# Quenya # Phonology # Development in contact ### Consonants #### Initial Consonant Groups ##### Combinations with Y
CEPQNTQVTQ
*kj**c**c*\**tʃ*
*kʰj**ç**ç**ʃ*
*gj**lj**lj**lj*
*ŋj**nj**nj**nj*
\*Also in Númenórean Quenya ##### Combinations with W
CEPQNTQVTQ
*kw**kw**kw**kw*
*kʰw**xʷ**xʷ**f*
*gw**w**v**w*
*ŋw**ŋw**ŋw*\**nw*
\*Also in Númenórean Quenya ##### Nasalized Groups
CEPQNTQVTQ
*mb**m**m**m*
*ṃb**umb**umb**umb*
*nd**n**n**n*
*ṇd**and**and**and*
*ŋg**ŋ**ŋ**n*
*ŋ̇g**iŋg**iŋg**iŋg*
*ŋgj**nj**nj**nj*
*ŋ̇gj**indj**inj**indʒ*
*ŋgw**ŋw**ŋw*\**nw*
*ŋ̇gw**uŋgw**uŋgw**uŋgw*
\*Also in Númenórean Quenya ##### Combinations with S
CEPQNTQVTQ
*sp → ps**ps**s, ups**s, ups*
*sp**f**f**f*
*ṣp**ups**ups**ups*
*st**θ**s**θ*
*ṣt**ist**ist**ist*
*sk → ks**ks**s, iks**s, iks*
*sk**h**h**h*
*ṣk**iks**iks**iks*
*sm**m**m**m*
*sn**n**n**n*
*sr**̥r**r* ~ \**̥r**̥r*
*sl**ɬ**l* ~ \**ɬ**ɬ*
*sj**ç**ç**ʃ*
*sw**xʷ**xʷ**f*
\*Colloquial Sindarin influence ##### Combinations with D, G
CEPQNTQVTQ
*dl**l**l**l*
*dr**r**r**r*
*gl**l, ωl**l**l*
*gr**r, ωr**r**r*
#### Medial Combinations ##### Voiceless Stops
CEPQNTQVTQ
*p**p**p**p*
*pp(ʰ)**pp**pp**pp*
*pt(ʰ)**ɸt**ʍt**ɸt*
*ps**ps**ps**ps*
*pm → mp**mp**mp**mp*
*pm**pp**pp**pp*
*—**pum**pum**pum*
*pn**ɸt**ʍt**ɸt*
*—**pan**pan**pan*
*pl → lp**lp**lp**lp*
*pl**pηl**pηl**pηl*
—*pl* → *pωl**pωl**pωl*
*pr → rp**rp**rp**rp*
*pr**ps**ps**ps*
—*pr* → *par**par**par*
*pj**pj**pj**pʃ*
*pw**pp**pp**pp*
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*t**t**t**t*
*tt**st**st**st*from suffixial *t*
*tt**tt**tt**tt*from fortified *t*
*tk**kk**kk**kk*
*ts**ts**ss**ss*
*tm**tw**tw**tw*
*—**tum**tum**tum*
*tn → nt**nt**nt**nt*
*tn**tt**tt**tt*
*—**tan**tan**tan*
*tl → lt**lt**lt**lt*
*tl**tηl**tηl**tηl*
—*tl* → *lt**lt**lt*
—*tl* → *tωl**tωl**tωl*
*tr → rt**rt**rt**rt*
*tr**ts**ss**ss*
—*tr* → *tar**tar**tar*
*tj**c**c**tʃ*
*tw**tw**tw**tw*
CEPQNTQVTQ
*k**k**k**k*
*kt**χt**χt**χt*
*kk**kk**kk**kk*
*ks**ks**ks**ks*
*km**kw**kw**kw*
*—**kum**kum**kum*
*kn → nk**ŋk**ŋk**ŋk*
*kn**χt**χt**χt*
*—**kan**kan**kan*
*kl → lk**lk**lk**lk*
*kl**kηl**kηl**kηl*
—*kl* → *lk**lk**lk*
—*kl* → *kωl**kωl**kωl*
*kr → rk**rk**rk**rk*
*kr**ks**ks**ks*
—*kr* → *kar**kar**kar*
*kj**c**c**tʃ*
*kw**kw**kw**kw*
##### Voiceless Aspirates
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*pʰ**ɸ**f**ɸ*
*pʰ**h**h**h*before *u*
*pʰp(ʰ)**pp**pp**pp*
*pʰt(ʰ)**ɸt**ʍt**ɸt*
*pʰs**ps**ps**ps*
*pʰm**pp**pp**pp*no known case \[PE19/87\]
*—**ɸum**fum**ɸum*
*pʰn**ɸt**ʍt**ɸt*
*—**ɸan**fan**ɸan*
*pʰl → lpʰ**lp**lp**lp*
*pʰl**ɸηl**fηl**ɸηl*
—*pʰl* → *ɸωl**fωl**ɸωl*
*pʰr → rpʰ**rp**rp**rp*
*pʰr**ps**ps**ps*
—*ɸr* → *ɸar**far**ɸar*
*pʰj**ɸj**fj**ɸj*
*pʰw**pp**pp**pp*
CEPQNTQVTQ
*tʰ**θ**s**θ*
*tʰt(ʰ)**tt**tt**tt*
*tʰk(ʰ)**kk**kk**kk*
*tʰs**ts**ss**ss*
*tʰm**tw**tw**tw*
*—**θum**sum**θum*
*tʰn**tt**tt > st**tt*
*—**θan**san**θan*
*tʰl → ltʰ**lt**lt**lt*
*tʰl**θηl**sηl**θηl*
—*θl* → *lt**lt**lt*
—*θl* → *θωl**sωl**θωl*
*tʰr → rtʰ**rt**rt**rt*
*tʰr**ts**ss**ss*
—*rθ* → *θar**sar**θar*
*tʰj**θj**ʃ**θj*
*tʰw**θw**sw**θw*
CEPQNTQVTQ
*kʰ**χ**h**h*
*kʰt(ʰ)**χt**χt**χt*
*kʰk(ʰ)**kk**kk**kk*
*kʰs**ks**ks**ks*
*kʰm**kw**kw**kw*
*—**χum**hum**hum*
*kʰn**χt**χt**χt*
*—**χan**han**han*
*kʰl* → *lkʰ**lk**lk**lk*
*kʰl**χηl**hηl**hηl*
—*χl* → *χωl**hωl**hωl*
*kʰr* → *rkʰ**rk**rk**rk*
*kʰr**ks**ks**ks*
—*χr* → *χar**har**har*
*kʰj**çç**ç**ʃ*
*kʰw**xxʷ**xʷ**ff*
##### Voiced Stops
CEPQNTQVTQ
*b**β**v**β*
*bt(ʰ)**ɸt**ʍt**ɸt*
*—**βt → wt**wt**wt*
*bs**ps**ps > ws (wr)**ps > ws (wz)*
*bb**pp**pp**pp*
*bd**ɸt**ʍt**ɸt*
*bm**mm**mm > wm**mm > wm*
*bn**mn**mn > wn**mn > wn*
*bl**wl**wl**wl*
—*βl* → *βul**vul**βul*
*br**wr**wr**wr*
—*βr* → *βar**var**βar*
*bj**wj**wj**wj*
—*βj* → *βi**vi**βi*
*bw**wv**wv**wv*
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*d**ɹ**r**z*
*d**l**l**l*after *r* and a vowel
*dt(ʰ)**st**st > rt**st*
*ds**ts**ss**ss*
*dd**st**st**st*from suffixial *t*
*dd**tt**tt**tt*from fortified *t*
*dm**nw**nw > rm**nw > mb*
*dn**nn**nn > rn**nn ~ nd*
*dl**ɹl**ll, ld**ll, ld*
—*ðl* → *lð**ld**ld*
*dr**ɹr**rr**rr*
*dj**lj**lj**lj*
*dw**ɹw**rw**zw*
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*g*———
*g**j**j**j*after *e, i*
*g**d**d**d*before final *e* < *j*
*gt(ʰ)**χt**χt**χt*
—*gt(ʰ) → ήt**ήt**ήt*
*gs**ks → ss**ks, s**ks, ss*
—*gs → ήs**ήs**ήs*
*gd**χt**χt**χt*
*gg**kk**kk**kk*
*gm**ŋm**ῆm → ήm**ῆm → ήm*
*gn**ŋn**nn* → *ήn**nn*after *e, a, o*
*gn**ŋn**ῆn**nn*after *i, u*
*gl**ήl**ήl**ήl*
*gr**ήr**ήr**ήr*
*gj**jj**jj**jj*
*gj**ɟj**j**dʒ*after *n, r, l*
*gw**ww**ww**ww*
*gw**w**w**w → b*after *r, l*
##### Nasals
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*n**n**n**n*
*np**mp**mp**mp*
*nt**nt**nt**nt*
*nk**ŋk**ŋk**ŋk*
*ntʰ**tt**tt > ss**tt*
*—**nθ → nt**nt > ss**nt*
*ns**ss**ss* > *rr, rn, ns* ~ *ss**ss* > *nz*
*nn**nn**nn**nn* ~ *nd*from suffixial *n*
*nn**nd**nd* ~ \**nn**nd*from fortified *n*
*nm**mm**mm**mm* ~ *mb*in compounds
*nm**nw**nw**nw*from suffixial *m*
*nl* → *ln**ld**ld**ld*rare
*nl**ll**ll**ll*
*—**nl* → *nηl**nηl**nηl*
*nr* → *rn**rn**rn**rn*
*nr**rr**rr**rr*
*—**nr* → *nar**nar**nar*
*nj**nj**nj**nj*
*nw**nw**nw**nw*
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*m**m**m**m*
*mp**mp**mp**mp*
*mt**nt**nt**nt*
*mk**ŋk**ŋk**ŋk*
*mpʰ**pp**pp**pp*
*ms**ss**ss**ss*
*mm**mm**mm**mm* ~ *mb*from suffixial *m*
*mm**mb**mb* ~ \**mm**mb*from fortified *m*
*mn**mn**nn**mn*
*ml* → *lm**lm**lm**lm*
*ml**mul**mul**mul*
*mr* → *rm**rm**rm**rn*
*mr**mar**mar**mar*
*mj**mj**mj**nj*
*mw**nw**nw**nw*
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*ŋ**—**—**—*
*ŋm**ῆn**ῆn**ήn*
*ŋn**ῆn**ῆn**ήn*after *i, u*
*ŋn**nn**nn* > *ήn**nn*after *a, e, o*
*ŋŋ**ŋg**ŋg**ŋg*
*ŋj**ndj**nj**ndʒ*
*ŋw**ŋgw**ŋgw**ŋgw*
\*Colloquial Sindarin influence ##### Liquids
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*lp(ʰ)**lp**lp**lp*
*lt(ʰ)**lt**lt**lt*
*lk(ʰ)**lk**lk**lk*
*lb**lβ**lv**lb*
*ld**ld**ld**ld*
*lg**lɣ**ll**lg*
*lg**lj**lj**lj*before *e*
*ls**ls**ls**ls*
*ln**ld**ld**ld*
*lm**lm**lm**lm*
*lŋ**lŋ**lg**lg*
*lr**ll**ll**ll*
*lj**lj**lj**lj*
*lw**lw**lw**lw ~ lb*
