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Doriathrin
- La langue maternelle de Lúthien
Aussi
appelée Doriathric (dans LR:375)
Tout ce
que nous savons de la langue de Doriath sont quelques huitante mots trouvés
dans les Etymologies dans LR:347-400, plus un ou deux mots du Silmarillion
chapitre 21. Mais il y avait autrefois le langage parlé à
la cour du Roi Thingol, qui règna sur Beleriand pour quatre mille
ans du Soleil et sired "le plus beau des
Enfants d'Ilúvatar qui n'ait jamais été ou ne sera
jamais" (Silm. ch. 4). Doriathrin doit avoir été
la langue maternelle de Lúthien Tinúviel. Quand elle apprit
plus tard que la langue Humaine native de Beren, il lui demanda pourquoi
en fait elle se donnait la peine de l'apprendre, "puisque sa propre langue
était plus riche et plus belle" (PM:369).
Est-ce que
le Doriathrin doit être considéré comme une langue
Elfique séparée ou une forme de Sindarin? Les Etymologies
furent écrites longtemps avant que Tolkien ne réalise finalement
que le langage aux consonnances Galloises de sa mythologie n'était
pas la langage que les Noldor apportèrent avec eux de Valinor,
comme il l'avait pensé pendant plus de trente ans, mais le langage
des Elfes Gris de la Terre-du-Milieu. Ainsi tout-à coup, le Sindarin
et le Doriathrin furent mis en contact plus étroit qu'auparavant.
Est-ce que le Doriathrin en tant que langage distinct survécut
à cette révision majeure? Plus tard, Tolkien parle du "Sindarin
de Doriath" (PM:369). Mais dans le Silmarillion, y compris les
parties qui furent révisées après que Tolkien eut
complété le SdA, les noms Doriathrin et lkes phrases persistent:
Mablung, Nauglamîr, Dagnir Glaurunga, Dior.
Au moins tant que ces noms sont concernés, le Doriathrin des Etymologies
le fait dans la forme mature des mythos. Peut-être que le langage
Doriathrin aperçu dans les Etymologies peut passer pour
une forme archaïque de Sindarin, bien qu'il semble avoir quelques
particularités spécifiques est soit différent du
"VN" (Vieux Noldorin, lire Vieux Sindarin) des Etymologies. Le
Doriathrin appartient définitivement à la même branche
de Telerin Commun qui conduit au Sindarin, mais il semble avoir établi
sa propre branche bien avant que le Gris-Elfique Classique ne fut atteint,
et il diffère moins du Telerin Commun que le Sindarin. Mais ce
qui est considéré comme un langage séparé
et ce qui est considéré comme un dialecte est souvent dicté
par des facteurs extra-linguistiques. Peut-être que par un décision
politique, le Doriathrin est une forme de Sindarin, le langage des sujets
de Thingol - bien que le roi méprise le dialecte nordique du Gris-Elfique
(PM:369, 372).
La Chanson
de Lúthien dans The Lays of Beleriand p. 354 semble être
du pur Sindarin, cependant. (Ici, une source post-SdA est reproduite.)
Pour ceci et d'autres raisons, quelques personnes compétentes sentirent
que le Doriathrin des Etymologies - qui est le langage concerné
par cet article - n'est plus une langue "valide" dans les mytos
comme précédemment, Tolkien avait revu son scénario
linguistique. Selon ce point de vue, le langage de Doriath devrait maintenant
être imaginé simplement comme une variante particulièrement
archaïque du Sindarin que nous connaissons du SdA, et le Doriathrin
des Etymologies doit largement être abandonné comme
une notion obsolète - excepté pour quelques noms listés
ci-dessus, que Tolkien évidemment transféra au Sindarin
comme il scrapped Doriathrin comme un langage
à part. Aucune conclusion définitice ne peut être
atteinte en la matière (voir, cependant, l'entrée roth
dans la liste de mots ci-dessous). Le langage discuté ici était
au moins le langage de Doriath à une étape du scénario
évolutif de Tolkien.
Une source
tardive commentant le langage du Royaume Caché peut être
citée ici: "Le langage de Doriath...était même aux
jours de Túrin plus antique que ce qui était utilisé
ailleurs. Une chose (comme Mîm l'observa) dont Túrin ne se
débarassa jamais, en dépit de ses griefs contre Doriath,
était que le langage qu'il avait acquis durant sa jeunesse. Bien
qu'il fut un Homme, il parlait comme un Elfe du Royaume Caché,
ce qui est bien entendu ce à quoi un Homme devait ressembler, dont
la manière de parler et l'éducation jusqu'à l'âge
adulte avait été celles de quelque pays retiré où
l'anglais était resté plus proche de celui de la cour d'Elizabeth
I que de celui d'Elizabeth II." (WJ:312)
LA STRUCTURE
DU DORIATHRIN
Concernant la
structure du Doriathrin, on peut noter ce qui suit: Alors que le Sindarin
exprime les relations génitives par le seul ordre des mots (Ennyn
Durin "Portes [de] Durin"), le Doriathrin préserve toujours un
génitif distinct en -a. On a vu dans l'inscription que quelque Elfes
de Doriath gravèrent dans la pierre sur la tombe de Túrin:
Túrin Turambar Dagnir Glaurunga, "Túrin Turambar
le fléau de Glaurung" (traduit dans l'index du Silmarillion
). Selon Tolkien, le génitif sans terminaison du Sindarin repésente
probablement des formes infléchies dans la langue ancienne, ainsi
de ce point de vue, quelqu'un qui parlerait le Sindarin normal trouverait
en fait le Doriathrin archaïque.
Selon les
Etymologies, racine NAUK, le génitif "[Doriathrin]
en -a(n) précédait" le mot qu'il gouverne. Le mot
discuté ici est Nauglamîr "le Collier des Nains", (naugla
+ mîr).Mais l'ordre des mots ici ne peut pas être le
seul possible; cf. Dagnir Glaurunga.
La terminaison
du génitif pluriel était -ion, comme dans
region "des arbres saints" (aussi le nom Region). Cf. Quenya
-ion comme dans le Silmarillion "(histoire) des Silmarils".
Mais la terminaison -ion peut avoir été réinterprétée
comme une terminaison signifiant pays ou region ; cf. Sindarin Eregion.
Alors que
le Sindarin forme typiquement les pluriels des noms en changeant les voyelles
dans le style du mot anglais man/men ou goose/geese,
le Doriathrin a une terminaison plurielle -in. Les changements
de voyelles en Sindarin (comme l'anglais) sont à l'origine un phénomène
de transformation provoqué par une ancienne terminaison plurielle
qui contenait la voyelle i, ainsi à nouveau le Doriathrin
peut être appelé archaïque comparé au Sindarin:
Eld
"Elfe, Elda" pl. Eldin
orth "montagne", pl. orthin
roth "caverne", pl. rodhin (la qualité vocalisée
de la consonne finales dans la racine ROD est préservée
intervocaliquement - peut-être que le Doriathrin ne peut pas avoir
de spirantes vocalisées finalement)
urch "orc", pl. urchin
Il y a aussi
regorn "arbre saint", pl. regin (reg-orn est littéralement
"arbre saint", et la terminaison plurielle est suffixée directement
à la racine reg "saint"; cf. aussi le génitif pluriel
region). Cette terminaison plurielle ne doit pas être confondue
avec la terminaison adjectivale vue dans ngorthin "horrible" de
ngorth "horreur" (variante -en dans lóm "écho",
lómen "echoing").
