Goldogrin
Encyclopedia
Goldogrin is a constructed language
devised by J. R. R. Tolkien
and used in his secondary world, often called Middle-earth
. Goldogrin was spoken by the Second Clan of Elves
, called Goldorim in that language, Gnomes in English (whence Gnomish for their language).
Tolkien was interested in languages from an early age, and developed several constructed language
s while still a teen. Eventually, as a young adult, he created an entire family of constructed languages spoken by Elves and a secondary world where these could evolve.
Goldogrin was created c. 1915. It was Tolkien's first constructed language inspired by the Celtic languages
. He wrote a substantial dictionary of Gnomish and a grammar. At the same time Tolkien conceived a History of the Elves and wrote it in the Book of Lost Tales.
Gnomish was spoken by the Gnomes, the Second Clan of Elves
. At the same time, Elfin was the other tongue spoken by the great majority of the Elves of the Lonely Isle.
The beginning of the "Name-list of the Fall of Gondolin
", one of the Lost Tales, gives a good example of both languages (Gnomish and Elfin):
A few years later, c. 1925, Tolkien began anew the grammar and lexicon of the tongue of the Gnomes. He dropped the words Goldogrin and lam Goldrin in favor of Noldorin (a Quenya word already sparingly used for his Gnomish tongue), and Noldor. This was the second conceptual stage of the language which much later Tolkien called Sindarin
.
). It was written by a man (not an Elf) contemporary with the fifth century mariner Eriol who came to Tol Eressëa.
The apostrophe ’ indicates elision
.
Thus: Egla "Elf", in·Egla "the Elf"; bess "wife", i·vess "the wife".
Constructed language
A planned or constructed language—known colloquially as a conlang—is a language whose phonology, grammar, and/or vocabulary has been consciously devised by an individual or group, instead of having evolved naturally...
devised by J. R. R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
and used in his secondary world, often called Middle-earth
Middle-earth
Middle-earth is the fictional setting of the majority of author J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings take place entirely in Middle-earth, as does much of The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales....
. Goldogrin was spoken by the Second Clan of Elves
Elf (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Elves are one of the races that inhabit a fictional Earth, often called Middle-earth, and set in the remote past. They appear in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, but their complex history is described more fully in The Silmarillion...
, called Goldorim in that language, Gnomes in English (whence Gnomish for their language).
External history
Constructed language
A planned or constructed language—known colloquially as a conlang—is a language whose phonology, grammar, and/or vocabulary has been consciously devised by an individual or group, instead of having evolved naturally...
s while still a teen. Eventually, as a young adult, he created an entire family of constructed languages spoken by Elves and a secondary world where these could evolve.
Goldogrin was created c. 1915. It was Tolkien's first constructed language inspired by the Celtic languages
Celtic languages
The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...
. He wrote a substantial dictionary of Gnomish and a grammar. At the same time Tolkien conceived a History of the Elves and wrote it in the Book of Lost Tales.
Gnomish was spoken by the Gnomes, the Second Clan of Elves
Elf (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Elves are one of the races that inhabit a fictional Earth, often called Middle-earth, and set in the remote past. They appear in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, but their complex history is described more fully in The Silmarillion...
. At the same time, Elfin was the other tongue spoken by the great majority of the Elves of the Lonely Isle.
The beginning of the "Name-list of the Fall of Gondolin
Fall of Gondolin
In the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien, the "Fall of Gondolin" is the name of one of the original Lost Tales which formed the basis for a section in his later work, The Silmarillion....
", one of the Lost Tales, gives a good example of both languages (Gnomish and Elfin):
A few years later, c. 1925, Tolkien began anew the grammar and lexicon of the tongue of the Gnomes. He dropped the words Goldogrin and lam Goldrin in favor of Noldorin (a Quenya word already sparingly used for his Gnomish tongue), and Noldor. This was the second conceptual stage of the language which much later Tolkien called Sindarin
Sindarin
Sindarin is a fictional language devised by J. R. R. Tolkien, and used in his secondary world, often called Middle-earth.Sindarin is one of the many languages spoken by the immortal Elves, called the Eledhrim or Edhellim in Sindarin....
.
Grammar
The Gnomish grammar (Lam na Ngoldathon) describes the dialect spoken by the Gnomes of Tol Erethrin (the Gnomish name of Tol EressëaTol Eressëa
In early versions of J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium , Tol Eressëa was an island visited by the Anglo-Saxon traveller Ælfwine which provided a framework for the tales that later became The Silmarillion. The name is the Elvish for "Lonely Island"...
). It was written by a man (not an Elf) contemporary with the fifth century mariner Eriol who came to Tol Eressëa.
Mutations
Goldogrin has a complex series of mutations. The most important is called "Grammatical Mutation" (or GM) for it was generalized to a rule and is used in many case not justified purely on phonological grounds.| Basic | GM |
|---|---|
| b | v (bh) |
| d | dh |
| g | ’ |
| gw | ’w |
| p | b |
| t | d |
| c | g |
| cw | gw |
| h | ch |
The apostrophe ’ indicates elision
Elision
Elision is the omission of one or more sounds in a word or phrase, producing a result that is easier for the speaker to pronounce...
.
The article
| Preconsonantal | Prevocalic | |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | i | in and n |
| Genitive | na | nan and archaically ina(n) |
| Dative | i or ir | ir |
Thus: Egla "Elf", in·Egla "the Elf"; bess "wife", i·vess "the wife".
- I·waneth na·dalwint gloss an Idril, "The beauty of the white feet of Idril".
Idiom
Something that will inevitably make somebody angry or cross i·fesc ar i·dusc, in English "a red rag to a bull".Vocabulary
| Meaning | Goldogrin | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| earth, soil | mar | 'mɑr |
| sky | telm | 'tɛlm |
| water | nenn | 'nɛn |
| flame | bleg | 'blɛg |
| husband | benn | 'bɛn |
| wife | bess | 'bɛs |
| eat | mad- | 'mɑd |
| a drink | suith | 'suiθ |
| great | beleg | 'bɛlɛg |
| family | nothri | 'nɔθri |
| bee | nios | 'nios |
| hat | tôd | 'toːːd |
See also
- Languages constructed by J. R. R. Tolkien
- Elvish languages (Middle-earth)