Parma Eldalamberon 17: Words, Phrases & Passages:

by J. R. R. Tolkien, Christopher Gilson (Editor)

Overview

"Words, Phrases and Passages" is a collection of notes on the Quenya, Sindarin, Dwarvish, Rohirric and Black Speech examples occurring in The Lord of the Rings, with detailed translations and syntactic explanations, together with a discussion of the etymologies of the various words and names. The entries were arranged by Tolkien in the order in which the words and phrases occurred in the story and this arrangement has been preserved in this edition.

Although Tolkien never completed the commentary as originally planned, he retained the more cursory list of words and names from which he was working; and he continued to compose further notes on the grammar and history of the Elvish words and names in the story. Many of these were placed together with "Words, Phrases and Passages," and the main commentary has been supplemented by these notes in this edition. Together these texts give the clearest picture we have of how Tolkien conceived of his linguistic inventions in the forms revealed to his readers.

In many of the notes in "Words, Phrases and Passages" Tolkien expresses hesitation about his preliminary explanations, or notices discrepancies between elements occurring in more than one context. The notes show how his reconsideration at this time of his invented languages sometimes led to revisions in the text of The Lord of the Rings as it was published in the 2nd edition of 1965. They also show how he achieved new insights into the etymological explanation of certain words and names.

Many of the entries in "Words, Phrases and Passages" mention the roots of the Elvish components under discussion, and this edition includes an index of these roots. During this period Tolkien also compiled several lists and collections of roots and the words derived from them. These etymologies have been combined with the index into a single list alphabetically arranged by root. This edition also includes an index of all words and phrases that are glossed.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798317694197
Publisher:	Barnes & Noble Press
Publication date:	06/06/2025
Pages:	222
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.47(d)

About the Author

J. R. R. Tolkien (1892-1973) was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor who is best known as the author of the classic high-fantasy books The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings series (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King). After his death, his son Christopher Tolkien published books based on Tolkien's notes and unpublished manuscripts, including The Silmarillion.

Date of Birth:

January 3, 1892

Date of Death:

September 2, 1973

Place of Birth:

Bloemfontein, Orange Free State (South Africa)

Place of Death:

Oxford, England

Education:

B.A., Exeter College, Oxford University, 1915; M.A., 1919