Le Doriathrin
ne semble pas avoir les transformations caractéristiques du Sindarin
normal. Le i dans la syllabe finale de urchin ne génère
par la transformation du u en y par assimilation; contrairement
au Sindarin orch pl. yrch (représentant des formes
archaïques comme like urkô pl. urkî ou
urkôi).
Cependant,
les Etymologies au moins font remarquer que le Doriathrin était
similaire au Sindarin par un aspect. Quelques fois, des formes doubles
sont listées dans les Etymologies: Dolmed et Ndolmed
(nom d'une montagne), gol et ngol "sage, magique", gold
et ngold "Noldo", golo et ngolo "magie, savoir".
Les racines sont NDOL et NGOL, ainsi les formes alternatives
reflètent la combinaison initiale. Peut-être, comme en Sindarin,
la combinaison originale influence la forme utilisée en suivant
certaines particules; cf. le Sindarin golodh "Noldo", mais i
ngolodh "le Noldo". De la même manière, le Doriathrin
gold peut appraître comme ngold dans certains environnements.
Un mot Doriathrin
soulève une question particulière: Est-ce que les Elfes
de Doriath rejetèrent le système Quendien duodécimal
pour compter (basé sur le nombre 12) en faveur d'un système
décimal comme le nôtre? Selon WJ:423, tous les Elfes en tous
temps comptèrent par douze; mais le nom Menegroth est traduit
"les Mille Cavernes" (selon LR:384 s.v. ROD les éléments
sont meneg + roth, évidemment = "mille" + "caverne[s]").
Mais dans un système duodécimal, il n'y a rien de spécial
avec le nombre 1000: Il serait exprimé comme 6-11-4 (sc. 6 x 144
+ 11 x 12 + 4 x 1). Mille ne serait pas un "chiffre rond" du tout. Le
premier nombre à quatre chiffres dans un système duodécimal
est 1728 (12 x 12 x 12). Ceci serait un "grand nombre" proverbial pour
quelqu'un qui aurait pensé en termes duodécimaux, juste
comme 1000 l'est pour nous. Est-ce que la traduction "Mille Cavernes"
est idiomatique et strictement imprécis, et que Menegroth signifierait
"1728 cavernes"? S'il en est ainsi, la traduction correcte ne se ferait
pas en français.
LISTE DE
MOTS DORIATHRIN avec notes étymologiques
Note: des
mots primitifs
"reconstruits" par Tolkien lui-même ne sont pas astérisqués.
-a terminaison génitive, vue dans Dagnir Glaurunga
"le fléau de Glaurung". La terminaison génitive primitive
en ELdarin Commun était -hô > -ô,
dérivé d'un "ancien élément adverbial" HO
signifiant "loin, de, parmi" (WJ:368). L'entrée correspondante
dans les toutes premières Etymologies semble être
3O (3Ô) "de, loin, parmi, hors de" (LR:360). Est-ce
que le -ô primitif devint -a en Doriathrin? Il y a
quelques mots en Ilkorin qui semblent montrer
un tel développement, et comme Tolkien imagina des choses quand
il écrivit les Etymologies, Ilkorin et Doriathrin étaient
étroitement apparentés (tous deux ayant la terminaison génitive
-a). Au péluriel, la terminaison génitive -ion,
l'élément "génitival" (< 3O or HO)
apparaît comme o; voir -ion.
argad "hors
de la clôture", l'extérieur (LR:358 s.v. GAT(H), aussi
LR:349 s.v. AR2). A Doriath, "la clôture" se réfère
bien sûr à l'Anneau de Melian. Le préfixe ar-
signifie "extérieur", dérivé de la racine AR2,
elle-même définie dans les Etymologies, mais l'Appendice
du Silmarillion donne ar- "hors de, à côté
de ". Le second élément est gad "clôture",
q.v.
argador évidemment
le nom Doriathrin des terres hors de Doriath (GAT(H), cf. ELED).
composé de argad et dor, q.v, d'où *"hors
de -la-clôture-pays", *"terre extérieure".
cwindor "narrateur"
(LR:366 s.v. KWET). Ceci est un mot douteux selon la conception
tardive de Tolkien; dans la branche de l'Eldarin à laquelle le
Doriathrin appartient, le primitif KW devint P loin en arrière
dans l'histoire linguistique Elfique (WJ:375 cf. 407 note 5). Lire
*pindor? Anyhow, Tolkien stated that cwindor
comes from kwentro "narrator", sc. a nasal-infixed variant of the
stem KWET- "say" combined with the masculine/agental terminaison
-ro (cf. Dior from ndeuro). The o in cwindor
probably developed to break up a final consonant cluster, since the Common
Eldarin form would have been *kwentr after the loss of final short
-o (and -a, -e). This word alone in our small corpus
provides evidence for the shift nt > nd. Curiously, e
here becomes i. It seems that this shift occurs before consonant
clusters beginning in a nasal; cf. nîw "nose" from NEÑ-WI
(probably via an intermediate form *niñw- before the ñ
was lost and the i became lengthened to î in compensation).
dagnir *"slayer"
(Silmarillion, end of chapter 21). Some would say that this is
normal Sindarin and not to be connected with the Doriathrin of the Etymologies.
The elements are clearly to be connected with the stems NDAK "slay"
(LR:375) and DER, strengthened NDER, "man" (LR:375). As
in Sindarin, post-vocalic unvoiced plosives become voiced, hence k
> g in NDAK > dag-. We might have expected
NDER to yield *dir, *ndir instead of nir;
perhaps original nd becomes n following a consonant the
middle of a composé (and similarly m, n for earlier mb,
ng?)
dair "shadow
of trees". Derived from a stem DAY "shadow" (LR:354); the primitive
form would probably be *dairê (cf. the Quenya adjective laira
"shady", evidently from *dairâ).
Dairon (name,
= Sindarin Daeron). (LR:354 s.v. DAY). The first element
should evidently be equated with dair above; the name Dairon
is in any case derived from the same stem. The Silmarillion Appendix,
entry dae, defines this element as "shadow" and notes that it "perhaps"
occurs in Sindarin Daeron. The masculine terminaison -on
is well attested in various Eldarin languages; Dairon may represent
primitive *Dairondo.
Denithor "Denethor",
masculine name that in LR:188 is derived from ndani-thârô
"saviour of the Dani" (= Nandor, Green-elves). The second element thârô
"saviour" cannot readlily be connected with any element listed in the
Etymologies; THAR "across, beyond" (LR:392) seems unable
to provide the meaning "saviour", unless a thârô is
literally one who brings something or someone beyond danger. Thârô
does look like a frequent primitive agental formation. In any case, Tolkien
many years later provided a quite different etymology for the name Denethor;
in WJ:412 (where no Doriathrin form is mentioned) it is said to mean "lithe-and-lank",
from dene- "thin and strong, pliant, lithe", and thara-
"tall (or long) and slender". (These elements cannot be connected to anything
else in the published corpus.)
Dior "Successor"
(masc. name). Primitive form given as ndeuro, sc. the stem NDEW
"follow, come behind" + the masculine agental terminaison -ro (more
often -rô). The shift eu > io is attested
in this word only. There may be an alternative (dialectal?) form *Ndior
with the original initial nasalized stop nd intact; cf. Ndolmed
beside Dolmed (the first element being derived from a stem NDOL).
