my professional and
family life, leaving little sustained time for avocational pursuits - though I
have not been entirely idle in those, assisting in other Tolkien-related proj
ects and even laying groundwork for some of my own that will hopefully
bear fruit in the coming years.
But professional demands have eased considerably of late, and so I am
very pleased this issue to present the long-expected "Tlirin Wrapper': which
comprises three untranslated Sindarin texts pertaining to the Narn i·Chin
Hurin that Tolkien composed sometime in the 1950s. While the general
sense of two of these texts, which represent descriptive titles for the Narn,
was readily apparent, certain forms and grammatical constructions were,
and are, neither unambigious nor readily analyzed. These texts thus required
much time, thought, and repeated examination of Tolkien's linguistic papers,
and careful research within his published writings of the period, to find such
evidence as could be brought to bear on the likely meaning and potential
derivation of various previously unattested forms and constructions in
these texts - and even so, several cruxes remain for which I can offer only
very tentative and not-entirely-satisfying proposals. These texts show yet
·
again how fluid was Tolkien's ongoing creation of the Eldarin tongues: every
attempt at composing in these languages could and usually did give rise to
words and grammatical devices that might be evidenced nowhere else than
on the sheet of paper on which they arose.
Finally, as previously announced, please note that this is the last issue of
Vinyar Tengwar that will be printed and mailed out by me, as well as the
last issue available by subscription. Future issues of VT will be published
and sold only through the online, print-on-demand publisher Lulu.com
(for details, see the VT Web Shop at http://www.elvish.org/VT/shop.html).
Watch for announcements of future issues on the E.L.F. website (http://www.
elvish.org) and on the Lambengolmor mailing list (http://tech.groups.yahoo.
com/group/lambengolmor/) .
- Carl F. Hostetter
Vinyar Tengwar is produced by the editor on an Apple MacBook Pro with Adobe
lnDesign CS6. VT is set in the Adobe Minion Pro and Gentium OpenType font families.
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar · Number so Page 3
Introduction
In the late 1950s J.R.R. Tolkien resumed work on the Narn i·Chin Hurin
after a lapse of nearly a decade, and at this time made several plot-synopses
associated with the "Turins Saga" (cf. Xl:2ss). According to Christopher
Tolkien, his father kept these plot-synopses in a wrapper, on which he wrote
the words "Turin Plot &c': together with various brief, untranslated Sindarin
texts1 likewise associated with the "Turins Saga: and which we may thus
refer to as the "Turin Wrapper':2 This wrapper, reproduced and transcribed
on the following two pages, is now in the archives of the Bodleian Library in
Oxford, where it is catalogued as Tolkien MS. S9/2 fol. 2r.
Dr. Judith Priestman of the Department of Western Manuscripts has
kindly provided a physical description of the wrapper. It consists of a long
sheet of very thick greyish-brown paper, which has been folded over and
back on itself, then glued together to make a wrapper. The left side has been
cut straight, but the right side has been cut unevenly, then folded over onto
the verso, forming an envelope-like flap. The wrapper is 330 mm tall by 183
mm wide, excluding the right flap, which varies from 10 mm to 20 mm in
width. A cream-white label, 220 mm tall by 100 mm wide, has been affixed
to the recto. The text at the extreme left and top of the recto is a fragment of
printing, a relic, as will be shown, of the paper's original use as University of
Ireland stationery. All other text on the wrapper is written in what appears to
C lf(<JI ..
..
-;,... / •
\. U Illl (
I
{
i --l. ,r);, (.. ' th
. \
�
.. .
r,l, ., ''" \lolt!ritUJ ... h '1.0:
in �U<>t-k ..__: .. ..
tJ 'j'hob.r-
[Area 11]
[Area Ill]
Turin
Turamarth Turin ion Hurin
Turamarth
i·Veleglind i eithro en estar
ar Nienor sel
iChin Hurin. iglind then
. edain agorer ach in ellath hi
Morwen Niniel
� ed epholar3 eno. i chin Hurin
os i Veleglinn i
hi edain agorenr
ach in ellath ero ed epholar hi ri'ii4 Veleriann
A
ar in Ellath
epholar eno vi
i glinn th hen agorer
Edain mi Velerian, ach hi Eres�5
in Ellath er ir ed epholar
3· The character given here as "p' represents the alteration of original "b" to
" "
p with the addition of a descender.
4· Tolkien has subsequently written a "v" above the "m", indicating that "mi"
should instead be "vi':
5· The reading of the deleted characters following "Eress" is uncertain. The
space preceding "ai" in this transcription reflects the spacing in the MS, but in
deleting the characters following "Eress" Tolkien made a trailing line extending
through the space that the first replacement character would occupy. It appears
that Tolkien wrote "ai" offset from "Eress" only to avoid this line, and thus that
the intended form is "Eressai".
Page 6 Vinyar Tengwar · Number so March 2013
be blue-black ink, except for the words " Turin Plot &c'; which are evidently
in ballpoint pen. The verso is blank.3
To facilitate reference, the manuscript has been partitioned into four areas
in the transcription. Area I consists of various Celtic forms of the names
"Ireland" and "University of Ireland" (dearly prompted by the remnant of
printing). Areas II and Ill consist of workings of distinct but related Sindarin
titles and descriptions of ; . Veleglind *'the Great Song' of iChin Hurin 'the
Children of Huriri, in particular· of TUrin Turamarth 'Tfuin Master of Pate'.
