Dating

The earliest version in pencil, with some ink revisions, largely erased or struck through

The primary ink version in the notebook, apparently a fair copy of the earlier pencil entries.

The final state of the lexicon, with subsequent changes made in crayon and pencil.

1915-21/

1916-24

1916/1918

after: QL, The Fall of Gondolin

before: the Tuor (B)

Tolkien Manuscript S1/XII, "Notebook B, Being Names to Book of Lost Tales". 

1916-1917?

PE13/94

in the Lost Tales notebooks. The first device is labelled Taurobel, which Christopher Tolkien identifies as Great Haywood in Staffordshire, where Tolkien and Edith lived for a while in 1916 to 1917.

1913-1916?

PE13/95

in the Lost Tales notebooks. The second device is labelled Cortirion, i.e. Kortirion, which Tolkien identifies with Warwick, where Edith lived from 1913 until their marriage in March 1916, and where Tolkien visited her from Oxford.  

1913?

PE13/96

in the Lost Tales notebooks. The linked rings suggest this refers to Tolkien's reunion with Edith Bratt on January 8, 1913. 

PE13/97

It appears on a narrow strip of paper remaining in the notebook "Lost Tales E'' (Bodleian Library, Oxford, Tolkien MS S1/VI (Lost Tales E), folio 54v.) after a page had been tom out. The full page appears to have contained material on the Goldogrin verb, for the remaining strip bears a list of pronominal prefixes like those employed with verbs cited in the Gnomish Lexicon.

~1915/1918

PE13/99

before: PME: F, H, E, A, and R-Y

with: QL

Tolkien Manuscript S1/XII, "Notebook B, Being Names to Book of Lost Tales".

PE13/101-105

after: PME

1918-11/1920-06

PE13/108-118

in the Gnomish Lexicon notebook. 

PE13/120-132

PE13/136-156

These documents belong to the period of the writing of the alliterative Lay of the Children of Húrin, while Tolkien was at Leeds. 

before: ENG?

after: ENF 6

after: ENF 7

after: ENF 3 & 4

before: ENG, ENF 6, ENF 3 & 4

after: ENF 8

after: ENF 10

PE13/158-165

1918/1920

PE14/9-10

after: GL, GG

with: The Coming of the Valar

PE14/12-15

PE14/21-22

PE14/23

PE14/28-34

1923

PE14/41-59

EQG.

PE14/60-70

PE14/71-86

PE14/98-101

PE14/103-104

PE14/106-110

PE14/112-113

PE14/114-115

PE14/117

PE14/119

PE14/120-121

PE14/124

PE14/126-127

PE14/129

PE14/131-132

PE14/133

PE15/7-18

PE15/12

PE15/13

PE15/14

PE15/14

PE15/15

PE15/15-16

PE15/16

PE15/16-17

PE15/17

PE15/18

PE15/18

PE15/20-28

NFG.

PE15/29

PE15/32

PE15/41-58

PE15/44

PE15/47

PE15/50

PE15/52

PE15/53

PE15/54

PE15/54

PE15/57

PE15/61-64

PE15/67-80

EQD.

PE15/85-88

PE15/86

RV1a.

PE15/88

RV1b.

PE15/89-121

PE15/94-97

PE15/102-104

PE15/106

PE15/108-109

PE15/111

PE15/112

WPP.

after: Words published

A group of etymologies under the heading "Beautiful" on a pair of sheets that Tolkien pinned together, and placed with a group of loose sheets probably connected with the essay Quendi and Eldar.

with Words Published (1)

before Words, Phrases and  assages in various tongues

PE17/160

PE17/153

PE17/146

These etymological notes are on two sheets pinned together by Tolkien, which contain notes on roots whose derivatives have to do with flowers, colors and growth. The sheets were placed between the "Beautiful" group of etymologies and the "Definitive Linguistic notes".

after Collection of Etymological Notes: Beautiful

This note is on the back of a list of prefixes
meaning 'back' and was placed immediately following the list of roots dated "Dec. 59". 

These notes are on the back of the page with the note on Dwarf

This note is on the back of the earlier of two notes on the Comparative in Eldarin, a draft of the etymological explanation of Achad Tarlang.

A list of several etymologies written in ball-point with the heading "Stems" on a sheet which Tolkien dated "Dec. 59" using the back of a printed memo for a college meeting on "Tuesday 21 June" of 1955.

The list includes √RIG- 'twine'; √WIRI 'weave'; √WAYA 'blow'; √LĀ-; √PHŌ/Ū; √PĂTH/PAS- 'smooth'; and √ȜĂN, YĂN 'extend'. The front of the memo also has four etymologies in the blank areas, one (√SRĀ, SRAGA 'awkward') in ball-point and three (√THAR- 'vigour', √PHEN- 'door' and √PAR- 'peel') written with a nib-pen, the latter presumably on a different occasion, but probably not long before or after the rest of the list.

PE17/65

PE17/168-169

PE17/181

PE17/65

after L. R. Etym. notes (1)

1967/1968

PE17/60

A typed sheet which was placed immediately following the discussion of √PHAN 'cover, screen, veil'.

PE17/76

This is apparently a preliminary draft of the explanation of the metre of Namárie that was included in "Notes and Translations", published in The Road Goes Ever On, A Song Cycle, 1967, pp. 60-1. The statement that there is an anapæst in line 3 shows that this draft post-dates the decision to change the word vánier to avánier in that line, one of the revisions of the poem to appear in the 2nd edition of The Lord ofthe Rings.