Dolmed "Wet
Head" (name of mountain; also Ndolmed). (LR:376 s.v. NDOL, LR:373
s.v. MIZD). Notice that the order of the elements in the composé
is actually "Head-Wet". Dol, ndol "head" may come from *ndôlâ
(whence Quenya nóla) or - more probably - from *ndolô,
whence Old Sindarin ndolo. Concerning the element -med "wet",
see méd.
dôn "back"
(noun). Derived from a stem NDAN "back" (evidently as preposition
rather than noun). The primitive form may be assumed to be *ndân-
with some lost final vowel. For another example of long â
becoming ô, cf. drôg "wolf" from d'râk.
dor "land",
isolated from Argador, Eglador, Lómendor (q.v.)
In the Etymologies, the Eldarin words for "land" are derived from
a stem NDOR "dwell, stay, rest, abide" (LR:376). No Doriathrin
word is there listed, but dor would have the same origin as the
identical Sindarin word: primitive ndorê. Notice, cependant,
that Tolkien many years later derived the Eldarin words for "land" from
a stem DORO "dried up, hard, unyielding" (WJ:413). cependant,
this later source does confirm that the Primitive Quendian form was ndorê,
now thought to be formed by initial enrichment d > nd.
This is defined as "the hard, dry land as opposed to water or bog", later
developing the meaning "land in general as opposed to sea", and finally
also "a land" as a particular region, "with more or less defined bounds".
(The bounds of Eglador, sc. Doriath, were of course very well defined
by the Girdle of Melian.)
dorn "oak".
Derived from a stem DORÓN, simply defined as "oak"; Quenya
norno and Sindarin doron together indicate a primitive form
*dorónô. For another example of Doriathrin dropping
both the second and the third vowel in a word of this structure, cf. gold
from ngolodô; cf. also gald from galadâ.
drôg "wolf".
In LR:354 derived from a stem DARÁK, itself undefined; the
primitive form is given as d'râk. Our general knowledge of
the structure of primitive words, as well as Quenya ráca
rather than **rát, points rather to a primitive form *d'râkâ.
But the final vowel, if it ever existed, was lost in Doriathrin, and â
was rounded to produce ô (cf. dôn above).
dunn "black".
In LR:355 derived from a stem DUN "dark (of colour)"; the primitive
form would be *dunnâ with the adjectival terminaison -nâ
(or possibly the simpler terminaison -â combined with medial
fortification n > nn). In the Etymologies, the
Doriathrin word dunn is also mentioned in l'entrée ÑGOROTH,
LR:377. The adjective (or just the stem) also occurs as a prefix dun-
in dungorthin; see Nan Dungorthin.
durgul "sorcery"
(LR:377 s.v. ÑGOL). The literal meaning is rather "dark
lore/magic". The element dur "dark" is not otherwise attested in
Doriathrin, but compare Sindarin dûr "dark, sombre", derived
from a stem DO3, DÔ (LR:354), not defined as such
but apparently having to do with night. Dur must be assumed
to derive from an adjective *do3râ, *dôrâ
(-râ being a frequent adjectival terminaison). The second
element, -gul, is derived from a stem ÑGOL "wise,
wisdom, be wise" (LR:377). Compare Sindarin morgul - Doriathrin
also has mor(n)gul, q.v., with the same meaning as
durgul. The second element of Sindarin morgul is commented
upon in the Silmarillion Appendix, entry gûl (evidently
based on the text now printed in WJ:383): "The Sindarin word [gûl]
was darkened in sense by its frequent use in the composé 'black arts'."
What is evidently the primitive form of gûl is given in PM:360:
ñgôlê, with lengthening of the stem-vowel and
the terminaison -ê, often used to derive abstracts. - It
is probable that both elements of durgul had long vowels when they
appeared independently: *dûr, *gûl, the vowels
preserving the quantity (though not the quality) of the ô's
in primitive *dôrâ, ngôlê. The vowel
of *dûr is apparently shortened because it is followed by
a consonant cluster in this composé, while the vowel of *gûl
is shortened because it is unstressed.
Eglador "land
of the Elves", the Doriathrin name of Doriath (LR:356 s.v. ELED, also
LR:358 s.v. GAT(H)). Concerning the final element, see dor.
The element egla- is the same as Quenya Elda, which also
has a closer Doriathrin cognate Eld (q.v.) In the Etymologies,
Egla- and Eld- are derived from a stem ÉLED-
"Star-folk", clearly to be understood as an extended form of the stem
EL "star" (LR:356 cf. 355). Tolkien dropped an older etymology
that connected ELED with LED "go, fare, travel" instead
(LR:368 cf. 356); this would have identified the Eldin (Quenya
Eldar) as the Elves that embarked on the Great March from Cuiviénen.
Doriathrin Eld was probably meant to descend from *eledâ,
while egla- was to be derived from *edelâ with d
and l transposed. After the syncope of medial e, the d
and the l made contact, and the sequence dl became gl
in Doriathrin. Since final vowels are not preserved in Doriathrin, we
would expect *edelâ to yield *egl rather than egla.
Perhaps the final -a was preserved in the composé Eglador
because it was not there final, or perhaps the a is actually the
Doriathrin genitive terminaison: "Elf's-land". Compare Nauglamîr
*"Dwarf's-necklace", stated by Tolkien to include the genitive -a;
cf. also Goldamir "Noldo-jewel", Silmaril (the Doriathrin word
for Noldo being gold, hence *"Noldo's Jewel" (LR:375 s.v. NAUK,
LR:377 s.v. ÑGOLOD).
el "star",
in LR:355 derived from a stem EL, simply defined as "star".
According to WJ:360, Elvish legend had it that the Eldarin words for
"star" are to be referred to a primitive exclamation ele, "lo!",
"behold!" - supposedly what the Elves said when they first saw the stars.
(Cf. WJ:422.) The primitive (Common Eldarin) form is given in WJ:360 as
êl.
[El-boron]
(masc. name; spelt Elboron with no hyphen in LR:351 s.v. BARATH).
In LR:353, El-boron is listed under the stem BOR "endure",
but this name was struck out. It was intended as the name of one of Dior's
sons, but Tolkien later called the character in question Elrûn
instead, finally becoming Elurín in the published Silmarillion.
The first element of El-boron is obviously el "star", q.v.;
boron is apparently the stem BOR with the masculine terminaison
-on, hence "enduring/faithful man": primitive *borondo.
Eld pl.
Eldin "Elda, elf" (ELED). In the Etymologies, this
word was derived from a stem ÉLED "Star-folk" (LR:356);
see Eglamar above concerning the early etymology of Eld
and related words. In Tolkien's later scenario, Eld would descend
from eldâ, an adjectival formation "connected or concerned
with the stars", derived from ele (see under el) with medial
fortification l > ld and adjectival -â,
see WJ:360). This refers to the story that "Oromë loved the Quendi,
and named them in their own tongue Eldar [primitive form actually Eldâi],
the people of the stars" - because he found them under a starlit sky (Silmarillion
ch. 3). Later, this word was no longer applied to all the Quendi, but
only those who started on the March to Valinor, whether they actually
got there or not.
gad "fence",
in LR:358 derived from a stem GAT(H) that is not itself defined;
other derivatives in various languages have meanings like "cavern, prison,
dungeon, cave". The primitive form of gad must be assumed to be
*gat- with some lost final vowel, but how could a stem primarily
having to do with caves yield a word for "fence"? Are we to assume
a semantic development "cave" > "place one cannot escape from" >
"prison/dungeon" > "bounded area" > "fenced area" > "fence"?