Area IV consists of a Sindarin text representing a brief discourse of Rian, the
wife of Huor (paternal uncle of Turin), with their son Tuor.
Since, as will be shown below, Tolkien's writing of the various Celtic forms in
Area I was occasioned by the printing at the top left of the wrapper, it seems
most likely that at least some of the forms were written while the printing
was still intact. However, it also appears that Tolkien continued these forms
after the wrapper was constructed, and the printing dissected, as presum
ably the apparently homemade label on which the forms continue was not
affixed until that time. Comparison of the handwriting of the Celtic forms
on the label shows similarity with that of the Sindarin texts on the label, and
dissimilarity with that of the other Celtic forms, further suggesting that they
were written subsequent to the construction of the wrapper.
As for the Sindarin texts on the wrapper, it appears that the first thing
written in Area II, i.e. on the affixed label, was the simple title "Turin
Turamarth'; naming the tale whose associated writings were placed inside
the wrapper. Subsequently; a description was added in smaller writing:
"i· Veleglind i eithro en estar iChin Hurin. iglind then edain agorer ach in
ellath hi ed epholar eno". Two further phases of development of this text are
represented as replacements of parts of this description. First, the final clause
was rewritten as: "ach in ellath hi ero ed epholar". Subsequently, the entire
final sentence was rewritten as: "i glinn hen agorer Edain mi Veleriann, ach hi
in Ellath ir ed epholar':
The text of Area Ill, related to and largely parallel with that in Area II,
is written in the margin of the wrapper to the right of the label. It begins
with the patronymic title " Turin ion Hurin" in relatively large handwriting,
comparable to that of the parallel title in Area Il. Below this the epithet
"TUramarth" is written in a smaller hand. This is followed in progressively
smaller handwriting by the parallel matronymic phrase, "ar Nienor sel
Morwen Niniel"; a summarizing phrase, "i chin Hurin"; and descriptive text
J. The slip of paper (partly) visible at the top left of the wrapper is a note
placed there by Christopher Tolkien, over an apparently water-stained area con
taining no writing, to indicate its contents to the library.
.
> .
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number 50
· Page7
that again parallels that found in Area 11: "os i Veleglinn i edain agorer vi
Veleriann ar in Ellath epholar eno vi Eressai':
Several features of Areas 11 and Ill, written on the label and in the margin
of the wrapper respectively, suggest that their composition overlapped.
The phrase "i chin Hurin" in the marginal text, and indeed the marginal
text up to that point, is merely a genealogy, in which the nouns "ion'; "sef;
and "chin" are not capitalized; that "i chin Hurin" may be the title of a tale
is implied only by the subsequent phrase "os i Veleglinn'; *'from the Great
Song: However, where the phrase "iChin Hurin" occurs on the label, it
is dearly already a title, with the form "Chin" capitalized. It may thus be
that the title "iChin Hurin" on the label was suggested by the genealogical
description in the margin. On the other hand, it may instead be that the
writing of the margin's genealogical description was occasioned by the need
to explain how the tale of "Turin Turamarth" could also be named "iChin
Hurin'; 'the Children of Hfuill, by identifying those children.
Also suggesting that the marginal text was composed after the label text
is the fact that the first version of the label text has the forms "i· Veleglind"
and "iglind", thus preserving etymological final -nd, while the final version
of the label text has the forms "glinn" and " Velerian'; in which etymological
final -nd has (in the first form) been assimilated to -nn or (in the latter form)
reduced to-n; whereas the marginal text has, ab initio, the forms " Veleglinn"
and " Veleriann': Additionally, at the first occurrence of "epholar" on the
label, Tolkien appears to have first written "eb" but then changed the "b" to
"p" in the act of writing (resulting in a composite character that looks very
like the Old English thorn, p); whereas "epholar" is the form as first writ
ten in the subsequent reworkings of the label text and in the final phrase of
the marginal text. Further, "mi" appears before "Velerian" at the end of the
label text, whereas in the margin text "mi" was altered to "vi" (by a super
posed "v") before " Veleriann� and "vi" appears ab initio before "Eressai':
However, suggesting that the marginal text was composed before at least the
reworkings of the label text is the fact that in the label text the word "eno'' is
replaced first with "ero" and then with "ir"; whereas "eno" is the form writ
ten in the final phrase of the marginal text.
Whether the text in Area IV was written before or after those of Areas
11 and Ill is uncertain. The increasingly cramped handwriting of Area IV
may be due to encroachment on the already-present text of Area Ill. On the
other hand, it is somewhat characteristic of Tolkien's compositions to begin
in a larger, more careful and confident hand that becomes smaller (and less
legible) as composition proceeds and uncertainties arise.
PageS Vinyar Tengwar · Number so March 2013
4· Specifically, in the 1950-51 version "GA 1" (cf. Xl:3-4). HaulJ-en-Ellas was
altered in pencil at a later date to HaulJ-en-Elleth, probably in or shortly before
1959, since Haudh-en-Elleth occurs ab initio in the first of tlte c. 1959 plot-synop
ses contained by the wrapper (Xl:256).
5. Specifically, in "GA 2", a slightly later, recapitulated and extended version of
"GA 1" (cf. XI:3-4). With the assimilation/reduction of the Sindarin land-name
ending -and {L:383) to -ann, -an, cp. Tolkien's discussions of the name Rohan(d)
in L:178, 382, and in UT:318.
6. Cf. KHIN- 'child' in the c. 1957 "Notes on Names" (PE17:157). For the des
ignation "NE", see XI:144 s.v. §§287 ff.