1957-09/1957-10

PE17/145

A collection of papers, placed immediately following the Draft list of "Words, Phrases and Passages," the first sheet dated "Sep., Oct. 1957." Two of the other pages bear the date "Sep. 1957," while the notes on a half-sheet included with them are on the back of a letter dated 16 July 1957. Most of this collection is etymological notes listed by root, but there are also six pages of "Phonological notes" on the development of consonant clusters in Quenya and Sindarin.

The first group of longer etymologies includes √MAY 'make'; √AYA-N 'treat with awe'; √MAG; √MAN 'good'; √AS- 'warmth'; √AR 'beyond'; ADA; and √ANA/NA 'to(wards)'. A sheet with short etymologies has √STOL 'helmet'; √LOK- 'bend'; √PHAW- 'emit' ; √LAY-; √KEWE-; √SLOY-; √NEK­ 'deprive'; √TAN- 'indicate'; √TEN- 'direction'; √KOL- 'bear'; √NEN 'water'; √MOT- 'fen'; √LĬNĬ 'pool'; SEREK- 'blood'; and (U)RUI> 'anger'. Other etymologies in the bundle are √SAT||SATAR 'faithful' ; √SRIT 'to complete a work or design'; √DEL; WAL- 'emotion' ; IN-I-D 'mind'; and a short list called "Lang. notes" with √GWAL- 'be stirred'; √WIS- 'alter'; and √RON- 'solid'.

1959

PE17/43

1955/1959~

PE17/61

PE17/67

PE17/75

NGS.

before Quendi and Eldar

13-06-1964/

15-06-1964

PE17/12, 136

This is from the carbon copy of a letter to Mr. W. R. Matthews (dated 13-15 June 1964), which Tolkien placed in the same file with the manuscript of "Words, Phrases and Passages."

1964-07-16

PE17/77

PE17/114

PE17/156

These sheets are gathered with NGS. The first is dated July 16, 1964, and labelled "For including in Quenya."

1955

PE17/40

Masson.

An 8-page draft of a letter to Mr. David Masson, a librarian at the University of Leeds, with whom Tolkien corresponded in 1955 and later in 1968. The letter clearly dates  from 1955, since Tolkien cites from the 1st edition text of Galadriel's Song.

1937-09~/

1937-12~

1950/1951

before Grey Annals

1937/1951?

OP1.

1951/1952

OP2.

1951/1955~

after Outline of Phonology (original)

1970

1970/1973

after Outline of Phonology (green emendations)

28-04-1936

PE21/55

This title was written as "PQuendian Structure" in the manuscript and above it to the right (also in ink) a date: "Apr. 28. 36."

1969-04-06

PE22/147

VT49/28

after LVS2

1969-01/1969-04

1969-01/1969-04

1969-03/1969-06

after LVS 1

1969-03/1969-06

PE22/151

after LVS 1

1969-03/1969-06

1969-03/1969-06

PE22/153

after LVS 8

1969-03/1969-06

1969-03/1969-06

1969-06/1969-09

1969-03/1969-06

1969-06-05/1973

1969-09/1969-11

PE22/160

This is a typescript clipped together with the manuscript of LVS 14 and enclosed in a newspaper dated October 9, 1969.

1969-09/1969-11

PE22/165

1948/1949

QVS.

1969-03/1969-09

after Eldarin Hands, Fingers & Numerals (revision 2)

1969-03/1969-09

VT47/4

Several pages of rough notes on finger-names and numerical stems.

before Eldarin Hands, Fingers & Numerals (original), acc. to VT47/26

1969-09?/1970

VT49/15

1969-06/1969-09

This historical and etymological essay, titled only "Nomenclature" by its author, belongs with other, similar writings that Christopher Tolkien has dated to c. 1967-69 (XI1:293-94), including Of Dwarves and Men, The Shibboleth of Feanor, and The History of Galadriel and Celeborn.

1959/1960

1957/1959~

before Quendi and Eldar

1969-03/1969-06

VT47/35

A single-page text, written on the verso of an Alien & Unwin publication notice dated Jan.-Feb. 1968. This was not placed with HFN but seems to be working notes for the discussion of "old monosyllabic nouns" in HFN. Like the note on -ye 'and' on the recto of the same sheet, "Monosyllabics in C.E." was hastily jotted in ballpoint pen, and not all of it can be deciphered with certainty.

with Eldarin Hands, Fingers & Numerals (original)

1969-03~/

1969-06~

1937/1941

1969-04/1972

1936/1937-11

LR/341

1969-03/1969-09

VT48/11

The linguistic notes found in association with The Shibboleth of Feanor and The Problem of Ros provide a brief account of the Quenya fractions 1-12.

after: Eldarin Hands, Fingers & Numerals (revision 1)

1969-03/1969-09

VT48/11

after: Hand Words (1)

1968-11/1970

VT47/18

Found in association with The Shibboleth of Feanor and The Problem of Ros are several pages of linguistic notes, written primarily on pages from a script of the BBC radio adaptation of The Hobbit (aired in Sept.-Nov. 1968), and so from the same general time period as HFN.

1969-09-13

The sheet immediately following NEA 2a bears another Quenya well-wishing from 1969, which Tolkien describes at the top of the sheet as an "Inscription (on stick-in label) with signature, sent to Dr. & Mrs. Johnson, Dept. of Psychology, Univ. of B'ham. Sept. 13, 1969".

1955/1959

1959/1960

VT41/5

Etymological notes, clearly associated with the c. 1959-60 essay Ósanwe-kenta, found separated from the essay among a bundle of papers. Beside their obvious association in content, they are located among papers that predominately date from the late 1950s, including, for example, a draft typescript fragment of the essay Quendi and Eldar, which also dates from c. 1959-60.