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*rp(ʰ)**rp**rp**rp*
*rt(ʰ)**rt**rt**rt*
*rk(ʰ)**rk**rk**rk*
*rb**rβ**rv**rb*
*rd**rd**rd**rd*
*rg**rɣ**rr**rg*
*rg**rj**rj**rj*before *e*
*rs**rs**ss**ss*
*rn**rn**rn**rn*
*rm**rm**rm**rm*
*rŋ**rŋ**rg**rg*
*rl**ll**ll**ll*
*rj**rj**rj**rj*
*rw**rw**rw**rw ~ rb*
##### Sibilants
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*s**z**r**z*between vowels
*s**s**s**s*before *p, t, k, s*
*sb → zb**sp, ps**sp, ps**sp, ps*
*sd → zd**st**st**st*
*sg → zg**sk, ks**sk, ks**sk, ks*
*sm**mm**mm > rm**mb*
*sn**nn**nn > rn**nd*
*sl → ls**ls**ls**ls*
*sl**ll**ll**ll*
*—**zl → zηl**rηl**zηl*
*sr → rs**rs**ss**ss*
*sr**ss**ss**ss*
*—**zr → rr**rr**rr*
*—**—**zr → sar**zr → zar*
*sj**zj**rj**ʒ*
*sw**zw**rw**zw*
#### Consonants at Word End ##### Nasals
CEPQNTQVTQ
*m**n**n**n*
*n**n**n**n*
*ŋ**ή**ή**ή*
##### Liquids
CEPQNTQVTQ*Comments*
*r**r**r*
*l**l**l*
*j**e**e**e*after a consonant
*j**—**—**—*after a long vowel
*w**o**o**o*after a consonant
*w**—**—**—*after a long vowel
##### Fricatives
CEPQNTQVTQ
*s**s**s**s*
*h**ή**ή**ή*
##### Stops
CEPQNTQVTQ
*t**t**s**s*
*th**t**s**s*
*d**r**r**r*
*k**t**s**s*
*p**t**s**s*
##### Groups
CEPQNTQ
*nt**nt**n*
*nd**n**n*
*mb**n**n*
*ŋg**n**n*
*ps**s**s*
*ts**s**s*
*ks**s**s*
*ss**s**s*
*st**s**s*
*ht**t**t*
### Vowels ##### Changes in hiatus
CEPQNTQ
*aja**ea**ea*
*aje**ie**ie*
*ajo**eo**eo*
*awa**oa**oa, ava*
*awo**uo**uo*
*awe**oe**oe*
*ājV**ajjV**ajjV*
*āwV**āvV**āvV*
*aga**ā**ā*
*āge**ā**ā*
*āgo**ā**ā*
*āgē**ē**ē*
*agē**ē*ē
*age**ē**ē*
*āgō**ō**ō*
*agō**ō**ō*
*ago*ōō
CEPQNTQComment
*eja**ea**ea*
*eje**ie**ie*
*ejo**io**io*
*ewa**ewa**ewa, eva*
*ewo**eo**eo*
*ewe**ewe**ewe*
*ējV**ejjV**ejjV*
*ēwV**ēvV**ēvV*
*ega**ea**ea*
*ego**eo**eo*
*ege**ē**ē*
*ej**ē**ē*stressed
*ej**ī**ī*unstressed
CEPQNTQVTQ
*ijV**i(j)V**i(j)V**i(j)V*
*ige**ie**ie**ie*
*igo**io**io**io*
*iga**ia**ia**ia*
*igi**ī**ī**ī*
*igu**iw**jū**jū*
CEPQNTQComment
*ojV**ojV**ojV*
*oje**oe**oe*
*owa**oa**oa, ova*
*owo**uo**uo*
*owe**ue**ue*
*oga**oa**oa*
*oge**oe**oe*
*ogo**ō**ō*
*ow**ō**ō*stressed
*ow**ū**ū*unstressed
CEPQNTQVTQ
*uwV**u(w)V**u(w)V**u(w)V*
*uge**ue**ue**ue*
*ugo**uo**uo**uo*
*uga**ua**ua**ua*
*ugu**ū**ū**ū*
*ugi**uj**uj**wī*
CEPQNTQComment
*wo**wa**wa*stressed
*wō**wō**wō*
*woj**waj**n*
*wow**wō**n*
*waw**aw, wā**aw, w*
##### Vowels at Word End
CEPQNTQComment
*iw**io, iju**io, iju*
*uj**ue, uvi**ue, uvi*
*i**e**e*
*u**o**o*
*e, a, o*——
*ai**e**e*
*oi**ui**ui*stressed
*oi**ī**i*unstressed
# Morphology # Derivation of adjectives ### Denominal adjectives A primary distinction within adjective classes is between *qualitative *and *relational *adjectives. Qualitative adjectives express properties that *describe *entities and are typically gradable. In contrast, relational adjectives function to *classify *entities, denoting the domains to which they belong or specifying relationships with other entities, including those with argumental roles. #### Relational adjectives Relational adjectives, one of the more thoroughly researched classes of denominal adjectives, are semantically underspecified regarding the type of relationship they establish between the head noun and their base noun. The interpretation of this relationship adapts flexibly to contextual relevance. In this framework, the fundamental semantic role of relational adjectives is classificatory: they denote subtypes of the head noun by establishing connections with other entities. Unlike qualifying adjectives, which involve a content-rich relational function *R*, the relational adjective’s link more closely resembles a semantically neutral preposition, such as *of *in English or *de *in Spanish. The affixes involved in forming relational adjectives are: - ***-itĭ***: *hlon(a)itë* ‘phonetic’, *ólamaitë* ‘consonantal’ (and so *erólamaitë* ‘uniconsonantal’, *attólamaitë* ‘biconsonantal’, *nelólamaitë* ‘triconsonantal’). Earlier *aranaitë* ‘royal’ was likely replaced by the derivative of **-jā**: *aranya*; and the *hanuvoitë* ‘male’ with \**vona* ‘male’. - ***-jā*** is the most represented suffix here. It can be seen with: - – consonantal nouns: *apacenya *‘of foresight’, *tercenya* ‘of insight’, *elenya* ‘stellar’, *aranya* ‘\[royal\]’, *ferinya* ‘beechen’, *arinya* ‘early’, and especially place-names: *amanya* ‘\[of Aman\]’, *formenya* ‘northern’, *hyarmenya* ‘southern’, *númenya* ‘western’, *rómenya* ‘eastern’. - – moraic nouns: *gávea *‘consonantal’, *vénea* ‘virginal’, *essea* ‘local’. - – derivative nouns: *lúmequentalea* ‘historical’, *ampanotalea* ‘architectural’, *ettelea* ‘foreign’, *farastea* ‘of the chase’, *lirustea* ‘fit for singing’, *nengwea* ‘nasal’, *yárea* or *yalúmea* ‘olden’. - – pseudo-vocalic nouns: *entya* ‘central’, *enya* ‘middle’ (but see also *endea* ‘middle’). - ***-(i)nā*** is particularly represented by: - – the material adjectives (which are however in the fuzzy area between relational and qualifying categories): *angaina* ‘of iron’, *taurina* or *toina* ‘of wood’, *sarna* ‘of stone’. It could also include *cemna* ‘of earth’ (< *cén*), but it's more likely to show *-ā* (< *cemen*). - – derivative nouns: lambina ‘of tongue’, cunduina ‘princely’, parmaina ‘literary’, valaina ‘divine’. - ***-ā*** with haplology is attested only in the earlier period, and includes *ómanda* ‘vocalic’, *toa* ‘woolen’, as well as mentioned above *cemna*, and in theoretical framework instances of moraic adjectives: *linda* ‘melodious’, *gúla* ‘occult’. - Finally, the list also includes ***-(r)in***, that specializes only on demonyms1: *Eldarin* ‘of the Eldar’, *Telerin* ‘of the Teleri’, *Vanyarin* ‘of the Vanyar’, etc. An example like ⟨ *taurina *‘of wood’, *taurea* ‘forested’ ⟩ illustrates the tendency for *-jā* to convey a possessive reading more naturally. Thus, a hypothetical adjective like \**lambea*, if it existed, would more likely mean ‘having a tongue’ rather than anything else. In fact, as will be detailed in the section on possessive adjectives, the suffix *-inā* is absent in contexts where a possessive reading is required.