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number so
· Page 9
agorer': *'this song men made: and in Area Ill's "i Veleglinn i edain agorer':
*'the Great Song that men made:
The ascription of the composition of the tale to Men is also found ab initio
in the aforementioned text "A" of JElfwine and Dirhaval: "though made in
Elvish speech and using much Elvish lore (especially of Doriath), this lay
was the work of a Mannish poet, Dirhavel': This text also refers to the tale as
"the longest of all the lays of Beleriand now held in memory in Eressea': with
which we may compare Area Il's "i glinn hen agorer Edain mi Velerian, aeh
hi in Ellath ir ed epholar': *'this song Men made in Beleriand, but now the
Elves alone [ ?remember/preserve/recite] it' and Area Ill's "i Veleglinn i edain
agorer vi Veleriann ar in Ellath epholar eno vi Eressai': *'the Great Song that
men made in Beleriand and the Elves [ ?remember/preserve/recite] still in
Eressei.
The tale achieves its final title, "Narn i·Chin Hurin': through emendations
of the title "Glaer nia Chin Hurin" in the conclusion of "NE" (XI:I6o s.v.
§349) and in the original conclusion of the Grey Annals (XI:251).8 This title
also appears ab initio in text "B" of JElfwine and Dirhaval (X1:313) and in an
isolated note concerning the Numen6rean nature of the three Great Tales
(X:373).9
Finally, if the surmise below concerning the meaning of the pronominal
ending -eh of agoreeh in Area IV - se., that it is first-person plural inclusive
'we' - is correct, then the text most likely dates from before c. 1955, since
it appears that by and after that time -eh is confined to the second-person
plural and/or dual.
The Sindarin texts of the "Turin Wrapper" thus evidently have special
affinities with words, titles and phrases that first appear, either ab initio or
through emendation, in texts of c. 1951-55. On balance, then, the evidence
8. The motivation for the change of the type of the "Turins Saga" from glinn
'song' (cf. V:359 s.v. GLIN-) to glaer 'long lay, narrative poem' (cf. V:359 s.v.
GLIR-) and then to narn 'tale, saga' (cf. V:374 s.v. NAR1-) may primarily have
had to do with manner of recitation. In the second text ("B") of JElfwi ne and
Dirhaval we are told that the term narn "signifies a tale that is told in verse to
be spoken and not sung" (XI:313), while the fact that the base GLIR- underlying
glaer is itself derived from the base LIR1- 'sing, trill' implies that it was sung, as
of course was a glinn. The distinction of sung glinn and glaer, and spoken narn, is
reminiscent of that conveyed by the names of the Eddic metres ljodahattr 'song
form' and malahattr 'speech-form:
9· Although this note seemingly shares with the "Turin Wrapper': the Grey
Annals, and text "/\' of JElfwine and Dirhaval the idea that the Tale of Turin was
made by Men, the fact that it includes ab initio the title "Narn i·Chtn Hurin"
suggests that it postdates these texts. If so, it further suggests that Tolkien aban
doned (at least for a time) the idea that the Elves of Eressea preserved this Tale of
Men from the ruin of Beleriand, in favor of a purely Mannish transmission.
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number so
· Page u
strqngly suggests that Tolkien wrote the Sindarin texts of the "Turin Wrap
per" between 1951 and 1959, with the weight of the evidence suggesting com
position earlier rather than later in the decade.
None of the texts on the "Turin Wrapper" are translated, nor is there any
trace of other workings or notes related to these texts in Tolkien's extant lin
guistic papers. Intended meanings must therefore be inferred by reference to
identical or related forms and their meanings attested elsewhere or, where
such forms are not to be found, by recourse to (hopefully well-founded)
surmise. In this analysis, all Elvish forms are Sindarin10 unless otherwise
indicated.
Area I
At the far left of this area is the remnant of two printed words, the first
ending in "n'' (and preceded by a letter now partially obscured), the second
certainly the last six letters of the word "Ireland" followed by a period. The
rest of this area consists of Tolkien's writing of various Celtic forms of the
name "Ireland': and the phrase "Olsgoll Iwerion': Iwerion here is a repre
sentation of a Primitive Celtic form of the name of Ireland (as are Iwerien,
Iwerjen and Iwerj an, and possibly Iwerieon and iferien elsewhere in this
area) underlying Modern Irish genitive E ireann, which together with the Old
Irish nominative form E riu and the Latinized form Hiwernia also appears
in this area. Olsgoll is apparently a similar representation of the form that
would underlie Modern Irish Ollscoil 'University' oll- 'great (of size)' +
=
scoil, sgoil 'school' (< Old Irish scol < Latin schola). We may surmise then
that the appearance here of Olsgoll Iwerion 'University of Ireland' was occa
sioned by the remnants of printing in this area of the wrapper, and deduce
that this printing once read in full "Ollscoil na hE ireann I University of
Ireland:' The wrapper is thus apparently formed from University of Ireland
stationery.11
Areall
Q. asya- < ..JATHA-, PE17:148). With this latter possibility we can compare
the original Goldogrin adverb athru 'secondly, once more, agairl, related to
12. And see further lvan Derzhanski's article "Peth i dirathar aen: Some Notes
14. This posited en+ [ verb] - r passivizing construction can be compared with
the na + infinitive passivizing construction seen in Q. na-hosta and na-kuna in
the poem "Oilima Markirya" (MC:222) , of which Tolkien says: "When the bare
stem of the verb is used (as after 'see or 'hear') as infinitive na- is prefixed if the
noun is the object not the subject" (MC:223 n . 23) . This passivizing Q. na- could
1
derive from the base AN/NA 'to, towards' ( PE1 7: 14 7, and cf. V:348 s.v. ANA - ,
V:3 74 s.v. N A1- ), which would parallel the use o f "to" in English infinitives; or
2
from NA 'be, exist' ( PEt 7: 93 and cf. V:3 48 s.v. ANA -, V:3 74 s.v. NA 2- ) . Note too
the primitive formative ending "da ( variant of nti) denoting the passive result of
the action" ( PE1 7: 52) . It seems conceivable that en here and aen in the "King's
Letter" - or at any rate, the final -n of these forms - could be etymologically
connected with this Q. na-, of either derivation.
