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Cailinn of Lorien
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 *Sindarin Lessons*
Here is the introduction. I will post the lessons as fast as I can. These come straight from councilofelrond.com, so I did not make these up myself (just so I don't get in trouble for copywriting or anything). I will only post 1 or 2 lessons a day so that you don't feel overwhelmed.
00 - Introduction
Introduction – The Grey Elven Tongue
OPENING THOUGHTS
Sindarin, the language of the Grey-Elves of Tolkien’s Middle Earth, has always been one of the most beautiful and interesting languages that Professor Tolkien created. Its fluid sounds and complex sound structure make it not only pleasing to the ear, but full of interesting technicalities and alterations. Unfortunately, what we know of Sindarin is far less than that of Quenya. If we rely on what we do have, and make some necessary generalizations, we can surmise how this language may have worked. The Sindarin language is one of many mutations and odd usages. It is therefore often considered to be harder to learn than Quenya. While I do not think that this is true for the above reason, I do think that it is a harder language to learn. “Why” you might ask? Because what we do know is so very limited, that coming to secure conclusions is sometimes (and all too frequently) completely impossible. We also have the problem of Tolkien constantly changing his mind. With Quenya, very little radical change occurred once the basis of the language had been set down. Unfortunately, the same is not true with Sindarin. This language underwent many revisions and changes throughout Tolkien's life, leaving us with a good amount of information that needs updating and altering before it will fit well with mature Sindarin. While the fine points of Sindarin grammar are most certainly open to hot debate, I will try to present a picture here that includes all sides of the multiple arguments; allowing, when necessary, the student to choose which path they will follow. I understand that many people have their own opinions about Sindarin Grammar, and I am completely open to discussion of these topics. Please contact me if you wish to present an idea that I have not presented in this course. I am always open to suggestions. You will find my contact information at the bottom of this course.
Many students ask the questions “How long does it take to learn Sindarin?” and “Can I become fluent in it?”. To answer the second question first, it is not possible to become truly fluent in Sindarin. While one can progress to the point where one can construct translations with ease, it is impossible to learn Sindarin as a tongue that one could speak from day to day. The greatest hindrance to this is our lack of vocabulary. Even in translating short poems, it is often necessary to come up with rewordings and, sometimes, the construction of new words by derivational processes. Do not expect to take this course and come out of it speaking an Elvish language fluently; it will not happen. Now for the first question. There really is no time table that one can set for learning Sindarin. Those who have taken a foreign language before will, of course, benefit from their introduction to linguistics. Unfortunately it is impossible to teach Sindarin in such a classroom style with our limited knowledge. We are therefore forced to teach Sindarin from a primarily linguistic point of view which means more vocabulary, and new ways of looking at things. This is not to discourage the prospective student, but rather to inform him/her as to what lies ahead. With effort and patience, a fair degree of capability can be developed in a rather short period of time.
EXTERNAL HISTORY
Tolkien's earliest vision of the Sindarin language was developed in the trenches of World War One. At this time, Sindarin was known as Gnomish, and although it is the source of the language we now know as Sindarin, it had its distinct differences. The next major step in the evolution of Sindarin was what Tolkien called Noldorin, or Exilic Noldorin. At this stage, it was Tolkien's thought that “Noldorin” had developed separate from Quenya across the Sea, and only then came to Middle Earth with the Exile of the Noldor. This idea had its problems, however, and Tolkien realized them. How could two such varied languages as Quenya and Sindarin develop together in such close proximity? It was this then that led Tolkien to rethink his mythos. Eventually Tolkien concluded that it was the Sindar who spoke Sindarin. This gave him a more plausible linguistic scenario to work with, and allowed, in all fairness, a greater expansion of the Sindarin tongue than it would have ever achieved as the language of the Noldor.
