Uncle (maternal), in my words

amunce : uncle (maternal)

The Illunse word for uncle (maternal uncle, mother's brother) is amunce.

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for uncle (maternal uncle, mother's brother, mother's sister's husband) which is avunculus, and the Old English word for uncle (maternal) which is éam.

Uncle (paternal), in my words

padreru : uncle (paternal)

The Illunse word for uncle (paternal uncle, father's brother) is padreru.

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for uncle (paternal uncle, father's brother) which is patruus, and the Old English word for uncle (paternal) which is fædera which I transliterate to faedera.

Note that both the Latin and the Old English words for uncle (father's brother) begin similar to their word for father. In Illunse my word for father is pader.

No aunt or uncle in Tolkien's words. I couldn't find Quenya or Sindarin words for aunt or uncle.

Things to do this summer

This summer I need to sit down and do some writing. No excuses. I've mentioned to several people that I've been writing, perhaps because I'd like to believe that I’m accomplishing something, when actually I haven't written any fiction in months.

The fragment that I wrote back in January was a bit of a mess, and somewhat discouraging. But in hindsight, it was a learning experience. I should continue writing. Try writing something else. They say writers generally write hundreds of thousands of words of garbage before they write anything truly good. I'm still working through my quota of garbage.

Aunt (maternal), in my words

modrera : aunt (maternal)

The Illunse word for aunt (maternal aunt, mother’s sister) is modrera. In Spanish and in Italian similar word modera is a conjugation of the verb meaning to moderate or to curb.

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for aunt (maternal) which is matertera, and the Old English word for aunt (maternal) which is módrige.

In both Latin and Old English the beginning of the word resembles the word for mother. My Illunse word for mother is moder.

Aunt (paternal), in my words

amithu : aunt (paternal)

The Illunse word for aunt (paternal aunt, father’s sister) is amithu. Amithu is possibly a first name in India.

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for aunt (paternal) which is amita, and the Old English word for aunt (paternal) which is faðu which I transliterate to fathu.

Interestingly, both Latin and Old English have separate words for paternal aunt and maternal aunt. I wonder if making this distinction was once important? I will go along with this concept in Illunse.

Child, in J.R.R. Tolkien's words

The Quenya words for child are hína and seldë (an earlier Quenya word).

The Sindarin word for child is hên (child).

Child, in my words

inil : child

The Illunse word for child (infant) is inil. Inil is a rare first name.

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for child which is infans (child, infant), and the Old English word for child which is cild (child, infant; a youth of gentle birth).

Song lyrics from The Only Ones

Here are some lyrics from the song "From Here to Eternity" by The Only Ones. The song was written by Peter Perrett, the band's vocalist. The Only Ones were English Power Pop or New Wave band from the late 1970s. They are an interesting and influential band, and have a cult following.

Such a tender age to sell her soul
For dreams that don't come true
She's like a woman whose whole life has dissolved
She's the living proof
That all that glitters is not gold
And even serpents shine

Boy, in J.R.R. Tolkien's words

The Quenya words for boy or youth are seldo (boy) and nessë (youth).

The Sindarin words for youth (boy) is nîth.

Youth is a word that means a young person, but historically it seems to especially apply to a young man or boy.

Boy, in my words

paern : boy

The Illunse word for boy is paern. Paern is an uncommon last name that can be Estonian.

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for boy which is puer (boy, lad, young man; servant; male child), and the Old English word for boy which is cnapa (child, youth; servant).

Girl, in J.R.R. Tolkien's words

The Quenya words for girl are wen (girl, maid) and nettë (girl, daughter).

The Sindarin words for girl are iell (girl, daughter, maid) and sell (girl, daughter, maid).

Girl, in my words

pelda : girl

The Illunse word for girl is pelda. Pelda is an unusual last name. In Hungarian similar word példa means example (something serving to explain or illustrate a rule).

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for girl which is puella (girl, female child / daughter; maiden), and the Old English word for girl which is mægden (or mæden) (maiden, virgin; girl; maid, servant) which I transliterate to maegden.

I meant to post this word last night, but was I just too tired. I've been busy lately.

The Eve of St. Agnes, stanza six, words by Keats

"The Eve of St. Agnes" is a long poem (42 stanzas) by John Keats which was first published in 1820. As I've recently posted words for woman and maiden, I thought I'd feature a stanza from this fine poem. This is stanza 6 (or VI in Roman numerals).