1 With the exception of telperin, likely discarded.

##### Genitive II In contrast to English, where the semantically empty preposition *of* serves as a counterpart to relational adjectives, Quenya employs a Genitive II case. Examples like *Eruva *‘divine’ illustrate how this genitive can encroach upon adjectival functions. Although there is overlap between relational adjectives and the Genitive II case, a noun in the Genitive II case has a richer structure; it can, for instance, express a *numP *feature, as in *lambe Eldaiva* ‘language of the Elves’. Relational adjectives, being structurally impoverished, cannot convey such features — thus, *cunduina* ‘royal’, but not \**cundurina*. #### Qualifying adjectives Unlike relational adjectives, qualifying adjectives project additional syntactic features that underlie their core properties: - **Degree Modification**: Qualifying adjectives generally allow modification by degree, a feature unavailable in relational adjectives. - **Predicative Function**: Qualifying adjectives function as predicates, introducing properties that can truthfully be attributed to a subject. - **Stable Semantics**: Qualifying adjectives exhibit stable semantics, where each adjective aligns with a particular conceptual dimension. While relational adjectives leave the relationship with the head noun underspecified, allowing contextual interpretation, qualifying adjectives specify the dimension directly. Four traditional categories of qualifying denominal adjectives can be identified: possessive adjectives (1), similitudinal adjectives (2), causative adjectives (3), and dispositional adjectives (4). 1. **Possessive**: *hloirea *‘venomous’, *laistea* ‘ignorant’, *ómea* ‘voiced’. 2. **Similitudinal**: *vinima* ‘childish’, *lossea* ‘snowy’, *elvea* ‘starlike’. 3. **Causative**: *rávea* ‘roaring’, *gorta* ‘horrible’, *naicelea* ‘painful’. 4. **Dispositional**: *handa* ‘understanding’, *penda* ‘inclined’, *tinda* ‘glinting’. The distinctions among these four classes — possessive, similitudinal, causative, and dispositional — do not correspond to syntactic projection differences. Instead, they reflect variations in the type of *p*P layer employed, corresponding to the specific “flavor” of *p* used in each case. These flavors represent distinct organizations within the conceptual semantics component, aligning with qualia structure theory (Pustejovsky, 1995). Each class of qualifying denominal adjectives corresponds to one of four qualia classes: - *p*<constitutive> = ***poss*P**: possessive adjectives, reflecting the *constitutive *quale - *p*<formal> = ***sim*P**: similitudinal adjectives, reflecting the *formal *quale - *p*<agentive> = ***caus*P**: causative adjectives, reflecting the *agentive *quale - *p*<telic> = ***dis*P**: dispositional adjectives, reflecting the *telic *quale ##### Qualia structure Qualia structure organizes the conceptual interpretation of words as information stored within the lexical entries of linguistic exponents, rather than in the syntactic structure that they spell out. It encapsulates the minimal characteristics that define our understanding of the meanings of nouns and verbs. Pustejovsky (1995) identifies four types of qualia, each representing a different dimension of this conceptual information: - **Formal quale**: distinguishes an object within a domain, including attributes like shape, dimensionality, color, magnitude, and orientation. - **Constitutive quale**: expresses the relationship between an object and its parts or constituents, covering material and component elements. - **Agentive quale**: denotes factors involved in the origin or creation of an object. - **Telic quale**: relates to the purpose or function of an object, either in terms of an agent’s intended action or an inherent functional aim. For example, a *book *encompasses, beyond its formal (*large, green, standing*) and constitutive (*cover, paper, ink*) properties, an *agentive *quale (the act of *writing *that created it) and a *telic *quale (its purpose of being *read*). The four classes of qualifying adjectives correspond to the four qualia precisely because adjectives are not fundamental, primitive categories in natural languages. The selection among these qualia types is not left solely to the nature of the *p* exponent, as one might anticipate with purely conceptual semantics. These qualia distinctions are reinforced by specific affixes that directly map to respective qualia-based types of *p*, producing adjectives of only one kind: *-arwa* for possessive, *-vea* for similitudinal, *-cara* for causative, *-isa* for dispositional, etc. ##### Possessive adjectives Possessive adjectives, broadly, denote attributes of an entity by associating it with a salient, constitutive element. This relation is generally limited to particular classes of concepts, as certain roots, notably those expressing events or animate beings, do not typically form possessive adjectives. A significant portion of possessive adjectives is based on nouns referring to physical entities, further divided into five distinct sub-classes: - – body parts; - – items of clothing; - – substances (produced by the body or otherwise); - – physical entities that accompany, modify, or decorate an entity; - – structural parts that form part of the internal structure of an object. In addition to physical entities, non-physical concepts also provide bases for possessive adjectives. Common sub-classes of such nouns include: - – capacities and abilities; - – moral qualities; - – mental states; - – diseases and ailments; - – other characteristics that describe an entity's intrinsic properties. Possessive adjectives align closely with the constitutive quale by characterizing an entity through a salient aspect or property that forms part of its identity. This inherent connection explains why possessive adjectives involving nouns in this context often convey an inalienable possession reading, where the attribute is understood as an inseparable characteristic of the entity. - **conversion**: *sauricumba *‘foul-bellied’, *quingatelco *‘bow-legged’, *raccalepta *‘claw-fingered’, – all three from Treebeard’s speech, – but also *marta *‘fated’, \**vala *‘powerful’, *galda *‘polished’. - ***-itĭ***: *maitë *‘skillful’ (and many ‘-handed’ variations, e.g. *hyarmaitë* ‘lefthanded’), *manaitë* ‘blessed’, *ómaitë* ‘voiced’, *nírítë* ‘forceful’, *nítë* ‘dewy’. - **-jā** is the most represented suffix here. It can be seen with: - – consonantal nouns: *attalya* ‘biped’, *fantarcenya* ‘perspicacious’, *herenya* ‘fortunate’, *nenya* ‘wet’. - – moraic nouns: *lómea* ‘gloomy’ (and *lilómea* ‘many-shadowed’), *mírea* ‘jeweled’, *ómea* ‘voiced’, *fínea* ‘dexterous’, *ondórea* ‘pitiless’, *pirucendea* ‘on the point of toes’, *rúzea* ‘wrathful’, *túrea* ‘mighty’, *lárea* ‘fat’, *mailea* ‘lustful’, *hórea* ‘impulsive’, *lingea* ‘with a musical sound’, *lillassea* ‘having many leaves’, *lilótea* ‘having many flowers’, *poldórea* ‘strong’. - – derivative vocalic nouns: *airea* ‘holy’, *coirea* ‘living’, *taurea* ‘forested’, *almárea* ‘blessed’, *hloirea* ‘venomous’, *nairea* ‘sorrowful’, *eressea* ‘lonely’, *caimassea* ‘sick’, *lintyulussea* ‘having many poplars’, *laistea* ‘ignorant’, *nemestea* ‘apparent’, *atalantea* ‘downfallen’. - – pseudo-vocalic nouns: *alalvea* ‘having many elms’, *lindornea* ‘having many oaks’. - ***-ā***: *góla* ‘wise’, ringa ‘cold’, *russa* ‘red-haired’, *finda* ‘haired’, *melecta* ‘mighty’, *laica* ‘acute’, *túra* ‘great’, *raina* ‘smiling’, *ruina* ‘blazing’, *sincahonda* ‘flinthearted’. - ***-nā***: *orna* ‘hasty’, *quinna* ‘crested’, *ambuna* ‘hilly’, *rína* ‘crowned’. - ***-imā***: *vailima* ‘windy’, *nessima* ‘youthful’, *úvanima* ‘ugly’, *alima* ‘good’, *vórima* ‘faithful’. - ***-inqua***: *alcarinqua* ‘glorious’, *erinqua* ‘single’. - hapax: ***-wā***: *linyenwa* ‘old’; ***-rā***: *vára* ‘dirty’; ***-ŭ***: *hlúvö* ‘greasy’; ***-arwa***: *aldarwa* ‘having trees’. ##### Privative adjectives In Quenya, privative adjectives can be derived through prefixation from possessive adjectives (like prefix *des-* in Spanish), or a specialized privative morpheme (*-less* or *-free* in English): - ***ú-*** or ***al-*** with possessive adjectives: *úmaitë* ‘unskilled’, *úvanë*, *úvanima* ‘ugly’, *úpahtea* ‘speechless’, *úfanwea* ‘unveiled’, *alómea* ‘voiceless’. - ***ú-***, ***al-*** or ***ava-*** with nouns: *alahen *‘eyeless’, *úpa* ‘dumb’ (lit. ‘mouth-less’), *avanóte* ‘numberless’. These three instances can also be additional examples of conversion. - ***-lóra*** with nouns: *ómalóra* ‘voiceless’. This morpheme was likely replaced by *nec-*, *-enca*, later affixes mentioned in writing without attestation. ##### Similitudinal adjectives Similitudinal adjectives are less frequent than possessive ones, as noted in various studies. Just as the notion of ‘possession’ in possessive adjectives is understood broadly — where Y *has *X — similitudinal adjectives interpret resemblance flexibly, following the pattern: Y *is like* X. Among common nouns, the primary classes forming the bases for similitudinal adjectives include: - – **animals**, especially those stereotypically associated with specific moral or physical qualities - – substances, fruits, and other **natural entities** with prominent physical attributes - – **social roles**, particularly professions or statuses tied to human attributes - – **places **associated with stereotypical behaviors or inhabited by groups with characteristic properties - – geometric **shapes** While not exhaustive, these classes are the most prominent sources. The primary interpretation of a similitudinal adjective is that Y shares a salient characteristic typically associated with nouns of the X class. Which specific property is highlighted is often underspecified, though color and shape are common. Additional properties, such as texture, size, flavor, and smell, may also be conveyed, with the interpretation often varying based on the subject the adjective modifies. When the base noun denotes a human or other animate being, the highlighted property tends to involve abilities, moral qualities, or typical behaviors. For nouns indicating social status or occupations, a behavior-focused reading is almost obligatory; if the noun denotes an animal, both behavioral and physical traits are commonly inferred. Similitudinal adjectives are associated with the formal quale, as the resemblance relation may encompass any distinctive property that sets the base noun apart within its domain, such as shape, size, color, or texture. The affixes involved in forming similitudinal adjectives are: - **conversion**: *laicalasse *‘green as leaves’, *tornanga *‘iron hard’. - ***-itĭ***: *ruscuitë *‘foxy’. To this category can also be allocated pronominal *sítë *‘of this sort’, *taitë *‘of that sort’. - ***-jā***: *laurea *‘golden’, *lossea* ‘snowy’, *mairea* ‘beautiful’, *úmea* ‘abundant’, *nieninquea* ‘like a snowdrop’, *oialea* ‘eternal’, *vilvarindea* ‘like a butterfly’, *pitya* ‘petty’. Here also belong adjectives on ***-vea***: *elvea *‘starlike’. - ***-(i)nā***: *lóna* ‘dark’, *lúna* ‘\[dark\]’, *cúna* ‘curved‘, *morna* ‘somber’, *culda* or *culina* ‘golden-red’, *tunga* ‘taut’, *malina* ‘yellow’, *culuina* ‘orange’, *telpina* ‘silver’. - ***-imā***: *vinima* ‘childish’, *mírima* ‘very precious’. - ***-ā***: *míra* ‘beautiful’, *fána* ‘white’, *rinda* ‘circular’, *tunda* ‘tall’, *yanda* or *yonda* ‘wide’, *helca* ‘icy’, *sinca* ‘\[flinty\]’, *felca* ‘\[cavernous\]’, *vea* ‘adult’, *helda* or *nilda* ‘friendly’, *norna* ‘tough’, *corna* ‘round’, *landa* ‘wide’, *rimba* ‘frequent’, *runya* ‘fiery red’. - ***-ĭ***: *lissë* ‘sweet’, *lossë* ‘snowy’. - ***-tā***: *olosta* ‘dreamy’, *telepta* ‘silver’. - ***-rā***, ***-lā***: *téra* ‘straight’, *sára* ‘bitter’, *astula* ‘bony’; and ***-kā***: *tauca* ‘stiff’. ##### Causative adjectives Causative adjectives, or effect adjectives, are derived when the base noun is understood as an effect produced or triggered by the subject. In these cases, the subject is considered to bring about the quality or state that the adjective describes. The bases used in causative adjectives can denote either physical objects or eventualities. Within eventualities, there are three main distinctions: - – **physical objects**: such as *laira *(‘shady’) or *ilucara *(‘omnificent’), where the subject causes the presence or manifestation of these objects or states. - – **psychological states** (the most frequent): like *nairea *(‘sorrowful’), *naicelea *(‘painful’), or *gorta *(‘horrible’), where the subject induces a particular emotional or psychological state. - – **events** and **processes**: including *tinda *(‘glinting’), *saura *(‘foul’), and *cuivea *(‘wakening’), where the subject initiates an event or ongoing process. Causative adjectives align with the agentive quale, interpreting the subject as the catalyst for the state or effect represented by the base noun. In other words, the subject is the agent or cause behind the manifestation of the quality encapsulated by the adjective. The affixes involved in forming causative adjectives are: - ***-jā***: *rávea *‘roaring’, *yaimea* ‘wailing’, *cuivea* ‘wakening’, *naicea* ‘cruel’, *naicelea* ‘painful’, *nairea* ‘sorrowful’. - ***-ā***: *tinda* ‘glinting’, *laira* ‘shady’, *naira* ‘horrible’, *naica* ‘painful’, *gorta* ‘horrible’. - ***-imā***: *írima* ‘desirable’, *lámina* ‘echoing’. - ***-carā***: *ilucara* ‘omnificent’. ##### Dispositional adjectives A dispositional adjective refers to the characteristic of having a tendency or inclination toward a specific behavior, which is understood in relation to the noun from which it is derived. The preferred bases typically either represent actions themselves or are nouns closely associated with events, as they can be seen as outcomes of those events. At its core then dispositional denominal adjectives activate the telic quale of the nouns they originate from. A disposition defines the subject by its inclination to engage in typical occurrences for which the base noun serves as a reference. The affixes involved in forming dispositional adjectives are: - ***-ā***: *handa* ‘understanding’, *penda *‘sloping’ (and so *am(ba)penda* ‘uphill’), *zanya* ‘regular’. ### Deverbal adjectives The main grammatical difference between adjectives and verbs is that prototypically the latter denote events, that is, dynamic processes and changes, while the former are used to express qualities and relations with other entities. As such, deverbal adjectives, — perhaps the most described type of adjectives in the original sources, for Tolkien returned to them on several occasions, — lose the base’s verbal property of eventivity. When attached to verbal bases, adjectival affixes typically reference either an argument of the base or the event itself. That is, deverbal adjectives typically prefer either a subject-referencing or an object-referencing interpretation. The object-referencing adjectives include non-episodic modal adjectives and episodic participial forms of passive reading: - **modal**: *cénima *‘visible’, *mátima *‘edible’, *cárima *‘feasible’. - **participial**: *alacarna *‘well-done’, *rembina *‘entangled’, *avanwa *‘forbidden’. The subject-referencing adjectives include non-episodic potential, dispositional and habitual adjectives, and episodic participial forms of active reading: - **potential**: *firya *‘mortal’, *himíte *‘able to stick on’, *noroite *‘capable of running’. - **dispositional**: *cúvula *‘flexible’, *nyárula *‘apt to talk’, *tiríte *‘watchful’. - **habitual**: *melumatya *‘honey-eating’, *coloite *‘tolerant’, *melima *‘affectionate’. - **participial**: *vilwa *‘fluttering’, *tirila *‘watching’, *senda *‘resting’. Unlike denominal adjectival suffixes, the number of productive suffixes that turn verbs into adjectives in Quenya is not high. Next to past participles (***-nā*** and allomorphs), the suffixes ***-imā*** (‘-able’) and ***-itë*** (‘-ant’) are perhaps the most productive ones. The suffix ***-jā*** is also relatively productive with verbs. Beyond these cases, there are a number of unproductive suffixes or suffixes that are productive in other domains but not as deverbal adjectivizers. #### Object-referencing adjectives ##### Modal adjectives Modal passive adjectives are those that express the possibility or the necessity of undergoing a particular event. Adjectives built with ‑*able* in English are typical examples. The affixes involved in forming modal adjectives are1: - ⟨ ***μ*** ⟩ – ***imā*** or ***-timā***: - – on transitive verbs: *cárima *or \**cartima *‘feasible’ (and so *alcárima *or *lacárima *‘impossible (to make)’, *ancárima *‘easy’, *úcárima *‘difficult’, *urucárima *‘hard’), *cénima *‘visible’ (and so *ascénima *‘visible’, *hraicénima* ‘hard to see’), *cólima* ‘bearable’, *cúvima* ‘concealable’ or ‘flexible’, *quétima* ‘speak-able’ (and so *alqettima*2 ‘unutterable’, *úquétima* ‘unspeakable’), *mátima* or \**mastima* ‘edible’, *lamélima* ‘unlovable’, *nótima* ‘countable’ (and so *únótima* ‘countless’, *urnótima* ‘hard to count’), *nútima* ‘\[lowerable\]‘, *únyárima* ‘impossible to recount’, *úfantima* ‘not concealable’, *púlima* ‘liquid’ (i.e. ‘pour-able’), *alfárima* ‘impossible to pursue’, *tírima* ‘observable’, *túlima* ‘\[bring-able\]’, *túvima* ‘discover-able’, *yúlima* ‘drinkable’.3 - – on unaccusative verbs: *fírima* ‘mortal’ (and so *alfírima* ‘immortal’), *nízima* ‘fragrant’, *férima* ‘ready to hand’.