INTERNAL HISTORY
At the waters of Cuiviénen and with the awakening of the Elves, or as they called themselves, Quendi, the entire linguistic history of middle earth began its course. It was at this time that the basis of both Sindarin and Quenya was spoken as the daily tongue which we call Primitive Quendian. When Oromë found the Elves years later, they had already developed a significant tongue of their own. During the long march to the sea following Oromë, the Elves developed a tongue that we call Common Eldarin. At this time a break came into the linguistic scenario of Middle Earth. Some of the Elves, upon reaching the western shore refused to continue the journey “but … lingered in the coasts of Beleriand. There Thingol Grey Cloak of Doriath was their King, and in the long twilight their tongues had changed with the changefulness of mortal lands and had become far estranged from the speech of the Eldar from beyond the sea.” (RoTK Appendix F) This estrangement took almost three and a half millenia, before the exiled Noldor crossed the sundering seas and met, in Beleriand, the Sindar. While the Sindarin tongue was not at this time fully developed into “Classical Sindarin” (the stage of Sindarin from LOTR), it was clearly on its separate way from that of Quenya. By Frodo’s time, Sindarin had developed into a very rich and flowing tongue which had become the language of most of the Elves of Middle Earth.
Last edited by Cheers, 11/22/03, 5:33 pm
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*Nai i silme o i Valar kalla ree N'hrive*
*~A Elbereth Gilthoniel,
silivren penna miriel
o menel aglar elenath!~*
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11/22/03, 5:28 pm
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Cailinn of Lorien
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Re: *Sindarin Lessons*
01 – Phon. + Stress
Lesson 1 – Phonology and Stress
THINGS YOU WILL NEED TO KNOW
There are several terms that you will need to understand for this lesson to make sense.
Diphthong: A combination of several consecutive vowels that represent a single sound. Some examples are AI, EI. These are not separate A and I, or E and I, but they represent the sound that AI and EI make together. The Sindarin diphthongs are: AE, AI, EI, OE, UI and AU.
Stress: Stress (or accent as some would call it) is how much force or stress is applied to certain parts, or syllables, of a word.
Syllable: A natural breakup of a word into sections or divisions. Native speakers naturally understand how many syllables their words contain. When learning another language, it is important to understand how a word is supposed to sound before one can break it up into syllables.
Circumflex: The circumflex is a marking that was used by Tolkien to denote extra long vowel sounds. Vowels lengthened with the circumflex were probably pronounced slightly longer than those with an acute accent. The circumflex is seen as the "hat" type marking over the letter that should be lengthened. Example: û
Acute Accent: Tolkien used this accent to denote vowels of long length. The Acute accent is the upward slash (from left to right) that can be seen above the letter that should be lengthened. Example: á
Voicing: A voiced sound is a sound in which your vocal cords vibrate. For example, voicing is the difference between English F and V (V being voiced). Vowels are usually always voiced as well as many consonants (at least in Sindarin). An unvoiced sound is one in which the vocal cords are not vibrating. You can tell if a sound is voiced by placing your hand on your throat and drawing out the sound. If you feel a buzzing, you know the sound is voiced.
THE PHONOLOGY OF SINDARIN
CONSONANTS
C- always has the value of K (hard C), even before E and I. Thus "Celeb" should be pronounced "Keleb".
CH- used to represent the sound similar to German "Bach" or English "loch" in all positions. Never sounds like ch in English "church". Considered a single sound.
DH- represents the voiced (soft) TH of English "these" and "clothes". Considered a single sound.
F- sounds like F except at the end of words where it is used to represent the sound of V. "Nindalf" would be pronounced "Nindalv", while "faer" would be pronounced like a normal fricative English F. F is usually only seen at the beginning of Sindarin words.
G- Has only the sound of G in "give", "get", "gil" as in "Gildor", "Gilraen", "Osgiliath".
H- When standing alone with no other consonant has the sound of H is that of "house", "behold"
L- Represents more or less the sound of English initial L as in "let".
LH- represents voiceless L.
NG- Represents NG as in "finger" except finally where it was used to represent the sound of English "sing".
PH- Has the same sound as f except that it does not represent the sound of V at the end of words. This is merely an alternate spelling of F, and usually appears at the end of words (when otherwise f would represent v). When PH is "intervocalic” or in the middle of the word, it is pronounced as FF. Considered a single sound.
R- represents a trilled R in all positions. The sound was not lost before consonants.
RH- represents a voiceless R.
