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Language Workbook - Quenya Workbook

The Quenya Workbook aims to facilitate the study of Quenya, the ancient Elvish language. It was first set up in 2003, in answer to a request from site members who wanted to extend their Quenya vocabulary and brush up on their grammar. It has since been expanded to also work as an introduction course for beginners. The latest addition is lessons 21-26, which offer the advanced student a look at some of the more problematic aspects of the language. These are written by dirk_math and based mainly on the appendices of the Ardalambion course, but also use material from Parma Eldalamberon #14.


With the exception of the latest addition, and the Quenya Tengwar overview by Eruantalincë, these lessons are entirely based off of the Quenya Course by Helge K. Fauskanger found at his site Ardalambion. All students are encouraged to read the full lessons as well, since they provide valuable information (especially for the advanced student) not covered in these short summaries. The workbook vocabularies and exercises are made to be a compliment, not a copy, of those in the Quenya course, so it is a good idea to do the exercises at Ardalambion as well.


Please read the lesson carefully before doing the exercises belonging to it. If you have any questions or comments, please refer to the Quenya discussion forum.


The exercises are not tests, but are offered for practice. This means that it’s allowed to peek at the lesson text or vocabulary list if you need to! After completing an exercise, check the box to submit it for approval. Your answers will be checked by the staff of CoE, likely me, and you’ll get tips if you seem to have difficulties in a particular area. Comments for the staff can be left in the “Conclusions” window, while what you write in the one marked “Notes” can only be seen by you.


Most lessons have two sets of exercises. The first set is aimed at practising precisely the grammar presented in each particular lesson, while the second one may contain elements from all earlier lessons.


There are other resources on this site that you may find useful; explore the Studying Elvish Tools page, where you’ll find a collection of handy phrases, extra exercises, crosswords, dictionaries and more. You can also download the workbook lessons as doc or pdf, but notice that the exercises are only available online.


Lastly, you should be aware that although the main features of Quenya are reasonably well known, many of the details are not. However, as I have given priority to keeping the lesson summaries as brief and clear as possible, the language used is deliberately rather assertive. Please refer to Ardalambion for a detailed discussion of how well attested in Tolkien’s works each aspect of Quenya is. The workbook generally follows the outline of Fauskanger’s course, presenting the better-attested material in the earlier lessons, and the more debatable content towards the end.


This workbook is dedicated to JRR Tolkien, the Great Subcreator, and to Helge K. Fauskanger, who through Ardalambion continues to be a great source of knowledge and inspiration.


Malinornë


ETA MARCH 2012: You will now find the links to the relevant exercise(s) at the bottom of each lesson page.