1 There are also two erroneous instances of *-itĭ* in such role: *lacaraitë* ‘impossible’, *lanotoitë* ‘innumerable’, those are not considered further. 2 In the Middle Period ⟨ μ ⟩ could be either vocalic or consonantal, but in the Late Period it is firmly attested only as vocalic. 3 In the Middle Period the verbs that could not infix a mora were taking *-alimā*: *ortalima, alaninquitálima,* *istalima.* But there is no evidence of the epenthetic *-l-* in the Late Period: *tultaima, caltaima.*

The derivation of adjectives like *fírima* ‘mortal’ from unaccusative verbs *firë* ‘to die’ exemplifies how the suffix *-imā* functions to denote a patient or theme role in both transitive and unaccusative contexts. This observation aligns with generative views, which suggest that unaccusative verbs are structurally distinct from other intransitives because they possess an underlying object rather than a subject argument. This structural characteristic means that adjectives derived from unaccusative verbs with *-imā* are consistent in referencing the patient/theme, as is the case with *perishable* and *variable* in English, which similarly denote qualities of being acted upon or affected. Similarly in participial forms like *firin* ‘dead’ and *lanta* ‘falling’ unaccusative bases bear a conventionally passive marker. The **deontic** reading does not seem to be productive in Quenya. Several instances of modal adjectives with the prohibitive prefix **ava-** are recorded: *avaquétima* ‘that must not be said’, *avanyárima* ‘what one must not tell’. Non-negated example is *rúcima* ‘terrible’ (i.e. ‘what must be feared’), but it could as well be an example of a causative adjective derived from an otherwise unattested noun, like *írima* ‘desirable’ (< *íre* ‘desire’) and *lámina* ‘echoing’ (< *láma* ‘echo’). There are accidental cases or primary affixes ***-wā:*** *yelwa* ‘loathsome’; and ***-kā:*** *faica* ‘contemptible’. ##### Passive participial adjectives Episodic participial adjectives differ sharply from modal adjectives in that they entail a specific event directly associated with the state they denote. Modal adjectives, like *mortal* or *edible*, express potential or necessity for involvement in an event (e.g., the possibility of *dying* or being *eaten*) but do not refer to any actual occurrence of that event. Thus, an *edible mushroom* can still be intact, and we simply state it is in principle safe to eat, based on its nature. In contrast, episodic participial adjectives like *eaten* necessitate the existence of a specific event that has brought about the current state. An *eaten mushroom* has undergone the event of *eating*; this is inherent to the adjective’s meaning and reflects an irreversible change brought by that event. These adjectives therefore capture not only a state but also a completed process or occurrence that defines the entity's present condition. Such participial adjectives are called **resultant**. The affixes involved in forming passive participial adjectives are: - ***-nā:*** - – on transitive verbs: *alacarna* ‘well-done’, *varna* ‘protected’, *nahamna* ‘summoned’, *hampa* ‘restrained’, *querna* ‘turned’ (and so *nuquerna* ‘reversed’), *nanca* or *nactana* ‘slain’, *raina* ‘netted’, *harna* ‘wounded’, *húna* ‘cursed’, *zanca* ‘split’, *hyarna* ‘compact’, *taina* ‘lengthened’, *yonna* or *yonda* ‘enclosed’, *nulda* or *nulla* ‘hidden’ (and also *halda* ‘hidden’), *alaquenta* ‘well said’ (and also *manaquenta* ‘blessed’), *tapta* ‘impeded’, *lecta* ‘released’, *pacta* ‘closed’, *quanta* ‘full’ (and so *penquanta* ‘full to the brim’), *sacta* ‘marred’, *canta* ‘shaped’ (as in *lassecanta* ‘leaf-shaped’), *yulda* ‘drunk’, *helda* ‘naked’, *rempa* ‘hooked’, *nóna* ‘born’, *nucumna* ‘humbled’, *colla* ‘worn’, *zanga* ‘crowded’, *zenna* ‘short’ (i.e. ‘cut short’), *tanca* ‘firm’, *tamna* ‘artificial’ (i.e. ‘crafted’), *palda* or *palla* ‘wide’ (i.e. ‘expanded’), *halda* or *halla* ‘tall’ (i.e. ‘extended’), *?muina* ‘secret’, *pasta* ‘smooth’, *tanta* ‘double’, *melda* ‘dear’. - – on unaccusative verbs: *cuina* ‘alive’, *yerna* ‘old’, *lorna* ‘asleep’, *(a)valda* ‘excited’, *tumna* ‘deep’ (i.e. ‘going down’), *lanta* ‘falling’, *panta* ‘open’, *lumna* or *lunga* ‘heavy’. - ***-in***:1 - – on transitive verbs: *úharin* ‘unmarred’, *ur(u)carin* ‘made with difficulty’, *hwarin* ‘crooked’, *melin* ‘dear’. - – on unaccusative verbs: *qalin* or *firin* ‘dead’, *ilfirin* ‘immortal’, *locin* ‘bent’. - ***-inā***: - – on transitive verbs: *rembina* ‘entangled’ (and so *aldarembina* ‘treemeshed’), *carina* ‘done’ (and so *lacarina* ‘undone’), *harina* or *hastaina* ‘marred’, *lerina* ‘free (of things)’, *racina* ‘stripped’, *estaina* ‘named’, *farina* ‘fugitive’, *calina* ‘illuminated’. - – on unaccusative verbs: *latina* ‘free (of land)’, *picina* ‘little’. - ⟨ ***μ*** ⟩ – ***inā***: *rácina* ‘broken’, *rúcina* ‘confused’, *nótina* ‘counted’. - ***-nwā:*** *avanwa* ‘forbidden’, *sinwa* ‘known’, *turyanwa* ‘fortified’, *alanwa* or *olinwa* ‘adult’, *enwa* or *nanwa* ‘existing’. - ***-ĭ*** with prefixes such as ***aza-*** ‘easy to’, ***hrai-*** ‘hard to’, ***ú-*** or ***al-*** ‘not’: *ascenë* ‘easily seen’, *hraicenë* ‘hard to see’, *hrainotë* ‘hard to count’, *azalastë* ‘easily heard’, *únotë* ‘uncounted’.2 This could also be reinforced with ***-jā***: *únotea.* - ***-nŭ***: *lungö* ‘heavy’. - ⟨ ***a*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *nauca* ‘stunted’, *raica* ‘crooked’, *nauta* ‘bound’. Note that even though such adjectives as *zenna* ‘short’ or *palla* ‘wide’ lost their episodicity and became to express formal quale, they’re still considered together with other participial adjectives from etymological perspective.