S- is always voiceless as in English "so" or "geese". The sound of Z did not occur in Sindarin.
TH- represents the voiceless "th" of English "thin" or "cloth" as in Ithil "moon". Considered a single sound.
V- Has the sound of English V but is not used finally.
W- Has the sound of English W.
HW- is voiceless W.
Vowels
The Sindarin vowels are I, E, A, O, U, and Y. (Y is not a vowel in Quenya but is considered so in Sindarin). The sounds represented by all the vowels but Y had fairly normal English style sounds.
E- Pronounced like E in were.
I- Pronounced like I in Machine.
A- Pronounced like A in Father.
O- Pronounced like O in For.
U- Pronounced like U in brute.
Y- Pronounced more or less like U in French lune. In Gondor Y was
probably pronounced like I.
Diphthongs
The Sindarin Diphthongs are AE, AI, EI, OE, UI and AU. Other combinations are not diphthongal. Often one will see AU written AW (this is soley a matter of orthography – or representation). All of these diphthongs are falling diphthongs, meaning that they were stressed on the first element. The vowel combinations AI, EI, OI, UI (oi is not a diphthong) are intended to be pronounced respectively as the vowels in English RYE, GREY, BOY, and RUIN. AW should be pronounced like the English word "loud" never as in "laud" or "haw". Unfortunately there is nothing in English closely corresponding to AE or OE, but AE and OE may be pronounced as AI and OI.
Vowel Length
Long vowels are usually marked with the "acute accent". In Sindarin long vowels in stressed monosyllables (one syllable words) are usually marked with the circumflex, since in these cases the vowels tended to be especially prolonged. This can be seen in the monosyllables (one syllable words) "Dûn" and "Rhûn". Final E is never mute or just a sign of length. In Sindarin, vowels at the end of words are pronounced for their full worth (this is very similar to Italian).
Some people wonder how a vowel can be long or short. What we are referring to here is how long the vowel is held for, not a change in the way it sounds. Long vowels are held for longer than short vowels, and extra long vowels are held the longest. There should be no change in the pronunciation of the vowel.
NOTE: Tolkien was usually very good about marking his words with the correct vowel markers (he was, after all a philologist  ). However, when Tolkien’s works are copied over into lexicons and dictionaries the authors sometimes leave out these important markings. The dictionary by Didier Willis is very good about including these markings and is highly recommended. You can find a link to this dictionary in the resources area of the language section.
NOTE: When words mutate, the stress can change (it won’t necessarily, but it is feasible in some circumstances, though perhaps the word mutation is not the correct term in such cases). We will discuss the various mutations in later lessons.
Double Consonants
Sometimes one will come across a word that contains “doubled consonants”; that is to say, words that have two consonants of the same type in a row. This does not change the pronunciation, but rather makes the sound of the consonant longer, or more drawn out. For example:
NN = Drawn out N sound
MM = Drawn out M sound
Etc…
STRESS
Finding the place of stress, with Sindarin words, can be somewhat of a challenge. This is because Sindarin words tend to "mutate" when they are strung together into sentences. When a word mutates the place where stress falls can change. Because of the random nature of Sindarin words, there are several guidelines to follow that will help the student of Sindarin approximate where stress should fall. These guidelines are given by Tolkien in Appendix E of ROTK.
NOTE: It is linguistic orthography to denote the place of stress with a ( ‘ ). I have, however, decided to capitalize the appropriate syllabic vowel to make the stress stand out better. H’aldir would therefore be pronounced the same as hAldir.
NOTE also: Sindarin dh, th, and ch are single consonants and represent single letters in the original scripts.
In words of 2 syllables the stress almost always falls on the first syllable. Examples:
hAldir
Aran
gIldor
AEglos
In longer words it falls on the second to last syllable when the second to last syllable contains a long vowel, a diphthong, or a vowel followed by two consonants (or more). Examples:
pelArgir
periAnnath
gwachAEdir
annÚnaid
When the second to last syllable contains a short vowel followed by only one (or no) consonant, the stress falls on the syllable before it, the third from the end. Examples:
lEgolas
dEnethor (th represents one sound in Sindarin)
cEleborn
galAdriel
More Examples of Sindarin Stress
The first column of words is how the word would appear in Tolkien’s work. In the second column, the syllables where stress would fall are capitalized.