They told her how, upon St. Agnes’ Eve,
Young virgins might have visions of delight,
And soft adorings from their loves receive
Upon the honey’d middle of the night,
If ceremonies due they did aright;
As, supperless to bed they must retire,
And couch supine their beauties, lily white;
Nor look behind, nor sideways, but require
Of Heaven with upward eyes for all that they desire.

Keats based his poem on the superstition that a girl could see her future husband in a dream if she performed certain rites on the eve of St. Agnes.

Maiden, in J.R.R. Tolkien's words

The Quenya word for maiden is vendë (maiden, girl).

The Sindarin word for maiden is dess (young woman).

The suffix -wen also means maiden in apparently both Quenya and Sindarin. It's a frequent ending in feminine names, such as Eärwen which means "Sea-maiden".

Maiden, in my words

femire : maiden

The Illunse word for maiden is femire. Femire is a rare last name.

This word is a mixture of the Old English word for maiden which is fǽmne (maid, virgin, bride) which I transliterate to faemne, and the Latin word for maiden which is virgo (maiden, young woman, girl of marriageable age; virgin).

Nowadays we don't tend to speak of maidens, except in poetry and Shakespearian plays. But Old English and Latin, which are antiquated languages, most definitely differentiate between women and maidens.

Woman, in J.R.R. Tolkien's words

The Quenya word for woman is nís.

The Sindarin word for woman is bess (woman; wife).

Woman, in my words

mewir : woman

The Illunse word for woman is mewir. Mewir is a rare last name.

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for woman which is mulier (woman; wife; mistress), and the Old English word for woman which is wíf (woman, female, lady; wife).

Both the Latin word and the Old English word can be translated as married woman. But for Illunse, I will make this word more general, simply woman. Note that my word for man is wir.

Bible Trace, from 1 Thessalonians

Last Saturday I finished sharing Tolkien's Markirya Poem. Today I have another Bible Trace. A verse from different Bibles through the ages.

Today's Bible Trace is 1 Thessalonians Chapter 5, Verse 10. I didn't compile this information myself, I found this interesting verse online. After the date is the version of the Bible from which the verse was taken. And no, I still can't read Old English, even though there are a few readable words.

Latin 405 Vulgate
Qui mortuus est pro nobis ut sive vigilemus sive dormiamus simul cum illo vivamus

Old English 990 West Saxon
He swealt for us swa þæt, sam we wæccað sam slapað, we lifen ætgædre mid him.

Middle English 1395 Wyclif
That whether we waken, whether we slepen, we lyue togidere with him.

Jacobean English 1611 King James
Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.

Basic English 1964 Ogden
Who was put to death for us, so that, awake or sleeping, we may have a part in his life.

Oak, in J.R.R. Tolkien's words

The Quenya word for oak is norno.

The Sindarin word for oak is doron.

Shining white, in my words (revised)

wicand : shining white

The Illunse word for the color shining white is wicand. Wicand is a rare last name.

This word is a mixture of the Latin word for shining white which is candidus, and the Old English word for white which is hwit. I'll admit it's a mixture with more letters from the Latin word.

I made this word purposely to be somewhat similar to the Modern English word incandescent, which is derived from Latin.

My previous word for shining white was icand.


This word does not replace abith as my word for white. This is a another, a second word, for white. Latin has two words for white -- albus and candidus.

In Latin candidus donotes a bright, shining, pure, clean, even transparent, white. The Latin word albus is white, but white without lustre, pale, even colorless, but it's also a favorable or fortunate color.

Here's a link to White, in J.R.R Tolkien's words. It appears that Tolkien had words for shining white.

Markirya fifth stanza, words in Quenya

This is the last stanza, five of five, of The Markirya poem. This poem is an important piece of the Quenya language.

Here is the fifth stanza of Tolkien's Markirya Poem in Quenya:

Man tiruva rácina cirya
ondolissë mornë
nu fanyarë rúcina,
anar púrëa tihta
axor ilcalannar
métim' auressë?
Man cenuva métim' andúnë?

Here's Tolkien's translation of the fifth stanza:

Who shall heed a broken ship
on the black rocks
under broken skies,
a bleared sun blinking
on bones gleaming
in the last morning?
Who shall see the last evening?