LOTR Discussion: Appendices E and F

[Forkbeard]

These are somewhat difficult appendices to summarize without being as long as and as detailed as the texts themselves. So rather than merely repeat everything Tolkien wrote in my own words, I've opted for this form and hope that it works.

Appendix E has two parts: Pronunciation and Writing. These topics are of course central to what a philologist does. One of the concerns of a philologist in tracing language evolution is tracking and tracing how sounds change, for example how accent and sound change led English to begin losing its endings in the Old English period and for the endings to be all but gone in the Middle English period. Thus pronunciation is a professional concern of Tolkien's that certainly became a part of his fictional concerns and the languages he invented.

After a general statement that Westron names are to be pronounced as English,
Tolkien turns to describing the pronunciation of elvish words with a few notes on other languages.
Tolkien aims at avoiding any spellings that look “uncouth” to English-speakers while maintaining accuracy of pronunciation.
Quenya orthography has been approximated to
Latin, with exceptions such as the use of w (distinct from v), and y
instead of i/j. Sindarin orthography is closest to Welsh, but with
several exceptions: lh instead of ll for the weird lateral fricative
found in Welsh Llanfair and the like; dh v for Welsh f except at the end of words (lh and v are
found in earlier stages of Welsh, however).

Part II is devoted to writing: specifically to the tengwar
(“letters”) and cirth (“runes”). The initial description and history of the two scripts is fairly clear:
Feanor invented the tengwar, in imitation of those of Rúmil; while the
Sindar invented the cirth for inscriptions, but later expanded them
under the influence of the tengwar, after the Noldorin exiles arrived
in Beleriand; the dwarves, orcs, and rohirrim all adapted the cirth to
their own languages. Following this general introduction to the
scripts, Tolkien gives the table of the tengwar, and explains its
arrangement and use.

The main part of the system consists of 24 signs, grouped in four
témar or series. There are also 12 additional letters and a number of
tehtar or signs, including vowel signs (though vowels could also be
shown by additional letters).

Tolkien goes on to describe the Cirth or runes.Unlike the feanorian letters, the
assignment of values was originally unsystematic. The later Angerthas
Daeron imitated the feanorian letters by showing phonetic relations
through certain regular variations in the signs, and added runes for
sounds not occurring in Sindarin.

I like runes. I find it interesting that Tolkien stuck to runes for these alphabets rather than true alphabets. But I digress....

The languages of Middle Earth are largely, and not surprisingly,
oriented toward the races who speak them. Interestingly enough, much of
Tolkien's philological background sneaks into the LoTR, but as much as
there is it is surprising that there isn't more.

Tolkien deals first with the language of the Elves. Elvan tongues are
split into 2 main language groups:West and East. The Eastern branch is
not represented and so is not discussed, though many of their folk are
at least alluded to. (One might note similar division in the Germanic
language branch, or in Tolkien's day, Indo-European in general, split
roughly between centum and satum (words for hundred), and most centum
languages were Western and most satum were eastern.)

The Western branch is further split into two branches: Quenya or High
Elven and Sindarin or Grey Elven. The former was the language of those
Elves who crossed the sea and then returned in the First Age as exiles
to fight against Morgoth. This language was the first to be recorded in
writing, Sindarin grew from the common Elvish speech before crossing the
sea and was the language of those who came to the shores of Middle Earth
but did not cross. Over the years the languages changed and grew into
separate languages. When the exiles returned to Middle Earth, they
adopted the language of the more numerous Grey Elves for daily use,
reserving Quenya for tales, poetry, ceremony and the like. Tolkien
makes the analogy that this would be like Latin in the Medieval and
Modern periods, a learned language for high matters.
In the tree below I've used "Proto-Elven" as a descriptor though this is
not what Tolkien calls it.