Denethor ...... dEnethor
Gildor ........... gIldor
Galadriel ....... galAdriel
Celeborn ....... cEleborn
Haldir ........... hAldir
Feanor ......... fEanor
Periannath .... periAnnath
Pelargir ......... pelArgir
Silivren ......... silIvren
Aeglos .......... AEglos
Cirdan .......... cIrdan
Isildur ........... isIldur
Legolas ......... lEgolas
NOTE: Stress does not always fall upon a syllable with an acute accent. The accent only marks vowel length.
Yes and No? There are no specific (at least no attested) words for "yes" and "no" in Sindarin. Instead when someone asks a question the reply reflects the verb that was used (this is, at least, one solution to the problem). We will discuss this possibility more when we get to Sentence formation.
THIS CONCLUDES LESSON ONE.
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*Nai i silme o i Valar kalla ree N'hrive*
*~A Elbereth Gilthoniel,
silivren penna miriel
o menel aglar elenath!~*
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11/22/03, 5:30 pm
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Cailinn of Lorien
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Re: *Sindarin Lessons*
02 – Plural Formation
Lesson 2 – Plural Formation
INTRODUCTION
To many people, Sindarin embodies a very different style of language. To make a noun plural, Sindarin words umlaut, or "mutate". That is, the vowels of the word change instead of adding a suffix (ending) to make the word plural (such as in English: "lord" adds S to form "lords"). This unique construction can be somewhat difficult to comprehend, but with practice it becomes natural. Sindarin nouns seem to have three forms. All of these will be discussed.
SINGULAR
Sindarin nouns tend to be singular in their natural state. (for example: gil = “star” not “stars”). However, there are a few nouns that are naturally plural and need a special ending to be made singular. These will be discussed in lesson 3.
In Sindarin, there are no indefinite articles like "a" or "an". What this means is that the word ... edhel "elf", can mean "elf" or "an elf”. So when you see "edhel" in a sentence (or any other noun) the sentence structure determines whether or not "a" or "an" should be inserted (if at all).
PLURAL
Sindarin relies heavily on what is called the umlaut (a German word meaning literally "changed sound"). The Sindarin word for this phenomenon is "Prestanneth" meaning "disturbance" or "affection". What this means is that the vowels of Sindarin nouns change when pluralized, instead of adding a suffix to the word (as in English, ie cow>cows).
NOTE: that all of the vowels and diphthongs in a word change except for NON-final E, I, Y, EI, UI, AI, AE .... and FINAL I, Y, Ý, AE, AI, EI, UI.
PLURAL PATTERNS
The way in which the vowels and diphthongs are changed when a word is made plural can be seen in the following:
Non Final Syllable:
If the vowel is found in a NONFINAL syllable (meaning, syllable other than the last one) then they will change as follows:
a > e ... Aran > Erain
e > e ... Edhel > Edhil
i > i ... Ithron > Ithryn
o > e ... Onod > Enyd
u > y ... tUlus > tYlys
y > y ... Ylfdan > Ylfdain
au > oe ... nAUg > nOEg
ae > ae ... hAEred > hAErid
ai > ai ... ------------
ei > ei ... EIthel > EIthil
ui > ui ... cUInar > cUInair
In the examples above, the capitalized letters show the mutation in process. For example: in Aran, the initial A becomes E so we get Erain. Read below to understand why the second A mutates into AI.