15. But cf. the volitive analysis of aen suggested by the parallel of es tathar aen
with Q. nai hiruvalye 'be it that/maybe thou shalt find' in VT3 1:t 6-1 7 s.v. aen.
t 6. It should be noted that given 3 rd sg. ed *'it' below, it is possible to inter
pret en here as instead a 3 rd pl. pronoun 'they: in which case -r of estar is simply
Page 14 Vinyar Tengwar · Number so March 2013
VT42:19, PE17:153) and, in the latter form, mutation of s > h (cf. sad 'place:
Calenhad, VT42:19). The alteration here and on the gate-inscription of forms
in initial th- to forms in initial h- apparently reflects a change in derivation
from an ancestral singular form like *thina (> then) to one like *sina (> *sen
> hen), either of which would regularly yield Q. sina.
• edain agorer : - *'men made: For the earliest usage of edain pl. of adan
'man: see V:338 s.v. §30. In the essay Quendi and Eldar we find the past
tense verb agor 'made, did: which is said to represent "a primitive past tense,
marked as such by the 'augment' or reduplicated base-vowel, and the long
stem vowel;' as exemplified with the primitive form *akara (X1:415, and cf.
KAR- 'make, do', V:362). It thus appears that in agorer we have a conjugated
form of this same past-tense verb, consisting of a past-tense stem *agore- to
which is suffixed a plural ending -r. This stem appears specifically to have
arisen from earlier *akare-, and thus to be an example of the same Sindarin
strong past-tense formation described by Tolkien in c. 19 65 as "formed on
a third-person (or possibly impersonal) plural ending, with en estar then literally
translated as *'they call'. However, where en appears in papers from the 1950s as
an independent pronoun it is tst sg. , while the 3rd pl. is variously est, ent, ith (sg.
eth), or idi!idir (sg. is), and the ( specifically) impersonal plural is i/ir. Moreover,
no such pronominal explanation seems applicable to the aen of estather aen, so if
these are indeed parallel constructions, the modal + passive interpretation of en
estar is more persuasive. Further note that the passive -r posited here may well
have arisen as or from an impersonal plural pronominal ending, since "they call
him" (where the subject pronoun has unspecified general reference) and "he is
called" (passive) are semantically equivalent; cf. the impersonal/passive ending -r
of verbs in the Early Qenya Grammar (PE1 4:s 6-5 7) .
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number so
· Page 15
the analogy with verbs using intransitive -ta only in the present/aorist� as an
example of which he gives " vMEN-, have as object, (in)tend, proceed, make
for, go towards: menta-, but past tense menne- perfect emenie: in Sindarin
these were blended into a past-tense form emene-" (PE17:93).
1 7. It is interesting t o note that Irish also has a conjunction ach 'but: which
is cognate with Latin ex 'from, out from, away from', and thus etymologically
related to Welsh eithr (see above) . And cf. Goldogrin ach 'too', Q. akka (P£11:1 7).
18. But cf. the possibly related conjunction ah 'and' in the title "Athrabeth
Finrod ah Andreth", 'Debate of Finrod and Andreth' (X:329) . It is conceivable that
ach is a variant form of ah and likewise means 'and: but the, contrast here, par
ticularly that of past composition with present disposition, seems stronger than
mere 'and' supports; and in any event, the conjunction 'and' in Area Ill has the
widely-attested form ar.
-,
Page 16 Vinyar Tengwar Number 50
· March 2013
1 9. Cf. ephed <en-pet 'repeat, say again' (PE1 7:167); ephel 'outer wall or fence'
< eppel < et-pel (PE1 7: s.v. ..JPE L and cf. PE L(ES)- , V:38o). A prefix *es- would
also produce eph- when prefixed to p-, but no such prefix is attested for Sindarin.
20. For o < *a cf. ago rer < *akiire- cited above; foro < *u cf. tol 'comes: tolo
'come!'< TUL- 'come' (XI:254; PE1 7:1 66 s.v. ..JNDAN- , 188; V: 395). Other phono
logically-suitable options for the stem include (a possibly s-variant form) *spola
and *phola; but these don't appear to offer any better etymological options than
does *pola- (PHAL-/SPAL- 'foam', V: 381, having no apparent semantic suitability,
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number 50
· Page 17
• ach in ellath hi ero ed epholar :- *'but the elves now alone [ ?remember/
preserve/recite] it: This reworking of the previous clause replaces eno *'still'
and there being no attested roots in *spol-, *phol-, *spul- or *phul-) and moreover
make the false start eb more difficult to explain.