"Proto-Elven"
|
|
/\
Western Eastern

/ \

/ \

/ \

Quenya Sindarin

There are multiple languages of men mentioned or listed. Most of those
of concern to LoTR are related to Adunaic, the language spoken by the 3
houses of the Edain, the houses of men who aided the elves in their wars
against Morgoth. From this language or its immediate ancestor the
following languages are descended:

Westron--aka. Common Speech. This language developed as originally the
Adunaic of the 3 houses of men. Later, after the establishment of
Numenor, those who returned or who had remained mixed this language with
the languages of those whom they ruled. After the fall of Numenor and
the coming of Elendil the Tall, the language was again influenced by a
dialect close to its root, enriched by the influx of many Elvish words
and names from Sindarin and Quenya. The combination then of Adunaic,
local language, plus the influx of "high" Adunaic prodcued Westron, the
language of Gondor and Arnor that was quickly adopted by the peoples
whom they ruled either as a first language or a second.

Most of the humans dwelling in Middle Earth were related or descended
from the Edain and so the languages they spoke were closely related to
Adunaic. The Beornings, the peoples of the upper Anduin, and the
Woodmen of Western Mirkwood, and the people of Dale and the Long Lake.

The people of Rohan, the Eorlingas, were like these: related to the 3
houses, they spoke a language related to Adunaic. After coming south to
occupy Rohan, they still spoke their native tongue among themselves, but
the lords at least of the Rohirrim also spoke Westron and used the
dialect of Gondor and her lords to do so. I've used "proto-mannish" to
describe the root language.

--------------------------------------------Proto-Mannish---------------------------------
|
|
|
|
|
Druadan
/\
Dunlendish(?) Adunaic
/ | \
Rohirric | | \ Beorning Westron Dale/Long Lake

Other languages among men unrelated to these people are also mentioned
in LoTR. The Dunlanders spoke a language unrelated to Adunaic, or at
least distantly related. The men, or rather their spirits, who had
lived around Dunharrow were related as were the men of Bree. The latter
had in the Third Age adopted Westron when ruled by the North Kingdom
Arnor.

From a completely different language family comes the language of the
Druadan. Few words are preserved in writing.

Hobbits are more closely related to men than to other races, a "branch"
of the same tree as Tolkien says in a letter. Whatever their original
language was, they soon adopted whatever human languages they lived
near. Once west of the Misty Mtns they quickly adopted Westron, and by
the time they had reached Bree they had already begun to forget their
native language. From the names and few words which survive, their
native tongue seems to have related to the languages of the upper Anduin
and so akin to Rohirric and that branch of the language.

Ents
The Ents had their own peculiar language. It seems to have been slow,
sonorous, repetitive, and agglomerated, with heavy use of vowels of
which their were multiple shades of, and distinctions in tones, quality.
Only the hobbits attempted to preserve something of it in writing.
The Ents however were able to quickly learn the languages of the other
peoples of Middle Earth. Their own language no one could learn, but
they did use the common speech when dealing with their non-entish
neighbors.

Orcs-Orcs did not have a single language. They took of what they could
from other languages and adapted these to their own uses. As a result
breeds, and even villages of orcs, couldn't speak to another unless they
used Westron.

Black Speech-this is a language of Sauron's devising meant to be the
language of those who served him. At the end of the Second Age it all
but died, only to be revived by Sauron when the tower again was lifted up.

Trolls--few trolls could speak much or well. Sauron made us of them and
gave them some knowledge of the Black Speech.

Dwarves had their own language but they kept this secret. After the
Great Worms destroyed many of their mansions they wandered and they used
the langauges of men among whom they dwelled and worked. And so their
language become one of lore rather than common speech and they kept it
close as an heirloom of the past.

Discussion Points:

App. E:

1) What effect do the details presented in this appendix have upon the
work as literature? I’ve suggested a few above: historical depth and
realism. It also goes along with one of Tolkien’s many narrative
voices: that of the scholar who transmits ancient records rather than
inventing them.

2) What effect does the whole pseudo-scholarly apparatus have on the work
as literature? How does it affect the reader’s appreciation of the
story /as/ a story? (Or does it?)