Final Syllable:
If the vowel is found in the FINAL syllable (OR the word is MONOSYLLABIC [one syllable]) then the vowels and diphthongs umlaut as follows:
a > ai ... tAl > tAIl
ar > er ... nArn > nErn
ang > eng ... fAng > fEng
alph > eilph ... ALph > EILph
e > i ... edhEl > edhIl
é/ê > í/ î ... tÊw > tÎw
ie > i ... MinIEl > MínIl
i > i ... sigIl > sigIl
o > y ... Orch > Yrch
ó/ô > ý ... bÔr > bÝr
io > y ... thalIOn > thelYn
u > y ... tulUs > tylYs
ú/û > ui ... dÛr > dUIr
y > y ... Ylf > Ylf
ý > ý ... mÝl > mÝl
au > oe ... nAUg > nOEg
ae > ae ... AEw > AEw
ai > ai ... andAIth > endAIth
ei > ei ... rEIn > rEIn
ui > ui ... lUIn>lUIn
Let’s go back and look at the word Aran “king” for a second. Because A becomes E in the initial syllable, and because A becomes AI in the final syllable you end up with Erain “kings”.
Let’s look at some more examples:
Aran – non final syllable: Ar (a>e) final syllable: an (a>ai) = Erain
Edhel – non final syllable: Edh (e>e) , el (e>i) = Edhil
Naug – one syllable: Naug (au>oe) = Noeg
Orch – one syllable Orch (o>y) = Yrch
Gwachaedir – non final syllable: Gwa (a>e) non final syllable: chae
(ae>ae) Final syllable: dir (i>i) = Gwechaedir
Plurals that are the same as Singulars
Some Sindarin words are the same in the singular and plural. In these cases, we can do nothing to differentiate the two forms from each other. We have no choice but to let context dictate which form is intended by the author.
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:
• Nouns tend to be naturally singular
• The way in which vowels mutate depends on what syllable they are in
• This can either be the final syllable, or the non-final syllable(s)
• Some Sindarin words are identical in the Singular and Plural
• In these cases context determines which is meant
This concludes lesson 2
---
*Nai i silme o i Valar kalla ree N'hrive*
*~A Elbereth Gilthoniel,
silivren penna miriel
o menel aglar elenath!~*
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11/22/03, 5:32 pm
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Cailinn of Lorien
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 Re: *Sindarin Lessons*
03 - Adv. Pl. Forms
Lesson 3 – Advanced Plural Formation
INTRODUCTION
In lesson two you learned how to form a plural word. In this lesson, we will talk about some more types of plural formation, and a few odd things that seem to happen in Sindarin.
SINGULARS DERIVED FROM PLURALS
In some cases, the normal state of a noun is plural. In these cases, it is necessary to add a suffix to mark the word as singular. These are the singular suffixes that can be deduced:
"-ig" represents one of a pair. For example: gwanunig = "a twin", while gwanûn = "pair of twins".
"-og,od" used to denote one of a whole. For example: glam = "din uproar noise" (another name for orcs). Therefore glamog would be one instance of the whole, a single orc.
NOTE: This class of words is rather small (and to be truthful, almost non-existant) and usually have an attested ending already supplied by the master himself. These are therefore not incredibly crucial to memorize, but it is nice to be able to recognize them when you see them.
THE CLASS PLURAL
The third and final form that nouns can take is what is called the "class plural” or “collective plural”. This plural form is used when referring to groups of things, people, arrangements, etc. For example, galadhrim means "tree-folk" from the word "galadh" and the class plural suffix "-rim". There are three types of suffixes that are used for class plurals, these are: -ath (sometimes -iath), -rim, and -hoth.
The suffix "-ath" is used when referring to an entire group of something, a group of things that “belong” together, or an "entire race". For instance:
Edhel "elf" + ath = Edhelath "Elves,the entire race of elves"
Perian "halfling" + ath = Periannath "Hobbits, The entire race of halflings",
Elen "star" + ath = Elenath "Stars, the entire group of visible stars",
Ennor "land" + ath = Ennorath "Lands, the entire group of lands in ME".
Ar “royal” + gon “stone” + ath = Argonath “the entire group of two royal stones”
In some cases "-iath" is used instead of "-ath". This occurs when the word to receive the suffix "-ath" has an "i" in the last syllable. For example:
Fir "mortal" + iath = Firiath "Mortals, all mortals"
Gil "star" + iath = Giliath "Stars, all the visible stars" (an alternate of Elenath)
The other endings "-rim" and "-hoth" are used to denote "specific groups" of people, or "divisions" within a race (some prefer to think of this as “tribes”). For example:
Galadh "tree" + rim = Galadhrim "tree-folk" (a specific group (tribe), or type of elf)
Glam "din, noise" + hoth = Glamhoth "orc-host" (a specific host, or group of orcs)
The suffix (ending) "-rim" is usually used in a good context while the suffix "-hoth" is usually used in a perjorative sense; that is to say it denotes a "bad" group from the speaker's perspective (for example "orcs").
