isilmë ilcalassë,
in the
moon gleaming,
isilmë pícalassë,
in the
moon waning,
isilmë lantalassë
in the
moon falling
ve loicolícuma;
a corpse-candle;
raumo nurrua,
the storm
mumbling,
undumë rúma?
the abyss
moving?
Man hlaruva rávëa súrë
Who shall
hear the wind roaring
ve tauri lillassië,
like leaves
of forests;
ninqui carcar yarra
the white
rocks snarling
isilmë ilcalassë,
in the
moon gleaming,
isilmë pícalassë,
in the
moon waning,
isilmë lantalassë
in the
moon falling
ve loicolícuma;
a corpse-candle;
raumo nurrua,
the storm
mumbling,
undumë rúma?
the abyss
moving?
Man tiruva rácina cirya
Who shall
heed a broken ship
ondolissë mornë
on the
black rocks
nu fanyarë rúcina,
under
broken skies,
anar púrëa tihta
a bleared
sun blinking
axor ilcalannar
on bones
gleaming
métim' auressë?
in the
last morning?
Man cenuva métim' andúnë?
Who shall
see the last evening?
- The text of Firiel’s song, also with translation:
Ilu Ilúvatar en káre eldain
a fírimoin
The Father made the World for
Elves and Mortals
ar antaróta mannar Valion: númessier.
and he gave it into the hands
of the Lords. They are in the West.
Toi aina, mána, meldielto - enga morion:
They are holy, blessed, and beloved:
save the dark one.
talantie. Melko Mardello lende: márie.
He is fallen. Melko [Melkor]
has gone from Earth: it is good.
En kárielto eldain Isil, hildin Úr-anar.
For Elves they made the Moon,
but for Men the red Sun;
Toi írimar. Ilyain antalto annar lestanen
which are beautiful. To all they
gave in measure the gifts
Ilúvatáren. Ilu vanya, fanya, eari,
of Ilúvatar. The World is fair,
the sky, the seas,
i-mar, ar ilqa ímen. Írima ye Númenor.
the earth, and all that is in
them. Lovely is Númenor.
Nan úye sére indo-ninya símen, ullume;
But my hearth resteth not here
for ever,
ten sí ye tyelma, yéva tyel ar i narqelion,
for here is ending, and there
will be an end and the Fading,
íre ilqa yéva nótina, hostainiéva, yallume:
when all is counted, and all
numbered at last,
ananta úva táre fárea, ufárea!
but yet it will not be enough,
not enough.
Man táre antáva nin Ilúvatar, Ilúvatar
What will the Father, O Father,
give me
enyáre tar i tyel, íre Anarinya qeluva?
in that day beyond the end when
my Sun faileth?
Appendix
4
Important samples of Sindarin in LotR include:
- Glorfindel's greeting to Aragorn: Ai na vedui Dúnadan! Mae govannen! (Lord of the Ring, book 1, chapter 12). The first words are not translated, but probably
mean *"Ah, at last, Westman!" Mae govannen means "well met" (Letters:308).
- Glorfindel's cry to
his horse: Noro lim, noro lim, Asfaloth! (same chapter). Untranslated; evidently meaning
*"run fast, run fast, Asfaloth!" (Variants of this line have
been transferred to Arwen in the Peter Jackson movie, since the movie-makers
dropped the Glorfindel character.) The name of the horse cannot be interpreted,
but seems to include loth "flower".
- Gandalf's fire-spell: Naur an edraith ammen! Naur dan i ngaurhoth! The first part literally means "fire be for saving of us". (Actually there
seems to be no word meaning "be".) The second part must mean *"fire
against the werewolf-host!" (Cf. Gandalf's remark the morning after
the wolf-attack: "It is as I feared. These were no ordinary wolves.")
(Lord of the Ring, book 2, chapter 4)
- Gandalf's invocation before
the Moria Gate: Annon edhellen, edro hi ammen! Fennas nogothrim,
lasto beth lammen! "Elvish gate open now for us; doorway of the
Dwarf-folk listen to the word of my tongue" (Lprd of the Ring, book 2, chapte 4, translated in Return of the Shadow, p.463). An earlier variant of the invocation is found in Return of the Shadow, p.451.
- The inscription on the Moria
Gate itself: Ennyn Durin Aran Moria: pedo mellon a minno. Im Narvi
hain echant: Celebrimbor o Eregion teithant i thiw hin. "The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria. Speak, friend, and enter. I, Narvi, made them. Celebrimbor
of Hollin [Eregion] drew these signs."
- The song A Elbereth Gilthoniel / silivren penna míriel / o menel aglar elenath! / Na-chaered palan-díriel / o galadhremmin ennorath, / Fanuilos le linnathon / nef aear, sí nef aearon (Lord of the Rings, book 2, chapter 1). It is translated in Road Goes Ever On:72 and means roughly, "O Elbereth Starkindler,
white-glittering, sparkling like jewels, the glory of the starry host
slants down. Having gazed far away from the tree-woven lands of Middle-earth, to thee,
Everwhite, I will sing, on this side of the Sea, here on this side of
the Ocean" (my translation based on Tolkien's interlinear rendering).