3) For those less familiar with languages, or rather with philology: did
this appendix make much sense to you when reading it?

4) How adept was Tolkien as a world-builder? How persuasive was he? If
he managed to instill “secondary belief” (see Tolkien’s essay on
fairy stories, in Tree and Leaf, which is also contained in The Tolkien
Reader), is it because the details are intrinsically plausible, or
because Tolkien’s treatment (in style, for example) of them persuades
the reader that they are plausible?

App. F:
1) Tolkien mentions that the Dunlenders were to some degree replaced by
the Rohirrim, whom they called Strawheads. The Dunlenders are called
"Dun..." because they were "swarthy and dark haired." "Dun" in English
is a borrowed Celtic word meaning dark (swarthy also means dark) as in
Dunharrow--dark hill, dun raven---black raven, etc. In real history
Celts were often called "dark" because of the higher proportion of dark
haired people in contrast to the blonder Anglo-Saxons. So is the
relationship and even the words between the Rohirrim and the Dunlenders
meant to suggest to us readers something about the distant past of
England? If so, what impact does this have on the debate about a
"mythology for England" discussion?

2) It is well known that it was Tolkien's invented languages that fueled
his imagination. If so, why not more language or philological jokes in
the story? Why not more dwarvish (Kudzul) for example.

3) Why is the North so unpopulated so long after the fall of the North
Kingdom?

4) Languages change. How is it that the hobbits and Breelanders who
have long been sundered from other men still speak a form of Westron
perfectly understandable to a man of Gondor. Considering that other
languages change in Tolkien's world, why not this one?

5) What is your take on the langauges? Do you appreciate them in the
book, or better left out? Do they enhance the story?

[Forkbeard]

The family trees didn't come out like I wanted for thel anguages and editing the post didn't seem to correct that....sorry folks!

[hectorberlioz]

Wow, even I have a lot of time on my hands, and I'm way too lazy to write that stuff. Forkbeard, I must compliment you on your patience in writing such a piece!

[jammi567]

Originally Posted by Forkbeard

These topics are of course central to what a philologist does.

what does a philologist do?

[captain carrot]

or, to put it another way -

what doesn't he do?

[Forkbeard]

Originally Posted by jammi567

what does a philologist do?

A "short" definition is that a philologist studies the evolution and development of a language through time. Often a philologist also engages in comparative philology, comparing 2 or more languages and their developments over time.

[jammi567]

wow!

Appendix F, question 4

4) i think it was because it was the fear of what had happened befor, and that it might happen again.

[The Gaffer]

Tip of the hat to you, Forkbeard. Great work.

I'll start with three related points:

Originally Posted by Forkbeard

1) What effect do the details presented in this appendix have upon the
work as literature? I’ve suggested a few above: historical depth and
realism. It also goes along with one of Tolkien’s many narrative
voices: that of the scholar who transmits ancient records rather than
inventing them.

2) What effect does the whole pseudo-scholarly apparatus have on the work
as literature? How does it affect the reader’s appreciation of the
story /as/ a story? (Or does it?)

3) For those less familiar with languages, or rather with philology: did
this appendix make much sense to you when reading it?

1 and 2 seem like the same question to me. Maybe 1 is about the fact that a phililogical essay is included as an Appendix, and 2 is about the style of that essay.

Anyway, I guess it's unprecedented in literature and pretty unusual in art. It's a bit like an artist including his sketches with the finished work. Although, of course, this Appendix is actually a finished work in itself. Its contribution, I think, was to bring another dimension to fantasy fiction: creating "reference works" to help flesh out the setting.

To be honest, I found the whole languages thing a bit overdone and annoying on first reading LOTR, aged 13 and being blissfully ignorant of philology. I guess a philologist's experience might be different. These days, I still can't be arsed with all that Sindarin, Tengwar etc etc, but it is very skillfully deployed in the story such that you get the sense of additional depth without having to get into the detail.

So the answer is "no" to question 3. I don't think I even read the whole thing until the third or fourth reading of the book.