It may be noted that gad - and argad, q.v. - were words
that were added to this entry after it was originally written; do they
suggest a change in Tolkien's conception? In the same entry, Sindarin/"Noldorin"
Doriath is interpreted "Land of the Cave", the final element apparently
being equated with "Noldorin" gath "cavern" (lenited -ath).
Later, Tolkien interpreted Doriath as "Land of the Fence" instead,
referring to the Girdle of Melian, the second element now being equated
with be iâth, iath "fence" (WJ:370, 378), but this
is apparently not to be connected with this entry GAT(H).
galbreth
< galdbreth "beech-tree". The Etymologies is somewhat
ambiguous about the status of this word in Doriathrin: LR:352 s.v. BERÉTH
states that "the beech was called galbreth...in Falasse, and neldor
in Doriath" (see neldor). Here, galbreth would seem to be
a Falathrin rather than a Doriathrin word. cependant, the very entry that
lists the word neldor (NEL, LR:376) also states that "the
proper Dor[iathrin] name was galdbreth > galbreth". The
solution seems to be that galbreth is the proper name of
the beech both in Falathrin and Doriathrin, and moreover the only
name used in Falathrin, while the people of Doriath usually substituted
the term neldor - which was not held to be the "proper" name of
this tree. Whatever the case, galdbreth > galbreth incorporates
gald "tree" (q.v. for discussion), while the final element breth
is to be referred to a stem BERÉTH (LR:352), not defined
as such but only yielding words having to do with beeches. The primitive
form is given as b'rethâ (presumably for even older *beréthâ,
before the loss of the unaccented vowel); when used to form nouns, the
terminaison -â usually denotes inanimates.
gald "tree"
(LR:357 s.v. GALAD). In Letters:426, the root is said to be GAL
"grow", intransitive, and in UT:266, primitive galadâ is
defined as "great growth". This word was used of spreading trees, while
more slender trees were called ornê [Doriathrin orn],
though this distinction was not consistently maintained in Quenya (in
which language the words came out as alda and ornë)
and was abandoned in altogether in Sindarin (galadh vs. orn,
the latter was rare as an independent word). Since it is said that Doriathrin
orn (q.v.) is especially used of beeches (and may denote any tree
in composés), it may well be that Tolkien intended gald to have
acquired the same wide sense as Quenya alda, and no longer meant
"spreading tree" only. Indeed gal(d)breth is listed
as a name of the beech; see galbreth above. - In the Etymologies,
Quenya alda is derived from a stem GALAD, simply defined
as "tree" (LR:357); this may be understood as an extended form
of the stem GAL mentioned in Letters:426. It is, cependant, tempting
to compare primitive galadâ from GAL with ñgolodo
"Noldo, wise one" from ÑGOL; gala- could be an ómataina-form
of the stem GAL (with base vowel suffixed), and -dâ
could be an terminaison comparable to the personal terminaison -dô
in ñgolodô, the terminaison -â often
referring to something inanimate just like the final vowel -ô
very often denotes a (masculine) animate.
ganu "male"
(as noun: a male, of Men or Elves, or a male animal). Final vowels are
rare in Doriathrin, since they were dropped at an earlier stage. This
may be no real exception, since this -u probably descends from
a consonant: In LR:360, ganu is derived from a stem 3AN,
simply defined as "male". If we assume a primitive adjective *3anwâ
"male" with the adjectival terminaison -wâ, well attested
elsewhere, this may have yielded 3anw, ganw after the loss
of final vowels, the final semi-vowel then becoming a full vowel -u.
(Compare gelu below.) Interestingly, this derivation would imply
that ganu is not really the direct cognate of Quenya hanu
of similar meaning; hanu would descend from *3anû
with the masculine terminaison -û, but this would probably
come out as *gan in Doriathrin. It seems that the meaning of ganu
has drifted from adjective (*3anwâ) to noun. - In the scenario
of the Etymologies, primitive initial 3 (the voiced back-spirant,
gh) becomes g in Doriathrin/Ilkorin and Nandorin (Danian).
Compare garm, garth, gell, gelu below. In
later sources, Tolkien reconstructed the primitive version of the sound
in question as h rather than 3; for instance, Quenya ho,
hó- "from" is derived from a stem HO in WJ:368, while
the same word was derived from 3O, 3Ô in the Etymologies
(see LR:360). Tolkien in a late source states that Primitive Quendian
h "survived only in the dialects of Aman" (WJ:365), thus
throwing considerable doubt upon the validity of these Doriathrin, Ilkorin
and Nandorin forms in his later scenario. If these words are to be accepted,
we would have to assume that Tolkien meant that Primitive Quendian h
survived as H only in the dialects of Aman (while it had been lost
or changed to a quite different sound, merging with another phoneme,
in non-Amanya languages!)
garm "wolf".
Originally, in LR:360, derived from an undefined stem 3ARAM. Other
forms given - like Sindarin garaf and Quenya harma - point
to a primitive form *3aramâ. cependant, Tolkien deleted l'entrée
3ARAM; he probably wanted to avoid the clash with Quenya harma
"treasure". Nonetheless, the Doriathrin word garm reappeared in
LR:377, now derived from a stem ÑGAR(A)M. This stem is not
defined (all its derivatives mean "wolf"), though in remote origin it
may be connected to ÑGAW "howl" (LR:377) if these
two stems are both elaborations of a very early element *ÑGA.
While the Doriathrin and Sindarin words garm and garaf remained
the same, the Quenya word is now ñarmo, removing the clash
with harma and pointing to a primitive form *ñgaramô.
The terminaison -ô often denotes an animate; cf. for instance
morókô "bear" (LR:374 s.v. MORÓK). -
It is possible that Doriathrin garm has a an alternative form *ngarm
preserving the original initial nasalized stop; cf. for instance ngold
besides gold (primitive ñgolodô).
garth "realm".
In LR:360 derived from a stem 3AR "have, hold", a realm being something
that is "held" or possessed by a king. The Sindarin/"Noldorin" cognate
is ardh; together these words suggest a primitive form *3ard-
with some lost final vowel (*3ardâ?). The cluster rd
probably arose by a medial fortification r > rd, unless
we are do assume a longer terminaison -dâ. It seems that
in Doriathrin, rd became rdh, changed to -rth finally;
the plural form of garth is probably *gardhin rather than
*garthin. Compare roth "cave", pl. rodhin instead
of **rothin because the original stem was ROD. The form
gardh- (garð-) actually occurs in the composé garð-thurian
"Hidden Realm" (lit. "realm-hidden") listed in LR:393 s.v THUR
(the word is there said to be Ilkorin, but it seems that Tolkien sometimes
uses this term to include Doriathrin as well). This seems to suggest that
garð- would be the normal form of garth in a composé,
though in this case ð simply merged into the following th.
Garthurian "Fenced
Realm" (a name of Doriath) (LR:360 s.v. 3AR) or "Hidden Realm"
(LR:393 s.v. THUR). As mentioned above, LR:393 indicates that Garthurian
is a composé of garth, gardh- "realm" and an element thurian
"hidden". The latter is obviously a kind of past participle based on the
stem THUR-, defined as "surround, fence, ward, hedge in, secrete".
To explain the terminaison -ian we must probably assume a primitive
verb *thurjâ- with a verbal terminaison that is very well
attested (yielding Quenya -ya); to this verb the primtive adjectival/past
participle terminaison -nâ has been added to produce *thurjânâ,
which would probably come out as thurian in Doriathrin.
gell "sky".