NOTE: "-rim" is used only in connection with "people". "-Hoth" is also used in context to certain groups of people, but it seems to be able to be more extensible than "–rim". We see this suffix used in conection with animate beings such as wolves, as well as people (though it usually implies a dislike of the people/creatures in the eyes of the speaker). Does this mean that "–rim" could be used for a similar purpose? We don’t know, but I would not recommend it.
MORE ON THE CLASS PLURAL
Whenever a suffix is added to a noun, we occasionally see a doubling of the last consonant if this consonant is L, M, or N. The reason for this doubling is directly tied into each individual word's “phonological history”. Words that at one time ended in consonant clusters (a grouping of consonants in a word) sometimes became shortened to a single consonant by the time of LOTR. However, when a suffix is applied, we see this final consonant double if it descended from one of these “shortened final consonant clusters” (a consonant cluster being several consonants “glued together”).
In Sindarin, words that once ended with ... -nd, -nt, -mb, all appear to double before any sort of ending.
Edhel (from older edelo) + ath = Edhelath
Perian (from older periand) + ath = Periannath
Gil (from older ngile) + iath = Giliath
As one can see, words that came from older stems ending in the clusters mentioned above, undergo a doubling of their final consonant, whereas the others do not.
There are some words that do not fit into this phonological scheme. I believe that this is due to their unique individual “phonological histories”. For example, we have Elenath and Argonath. We will study the individual histories of some words in the “Advanced Sindarin” course.
To make this more confusing than it needs to be, there are some words which show a doubling of their final consonant even if they do not descend from a primitive cluster. However, these are easily explained when we look at the entire word's origin:
Edhellen “elvish” (adj) – surely this must be a doubling of the final consonant of edhel? I do not think so; instead this must be edhel + ren. In this case the R becoming “assimilated” to the l. You need not understand how these odd forms work yet because we shall go over them in later lessons. I just wanted to make sure you understood that there is logic behind some of the seeming illogicalities of Sindarin.
USING THE CLASS PLURALS
We can, for the most part, pick and choose the class plural forms that we desire. While Tolkien only provides us with a few examples of each ending, we could feasibly see any ending suffixed to a noun. The form one chooses to use is determined by the meaning the writer wishes to convey. Some people become confused, and assume that each word has only one class plural form. This is false. While we only have a few attested forms, we can, and have to assume that these suffixes can be used at the author's discretion.
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
• Most Sindarin words are singular in their natural state
• A few words are naturally plural
• These words require a suffix to become singular
• In the class plural we see the suffixes .. –ath (-iath), -rim, -hoth
• When there is an "i" in the last syllable of the word that the suffix is being added to, the suffix –iath is used instead of –ath
• The suffix –rim is used mostly in a good sense
• The suffix –hoth is used in a bad sense
• There is sometimes a doubling of the last consonant of a word when a suffix is added
• This only applies to M, N; and only if they are descended from older consonant clusters. L sometimes appears to double, but is really just an “assimilation” (to be disucussed in compound formation).
• Some words do not fit this pattern due to their unique phonological development
• We will discuss some of these words in the “Advanced Sindarin” course.
This concludes lesson three
---
*Nai i silme o i Valar kalla ree N'hrive*
*~A Elbereth Gilthoniel,
silivren penna miriel
o menel aglar elenath!~*
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11/24/03, 4:24 pm
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Re: *Sindarin Lessons*
04 - Articles + Gen.
Lesson 4 – Articles and Genitives
INTRODUCTION
A genitival relationship is a relationship between two words that signifies possession or source. Please keep this in mind as we study examples below.
Articles are: the, a, and an.