(The hymn is quite similar to Lúthien's Song [untranslated] in The Lays of Beleriand p. 354: Ir Ithil ammen Eruchîn / menel-vîr síla díriel / si loth a galadh lasto dîn! / A Hîr Annûn gilthoniel, le linnon im Tinúviel.)
- Sam's "inspired"
cry in Cirith Ungol: A Elbereth Gilthoniel o menel palan-diriel, le nallon
sí di-nguruthos! A tiro nin, Fanuilos! "O Elbereth Star-kindler, from heaven gazing
afar, to thee I cry now in [lit. beneath] the shadow of death. O look towards me, Everwhite!"
(translated in Letters of Tolkien,p.278 and Road Goes Ever On, p.72).
- The praise received by the Ringbearers on the Fields of Cormallen
(Lord of the Ring, book6, chapter. 4): Cuio i Pheriain anann! Aglar'ni Pheriannath! ...
Daur a Berhael, Conin en Annûn, eglerio! ... Eglerio! This is translated in Letters:308 and means "may
the Halflings live long, glory to the Halflings... Frodo and Sam,
princes of the west, glorify (them)! ... Glorify (them)!"
- Gilraen's linnod to Aragorn in Lord of the Ring, Appendix A: Ónen i-Estel Edain, ú-chebin estel anim, translated "I gave Hope to the Dúnedain; I have kept no hope for myself".
- Elessar Telcontar: Aragorn
Arathornion Edhelharn, aran Gondor ar Hîr i Mbair Annui, anglennatha
i Varanduiniant erin dolothen Ethuil, egor ben genediad Drannail erin
Gwirith edwen. Ar e aníra ennas suilannad mhellyn în phain: edregol e aníra tírad i Cherdir Perhael (i sennui Panthael estathar aen) Condir i Drann, ar Meril bess dîn; ar Elanor, Meril, Glorfinniel, ar Eirien sellath dîn; ar Iorhael, Gelir, Cordof, ar Baravorn, ionnath dîn. A Pherhael ar am Meril suilad uin aran o Minas Tirith nelchaenen uin Echuir (Aragorn Strider the Elfstone [but the Elvish text reads "Elessar Telcontar:
Aragorn Arathornson Elfstone"], King of Gondor and Lord of the Westlands, will
approach the Bridge of Baranduin on the eighth day of Spring, or in
the Shire-reckoning the second day of April. And he desires to greet
there all his friends. In especial he desires to see Master Samwise (who ought to be called Fullwise), Mayor of the Shire, and Rose his wife; and Elanor, Rose, Goldilocks, and Daisy his daughters; and Frodo, Merry, Pippin and Hamfast, his sons. To Samwise and Rose the King's greeting
from Minas Tirith, the thirty-first day of the Stirring, being the twenty-third of February in their reckoning)
- Voronwë's uttering when he saw the
Encircling Mountains around the realm of Turgon: Alae! Ered en Echoriath, ered e·mbar nín! "Alae [= ?behold]! [The] mountains of Echoriath, [the]
mountains of my home!" (Unfinished Tales, p.40, translated in Unfinished Tales, p.54 note 19.)
- Gurth an Glamhoth!, "death to [the] din-horde", Tuor cursing
the Orcs in Unfinished Tales:39 (cf. Unfinished Tales, p.54).
- The battle-cry of the Edain
of the North, given in Unfinished Tales,p.65: Lacho calad! Drego morn! "Flame Light! Flee Night!"
- An exclamation of Húrin's: Tôl acharn, "Vengeance comes", also in the form Tûl acharn (War of Jewels, p.254, 301).
- The Sindarin names of the
certain Great Tales in the Silmarillion, the Nern in Edenedair or *"Tales of the Fathers of Men", given in Morgoth’s Rinf, p.373: 1) Narn Beren ion Barahir, "Tale of Beren son of Barahir", also
called Narn e·Dinúviel, "Tale of the Nightingale". 2) Narn e·mbar Hador *"Tale of the house of Hador" including Narn i·Chîn Hurin "Tale of the Children of Hurin" (also called Narn e·'Rach Morgoth "Tale of the Curse of Morgoth") and Narn en·Êl "Tale of the Star" (or Narn e·Dant Gondolin ar Orthad en·Êl, *"Tale of the Fall of Gondolin and the Rising
of the Star").
- A sentence published in Vinyar Tengwar41:11: Guren bêd enni "my heart (inner mind) tells me".
- An incomplete translation
of the Lord's Prayer, published in Vinyar Tengwar44:21, 22: Ae Adar nín i vi Menel / no aer i eneth lín / tolo i arnad lín / caro den i innas lin / bo Ceven sui vi Menel.
/ Anno ammen sír i mbas ilaurui vín / ar díheno ammen i úgerth vin / sui mín i gohenam di ai gerir úgerth ammen. In a more-or-less literal translation, this is apparently:
"O my [sic!] father who [is] in heaven, / be holy your name / let
your kingdom come / make ?it [happen,] your will / on Earth as in Heaven. / Give to
us today our daily bread / and forgive us our wrong-doing / like us
who forgive those who do wrong-doing to us."
- A sentence from the so-called
"Túrin Wrapper": Arphent Rían Tuorna, Man agorech?, probably meaning *"And Rían said to Tuor, What did you do?"