1 In a single instance this affix showed a variant ***-ne:*** *urcarne.* 2 The occurrences of ⟨ *μ* ⟩ insertion were rejected: *asanótë, urunótë.*

#### Subject-referencing adjectives Just like with object-referencing adjectives, in the category of subject-referencing adjectives we distinguish between episodic participial adjectives and non-episodic modal adjectives. The modal adjectives could further be split into a number of semantic groups: *potential* (‘able to do’), *dispositional* (‘likely to do’), and *habitual* (‘typically does’). It is often non-trivial to distinguish them without the context, however: only dispositional adjectives employ a unique for this category affix ***-ulā.*** Particularly, most habitual adjectives are differentiated only pragmatically based on the qualified noun. ##### Potential adjectives Potential adjectives express the ability of triggering a particular event *(**solve* > *solvent):* - ***-ϑitĭ***:1 *cenítë* ‘seeing’ (and *lacenítë* ‘blind’, i.e. ‘not able to see’), *yulunefítë* ‘amphibious’ (i.e. ‘able to breathe water’), *himítë* ‘able to stick on’, *noroitë* ‘capable of running’. In the Middle Period the suffix could optionally be extended with *-ma-:* *cara(ma)itë* ‘able to make’, *tulu(ma)itë* ‘probable’ (i.e. ‘able to come’). - ***-jā***: *firya* ‘mortal’ (i.e. ‘able to die’), *ranya* ‘free’ (i.e. ‘able to wander’), *finya* ‘clever’ (i.e. ‘able to make things’, and so *leptafinya* ‘clever-fingered’).

1 Where *ϑ* stands for a ***thematic vowel***, traditionally called *ómataima* in the source materials.

##### Dispositional adjectives Dispositional adjectives denote an inherent property of being prone to participating in a particular action. Crucially, this does not imply that the event has ever taken place in the past, or will take part in the future. In abstract terms, in a potential adjective, the entity has the necessary properties that *allow* it to participate in an event whereas, in a dispositional adjective, those properties are sufficient to guarantee participation in that event. - ***-ulā:***1 *cúvula* ‘flexible’, *nyárula* ‘apt to talk’, *\***matula* ‘edacious’. - ***-ϑitĭ:*** *xiétë* ‘impermanent’ (i.e. ‘that is likely to pass’), *tirítë* ‘watchful’, *naitë* ‘true’ (i.e. ‘that is likely to be’). - ⟨ ***a*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *maica* ‘sharp’ (and so *hendumaica* ‘sharp-eyed’), *hlaiwa* ‘sickly’. - ***-jā:*** *canya* or *verya* ‘bold’ (i.e. ‘likely to dare’), *cotya* ‘hostile’, *lelya* ‘delicate’. To this category also belong rare desiderative adjectives formed with a duplifix ⟨ ***i*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *soica* ‘thirsty’, *mína* ‘eager to go’, *maita* ‘hungry’.

1 In the Middle Period attested in fact as ⟨ *μ* ⟩ – *ulā,* as seen in some of the examples.

##### Habitual adjectives Let’s consider an example like a forgetful child. It is clear by the meaning of this deverbal adjective that a dispositional paraphrase ‘that is likely to forget’ is not enough. It would be unfair to call someone forgetful if they were never actually known for forgetting something in the past. A paraphrase ‘that regularly forgets’ is more apt: this description is correct if and only if that child happened to forget something in the past, and better, did so regularly. This reading involves a semantic notion of habituality that is non-episodic (Carlson, 2011): the habitual statements are conditioned to be true in case of regular occurrences of the event, but that does not mean that it occurred in any given time span. Consider a situation John smokes: it is not sufficient to attest that John smoked in the last two days, only that he’s a smoker. Habitual adjectives are almost exclusively restricted to human subjects, as in many cases the base verbs denote activities that only humans can perform. In other cases the habitual reading is available if the tendency is conceptualized as a personality trait. - ***-ϑitĭ***: *caraitë* ‘active’, *coloitë* ‘tolerant’, *cuvoitë* ‘secretive’, *yuluitë* ‘drinking’. - ***-jā*** in compounds: *melumatya* ‘honey-eating’, *saucarya* ‘evil-doing’. - ***-imā*** of intensive meaning: melima ‘affectionate’, calima ‘bright’ (and so úcalima ‘dim’), norima ‘swift’1, celima ‘fluent’, istima ‘wise’.2 - ⟨ ***a*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *zaura* ‘foul’, *taura* ‘mighty’. - ***-lā***, ***-rā***: *saila* or *saira* ‘wise’ (and so *alasaila* ‘unwise’).

1 Erroneously used as *nórima* on one occasion. 2 An additional entry, *silma* ‘shining’ (< *\*silimā*)*,* is the only example of syncope in such adjectives. However, it is only glossed as such in the Middle Period, and in the Later Period only nominal gloss remains.

##### Active participial adjectives An expected counterpart to object-referencing adjectives, these active adjective are of general significance, not implying co-reference of time with the predicate. - ⟨ ***a*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *méla* ‘loving’. - ***-jā***: *úlea* ‘pouring’, *alatulya* ‘welcome’, *penya* ‘lacking’, *rilya* ‘glittering’, *alya* ‘rich’, *tolya* ‘prominent’, *sirea* ‘liquid’, *valya* ‘having power’. - ⟨ ***μ*** ⟩ – ***imā***: *métima* ‘last’. - ***-nā***: *penna* ‘lacking’, *hlinta* ‘swift’, *senda* ‘resting’, *nimpa* or *limpa* ‘drooping’, *rimpa* ‘rushing’, *neuna* ‘second’, *orna* ‘uprising’. - ***-lā***, ***-rā***: *itara* ‘gleaming’, *caila* ‘bedridden’, *ceula* ‘living’. - ***-ilā***: *laistila* ‘ignorant’, *tirila* ‘watching’, *itila* ‘glinting’. - ⟨ ***μ*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *naraca* ‘rending’, *tereva* ‘fine’, *himba* ‘sticking’. - ***-wā***: *arwa* ‘possessing’ (hence *-arwā* in possessive adjectives), *vilwa* ‘fluttering’, *vanwa* ‘gone’3.