Derived from a stem 3EL, simply defined as "sky" (LR:360),
said to be confused with EL "star" (cf. LR:355). The Quenya
cognate hellë suggests that gell descends from *3ellê,
a form showing medial fortification l > ll; the terminaison
-ê may have the same "local" meaning as in ndorê
"land" (see dor).
gelu "sky-blue".
Derived from the same stem 3EL "sky" as gell above; the
final -u argues the existence of an earlier adjectival terminaison
-wâ, w becoming u after the loss of the final
vowel: *3elwâ > *3elw > gelu. Compare
hedhu from khithwa and ganu from *3anwâ.
Quenya helwa "pale blue" seems to confirm that gelu must
derive from *3elwâ.
gôl "wise,
magical" (also ngol preserving the original initial nasalized stop).
Derived from a stem ÑGOL "wise, wisdom, be wise" (LR:377).
Gôl is evidently a cognate of Quenya ñóla
"wise, learned"; the primitive form is clearly meant to be *ñgôlâ
with lengthening of the stem-vowel and the frequent adjectival terminaison
-â suffixed. (It is not entirely clear why the vowel ô
has become short in the alternative form ngol.) According to the
Etymologies, gôl (unstressed -gol) is the second
element in the composéed name Thingol, q.v.
gold "Noldo"
(also ngold). (LR:377 s.v. ÑGOL). The primitive form
is given in PM:360 and WJ:383 as ñgolodô (MR:350:
ngolodô), derived from the above-mentioned stem ÑGOL
"wise, wisdom, be wise" (so defined in LR:377) or "knowledge, wisdom,
lore" (WJ:383). The form ñgolodô shows reduplication
of the base-vowel (ómataina) and the masculine/animate terminaison
-dô. The clan-name Noldor [Doriathrin *Goldin]
meant "Lore-masters" (MR:350) or "the Wise" (WJ:383) ("but
wise in the sense of possessing knowledge, not in the sense of possessing
sagacity, sound judgement" - Silmarillion Index entry "Noldor").
Goldamir "Noldo-jewel"
= Silmaril (LR:377 s.v. ÑGOL). Golda would seem to
be the genitive of gold "Noldo" (q.v.); for another example of
a genitive in a composé, see Nauglamîr (and probably Eglador).
For the second element, see mîr, mir.
golo "magic,
lore" (also ngolo). Obviously derived from the same stem ÑGOL
as gold, ngold (q.v.) This word is apparently meant to be
the cognate of Quenya ñolwë "wisdom, secret lore" (LR:377).
The primitive form would be *ñgolwê, -wê
being an abstract terminaison. The development would be *ñgolwê
> *ñgolwe > *ngolw > *ñgolu
> ngolo (> golo). Strangely, -w comes out as
-u in other cases, such as gelu (< *3elw <
*3elwâ); see also ganu, hedhu. Are we to understand
that original -wê yields -o, while -wâ
yields -u? This is difficult to justify in terms of diachronic
phonology.
hedhu (spelt
heðu in the source) "foggy, obscure, vague". In LR:364, this
word is derived from a stem KHITH (variant KHIS), defined
as "mist, fog". The primitive form is given as khithwa (presumably
*khithwâ at the oldest stage). The terminaison -wa,
-wâ is adjectival, cf. for instance narwâ "fiery
red" from the stem NAR1- "flame, fire". In hedhu,
the final -â is lost and the preceding w has turned
into a full vowel u; see gelu and evidently ganu
for other examples of this. The lost final -â evidently umlauted
the i to e before it was lost; compare méd
from mizdâ. Initial kh becomes h, as in Quenya
and Sindarin; hedhu is our sole Doriathrin example of this. The
change of post-vocalic th to its voiced counterpart dh is
not universal, constrast for instance umboth "large pool" from
MBOTH. Perhaps th in khithwa became voiced by contact
with the following w before this voiced consonant turned into a
vowel, the -u of hedhu. (As the name Luthien demonstrates,
the solution cannot be that intervocalic th regulary becomes dh
in Doriathrin.)
-ion would
seem to be the genitive plural terminaison, cf. region "of holly-trees".
Quenya has the same terminaison; in that language it represents the plural
terminaison -i + o genitive marker + n another plural
marker. See WJ:368, 407; cf. LR:360 s.v. 3O. We may assume that
the Doriathrin terminaison has more or less the same etymology. See also
-a (the singular genitive terminaison).
istel, istil
"silver light", said to be "applied by the Ilkorins to starlight,
probably a Q[uenya] form learnt from Melian" (LR:385 s.v. SIL).
While the stem is given as SIL "shine silver", the derivation is
quite remarkable. The initial s of the stem seems to be strengthened
to st (in VT39:9, Fëanor is said to have cited examples of
initial strengthening involving "the relations between initial st-
and s-"). The resulting variant stem *STIL evidently produces
istil by means of the "intensive prefix i", that is used
"where i is base vowel" (LR:361 s.v. I-). Istel seems
to be a mere variant; perhaps the second i became e by dissimilation
to the first.
laur "gold".
In LR:368 derived from a stem LÁWAR (LR:368); the primitive
form is given as laurê. The terminaison -ê sometimes
denotes substances, cf. primitive words like srawê "flesh"
or rossê "dew, spray" (MR:350, Letters:282). It seems that
laurê, whence Quenya laurë, properly refers to
golden light rather than to the metal gold (which is in Quenya malta,
Doriathrin perhaps *malt or *malth).
líw "fish",
in LR:369 derived from a stem LIW, itself undefined. A primitive
form is given as *liñwi, showing nasal infixion; the ñ
has dropped out in the Doriathrin derivative, but the preceding vowel
has apparently been lengthened in compensation. (Compare nîw
"nose" from neñ-wi.)
lóm "echo",
in LR:367 derived from a stem LAM, not there defined but cf. WJ:416:
"LAMA....refers to sounds, especially to vocal sounds, but was
applied only to those that were confused or inarticulate" (LAMA
= LAM with ómataina, suffixed base-vowel). The Quenya
cognate of lóm, láma, clearly points to a
primitive form *lâmâ. For another example of long â
becoming ó in Doriathrin, cf. drôg "wolf" from
d'râk.
lómen
"echoing" (also lómin). Derived from the same stem as
lóm above (or perhaps rather from the noun *lâmâ
itself, since ó must descend from long â),
primitive form evidently *lâminâ (cf. Quenya lámina).
The adjectival terminaison -inâ, apparently a longer form
of the very frequent terminaison -nâ, is "reconstructed"
by Tolkien in a few adjectives (e.g. smalinâ "yellow", LR:386
s.v. SMAL). In Doriathrin, the terminaison -inâ comes
out as -en; the original final vowel umlauted the preceding i
to e before it was lost (for another example of A-umlaut producing
E from I, cf. méd "wet" from mizdâ). The adjective
lómen is also attested in the composé Lómendor
*"Echoing land", cf. also the variant lómin (*lâmina
with short final -a that disappeared before it could umlaut the
i to e?) in Lóminorthin *"Echoing mountains"
(LR:367 s.v. LAM, also LR:358 s.v. GLAM; see dor,
orth for discussions of the final elements in these composés).
luin "pale".
Primitive form given as lugni "blue", sc. the stem LUG1
(LR:370, not defined) with an terminaison -ni not otherwise
attested, though -i is an terminaison found on many primitive colour-adjectives.