:n. Noting that English "can" is etymologically derived from a verb cunnan
meaning 'to know', (later) 'to know how tO, it might just be possible to suppo se
that *pola- derives from POL- 'can, have physical power and ability' (VT41:6),
and signifies here that only the Elves still know the tale. However, POL- in this
sense is described as referring specifically to physical ability, and is specifically
contrasted with ability deriving from knowledge (ibid. ).
2 2 . This derivation would require a lengthening of the original base vowel,
such as that seen in anira *'greatly desires' (IX:128-29, and whether from IR
'desire', PEt 7:155, or from .../ nir 'will, intention, conscious re�olve to move, or do:
VT41:6) and st1a *'shines' < SIL- 'shine silver' (III:354, V: 385); but note that no
such lengthening is attested in Sindarin for verbs derived from bases having a as
the sund6ma.
Page 18 Vinyar Tengwar Number 50
· March 2013
with ero, which is most readily analyzed as an adverbial form of er- 'one,
alone' (cf. ERE- 'be alone, deprived: V:356).
ed epholar : - *'this song Men made in Beleriand, but now the Elves alone
[?remember/preserve/recite] it'. The reworking of the whole of the last sen
tence of the text assimilates previous -nd to -nn in glinn, revises the deictic
construction iglind then (q.v.) to i glinn hen of apparently the same mean
ing, *'this song: and specifies that Men made the Great Song mi Velerian
*'in Beleriand' (with the lenition of initial b- to v- here cf. i· Velegind above;
and cf. both Q. mi 'in, within' < MI- 'inside: V:373, and vi in Area Ill). It also
replaces ero *'alone' with ir of the same meaning but derived instead from
adjectival *eryii 'isolated, lonely: a derivation exemplified in a note appar
ently dating from the later 1950s, which gives: ir < irj < irj, erj < erj (a) <
eryii (cf. eryii 'isolated, lonely' whence Eriador = 'wilderness: VT42:4).
Area Ill
the Great Song that men made in Beleriand: The preposition os *'from' can
be compared with o 'of, from' found in the chant to Elbereth: o menel 'from
firmament: and o galadhremmin ennorath 'from tree-tangled middle-lands'
(LR:238, R:72; and cf. LR:7i9); in the inscription on the West-gate of Moria:
Celebrimbor o Eregion 'Celebrimbor of Hollin' (LR:305-6); and in the "King's
23. It is interesting to note that in writings dating from the mid- to late-1950s,
Tolkien decided very firmly to: "Delete entirely yondo = 'son'! Very unsuitable:'
- but then subsequently and equally firmly struck out this decision (PE17:43).
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number so
· Page 19
L�tter": o Minas Tirith 'from Minas Tirith' (IX:128-29, and cf. N. o 'from' <
30- 'from, away, from among, out of'). The form os here appears to be a pre
vocalic variant of o; but note that at a (probably) somewhat later date o 'from'
is said to take the form od before vowels (XI:366-67 and ff., PE17:24, 42).24
For i Veleglinn *'the Great Song: edain agorer *'men made: and mi Veleriann
*'in Beleriand: see the discussion of these phrases in Area 11.
The change of mi >> vi here, and the form vi written ab initio in the
concluding clause below, are in agreement with the form of the preposition
vi 'in' found in the possibly contemporary "Ae Adar Nin': Tolkien's (par
tial) translation of the Lord's Prayer into Sindarin (VT44:21, 22-23, 27). The
change also notably provides further support for the theory advanced by
Bill Welden (ibid.) that vi is the proper form of this preposition in isolation,
independent of any postvocalic lenition of mi > vi, since vi here does not
follow a vowel.
• ar in Ellath epholar eno vi {Eressea > > } Eressai : - *'and the Elves
[ ?remember/preserve/recite] still in Eressea'. The conjunction ar 'and'
appears several times in the (probably) earlier "King's Letter': e.g. Ar e anira
'And he desires' (IX:129), and once in the possibly contemporary "Ae Adar
Nin" in the clause ar diheno ammen i ugerth vin 'and forgive us our tres
passes' (VT44:21), and, apparently, as a verbal prefix in arphent in Area IV.25
For in Ellath epholar eno *'the Elves [ ?remember/preserve/recite] still: see
the discussion of the original ending of the text in Area 11; and for vi 'in' see
the discussion of the preceding clause.
The change of (what was most likely) Eressea >> Eressai represents
a phonological adaptation of the Quenya name (Tol) Eressifa 'Lonely
(Island)'26 to a Sindarin form. Q. eressea is formally an adjective, with appar
ently the same derivative termination -ea seen e.g. in Q. laurifa 'golden (of
hue)' (PE17:62). In Quenya, final -ea can derive from earlier *-aya (cf. the
development Q asifa < *apaya, PE17:49 s.v. athelas) or *-aya (cf. Q. foa 'spirit'
< *phiiya, X:349). This suggests that Eressai here may similarly have arisen
from earlier *eressayii: cf. S. morgai 'black fence: where the second element is
due to primitive KAYA (whence also Q. kea, PE17:101; but cf. S. fae < *phiiya,
X:165, 349, and athae < *apaya, PE17:49 s.v. athelas).