3 Later re-imagined as a perfective participle of *auta*.

### Other grammatical categories Other categories can also produce adjectives, though much less frequently. The result is typically a relational adjective. - – **pronouns****:** with ***-nā***: *hyana* ‘other’, *sana* ‘that’, *sina* ‘this’, *tana* ‘that’; with ***-ā***: *exa* ‘other’; with ***-jā***: *ilya* ‘each’, *imya* ‘same’, *ninya* ‘my’, *menya* ‘our’. - – **numerals****:** with ***-jā***: *erya* ‘single’, *minya* ‘first’, *attea* ‘second’, *neldea* ‘third’, etc. - – **prepositions** and **adverbs:** with ***-jā***: *etya* ‘exiled’, *mitya* ‘interior’, *vea* ‘apparent’; with ***-ā***: *noa* ‘former’. - – **adjectives** of degree: with **reduplication**: *mimíre* or *mimírima* ‘very beautiful’, *armemelda* ‘very dear’; with ***-i(n)kĭ***: *luinincë* ‘bluish’. ### Basic adjectives The truth is that the above analysis only scratches the surface of the adjectives available in the corpus. The majority of them cannot be linked to an underlying fundamental structure, and it is clear that Tolkien considered an adjectivizer to operate on the lexical root directly. Many if not all *ā*-adjectives mentioned previously likely belong here as well, and most of affixes appearing in adjectives are not involved in classical denominal and deverbal paradigms. These underived adjectives always contain a primary affix: *ā*, *ĭ* or *ŭ* by themselves or accompanied with an extension.
Extension \\ Affix*ā* *ĭ**ŭ*
✔ ✔✔
⟨* μV *⟩ ✔✔✔
⟨* μC *⟩ ✔✔\*
*n*✔✔
*r*✔✔
*t*(✔)\*
*j*✔
*k*✔
*l*✔
*w*✔
⟨* a *⟩ ✔
In practice, due to historical developments, many of those patterns produce the same form, and without semantic content they become indistinguishable. Many disyllabic words that appeared before could be regarded as belonging to basic adjectives instead, but they won’t be repeated in the examples below. - ***-ā***: *vana* ‘fair-haired’ (and so *ilvana* ‘perfect’, *úvana* ‘marred’), *pia* ‘little’. To this list also belong many adjectives derived from TALAT-root. Many of them appear in the Middle Period, and later were commonly analyzed as having one of the primary affixes: *parca* ‘dry’, *tulca* ‘steadfast’, *verca* ‘wild’, *tella* ‘hindmost’, *tarya* ‘tough’1, *talta* ‘unsteady’, *arta* ‘\[noble\]’, *enta* ‘another’, *aina* ‘holy’, *alta* ‘large’, *anda* ‘long’, *aica* ‘sharp’, *maxa* ‘soft’, *mixa* ‘wet’, *tyelca* ‘hasty’. - ***-ĭ***: *morë* ‘black’, *vanë* ‘fair’, *carnë* ‘red’, *parnë* ‘bare’, *varnë* ‘russet’, *vindë* ‘pale blue’. - ***-ŭ***: \**telö* ‘last’, \**minö* ‘slim’.

1 In the Late Period the phonological result would rather be *targa.*

#### Duplifixes A duplifix is a combination of a traditional suffix with a use of non-concatenative morphology. We can distinguish two types: 1. **V-duplifix** with moraic addition to the **nucleus****:** lengthening of the root-vowel, insertion of ⟨ *a* ⟩ or ⟨ *i* ⟩; 2. **C-duplifix** with moraic addition to the **coda****:** lengthening of the final root consonant or homorganic addition to it.
ConsonantLengthening μL Strengthening μS
*b**bb > pp**mb*
*d**dd > tt, ld**nd*
*g**gg > kk**ŋg*
*p**pp*
*t**tt*
*k**kk*
*th**tt*
*kh**kk*
*m**mm**mb*
*n**nn**nd*
*ŋ* *ŋŋ > ŋg**ŋg*
*l**ll**ld*
*r**rr**rd*
*s**ss**st, ts*
*w* *gw*
*j* *gy*
The V-duplifix via lengthening occurs for all possible nuclei, and for the most of codas. Note that even though the primitive forms *mītha**,* *nēthā* and *khīmā* are attested, the corresponding Quenya reflexes are either unattested, or changed their affixes: *mista**,* *himba.* - ⟨ ***μ******V*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *hróva* ‘dark brown’, *náva* ‘hollow’, *néca* ‘pale’, *tára* ‘wise’, *hráva* ‘wild’, *\***léra* ‘hard’, *céva* ‘new’, *héra* ‘principal’, *lára* ‘flat’, *láta* ‘open’, *léra* ‘free’, *mána* ‘blessed’, *míva* ‘tiny’, *náha* ‘narrow’, *nı́ca* ‘little’, *nı́pa* ‘small’, *núra* ‘deep’, *hrúa* ‘evil’, *tára* ‘tall’, *úra* ‘large’, *yána* ‘wide’, *móla* ‘enslaved’. - ⟨ ***μ******V*** ⟩ – ***ĭ***: *fánë* ‘white’, *mírë* ‘precious’, *mízë* ‘gray’. - ⟨ ***μ******V*** ⟩ – ***ŭ***: *hlúvö* ‘greasy’. C-duplifix via lengthening is relatively rare, and as a rule, for bases on *b, d, g, m, n* was replaced with strengthening. Historically both patterns yielded the same result for bases on *ŋ* → *ng*. Tolkien remarks: “only \[ *tt* \], \[ *ss* \], \[ *ll* \] were common” (PE18/41), and in fact, only those combinations are attested in adjectival formations. C-duplifix via strengthening is significantly more common (Table 3). - ⟨ ***μ******S*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *amba* ‘more’, *lomba* ‘blind’, *orda* ‘profound’, *nenda* ‘wet’, *finda* ‘fine’, *ronda* ‘solid’, *runda* ‘polished’, *zanda* ‘firm’, *zinda* ‘gray’, *nanda* ‘back’, *hranga* ‘awkward’, *inga* ‘first’, *varanda* ‘sublime’, *voronda* ‘faithful’, *lusta* ‘empty’, *astalda* ‘strong’, *molda* ‘large’, *polda* ‘big’, *sarda* ‘hard’, *telda* ‘last’, *urda* ‘hard’, *minda* ‘prominent’. - ⟨ ***μ******L*** ⟩ – ***ā***: *titta *‘little’. - ⟨ ***μ******S*** ⟩ – ***ĭ***: *fimbë* ‘slender’, *hlimbë* ‘slippery’, *limbë* ‘quick’, *rindë* ‘swift’, *zindë* ‘gray’, *nindë* ‘slender’, *ilin* ‘pale blue’ (from *\***ilindë*). - ⟨ ***μ******L*** ⟩ – ***ĭ***: *mussë* ‘soft’, *missë* ‘wet’. #### Other primary affixes An affix is considered primary if it can attach directly to a root without a thematic vowel. Some of them, like ***-jā*** and ***-nā*** are very productive in other categories, the others appear rarely. - ***-jā***: *alya* ‘good’, *arya* ‘excelling’, *meletya* ‘mighty’, *mirya* ‘beautiful’, *netya* ‘pretty’, *nitya* ‘little’, *golya* ‘dark-haired’, *senya* ‘usual’, *vanya* ‘beautiful’ (and so *ilvanya* ‘perfect’), *vinya* ‘young’, *fanya* ‘white’, *forya* ‘right’, *hyarya* ‘left’, *inya* ‘female’, *marya* ‘pale’, *merya* ‘festive’, *milya* ‘soft’, *vinya* ‘pale blue’, *virya* ‘fresh’, *hraia* ‘awkward’. - ***-nā***: *hyarna* ‘southern’, *cumna* ‘empty’, *moina* ‘familiar’, *núna* ‘western’, *forna* ‘northern’, *róna* ‘east’ (and so *orróna* ‘eastern’), *roina* ‘ruddy’, *torna* ‘hard’, *zorna* ‘steadfast’, *úna* ‘forlorn’, *malda* ‘yellow’, *cinta* ‘small’, *mista* ‘gray’. - ***-nĭ***:1 *pincë* ‘little’, *luinë* ‘blue’ (and so *menelluin* ‘sky-blue’), *lúnë* ‘blue’, *ninquë* ‘white’. - ***-rā***: *yára* ‘old’, *oira* ‘eternal’, *mára* ‘useful’, *haira* ‘remote’, *véra* ‘personal’, *urra* ‘bad’, *úra* ‘nasty’, *gaira* ‘vast’, *maira* ‘precious’, *haura* ‘huge’, *aira* ‘holy’, *larca* ‘swift’, *arca* ‘narrow’, *nexa* or *nerca* ‘sharp’, *mixa* ‘sharp-pointed’, *naxa* ‘evil’. - ***-rĭ***: *airë* ‘holy’, *vairë* ‘wavy’. - ***-lā***: *olca* ‘bad’, *ulca* ‘gloomy’ (and so *henulca),* *faila* ‘generous’. - ***-kā***: *aica* ‘dire’, *finca* ‘clever’, *laica* ‘green’, *lauca* ‘warm’, *loica* ‘failing’, *parca* ‘naked’, *ruxa* ‘wroth’, *turca* ‘strong’, *valca* ‘fierce’, *fauca* ‘thirsty’, *milca* ‘greedy’, *gwalca* ‘cruel’, *poica* ‘clean’, *tiuca* ‘fat’. - ***-tā***: *fasta* ‘pleased’, *alahasta* ‘marred’.2 - ***-wā***: *finwa* ‘clever’, *lanwa* ‘limited’, *anwa* ‘real’, *hanwa* ‘male’, *atwa* ‘double’, *engwa* ‘sickly’, *mirwa* ‘precious’, *helwa* ‘pale blue’, *hizwa* ‘gray’, *malwa* ‘fallow’, *aiqua* ‘steep’, *voronwa* ‘enduring’, *laiqua* ‘green’, *raiqua* ‘angry’, *unqua* ‘hollow’.

1 Two more entries are attested only in CE and/or Sindarin: \**nincë *or \*nimpë ‘small’. 2 Those could be considered examples of **conversion** as a strategy of deverbal derivation with prefixes instead of *-ĭ*, but that analysis would put *azalaste* at odds with the rest of entries.

# Syntax # Article ### Use of the Article To explain various asymmetries with regard to the (non-)use of definite article in Quenya as compared to English, we will exploit the distinction of semantic and pragmatic uniqueness as originally introduced by Löbner1 and some generalizations made by Ortmann2 and Schwarz3 over weak-strong article splits encountered in many languages. #### Nominal Concept Types In his theory Löbner proposes a lexical distinction of noun types in how they classify the universe:
- \[-R\] nouns point to a member of a class: *rock, architect, chair*; - \[+R\] nouns require a \[-R\] noun to bound them to the scene: *wheel, sister, head*; - \[-U\] nouns might have several instances within the same scene: *tree, brother, minister*; - \[+U\] nouns pick out a unique memeber within the scene: *Peter, weather, father*.
Lexical units have their default combination \[±U\]\[±R\], but virtually each of them can undergo a type shift into any other combination:
- \[-U\] → \[+U\]: *a rock* → *the rock*; - \[+U\] → \[-U\]: *the mother of a child* → *a late mother*; - \[-R\] → \[+R\]: *a book* → *my book*; - \[+R\] → \[-R\]: *the king of Spain* → *a king*.
Nouns which interpretation coincides with their lexical combination are then called *nouns* of this type, and which interpretation diverges from that combination are then called *concepts* of this type. The four possible types are then called:
\[-U\]\[+U\]
\[-R\]sortalindividual
\[+R\]relationalfunctional

The terminology distinguishes the noun's *underlying type* (eg. *functional noun*, FN) from its *actual use* (eg. *functional concept*, FC).