Notice how g before another consonant becomes i and produces
a diphthong with the preceding vowel. (When dagnir, q.v., does
not become **dainir, this is evidently because this g is
not original, but descends from a k: stem NDAK, LR:375.
Cf. the fact that Tolkien changed Luithien to Luthien, realizing/deciding
that uk in primitive luktiênê would not become
ui.)
lung "heavy"
(cf. Mablung "Heavy-hand"). In LR:370 derived from the stem LUG1,
itself undefined, but the primitive form of this adjective is given as
lungâ, showing nasal infixion and adjectival -â.
We might have expected the original final -â to cause umlaut,
so that the Doriathrin form would rather have been *long; compare
lost from *lustâ (see Mablost). Examples from
Ilkorin suggest that before a consonant cluster beginning in a nasal,
umlauts do not occur; this seems to be the case in Doriathrin as well.
luth "magic"?
"spell"? (no gloss given, connected to the name Lúthien
"enchantress"). In LR:370 derived from a stem LUK "magic, enchantment";
we are probably to assume a primitive form *lukt- with some lost
final vowel (Quenya luhta- "enchant" must come from *luktâ-).
Luthien "enchantress",
Lúthien (Doriathrin form changed by Tolkien from Luithien;
see under luin above concerning this alternative form). Derived
from a stem LUK "magic, enchantment" (LR:370); the primitive form
is given as luktiênê. The terminaison -nê
is evidently the feminine counterpart of masculine -nô, while
luktiê may be an abstract formation *"enchantment" based
on a verb *luktâ- "enchant" (see luth above). Luktiênê
may then mean, literally, "enchantment-female", hence "enchantress".
mab "hand",
in LR:371 derived from a stem MAP- "lay hold of with hand, seize";
the primitive form is given as mapâ. When used to derive
nouns, the terminaison -â typically denotes inanimates.
Mablung "Heavy-hand"
(masc. name, the order of the elements is actually *"Hand-heavy"). Mentioned
in LR:370 under the stem LUG1; composé of mab
and lung, q.v.
Mablost "Emptyhand"
(name of Beren who returned to Doriath without the Silmaril; Sindarin
Camlost). In the Etymologies, the word Mablost is
mentioned in l'entrée for the stem KAB "hollow" (LR:361),
but while this stem is relevant for the first element in Sindarin Camlost,
it has nothing to do with the Doriathrin word. Mablost is transparently
a composé of mab "hand" (q.v.) and an adjective lost "empty",
clearly to be referred to the stem LUS (itself undefined, LR:370),
whence the Quenya word lusta "empty". This High-elven adjective
points to a primitive form *lustâ. The original u
has become o in Doriathrin, easily explained as the result of an
umlaut caused by the original final -â before it was lost
(but see lung).
méd "wet",
also -med in Dolmed. In LR:373, méd is derived
from a stem MIZD that is not defined, but Christopher Tolkien is
undoubtedly right in observing that the stems MISK (yielding words
for "wet") and MITH (yielding words for "wet mist" and "grey")
are probably meant to be related to MIZD. The primitive form of
méd given as mizdâ, the suffix -â
being a very common adjectival terminaison. The z drops out in
the Doriathrin word, but the preceding vowel is apparently lengthened
in compensation. Notice that z evidently disappeared after
post-vocalic d turned into dh (cf. for instance radhon
"east" from the stem RAD), or mizdâ would have become
**médh instead. Not only the quantity, but also the quality
of the stem-vowel changes, i becoming é. This is
evidently due to an umlaut caused by the original final -â;
compare hedhu from khithwa and contrast míd
from mizdê, where the quality of the stem-vowel is unchanged
(since -ê does not cause umlaut).
meneg "thousand"
(?) (isolated from Menegroth, q.v. for reference). Concerning the
problems with meneg meaning "thousand" if the Elves used duodecimal
counting, see the main article above. The element meneg would normally
be expected to descend from something like *menekê (final
vowel uncertain), but no stem that could produce such a word with such
a meaning is known. The stem MEN, yielding words for "place, spot"
(LR:372), is probably quite irrelevant.
Menegroth "the
thousand caves" (?). Listed in LR:384 under ROD, composé of meneg
and roth, q.v.
míd "moisture".
Derived from a stem MIZD (LR:373); see méd for further
discussion of this base. Primitive form given as mizdê; the
terminaison -ê sometimes denotes substances (see laur
for examples).
mîr,
mir "jewel, precious thing" (isolated from Nauglamîr
and Goldamir, q.v.). Quenya and Old Sindarin mírë
points to a primitive form *mîrê; the stem MIR
listed in LR:373 is undefined as such.
morngul,
morgul "sorcery" (LR:377 s.v. ÑGOL). For a discussion
of the second element, gul, see durgul. The literal meaning
of mor(n)gul is transparently "dark lore", "black
magic". The element morn- is obviously derived from the well-known
Elvish stem for "dark, black", MOR (Letters:382, undefined in LR:373).
A Sindarin word morn "black" is listed in LR:373 s.v. MOR
(in the published LR, morn is misread "moru"). The Quenya cognate
morna points to a primitive form mornâ with the frequent
adjectival terminaison -nâ, and this primitive form is actually
"reconstructed" by Tolkien himself in Letters:382. Morngul evidently
tended to become morgul; cf. Letters:427, where Tolkien explains
that Sindarin Borgil represents born "hot, red" + gil
"star" - "the triconsonantal group then being reduced to rg". Similar
reductions evidently occur in Doriathrin.
moth "pool"
(compare umboth). Derived from a stem MBOTH, itself undefined
(LR:373). Quenya motto and Sindarin both together point
to a primitive form *mbottô; it seems that in Sindarin and
Doriathrin alike, primitive tt becomes th. It is, cependant,
surprising that initial mb yields m instead of **b.
Since nd- yields d- (as in dôn from *ndân-)
and ng- yields g (as in garm from *ñgaramô),
we would have expected also mb to be denasalized. Instead it is
the stop b that is absorbed into the nasal.
muil "twilight,
shadow, vagueness". In LR:374 derived from a stem MUY, not defined
as such; the derivatives circle around concepts like hidden, veiled,
secret. Muil is evidently the cognate of Quenya muilë
"secrecy", pointing to a primitive form muilê. The terminaison
-lê is typically abstract, so "vagueness" is probably the
gloss that best reflects the original meaning; "twilight" and "shadow"
are more concrete applications of the underlying abstract.
muilin "veiled"
(in Umboth Muilin "Veiled Pool", q.v. for reference). Adjective
derived from the noun muil (see above), primitive form probably
*muilina. The adjectival terminaison -in is also attested
in lómin (variant of lómen, q.v.) and in ngorthin
(q.v.)
Nan Dungorthin,
Nandungorthin "Vale of Black Horror" (LR:355 s.v. DUN, LR:374
s.v. NAD). Nan "vale" is evidently just a variant shorter form
of nand, q.v. Dungorthin is ngorthin "horrible" (q.v.
for further discussion) with a prefix dun- "black"; see dunn.
Notice that dungorthin seems to be properly an adjective; the literal
meaning of Nan Dungorthin would be *"Black-horrible Vale", not
"Vale of Black Horror".
nand "field,
valley", evidently to be equated with the shorter form nan "vale"
in Nan Dungorthin (see above). Both are derived from an undefined
stem NAD listed in LR:374; Quenya nanda "water-mead" would
seem to point to a primitive form *nandâ with nasal infixion
and the terminaison -â, here evidently denoting simply something
inanimate.
nass "web".