Area IV
Interpretation of the intended meaning of the text of this Area is much more
uncertain than that of the preceding Areas, but it can readily be observed
that it involves a question posed by Rian to her son Tuor. This is curious, as
there is no other instance in the corpus in which such a scene occurs. Rian
first appears in the c. 1926-30 "Sketch of the Mythology", and promptly dies
in the space of a single sentence (IV:35): "Rian, Huor's wife, sought her hus
band's body among the slain on the field of Unnumbered Tears, and died
there"; nor does her role increase greatly in the subsequent development of
the story of Tuor. In every version Tuor is still an infant when, shortly before
her passing, Rian gives him into the care of the Elves. 27
• {A Rian pent > > Arp »} Arphent Rfan Tuorna : - *�nd said Rian to
Tuor: Tolkien first wrote and then struck out A Rian pent. This a is the form
of the conjunction that appears in the Moria-gate inscription: pedo mellon a
minno 'say "friend" and enter' (!:319, 321-22); in the praise for the Ringbear
ers on the field of Cormallen: Daur a Berhael, 'Frodo and Samwise' (LR:953,
L:3o8); and in "Luthien's Song": loth a galadh, *'flower and tree' (II1:354,
VT9:9). A Noldorin noun pent 'tale' (cognate with Q. quenta) is attested
(V:366 s.v. KWET-, IV:2o6), but since pent is here used as an introductory
clause of reported speech, it is evident that it is a past-tense verb mean
ing 'said: cognate with the final element *quente *'said' of Q. maquente
*'asked' (XI1:403), and likewise derived from the base KWET- 'say, speak,
utter words' (V:366, Xl:391) via infixion of -n- (cf. echant 'made' (< *et-kat-;
LR:305, V:363 s.v. KAT-) . A Rian pent thus appears to mean *�nd Rian said:
Tolkien next wrote and then struck out the letters "Arp': apparently the
first three letters of the replacement phrase Arphent Rian. 2 8 The simplest
explanation of Arphent seems to be that it is the past-tense verb pent *'said'
prefixed with an element ar-, and with p- spirantized to -ph- following the
liquid r-.29 If the a of the previous version of this phrase is indeed the con
junction, it seems most likely that this prefixed element ar- is also the con
junction, which takes the form ar twice in Area Ill (q.v.), and which further
27. According to "Of Tuor and his Coming to Gondolin'', Rian gave birth to
Tuor "before the end of the Year of Lamentation'' (i.e., the year of the Nirnaeth
Arnoediad), gave Tuor over to the Grey elves as an infant ("the Elves cared for
-
the infant son of Huor"), and died shortly thereafter (UT:17). According to the
Grey Annals , Rian gave birth to Tuor not long after the battle, gave him into the
care of the Elves, and then died, all within the space of the Year of Lamentation
(XI:71, 79).
28. Perhaps indicating hesitation as to the form initial p- should take follow
ing prefixed ar-, or as to whether ar- should be so prefixed
29. Cf. arphen 'a noble' <ar- 'noble' + pen 'one, somebody, anybody' (XI:376).
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number 50
· Page 21
has this form in such compounds as Dor-Cttarthol 'the Land of Bow and
Helm' (S:205, and cf. XI:144, 314). If so, then Arphent Rian can be translated
literally as *1\nd said Riari.3°
Having settled on this, Tolkien continued with the sentence, resulting
in: Arphent Rian Tuorna: man agoreeh? The clause Arphent Rian Tuorna thus
serves to introduce a question posed by Rian to Tuor. If we analyze Tuorna
as the name Tuor with a suffix *-na, this ending might be explained as cog
nate with the prefix nan- 'to' (PE17:147) seen in na-ehaered 'to-remote-dis
tance' (hso, R:72), and/or as an alternative suffixing form of the preposition
and prefix an, an- 'to' seen in the "King's Letter" (IX:128-29; and cf. PE17:147
and VT31:17).
30. Cf. the Latin enclitic conjunction -que , e.g in the Vulgate "dixitque Deus
fiat lux et facta est lux", 1\nd God said: let there be light, and there was light'
(Gen. 1:3). With both A . . . pent and Arphent , compare the use in Old English ,
frequent in prose, of ond, and 'and' to introduce new sentences and clauses:
e.g. "Ond pa ah6f Drihten hie up & hie pa eyste, & hie pa sealde Miehahele p�m
heahengle & he hie pa ah6f up on wolcnum beforan Drihtnes gesipe. Ond cw�p
Drihten to p�m apostolum, 'gangap nu to me on wolcnum": Mid then the Lord
lifted her up and kissed her, and then gave her to the archangel Michael; and
then he lifted her up in the clouds before the Lord's presence. And said the
Lord to the apostles, "Come now to me in the clouds'" (R. Morris, The Blickling
Homilies , p.157; this translation slightly alters Morris's, in order to retain the
word-order of the Old English text wherever possible) . Tolkien's own formal
English prose often shows this usage, e.g. '1\nd he sent to him Voronwe. . . . (And
there they saw Turin pass . . . . ) And at the last . . . :' (XI:91 s.v. §299); "And as it
drew near to summer. . . . And he counselled them . . :· (XI:97 s.v. §321).
.
31. Cf. the previously attested 2nd dual familiar eerich (PE17:132). Nowhere is
-eh employed as 2nd sg. 'you' (ofany variety), and in any e�ent Rian can hardly
be asking the infant Tuor to account for deeds with (judging from the rest of this
text) momentous consequence, in which he can have had no part.
Page 22 Vinyar Tengwar · Number so March 2013
discourse continues with a new sentence beginning with the adverb si.