#### Semantic vs Pragmatic Uniqueness It is crucial then to distinguish between individual and functional *nouns* on one hand which are lexically unique, and *concepts* which uniqueness results from the context (linguistic or extra-linguistic). In his work Ortmann claims that this distinction results in the fundamental split of the article use: concepts are marked in a more explicit way. It's especially easy to obseve such tendency in languages which show two types of definite articles — weak and strong — like German. The matter is not only complicated by the fact that articles tend to invade into other categories4, but also by fuzzy cases which could be analyzed either as semantic or pragmatic. The latter especially results in the article variation in closely related languages. #### Strong Article in Quenya The first major difference we can point between Quenya and English is the (non-)use of the article with unique nouns, where it is logically redundant:
typeQuenyaEnglish
SNantanen **hatal**I cast **a spear**
RNyulda **heruo**drink of **a lord**
IN**anar** caluva**the sun** shall shine
FN**lambe** Eldaiva**the language** of the Eldar
However, it occurs with unique concepts to mark the incongruence:
typeQuenyaEnglish
ICá sac' **i fendë**close **the door**
FC**i yávë** mónalyo**the fruit** of thy womb

Many languages diverge here from the Ortmann's statement where Quenya adheres to it: they use the weak (semantic) article in the *immediate use* IC like in the sentence above. Schwarz shows that the weak article is used without anaphoricity. The immediate use IC is pragmatic but non-anaphoric. Löbner's and Ortmann's uniqueness scale avoids to include immediate use IC altogether.

#### The Threshold of Semantic and Pragmatic Uniqueness Some corner cases which don't clearly belong either to semantic or pragmatic uniqueness are:
- Bridging: "John bought *a book* today. **The author** is French". - Autophoric nouns: "He bought **the car** *that was shown on TV*". - Non-lexical FC: "**The highest** *mountain*".
##### Non-Lexical Functional Concepts **Non-lexical FC** is a concept where semantic uniqueness comes about by **syntactic** structure and semantic **composition** rather than by the lexical meaning of the head noun. In particular, these are nouns combined **with ordinal numbers**, and **with superlative** forms of attributive adjectives. In these cases uniqueness is achieved by the lexical meaning of the *modifier*. ##### Complex FC in Quenya Quenya superlative adjectives do **not** take the article5, and neither do the determining adjectives like *last, next, only*:
- *métima hrestallo círa* \[MC/221\] “leave the last shore”

To the same list of adjectives belongs *same*, yet Tolkien gives an example *i imya* “the same”. \[PE23/134\]

While no canonical example of ordinal number with a noun exists, they belong to the same category, and it is expected to observe a lack of the article with them too. ##### Bridging Bridging or ‘definite associative anaphora’ (DAA) describes a noun, typically a functional noun, which is uniquely defined by its relation to a previously mentioned noun:
- I looked into *the room*. **The ceiling** was very high - *My new car* needed repairing, **the motor** was broken - I've just been to *a wedding*. **The bride** wore blue.
Based on the world knowledge, the hearer knows that at a wedding, there should be one and only one bride, a room has only one ceiling and a car needs a motor. DAAs combine properties of pragmatic uniqueness (by virtue of anaphoricity) and semantic uniqueness (by virtue of involving a FN). It is therefore natural for there to be considerable variation in the use of articles. ##### DAA in Quenya Tolkien himself explains the use of the article with DAA on at least one occasion, — *i falmalinnar*: > The waves are implied in *ilye tier*: \[…\] Those routes had naturally been over the waves. \[PE23/134\] There's no other canonical example of DAA in the current corpus of Quenya, but two sentences are close approximations to such:
- *alcar mi Tarmenel na Erun ar mi cemen rainë i hínin* \[VT44/32\]. "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men". 'The children' is definite in the reference to Eru. - *an cé mo quernë cendelë númenna, i hyarma tentanë Melcorello* \[VT49/6-8\]. "For if one turned the face westward, the left hand pointed away from Melkor". 'The left hand' is definite in the reference to *one*.

The first example *Eru → the children* is a 'relational anaphora', and the second example *one → the left hand* is 'part-whole' DAA. Even though Schwarz and Ortmann discuss how part-whole and maker-product DAAs differ in their semantic-pragmatic dichotomy in some languages, the examples above show that in Quenya **any** DAA is marked by the article.

##### Autophoric Nouns Autophoric nouns establish their unique reference by a restrictive relative clause. Context-dependency affects the weak-strong article choice, but it seems Quenya in general requires an article uniformly (even when the relative clause is reduced) unless superceded by another determiner:
- *Átaremma i ea han Ea* \[VT43/12\] "our Father who art in Heaven" - *manar i·ennor i me·kenner* \[MQ: PE22/124\] "who are the persons that we saw?"
In a bit confused way, to this list can also belong this line from *Namárie*:
- *Vardo tellumar yassen tintilar i eleni* “beneath the vaults of Varda wherein the stars tremble”
This is how Tolkien explains the use of *i eleni*: > Thus in Galadriel’s lament it is said *tintilar i eleni*: that is, those stars that adorned or shone through the transparent roofs of the Domes of Varda, which were not all the visible stars, nor in fact the actual stars of the firmament of the outer world. \[PE23/133\] Or, in other words, *stars* *→ that tremble in the vaults of Varda*: even though the noun itself is not syntactically autophoric, it is implicitly.
#### Quenya as a Split I System The simplified scale of uniqueness suggested by Löbner and Ortmann: *deictic SN* < *anaphoric SN* < *autophoric SN* < *DAA* < *non-lexical IC, FC* < *IN, FN* < *proper names* where the cut-off position for the article use varies from language to language:
- English: *deictic SN* < **\[*anaphoric SN* < *autophoric SN* < *DAA* < *non-lexical IC, FC* < *IN, FN*\]** < *proper names* - Quenya: *deictic SN* < **\[*anaphoric SN* < *autophoric SN* < *DAA*\]** < *non-lexical IC, FC* < *IN, FN* < *proper names*
---
##### Footnotes 1: Journal of Semantics 4: 279–326, 1985 2: Frames and Concept Types: 293-321, 2014 3: [Two Types of Definites in Natural Language](https://florianschwarz.net/FSDiss/FS-Diss_gradschoolformat.pdf), Florian Schwarz, 2009 4: as in Greek, where the article is used even with names 5: PE17/91
# Modality ### Propositional modality Epistemic modality is concerned with the speaker's attitude towards whether the proposition is true. There are three types which are common in languages:
- (speculative) an expression of uncertainty, e.g. En. *may*: *Where is John? I'm not sure, **he may be in his office** now* - (deductive) an indication of inference from evidence, e.g. En. *must*: *Yes, the lights are on, so **John must be in his office** now* - (assumptive) an indication of inference from experience , e.g. En. *will*: *It's nine o'clock — **John will be in his office** now*
There is then two-way distinction between:
- strength of the conclusion (epistemical possibility vs necessity) - source of the inference (evidence vs experience)
In many languages one of these contrasts is either the only one present in the system or the more important one. Some languages have ways to indicate that the judgement is either weaker or stronger. English, for instance, uses the past tense forms of the modals. These express a lower degree of commitment.
- *may* becomes *might* - *must* becomes *should* (or less commonly *ought to*) - *will* becomes *would* (or *could*)
#### Propositional modality in Quenya Quenya possesses epistemical possibility-necessity contrast with further differentiation in strength. There is no evidence for inference contrast, and it's assumed that either deductive and/or assumptive would be translated as unmarked future. ##### Speculative Tolkien provided several contradicting paradigms for uncertain statements:
- EVS1 (PE22/98): strong *ai* - QVS (PE22/122-3): strong *ai*, weak *au* - EVS2 (PE22/139, 1951): strong *ai* - ***ai** tuluvanye* “I **may** come” - LVS7 (PE22/154, 21-1969): strong *cé*, weak *quí* (see on *Unreality*) - *lá caritas alasaila **cé** nauva* “not doing this **may** prove unwise” - *carë mára **quí** tyarë naxa* “doing good ?may cause evil”
Note that modal particle should directly precede the verb (PE22/97). Otherwise it is interpreted as a conjunction *if*:
- *cé mo formenna tentanes Amanna* “if northwards, it pointed towards Aman”

*cé* 'may' in PE22/154 (21-1969), PE22/158 (22-1969); 'if' in AS (08-1969)