In LR:375 derived from a stem NAT "lace, weave, tie", that is compared
to NUT "tie, bind" (LR:378). Quenya natsë points
to a primitive form *natsê.
naugol "dwarf"
(naugl- when an terminaison is added, as in genitive naugla
in Nauglamîr, q.v.). In LR:375 derived from a stem NAUK,
changed to NÁWAK; these stems were not defined as such.
Many years later, Tolkien derived Quenya nauco "dwarf" from a stem
NUKU "dwarf, stunted, not reaching full growth or achievement,
failing of some mark or standard" (WJ:413); NAUK
of the Etymologies can pass as an A-infixed version of this stem.
Naugol is said (in LR:375) to be a diminutive form, and we are
probably to assume a primitive form *naukle. For a diminutive terminaison
-le, compare nen-le "brook" from the stem NEN referring
to water (LR:376); the literal meaning would be something like
*"little water". Cf. also the diminutive terminaison -llë
in Quenya ñandellë "little harp" (LR:377 s.v. ÑGAN/ÑGANAD,
cf. ñandë "harp"). *Naukle would become *naukl
in Common Eldarin, the l probably being syllabic; later a vowel
o developed before it. Similar developments are well attested in
Sindarin. When the l did not constitute a syllable by itself, as
in genitive naugla, no extra vowel intruded before it.
Nauglamîr
"The Necklace of the Dwarves", literally *"Dwarf's-treasure/jewel".
(LR:375 s.v. NAUK). Naugla- is the genitive of naugol
"dwarf", q.v. Concerning the second element, see mîr, mir.
Ndolmed "Wet
Head" (name of a mountain; also Dolmed, q.v. for etymology) (LR:376
s.v. NDOL)
neldor "beech";
cf. Neldoreth, the name of a forest (LR:376 s.v. NEL, NEL-ED;
LR:352 s.v. BERÉTH). The first element, neld, means
"three", a word that is not attested independently (but Quenya neldë
and Sindarin neledh together point to a primitive form *neledê,
that would yield neld in Doriathrin). Tolkien suggests (in LR:376)
that neldor is a composé of neld and orn, sc. "three"
and "tree" (see orn); it would properly refer to "the great beech
of Thingol with three trunks" = the Hirilorn where Lúthien
was imprisoned. The name Neldoreth also seems to refer properly/originally
to this one tree. The terminaison -eth may represent the feminine
terminaison -ittâ mentioned in PM:345 (there said to be the
origin of the Sindarin terminaison -eth).
ngol "wise,
magical" (LR:377 s.v. ÑGOL). Also gôl, q.v.
for discussion.
ngold "Noldo"
(LR:377 s.v. ÑGOL). Also gold, q.v. for discussion.
ngolo "magic,
lore" (LR:377 s.v. ÑGOL). Also golo, q.v. for dicussion.
ngorth "horror",
in LR:377 derived from a stem ÑGOROTH, also defined as "horror".
The corresponding Sindarin word there listed, goroth, indicates
a primitive form *ñgoroth-, probably with some final vowel
that was later lost. (cependant, Tolkien in a later source gives the Sindarin
word as gorth and derives it from a stem ÑGUR "horror":
WJ:415. If we assume a primitive form *ñgurtâ, this
might still come out as ngorth in Doriathrin, though it cannot
become goroth in Sindarin.) Ngorth probably has an alternative
form *gorth, the original initial stop being denasalized; cf. such
double forms as ngold / gold.
ngorthin "horrible"
(ÑGOROTH). Apparently meant to be derived from *ngorothina;
the adjectival terminaison -ina occurs in a number of "reconstructed
forms", such as ngolwina "wise, learned in deep arts" (LR:377
s.v. ÑGOL). With prefix dun- "black" in dungorthin,
see Nan Dungorthin.
nivon "forward,
west". Derived from a stem NIB "face, front" (LR:378; this word
is also listed under the stem RAD, LR:382). The terminaison -on
(primitive -ondo) is usually masculine in the Eldarin languages,
but here it seems to be simply a noun-former. Some composés show only
the prefix niv- for "west", cf. Nivrim, Nivrost.
As for the semantics involved in the derivation of a word for "west" from
a stem meaning "face, front", compare LotR Appendix E: "[The directions]
W, S, E, N...were, in the Westlands, named in this order, beginning with
and facing west."
Nivrim "West-march",
a part of Doriath (LR:378 s.v. NIB, LR:383 s.v. RÎ). Literally
*"West-border", sc. rim "edge, hem, border" (q.v.) with the prefix
niv- "west"; see nivon.
Nivrost "West-vale"
(LR:378 s.v. NIB, LR:384 s.v. ROS2), sc. rost
(q.v.) with the prefix niv- "west"; see nivon.
nîw "nose"
In LR:376 derived from NEÑ-WI, apparently a stem NEÑ
with a suffix found nowhere else. NEÑ-WI is simply defined
as "nose". The ñ drops out in the Doriathrin word, but the
preceding vowel is apparently lengthened in compensation; compare líw
"fish" from liñwi. The original vowel e here becomes
i. This was probably a change triggered by the following nasal
ñ before it was lost; compare kwentro yielding cwindor
(in this case, the nasal following e persists).
orn "high
tree" (especially = beech, but as final element in composés =
any tree) (LR:379 s.v. ORO, OR-NI). The stem ORO has to
do with concepts like "up; rise; high"; it is compared to RÔ
"rise" (LR:384; cf. Quenya Rómen "east", sc. the direction
where the Sun rises). It seems that Tolkien in Etym intended the
primitive form of orn to be *orni (ÓR-NI,
LR:379). cependant, UT:266 gives the primitive form as ornê.
Notice that orn is defined as "high tree": UT:266 confirms
that this word referred primarily to slender trees, while spreading trees
where called galadâ "great growth" (Doriathrin gald).
orth "mountain",
pl. orthin. In LR:379 derived from the same stem ORO as
orn (see above); an extended form ÓROT "height, mountain"
is also listed, and orth may be referred to something like *orotô
(cf. Old Sindarin oroto). When r and t made contact
after the syncope, the resulting cluster rt became rth (as
in Sindarin - all unvoiced plosives may behave like this after the liquids
r, l: cf. UT:265, footnote). - Pl. orthin also occurs
in Lóminorthin *"Echoing Mountains" (LR:367 s.v. LAM);
see lómen.
radhon "east",
in LR:382 derived from a stem RAD "back, return". The terminaison
-on (primitive -ondo) is usually masculine in the Eldarin
languages, but here it seems to be simply a noun-former. Some composés
show only the prefix radh- for "east", cf. Radhrim, Radhrost.
As for the semantics involved in the derivation of a word for "east" from
a stem meaning "back", compare LotR Appendix E: "[The directions] W, S,
E, N...were, in the Westlands, named in this order, beginning with and
facing west" - and hence with one's back to the east.
Radhrim "East-march",
a part of Doriath (LR:382 s.v. RAD, LR:383 s.v. RÎ). Literally
"East-border", sc. rim "edge, hem, border" (q.v.) with the prefix
radh- "east"; see radhon.
Radhrost "East-vale"
(LR:382 s.v. RAD, LR:384 s.v. ROS2), rost (q.v.)
with the prefix radh- "east"; see radhon.
regorn pl.
regin, gen. pl. region "holly-tree", also place-name Region.