Tolkien states that in Sindarin si (from si 'now or here') "usually here"
=
32. Since, as noted in the discussion of agorer in Area I, the strong past-tense
formation apparently underlying the stem agore- is said to be due to a "blending"
of earlier Eldarin past and perfect tense formations, it may be that there is no
distinction between past and perfect meaning in this class of verb, in which case
agore- may equally literally be translated by perfect 'have done' as by the simple
past 'did:
33· The same usage is found in a similar conjugation that apparently dates to
around 1949 (and thus possibly Noldorin, strictly speaking), which has: [Sg.1]
cerin, [ 2a] cerith, [2b] ceris, 3 car; [Pl.ta] cerim, {tb] cerich, [ 2a] cerith(ir) [2b]
cerint, [3] cerir; [Du.ta] cerim, [tb] cerich, {2a] cerith(ir), [ 2b] cerist, 3 cerid.
34. It is possibly ard or arlJ, and if so probably represents a cognate of Arda
'the Realm, the Earth' (V:294, PE17:12s), and thus possibly a synonym of cem.
35· If so, cem would have to have arisen, like ceven, from some derivative of
KEM-, not directly from the base, since original final *-m, not in combination
with another consonant, would become -f
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number 50
· Page 23
• {na >>} en i naugrim en ir Ellath :- *'of the dwarves [and] of the Elves:
The false start natho is most readily analyzable as the stem-form *na- 'to be:
corresponding to imperative no 'be!' (VT44:21, 24), inflected for the future
tense by the suffixion of -tho (cf. linna-tho-n 'I will chant: LR:238, R:72),
thus meaning *'will be:37 The word thor that replaced natho is apparently a
separate verb corresponding to the future-tense ending, to which an ending
-r has been suffixed.38 This -r could be taken to be the third-person plural
ending seen e.g. in agorer *'they made' in Areas 11 and Ill, with thor thus
meaning *'they will' or, if taken as a suppletive future-tense stem of present
na-, *'they will be. But this is problematic, as the subject of this verb, il chem,
if meaning *'all [the] earth', is apparently singular. If so, then this -r may
instead be another example of the passivizing ending -r seen in en estar *'is
called' in Area 11 and in estathar aen *'should be called' in the "King's Letter"
(IX: 129-30) . By this analysis thor is, like natho, also intended to mean *'will
be: but with a passive rather than active sense (cp. active "I will be think
ing of you" with passive "I will be thought of"), and introduces a statement
36. It has been proposed that ir in the first line of the c. 1950 Sindarin poem
known as "Luthien's Song" (II1:354) - Ir Ithil ammen Eruchin - is likewise a
prevocalic form of the article. But Ithil itself is explained as a proper name (V:392
s.v. THIL- and cf. there Q. lsil 'the Sheen') and as such would seem not to require
an article. Furthermore, ir in "Luthien's Song" can be interpreted as instead cog
nate with Q. ire 'when': cf. Patrick Wynne's analysis at VT9:8.
37. This suggests that natho either employs a variant form -tho of the future
tense stem, or is incomplete, since the bare/personless (sg.) form is elsewhere
attested as -tha: cf. anglennatha 'will approach' (IX:129-30).
38. It is possible to read this word as thon, and thus as meaning *'I will: But
compare the r of thor with the r of the first epholar in Area 11 (the label), and
notice that the loop of Tolkien's n's tend to have a straight diag�nal start from the
bottom of the initial vertical stroke or, when more rounded, to have a serif stroke
at the end.
Page 24 Vinyar Tengwar · Number 50 March 2013
about the future state of its subject, il chem *'all [the] earth: of which the sub
ject is not the agent but rather the grammatical patient.
Alternatively, cem/chem, rather than singular 'earth' < KEM-, might be a
plural noun of other derivation. Normally i-affection plurals do not show e
in final syllables or monosyllables, but exceptions do arise from secondary
developments, as in the plural ered (eryd) of orod 'mountain' (L:263, RC:621).
Moreover, in a text dated 1953, and thus probably closely contemporary with
the "Turin Wrapper': Tolkien notes of Beleriandic that "In the colloquial lan
guage of the Second Age and later ai, ae, ei in unstressed syllables, and so in
the final syllables of all nouns with plurals longer than one syllable, became
reduced to e': Given this, cem could conceivably be the plural of singular
cam or corn; or if chem reflects not spirantization of cem but instead a change
of derivation, it could likewise be the plural of cham or chom. Given N. cam
'hand' (V:361 s.v. KAB- ) , cem might therefore mean *'hands' (with which,
in light of the analysis of den below, cf. the statement in the later Quenta
about Turin and his band of outlaws, that "their hands were turned against
all whom came in their path, Elves, Men, or Ores� V:321). No noun *corn or
*chom is attested, but given KHO-N- 'heart (physical)' (V:364), chem could
conceivably be derived from an unattested variant *KO-(M-) or *KHO-(M-)
and mean *'hearts: This is particularly intriguing in this context, given the
statement in the later Quenta that "From that day [of the Nirnaeth Arnoe
diad] the hearts of the Elves were estranged from Men" (V:310).39
In any case, the following word den must express a future state of il
chem (of whatever meaning) and the concluding dative ammen 'to/for us'
(LR:299, 307; VI1:275, PE17:38)4° indicates that this state is with respect to
Rian and to the inclusive plural subject 'we' of agorech - namely, it seems, to
(at least) those tribes and houses of Men that participated in the disastrous
Nirnaeth Arnoediad. Of the roots, words, or elements from which den could
both conceivably arise phonologically and derive even remotely suitable
39 · However, it is notable that from the earliest stages Tolkien frequently (as
in this citation) specified that KHO -N- 'heart (physical)' and its conceptual cog
nates refer only to the physical organ, and not to the many metaphorical uses of
"heart" in English (which in one text he described as ''confused': VT41:n); thus
e.g. of Goldogrin honn 'heart' in the "Gnomish Lexicon'' Tolkien specifies that it
is "not used metaphorically" (PE1 2:49). On the other hand, Q. sincahonda 'flint
hearted' (LR:979, PE 17: 1 1 1} seems at least somewhat metaphorical.