INDEFINITE ARTICLES
The indefinite articles are A and AN. In Sindarin there are no indefinite articles; therefore, the noun itself is indefinite. For example: the noun "edhel" can mean both "elf" and "an elf". Only the context the word is used in can determine if "elf" or "an elf" is meant when translating into English (the elves would of course not understand the idea of A or AN).
DEFINITE ARTICLE
The definite article is THE. The Sindarin word for the definite article "the" is " i ". Thus ... i "the" + adar "father" = "the father". Fairly straightforward. Just like Sindarin nouns, the definite article " i " has a plural form. When using " i " with a plural noun, you use its plural form which is "in". For example: "adar" becomes "edair" when plural. We cannot now say "i edair", we must use the plural of " i ", so we end up with "in edair" ... "the fathers", instead. Whenever you use a plural noun, you must use a plural article. This does not occur in English, so it may seem strange to English speakers.
ARTICLE AS A SUFFIX
Sometimes the article is appended to the end of a preposition. When it is used in this way the article is referred to as a "suffix". For example; na "to", nan "to the", be "according to", ben "according to the", nu "under", nuin "under the". We will discuss this feature of Sindarin more in the “Advanced Sindarin” course. For now, just realize that such things do, and can happen.
FINAL NOTE ON ARTICLES
Both " i " and its plural form " in" cause mutations to occur in the following word. These mutations will be discussed in the next lessons, so for now just remember that they do so (lenition and nasal to be specific).
NOTE ON IR: In my previous version of this lesson, I stated that " i " seemed to have an additional form " ir" when followed by a word starting in a vowel. Since then, we have had new publishings that throw some criticism on this idea. I now lean towards the idea that " ir" must mean something like "when". It is still very feasible that " i " would appear as " ir" before another " i ", but we just do not have enough evidence to make an absolute conclusion one way or the other.
GENITIVAL RELATIONSHIPS
There are three different forms of genitival relationships in Sindarin. One deals with proper nouns, one with common nouns, and one with indefinite common nouns. Before we delve too deeply into this, let us review what proper, common, definite and indefinite are used in reference to.
Proper Nouns: These nouns are the "names" of people, things, titles, etc....anything that is used in reference to a particular thing, instead of a general one. They are always capitalized.
Common Nouns: These nouns are words such as door, wall, enemy, etc .... and do not refer to any specific object in particular.
Definite: A word that refers to a specific thing. Proper nouns are definite. The word "the" before a common noun makes a common noun definite.
Indefinite: A word that refers to an unspecified amount of something, or a nonspecific thing. Common nouns are indefinite if they have "a/an" or no word at all in front of them.
Proper Nouns
A Genitival relationship is one that shows possession or source. In Sindarin, word order can be used to express such a relationship. For example:
[noun] + [proper noun]
Aran "lord" + Moria = "lord of Moria" (instead of just "lord Moria").
Ennyn "doors" + Durin = "Doors of Durin".
Common Nouns
When a genitive is formed with common nouns, a slightly different approach is taken. The genitival article "en" (of the) is used when combining two common nouns when the second word of the phrase is "definite". For example:
[common noun] + en + [common noun]
haudh "mound" + en + elleth "elf maid" = "mound of the elf maid".
Orthad "rising" + en + el "star" = "rising of the star".
Please note that "en" is used only in genitival relationships, and is not used anywhere else. Tolkien occasionally uses " i " instead of "en", however, this seems to be less common.
When the nouns are plural, the word "in" (plural the) is used. Thus:
[common noun] + in + [common noun]
Aerlinn "hymn" + in "the" + edhil "elves" = "hymn (of) the elves".
Notice that "in" is used because edhil "elves" is plural. There are cases where "en" is used instead of "in" when plural nouns are used; however, this seems to be the exception, not the rule.
NOTE
The Genitival Article "en" (of the), causes mutations in the following word. These mutations will be discussed in later lessons (specifically mixed mutation). Tolkien often connected such genitival relationships with - (dashes) between the words (to prevent mutation confusion [we will discuss mutations soon]). He was, however, inconsistent with it.