In LR:356 derived from a stem ERÉK "thorn", cependant, no
initial e occurs in the Doriathrin words (contrast Sindarin ereg
"holly-tree", Quenya erca "prickle"). The unaccented initial e
may have been lost in Doriathrin; cependant, it is also possible that
ERÉK is a basevowel-prefixed version of a simpler stem *REK,
and that it is this simpler stem that is reflected in the Doriathrin word.
Regorn "holly-tree" means just that, including orn "tree"
(q.v.), while pl. regin and gen.pl. region are formed direct
from stem.
rim "edge,
hem, border", in LR:383 derived from an undefined stem RÎ;
Quenya ríma points to a primitive form *rîmâ
with a very frequent terminaison -mâ used to form nouns denoting
inanimate things (usually artifacts, very often implements). Notice that
the long stem-vowel î in *rîmâ has been
shortened in rim; compare the shortening of the original long vowel
in roth < rôda. The word rim occurs composéed
in Nivrim, Radhrim (q.v. for reference; these words are
glossed "West-march" and "East-march", but is seems that rim does
not properly mean "march").
ring "cold
pool or lake (in mountains)". In LR:383 derived from a stem RINGI
"cold"; the primitive form would be simply *ringi (cf. Quenya ringë).
rost "plain,
wide land between mountains". In LR:384 derived from the stem ROS2.
The primitive form would be *rost- with some final vowel, later
lost; no precise etymology can be offered since Tolkien did not define
the stem and derived only this one word from it, with no cognates in other
Elvish languages. Also attested composéed in Nivrost, Radhrost
(q.v.; the latter is translated "East-vale", providing the additional
gloss "vale" for rost).
roth "cave",
pl. rodhin. In LR:384 derived from a stem ROD, simply defined
as "cave"; Tolkien sketches a development rôda > rôdh
> rôth (and eventually the vowel was evidently shortened,
producing roth; cf. rim above). Notice that dh evidently
cannot occur finally, so it becomes th (but stays dh when
an terminaison is added so that the sound is no longer final, hence pl.
rodhin instead of **rothin). composéed in Menegroth,
q.v. - It should be noted that in one late source, the final element of
the name Menegroth is said to be groth, representing primitive
grottâ, derived from a stem groto "dig, excavate,
tunnel" (WJ:414). In Sindarin, groth or roth cannot be derived
from a stem ROD, as is Doriathrin roth. Did Tolkien (wishing
to keep the long-established name Menegroth) invent a new etymology
for the word because he had now come to think of the language of Doriath
as merely a form of Sindarin, obsoleting the separate Doriathrin language
of the Etymologies?
Thingol (masc.
name). Derived from the stem THIN (LR:392), not defined as such,
but it is suggested to be a variant of TIN "sparkle, emit slender
(silver, pale) beams". THIN yields words for "grey, pale, evening,
fade". This entry in the Etymologies implies that Thingol's name
in the primitive language was *Thindô *"Grey One" (primitive
form not given as such, but compare Quenya Sindo, Telerin Findo).
A form *Thindô would yield Thind in Doriathrin (this
is given as an Ilkorin form in LR:392; the term Ilkorin sometimes
seems to incorporate Doriathrin rather than denoting an independent language).
But according to the same source, Thind was later called Thingol
as a composé of Thind (Thin-) and gôl
(-gol), the latter element meaning "wise" (see gôl
for further discussion). cependant, Tolkien eventually rejected this explanation
of the second element in the name Thingol. In later sources, the name
Thingol is interpreted "Grey-cloak" (so already in LotR Appendix
A: "Lúthien Tinúviel was the daughter of King Thingol Grey-cloak...")
In MR:385, the second element of Thingol (Quenya Sindikollo)
is said to be kolla, which is defined as "borne, worn, especially
[when used as a noun] a vestment or cloak". (The final -a of kolla
is replaced by the masculine terminaison -o in the name Sindikollo.)
It seems that kolla is a Quenya word; the primitive form can tentatively
be given as *kolnâ, sc. a stem *KOL "bear" (cf. Quenya
colindo "bearer" in Cormacolindor "Ring-bearers", LotR3:VI
ch. 4, translated in Letters:308) with the adjectival/past participle
terminaison -nâ. If the masculinized form kollo descends
from a word that existed already in the primitive language, this would
be *kolnô. While primitive *Thindikolnô would
come out as Sindikollo (or *Sindikoldo) in Quenya, it is
not certain that this would become Thingol in the Doriathrin of
the Etymologies. In Sindarin, which language lenits initial k
(c) to g when a word appears as the second element in a
composé, *kolnâ or *kolnô would indeed become
-gol in this position. Concerning the presence or absence of lenition,
there is little evidence either way in the Doriathrin of the Etymologies
(see, cependant, Thuringwethil below), but compare Ilkorin basgorn
"round bread" (bast "bread" + corn "round"), showing lenition
C > G.
Thuringwethil
"(woman of) secret shadow" In LR:393 derived from a stem THUR-
"surround, fence, ward, hedge in, secrete". The first element, thurin
(*thurina?) is apparently a variant of Ilkorin thúren
"guarded, hidden" (*thûrinâ?) Gwethil would
seem to mean "shadow-woman", clearly to be referred to the stem WATH
"shade" (LR:397). Notice that as in Sindarin, primitive intial w-
comes out as gw- in Doriathrin; but unlike the system in Sindarin,
initial g does not become lenited to zero in composés (under THUR,
the Sindarin/"Noldorin" form of Thuringwethil is given as Dolwethil,
not **Dolgwethil). The stem-vowel of WATH has been umlauted
to e in gwethil; the umlaut would be caused by the i
in the terminaison -il, that would seem to be a feminine terminaison
of some sort (cf. perhaps Quenya -il as in tavaril "female
dryad" [contrast masc. tavaron], LR:391 s.v. TÁWAR).
umboth "grand
lac ", Umboth Muilin "lac voilé" (nom d'un endroit) (LR:372
s.v. MBOTH, LR:374 s.v. MUY; voir muilin pour une
discussion du second élément de ce nom). Umboth "grans
lac " aurait la même origine comme la forme parallèle both
"lac", nommément *mbottô (voir both). Umboth
peut sembler inclure quelque préfixe, mais représente simplement
un autre développement de *mbottô: une forme où
le m en viendra à constituer une syllabe par lui-même
(*m'bottô) et une voyelle éventuellement développée
devant cette consonne syllabique. Parallel developments are known from
Quenya, Telerin and Sindarin, as when ñgôlê
with syllabic ñ becomes ingolë in Quenya, engole
in Telerin and angol in Sindarin (would the Doriathrin form be
*ungol?) See l'entrée engole in the wordlist appended
to the article about Telerin for references.
urch pl.
urchin "orc". In the Etymologies, the primitive form of
this word is given as órku (defined as "goblin"), derived
from an undefined stem ÓROK (LR:379). This stem may
be understood as a vowel-prefixed variant of the stem ROK "horse",
assuming that this originally referred to steed the monstrous "dark Rider
upon his wild horse" that haunted the Elves by Cuiviénen, the stem
ROK originally being associated with Melkor's creatures. cependant,
Tolkien later derived the Elvish words for "Orc" from a stem RUKU
having to do with fear (WJ:389) and listed tentative primitive
forms: urku, uruku, urkô. All of these would
probably come out as urch in Doriathrin. Notice that as in Sindarin,
c becomes ch following r; all unvoiced plosives may
behave like this after the liquids r, l (cf. UT:265, footnote).
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