40. It may be noted that ammen is formally exclusive (cf. Pl.la cerim(ir)
above}, whereas agorech is inclusive. The apparent discrepancy might be
explained by supposing that an-, and perhaps prepositional conjugations gen
erally, don't distinguish indusivity, so that ammen was or had become the sole
1st pl. dative form; and/or that man agorech? *'what have we done?' (incl.) had
become a stock rhetorical question (and indeed, the infant Tuor could not him
self have participated in the deeds Rian is lamenting).
March 2013 Vinyar Tengwar Number so
· Page 25
meani ngs in this context, only two seem at all plausible: the word dan seen
in Gandalf's spell against the werewolves: "Naur dan i ngaurhoth!" (LR:299),
and the noun din 'silence' (adj. dinen 'silent') seen in the names Amon Din
*'Hill of Silence' (LR:747, PE17:95) and Rath Dinen 'Silent Street' (LR:826,
PE17:98).41
The word dan in Gandalf's spell is variously glossed by Tolkien as "back
to, back (in return) against" and "down upon, back on" (PE17=38), indicating
that the summoned fire is to drive back, to be against, the werewolves. A
similarly appositional sense, together with one of renunciation, is seen in
Tolkien's long gloss of the roots * dan, *ndan that presumably underlie dan as
"indicating the reversal of an action, so as to undo or nullify its effect, as in
'undo, go back (the same way), unsay, give back (the same gift: not another
in return)'" (XI:412), and in his gloss on dan- as a prefix meaning "'back'
of return (in same path), retracing, and so employable as un- as in undo"
(PE17:166, and cf. NDAN- 'back' whence Q. na, nan 'but, on the contrary,
on the other hand: V:375). If den can be explained as a participial cognate
of dan with these senses (perhaps via adjectival *danya),42 then thor den
ammen might be construed as *'will be against us: or perhaps more literally,
*'will be opposed to us' (in the passive sense of "will be placed in opposition
to us ) 43 Alternatively, if den can be regarded as related to din/dinen44
" . -
and if il chem is taken as meaning either 'the earth' or 'hearts: not 'hands'
- then thor den ammen could be construed as *'will be silent to/for us: as a
metaphor for a shunning of Men by Dwarves and Elves.
41. The apparent passivizing element den in caro den 'be done' in "Ae Adar
Nfn" (VT44:21, 25-26), though noteworthy as having an identical form, does
not seem to provide a suitable meaning or grammatical function in the current
sentence, as it would be redundant with thor if that is indeed passive, and in any
event would leave the sentence unfinished, as lacking a predicate (if thor is the
copula) or a primary verb or verbal derivative (if thor is an auxilliary, whether
active or passive).
42. By normal development *danya would yield *dain (cf. fain <adj. *phanya
PE17:174, also P£17:26, 36), but cf. the note regarding reduction of ai, ae, ei in
unstressed syllables to e , cited above in the discussion of cem as possibly plural.
43· Note that the English verb "oppose" is derived ultimately from Latin
oppo ner = ob- 'against' + ponere 'place'.
44· This is easiest to do if din and dinen are regarded as .derived ultimately
from a root *den- via lengthening of *e > *e > *i: cf. lin 'thy' (VT 44:21), posses
sive form of le 'you' (LR:238, R:72-73, P£17:26-27); also di 'beneath' <de (LR:729,
R:72, P£17:94-95).
Page 26 Vinyar Tengwar Number so
· March 2013
Acknowledgments
I am grateful to the Tolkien Estate and the Bodleian Library for their kind
permission to publish the "Tfuin Wrapper': In particular, I would like to
thank Christopher Tolkien, Cathleen Blackbum, and the staff of the Depart
ment of Western Manuscripts at the Bodleian Library for their assistance at
various stages of preparing this presentation; and Dr. Judith Priestman for
providing a physical description of the wrapper. I would also like to thank
the review panel of Vinyar Tengwar, Ivan Derzhanski, John Garth, and Thor
sten Renk, and especially my editorial colleagues, Christopher Gilson, Arden
Smith, Bill Welden, and Patrick Wynne, for their support and many helpful
comments and suggestions.
Resources
The following are just some of the resources available for the scholarly study of
Tolkien's invented languages. For a more complete list, visit the Resources for
Tolkienian Linguistics web page at the URL listed below.
Primers
Journals
Online Resources
For more information, including links to Internet mailing lists and web sites
devoted to Tolkienian linguistics, visit:
http://www.elvish.org/resources.html
rtlinyar 7'engwar
The journal of the Elvish Linguistic Fellowship,
a Special Interest Group of the Mythopoeic Society.
http://www.elvish.org/VT
Review panel: !van Derzhanski, John Garth, Thorsten Renk, Arden Smith,
and Patrick Wynne.
Subm issions: All material should in some manner deal with Tolkien's
invented languages. All submissions must be by e-mail in RT F or plain
text formats.
Bibliographical Abbreviations
Page references are to the standard hardcover/trade paperback edition unless otherwise noted.