Examples:
Orthad-en-El "rising of the star"
Aerlinn-in-edhil "hymn of the elves"
Haudh-en-elleth "mound of the elf maid"
It seems to be acceptable not to use the hyphens (-). However, I would personally recommend using them because it links the whole construction together for the reader.
Indefinite Common Nouns
Now what would one do if one wanted to say “enemy of a friend”, “friends enemy”, or some similar construction? We surely cannot use the genetival article "en" because that implies “to the”. Fauskanger suggests that it is possible to “juxtapose” the words. For example:
[common noun] + [common noun]
Friend's enemy -> Enemy of a friend -> coth “enemy” + mellon “friend”
In some (most) cases, this necessary rewording is what one will be looking for anyway. For example:
Hill of Awe -> Amon “hill” + anwar “awe”
Leap of Dreadful Doom -> Cabed “leap” + Naeramarth “dreadful doom”
These could easily be rewritten as Awe’s Hill, Dreadful Dooms’s Leap, but the translation would be somewhat awkward.
WHEN IS A GENITIVE NECESSARY?
So when does one use a genitival relationship? Why could a writer not just use the Sindarin word ... o “of, from” and get the same effect? The key here is that we are showing possession. We could just as easily rephrase “Lord of Moria” to be “Moria’s Lord”. If we were to say "Aran o Moria", an elf would probably take it to mean “A lord from Moria”, not necessarily “Moria’s Lord”. This is only a very slight change in meaning, but it is very important that one understand the difference between the two.
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:
• The definite article “the” is " i " in Sindarin which also has a plural form "in". Both cause mutations which we shall discuss soon.
• There are three types of Genitival relationships in Sindarin: one with proper nouns, one with definite common nouns and one with indefinite common nouns.
• Relationships with proper nouns are signified by word order alone
• Common nouns can either use word order or the genitival article "en". Only the meaning you wish to convey will determine which you use.
This Concludes Lesson 4
---
*Nai i silme o i Valar kalla ree N'hrive*
*~A Elbereth Gilthoniel,
silivren penna miriel
o menel aglar elenath!~*
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11/24/03, 4:26 pm
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Thea
Shieldmaiden of Rohan
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Re: *Sindarin Lessons*
Wow Cheers, are you still learning Sindarin? I wish I had the time and energy to learn! Alas, I am but a lowly, unlearned mortal who cannot grasp such things so easily. *sighs*
How've you bin keeping?
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5/7/04, 9:49 pm
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Cheers
Cailinn of Lorien
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Re: *Sindarin Lessons*
Ai, that I am, although the lessons have been at a stand-still for the past few weeks. I've been a bit busy, but am doing well.What about you, dearest Thea? I've missed you! I can't wait for your next post in your history! Can we expect another installment anytime soon?
Oh, and you're right about the lowly, unlearned mortal thing.
--- Sing all ye joyful, now all sing together!
The wind's in the tree-top, the wind's in the heather.
The stars are in blossom, the moon is in flower!
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5/16/04, 7:41 pm
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Thea
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Re: *Sindarin Lessons*
I am not doing too badly, thanks for asking, off to London on Friday so looking forward to that.
I've written a bit more so you can expect the next installment soonish. I see you've been writing yours, I want to sit down and read it properly when I have some time! I love reading about the elves, despite all your many flaws. :silly:
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5/19/04, 9:30 am
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Cailinn of Lorien
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Re: *Sindarin Lessons*
Oo, London, how fabulous! Wouldn't it be great if I could fly down in time to meet you? *sigh* If only...
I notice that you've written on your history! I'm off to read it next after I finish posting here..I can't wait! You are such a talented author. And yes, I was so excited to finally finish the first part of my re-written story. I've been a bit stuck on the second installment, though, which isn't unusual, but I hope to get something done soon. I have the whole story planned out in my head, so once I break through this block (and considering it's summer now), I think it shall go faster.
*coughrightcough* I think it's time for another visit to the "Elves vs. Men" topic.
--- Sing all ye joyful, now all sing together!
The wind's in the tree-top, the wind's in the heather.
The stars are in blossom, the moon is in flower!
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5/19/04, 8:26 pm
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Re: *Sindarin Lessons*