(Also see on *Optative*) ##### Deductive & Assumptive No examples of deductive exists. No clear example of assumptive exists, but we can make an educated guess. > It may be added that even languages that have future tenses that are not formally modal, but belong within the inflectional system, often use these tenses for similar purposes. They are used in an assumptive sense, like English *will*, in, e.g., French and Italian (cf French *ça sera le facteur* 'that'll be the postman') ### Event modality Event modality refers to events which have not taken place yet. The distinction is drawn between conditioning factors, which are:
- external to the subject (he is permitted or ordered to act); - internal to the subject (he is able and/or willing to act);
#### Deontic Similarly to epistemic modality, deontic modality distinguishes between:
- deontic *possibility* (*permissive*), e.g. En. *can* (less often *may*): You **can** go now - deontic *necessity* (*obligative*), e.g. En. *must*: You **must** go now
Additionally we can consider *commissive*, where speaker *commits* themself to do something. In English it is signalled by the modal verb *shall*. "You **shall** not pass!" — where Gandalf commits himself to ensuring that the balrog will not pass the bridge — is a canonic example of commissive. Just as with epistemic modals, the force of the judgements can be weakened:
- *can* becomes *could* (*may* becomes *might*) - *must* becomes *should*
##### Deontic modality in Quenya Tolkien did not explicitly talk about permission and obligation in Quenya, but we have a few words which might fit the slot.
- permissive: - *nai* < NAY “have opportunity, chance or **permission**; be **allowed** by circumstance or way of the world”; - This mostly used where the opportunity or permission is certain or very probable - Overlaps with optative *nai* - *ecë*: *ecë nin?* 'please, may I?'; - *lerta*: *lertan quetë* 'I can (am free to) speak' (there being no obstacle, of promise, secrecy, duty) - Can be interpreted as *abilitive of circumstance* - obligative: - \**moa* < N. *bui* 'I must' - *inya karie·te* 'I have to make it'; - (neg) *vá caris i* 'he is not to do it'; - commissive: - (pos) future: *vanda sina **termaruva** Elenna·nóreo alcar enyalien* “This oath shall stand in memory of the glory of the Land of the Star” - Such use of future can be seen in e.g. French: *Vous l'aurez demain* - (neg) *vá* + future: *vá matuvatye mastanya* “you shan’t eat my bread”
#### Dynamic Dynamic modality expresses the ability and willigness (in English done with *can* and *will* respectively). In many languages there is no formal distinction between permission and ability. In English, however, the distinction is in that *may* is not used to indicate ability. ##### Dynamic modality in Quenya *Abilitive* is expressed in Quenya with **lexical** verbs:
- physical ability: - *polë*: *polin quetë* 'I can (able to) speak' (PE17/181) - (inherent physically or mentally): *curu* (PE22/151) - learned ability: *istan quetë* 'I can (know how to) speak' (PE17/155, cf. French *savoir*: *il sait nager* 'he can swim') - circumstantial ability/possibility: - *lertan quetë* 'I can (am free to) speak' (there being no obstacle, of promise, secrecy, duty) (PE17/160) - *evë* (PE22/151: "of mere possibility according to likelihood, natural probability, etc.") - *ecë*: *ecuva nin carë sa nöa* “I ‘may’ do that tomorrow, I have a chance of doing that tomorrow” - *may* in gloss seems to disqualify this verb (but it is in quotes?)
*Volitive* is only attested in negative constructions:
- (neg) *vá*: *itas vá tuluvanye* 'in that case I won't come'
#### Imperative Most languages have a specific form that can be identified as Imperative. In languages such as English, where the modal systems are marked by modal verbs, the imperative is quite independent of them. But notionally, imperative is closely associated with deontic modals. Unlike in English, in Quenya *Imperative* is a part of its modality system, expressed by an optional particle *á*.
- imperative proper: *á tule* 'come' (PE22/140); - jussive: *á he tuluvar* 'let them come' (PE22/106); - hortative: (PE14/59 had hortative the same as imperative and jussive) - prohibitive: *avá carë* 'don't do it' (WJ/371): (cf Latin *nolo*: *Noite facere* 'Don't do it'; and Welsh *peidio*: *peidiwich â gadael iddo fynd* 'Don't let him go')

\[To Do\] Add description of gradation

#### Optative The subjunctive is frequently used for wishes and fears:
- *Dio vi benedica* 'May God bless you'
The more correct term applicable to Quenya would be *desiderative* and *timitive*. We have examples of two constructions:
- *nai* initially: *nai elye hiruva* - *na* before the verb: *aranielya na tuluva*
The distinction then can be reminiscent of *cé* being used as an epistemic particle before the verb, or conjunction *if* initially. Note that the use of *nai* as a desirative marker was already present in Early Qenya (PE14/59), where *nai* was also the weak marker of epistemic possibility. In this sense the Early Qenya was very similar to the subjunctive use in European languages in this context. #### Purposive Clauses that express purpose are marked with a conjunction plus the subjunctive in Latin and Classical Greek, and similarly in Spanish and Italian:
- *ti scrivo affinché tu capisca la situazione*
We have one purposive sentence in Quenya:
- *mennai Orome tanna lende i erenekkoitanie* “until Orome came hither that he might awake them” (VT27/7)
which potentially can use (defunct) subjunctive. #### Unreality In a large number of languages a clear distinction can be made between real and unreal conditions. In some languages this is marked with the tense alone, in others by a combination of tense and mood. Similarly to the discussion on epistemic and deontic modality, the 'modal-past' weakens the supposition, stating the condition less likely to occur. Conditions that *predict*, in terms of cause and effect, the occurence of one event on condition of another, always require a modal verb in apodosis (both real and unreal):
- If John comes, Bill can leave (real) - If John came, Bill would leave (unlikely) - If John had come, Bill might have left (unreal, past)
Non-predictive conditionals such as *If John came, Mary left*, which merely indicate that if the protasis is true, so is the apodosis, without necessarily implying that there is a cause and effect, have no restrictions on the tense and modality of such sentences. ##### In Quenya PE22/120 system is a verbatim carry-over from [Latin system](https://www.csun.edu/~hcfll004/conditions.html):
- *qe e·kestan, ni·tuluva* “if he asks me, I shall come” : *if* AOR, FT (predictive real) - *qe e·kestuvan, ni·tuluva* “if (on some future occasion) he asks me, then (on that occasion) I shall come” : *if* FT, FT (predictive real, specific) - *aiqe e·kestuvan, (en) ni·tuluva* “if he asked me, I should come” : MOD-*if* FT, (*en*) FT (predictive unlikely) - *qe e·kárie i kirya aldaryas, ni·kauva kiryasta menelyas* “if he finishes the boat by Monday, I shall be able to sail on Wednesday” : *if* PF, FT (predictive real, future reference) - *qe e·káriéva i kirya, ni·kauva kiryasta menelyas* “if he has finished the boat by Monday, I shall be able to sail on Wednesday” : *if* FT-PF, FT (predictive real, specific, future reference) - *qe (ai) e·tule, (san) inye tule yú* “if he comes, I come too” : *if* (MOD) AOR, (san) AOR (non-predictive, present) - *qe (ai) e·tulle, (san) inye tulle yú* “if he came, I came too” : *if* (MOD) PT, (san) PT (non-predictive, past) - *íqa ette tule, (san) inye tule* “when he comes, I come” : *when* AOR, (san) AOR (non-predictive, present) - *qe/illume e·kestanen/kestanelyanen, ni·tulle*; *if/when* PT/IMP, PT (non-predictive, past) - *ai(qe) e·kestanen, en(ai) ni·túlie*; *MOD-if* (*if*) PT, *en* (MOD) PT (predictive unreal, ?past) - *ai(qe) e·kestanen ela, en ni·túlie*; *MOD-if* (*if*) PT NEG, *en* PT (predictive unreal, ?past) - *auve e·kestanen, au ni·túlie*; *MOD-UR-if* PT, MOD-UR PT (predictive unreal, past) - *aiqe ni·káraza (nila) san ette kára(za) yú*; *MOD-if* PR (NEG), *san* PR (predictive unreal, present) - *auve e·kestanen (ela)!* *MOD-UR-if* PT (NEG) (wish unreal)
Compare Latin schema:
ConditionExamplePROTASISAPODOSIS
SIMPLE CONDITION*If he says this, he makes a mistake*Present IndicativePresent Indicative
PRESENT GENERAL CONDITION*Every time he says this, he makes a mistake*Present IndicativePresent Indicative
PAST PARTICULAR CONDITION*If he (has) said this, he (has) made a mistake*Imperfect Indicative, Present Perfect IndicativeImperfect Indicative, Present Perfect Indicative
PAST GENERAL CONDITION*Whenever he said this, he made a mistake*Imperfect Indicative, Present Perfect IndicativeImperfect Indicative
FUTURE-MOST-VIVID CONDITION*If I shall have said this, I shall have made a mistake*Future Perfect IndicativeFuture Perfect Indicative
FUTURE CONDITION (FUTURE-MORE-VIVID)*If he says (will say) this, he will make a mistake*Future IndicativeFuture Indicative
FUTURE-LESS-VIVID CONDITION ("ideal")*If he were to (should) say this, he would make a mistake*Present SubjunctivePresent Subjunctive
PRESENT CONTRARY-TO-FACT CONDITION Imperfect SubjunctiveImperfect Subjunctive
PAST CONTRARY-TO-FACT CONDITION*If he had said this, he would have made a mistake*Past Perfect SubjunctivePast Perfect Subjunctive
with Quenya:
ConditionExamplePROTASISAPODOSIS
SIMPLE CONDITION*If he says this, he makes a mistake**qe (ai)* + Aorist*san* + Aorist
PRESENT GENERAL CONDITION*Every time he says this, he makes a mistake**íqa* + Aorist*san* + Aorist
PAST PARTICULAR CONDITION*If he (has) said this, he (has) made a mistake**qe* + Past?*san* + Past
PAST GENERAL CONDITION*Whenever he said this, he made a mistake**illume* + Imperfect, Past?*san* + Past
FUTURE-MOST-VIVID CONDITION*If I shall have said this, I shall have made a mistake**qe* + Future PerfectFuture
FUTURE CONDITION (FUTURE-MORE-VIVID)*If he says (will say) this, he will make a mistake**qe* + PerfectFuture
FUTURE-LESS-VIVID CONDITION*If he were to (should) say this, he would make a mistake**aiqe* + Future*en* + Future
PRESENT CONTRARY-TO-FACT CONDITION *aiqe* + Present*san* + Present
PAST CONTRARY-TO-FACT CONDITION*If he had said this, he would have made a mistake**ai(qe)* + Past (NEG); *auve* + Past*en(ai)* + Past; *au* + Past
The difference between *aiqe* + Past, *enai* + Past vs *auve* + Past, *au* + Past might be as in:
- *potevo farlo se mi aiutavano* - *avrei potuto farlo se fossi stato più vecchio*
with the 1st, there is an implication that I had the ability and merely needed help to fulfill it, but with the second it is clear that I did not have the ability, but would have had it if (impossibly) I had been older. PE22/138 had differences (*que > quí > íte* in pencil):
- *íte kestallen, tuluvanye*; *if* AOR, FT (predictive real) - *íte kestuvallen, tuluvanye*; *if* FT, FT (predictive improbable) - *aite kestuvallen, tuluvanye*; *MOD-if* FT, FT (predictive improbable) - *(ai)te kestanellen, (ai) tullenye*; (MOD)-if PT, (MOD) PT (predictive unreal past; discarded) - *quílas túleste, san inye túle*; *if*-NEG PT, *san* PT (predictive unreal past) - *au tuluvanye*; MOD-UR FT (wish unreal future; discarded) - *au túlielde (las)*; MOD-UR PFT (NEG) (wish unreal past)
PE22/158 was discarded:
- *quí(ta) la tuldes, náne márie*; *if*-MOD-UR ?NEG PT, PT (predictive unreal past)
# Lexicology