Elvish is probably the most widely spoken and popular invented language, beating perhaps even Klingon (from Star Trek), though I will probably get some comments begging to differ. Created by author and linguist J.R.R. Tolkien for his now classic Middle-Earth series, Elvish (mainly Quenya and Sindarin) have taken the world by storm. If you are like me, and are intrigued with the sheer brilliance and depth of these languages, I’ve put together a list of all the websites I find to be the most helpful in learning (or at least attempting to learn) Elvish and its variants. List is in no particular order.
Ardalambion
http://www.uib.no/People/hnohf/ – The definitive site on all things relating to Tolkien’s Languages. Includes a comprehensive overview of Sindarin and Quenya, as well as most of what is known about the rest of Tolkien’s languages, including the darker tongues of Mordor. Also has a downloadable Quenya course for self-paced learning.
Fellowship of the Word Smiths
http://www.elvish.org/gwaith/ – This site contains compositions and artwork in Sindarin and Quenya, as well as detailed translations and wordlists from Peter Jackson’s film trilogy and Howard Shore’s accompanying soundtracks. And has Sindarin Grammar help.
Tengwar Primer
http://www.forodrim.org/daeron/md_teng_primers.html – associated with the Mellonath Daeron, Tengwar Primer is a site that includes .pdf files on writing both Quenya and Sindarin, as well as elven numerics.
Ostadan’s Lore and Letters
http://greenbooks.theonering.net/ostadan/ – This site offers articles on different parts of the Tolkien languages, and some on the lettering systems of Cirth and Tengwar.
Amanye Tenceli
http://at.mansbjorkman.net/ – this site is dedicated to the different variations on and use of the Tengwar and Sarati scripts, mainly those of the Aman continent. Amanye Tenceli includes some font downloads as well.
Some Useful Elvish Words and Phrases
http://www.forodrim.org/daeron/md_parl.html – a Sindarin/Quenya phrase book. Most of these translations are fully legitimate Sindarin or Quenya phrases and can be incorporated into modern speech, to some extent.
Elvish Pronunciation Guide
http://www.dcs.ed.ac.uk/misc/local/TolkLang/pronguide.html – Contains WAV files of Elvish pronunciation (Quenya). While this site isn’t perfect, it is a wonderful resource and the theory pages are very good.
Men Eldalambinen
http://www.geocities.com/petristikka/elvish/ – Site created by Petris Tikka for the study of Quenya (mostly) and other Tolkien languages – has many compositions in Quenya. Also includes some fun crossword puzzles in Sindarin or Quenya.
Elfling Yahoo Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Elfling/ – The best (and probably largest) mailing list devoted to the study of Tolkien’s languages. Primarily focuses on Quenya, with some Sindarin. The ‘big names’ in Elvish and Tolkien research all post here. If you join, READ THE FAQ!!!
Mellonath Daeron
http://www.forodrim.org/daeron/md_home.html – The Language Guild of the Forodrim; Consists of Quenya texts and other general Elvish knowledge.
Quenya Lapse Parma
http://www.elvish.org/elm/names.html – Reputable for the acquiring of an “Elvish” transliteration of an English name. That’s right, an Elvish baby name book! Most of the names are in Quenya, but there are some that also have the Sindarin counterpart as well.
Now We Have All Got Elvish Names
http://www.uib.no/People/hnohf/elfnam.htm – is also another dependable naming website.
Hiswelókë’s Sindarin Dictionary Project
http://www.jrrvf.com/hisweloke/sindar/index.html – This site has a searchable online database and the entire dictionary as a downloadable PDF file. The Sindarin Dictionary Project also includes two freeware programs.
Arwen-Undomiel.com
http://www.arwen-undomiel.com – This site offers the Elvish songs and phrases from the films and their soundtracks in their native tongue, in English and phonetically broken down for easy pronunciation, an also from the books. They have a wonderful interview with David Salo, author of a book on Sindarin (A Gateway to Sindarin: A Grammar of an Elvish Language from JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings) and the main translator of Peter Jackson’s films, as well.
Hope this list can be of service to your journey through the beautiful world of Elvish. Enjoy your learning!
