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Alya
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Post Vowels in Tengwar
on: November 25, 2004 01:10
So, when you're writing in tengwar, what do you do with the vowels? Do you write them out? If not, which letter do you place them over? For example, when you are writing the word "frame" (okay, so it's in English not Sindarin....), would you put the letter "a" over the "r" or over the "m"? And what would you do with the "e"? Please help!
Fíriel
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Post RE: Vowels in Tengwar
on: November 25, 2004 01:31
Well, it depends on the tengwar mode that you're using. Some modes write out the vowels as full letters, while others write vowels as little marks that are placed over the consonant/letter. Now, I'm not that familiar with the English modes, but I think in the English tehtar modes that the A would be placed over the M. The E is either omitted or written out with a dot underneath to indicate its silence. You might want to have a look at the Tengwar Textbook, found at the Tolkien Script Publishing site, for more information.
Alya
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Post RE: Vowels in Tengwar
on: November 29, 2004 03:16
Okay, I think I've got it. Generally, you write the vowel over the consonant or vowel following the original vowel. I'm pretty sure that in Sindarin you abbreviate/relocate the vowels, and in Quenya you write it all out. Maybe it's the other way around. (Sindarin seems like the less formal of the two languages, and nso I think that would be the one to use the abbreviations. Just a theory.)
Fíriel
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Post RE: Vowels in Tengwar
on: November 29, 2004 05:26
Sort of. In both languages you write the vowels out, but _how you do so_ differs; in Quenya, the vowels are relocated (or placed over a letter), whereas in Sindarin, you can do that as well, or you can write the vowel as a letter also. It's a bit difficult to explain, so my advice is to look at the Tengwar resources available, and experiment with things like the Online Tengwar Transcriber.
Námovaryar
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Post RE: Vowels in Tengwar
on: December 01, 2004 10:34
My colleagues here are correct, and you should try the tengwar textbook for serious learning. Here's a quick explanation of writing vowels in tengwar.
Quenya-Vowel goes over previous consonant. Example, a over n would be read as na.
Sindarin, classic-Vowel goes over next consonant. A over N would be an.
Sindarin, Beleriandic mode-Vowels receive their own letters, so an would be written an.
English-Just like Sindarin classic.
Fíriel
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Post RE: Vowels in Tengwar
on: December 01, 2004 01:53
English-Just like Sindarin classic.


Just one question: isn't there more than one English mode, including one or two modes in Beleriand-style?
Uialdil_i_degilbor
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Post RE: Vowels in Tengwar
on: December 01, 2004 08:36
.
Sindarin, classic-Vowel goes over next consonant. A over N would be an.
Sindarin, Beleriandic mode-Vowels receive their own letters, so an would be written an.

There are at least four attested Sindarin modes. The use of the term 'Sindarin classic' is controversial, and probably unfounded as the Mode of Beleriand is undoubtedly older than any Mannish mode. There is also a full writing Mannish Sindarin mode that is not the mode of Beleriand; it is used for the Sindarin portion of the King's Letter, versions I and II. There is also a poorly attested tehta mode, probably used by the Eldar. The only samples we currently have in that mode are the names Lúthien Tinúviel and Imladrist.

English-Just like Sindarin classic.

There are various English tengwar modes that Tolkien used, and most of them are full writing, not tehta, modes. In fact, the easiest one to read is the 'plain letters' mode used in the English portion of the King's Letter, all versions. It is a chiefly orthographic mode; phonemic variation barely rears its ugly head. The only two samples of significant length in a English tehta mode are the inscription on the title page of LotR and one of the two versions of the Hugh Brogan tengwar Christmas greeting.

[Edited on 2/12/2004 by Uialdil_i_degilbor]
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