Questions on Pronunciation - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Frodo2968thewhite · 06-07-2004, 11:14 AM

Suliad, Mellyn nin. Lle quena i'lambe tel' Eldalie? Amin n'rangwa edanea!

Okay, I can tell many people are confused here, so I have come to help. I am a tolkienologist, almost fluent in elvish, and have read the books 10 times (almost 11). One thing I have learned about elvish, both Sindarin and Quenya, is that most words are painfully literal in their pronunciation. Even in the movies. If you can recall in FOTR, at the Door of Durin at Moria. Frodo asks what the elvish word for 'friend' is, and Gandalf says "Mellon", but the way he says it, there are 2 beats on the 'LL'. So he put a beat per letter. Anyways, lets move on...

Okay, lets start with Smeagol: we must remember that 'Smeagol' is NOT elvish at all. It is only the anglicized equivalent of 'Trahald' (which is what Gollum's friends and family REALLY called him). Smeagol, in turn, is pronounced "smee-gol", according to that language.

Next up is Feanor and Earendil...these two are one and the same, both having the "ea". and with the accent mark over the 'e', that would make the pronunciation "ey-AH-ren-dil" and "FEY-eh-nor" (the 'EY' in 'FEY' is like that in 'Hey')

'Legolas' is pronounced "LEH-goh-las" and 'Numenore' is pronounced "Nu-meh-NORR-ay" with extra stress on the 'R'.

Also, many people do not know the correct pronnunciation of 'Elendil'. It is pronounced "el-EN-dee-il", breaking the 'I' into two parts, also with the stress on "EN" instead of the before-thought "DIL".
Hopefully this makes some issues clear! Namaarie!

06-07-2004, 11:14 AM	#17
Frodo2968thewhite Haunting Spirit Join Date: May 2003 Location: The Shire Posts: 95	Suliad, Mellyn nin. Lle quena i'lambe tel' Eldalie? Amin n'rangwa edanea! Okay, I can tell many people are confused here, so I have come to help. I am a tolkienologist, almost fluent in elvish, and have read the books 10 times (almost 11). One thing I have learned about elvish, both Sindarin and Quenya, is that most words are painfully literal in their pronunciation. Even in the movies. If you can recall in FOTR, at the Door of Durin at Moria. Frodo asks what the elvish word for 'friend' is, and Gandalf says "Mellon", but the way he says it, there are 2 beats on the 'LL'. So he put a beat per letter. Anyways, lets move on... Okay, lets start with Smeagol: we must remember that 'Smeagol' is NOT elvish at all. It is only the anglicized equivalent of 'Trahald' (which is what Gollum's friends and family REALLY called him). Smeagol, in turn, is pronounced "smee-gol", according to that language. Next up is Feanor and Earendil...these two are one and the same, both having the "ea". and with the accent mark over the 'e', that would make the pronunciation "ey-AH-ren-dil" and "FEY-eh-nor" (the 'EY' in 'FEY' is like that in 'Hey') 'Legolas' is pronounced "LEH-goh-las" and 'Numenore' is pronounced "Nu-meh-NORR-ay" with extra stress on the 'R'. Also, many people do not know the correct pronnunciation of 'Elendil'. It is pronounced "el-EN-dee-il", breaking the 'I' into two parts, also with the stress on "EN" instead of the before-thought "DIL". Hopefully this makes some issues clear! Namaarie! __________________ INAGURAL GOLDEN RING MARATHON, OCTOBER 20, 2005!!! FRODO LIVES!!!!