[jammi567]

I've never considered reading this appendix, if only because i find it boring.

[Valandil]

Yes - isn't it fun to find surprisingly interesting nuggets even in what we at first thought would be a very dry section?

[Earniel]

I wanted to answer here before, but at that moment my internet went wonky and I ended up saving it somewhere. Then I forgot about it until now. So after more than 18 months later than all the rest I can finally pretend I finished the LoTR-discussion.

Originally Posted by Forkbeard

I like runes. I find it interesting that Tolkien stuck to runes for these alphabets rather than true alphabets.

I agree. I suppose since the runes already have a sense of mystery and myth around them of their own. Or perhaps he wished to draw some parallels between vikings and dwarves, which superficially at least seems to work. Especially since the Dwarves take on names out of the Eddas and related norse literature. Or it is simply another way of tying the history of Middle-earth and the history of our world together.

Whatever their original language was, they soon adopted whatever human languages they lived near. Once west of the Misty Mtns they quickly adopted Westron, and by the time they had reached Bree they had already begun to forget their native language.

I always find it curious how quickly the Hobbits seemed to give up on their own native tongue. Language is often something that each folk consider their own, part of their very identity. Foreign rulers often tried to ban or stamp out local languages in a bid to stamp out the local traditions and speed up integration into the invading realm. But the Hobbits, who in every other way seem to prefer to stick to their own rule and traditions, give up their native language fairly quickly. It just struck me as odd.

What effect does the whole pseudo-scholarly apparatus have on the work as literature? How does it affect the reader’s appreciation of the story /as/ a story? (Or does it?)

For the story LoTR itself, it is not really necessary. But for Middle-earth itself, it creates a sense of realness.

For those less familiar with languages, or rather with philology: did this appendix make much sense to you when reading it?

Some of it, the other stuff had me just go “what?” and re-reading yet another time.

It is well known that it was Tolkien's invented languages that fuelled his imagination. If so, why not more language or philological jokes in the story? Why not more dwarvish (Kudzul) for example.

Too much language and the ordinary reader looses interest, Tolkien must have realised he needed a balance between the story and the languages. His philologist-friends may have preferred de-constructing of languages, but the average reader has much less interest in things like that.

Why is the North so unpopulated so long after the fall of the North Kingdom?

Tremendous low population growth? You need a population expansion before new territories get established.

What is your take on the languages? Do you appreciate them in the
book, or better left out? Do they enhance the story?

I do appreciate them, especially since they are different enough to be able to keep them apart. They add a nice special flavour to the story, but I don’t delve too deep in them.

[Varnafindë]

Originally Posted by The Gaffer

To be honest, I found the whole languages thing a bit overdone and annoying on first reading LOTR, aged 13 and being blissfully ignorant of philology. I guess a philologist's experience might be different.

Being an amateur philologist, I can confirm that my experience was different!

Realising that the alphabeths were

showing phonetic relations through certain regular variations in the signs

was in fact what really got me interested in Tolkien's world, even after having read LotR a couple of times.

Appendix E was just what I had been learning in phonetics classes - but then again, what would happen when a child learning to read, confused two sounds and found that the corresponding signs were easily confused as well? What I had learnt at teacher training college, warned me that this might be a problem ...

I presented an essay discussing this at a meeting in the local Tolkien society, and revised it for printing in their newsletter. Eventually I put it on the Internet and translated it into English - you can read it here (or read the original Norwegian version if you prefer).

Originally Posted by Eärniel

For the story LoTR itself, it is not really necessary. But for Middle-earth itself, it creates a sense of realness.

[...]

Too much language and the ordinary reader looses interest, Tolkien must have realised he needed a balance between the story and the languages. His philologist-friends may have preferred de-constructing of languages, but the average reader has much less interest in things like that.

I agree. It makes that realness of the background of this world more complete. There is enough of language to intrigue people like me, but it is also possible just to let it float by and be a part of the backstory and the coloration of the background.