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- 31 - Plurals (3): Class plurals
- 32 - Possessive, singular and diminutive suffixes
- 33 - Comparatives & Superlatives
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- 40 - Liquid and Stop mutations
- Lessons 41 onwards >
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This lesson covers possessive pronouns, one of the most commonly used pronoun types in English.
Examples: my book, your pen etc.
The possessive pronoun in Sindarin always includes the definite article, i (the, singular). This cannot be omitted unless you are using the pronoun to start the sentence, and as always when i is used it causes mutation in the following word.
Please note that demonstratives are treated identically to possessives, hence their inclusion.
Examples: my book, your pen etc.
The possessive pronoun in Sindarin always includes the definite article, i (the, singular). This cannot be omitted unless you are using the pronoun to start the sentence, and as always when i is used it causes mutation in the following word.
Please note that demonstratives are treated identically to possessives, hence their inclusion.
Possessive pronouns
Singular |
- |
Plural |
- |
My... |
i ... nîn |
Our (not your)... |
i ... vîn |
- |
- |
Our (and your)... |
i ... 'wîn |
Your...(formal) |
i ... lîn |
Your...(formal) |
i ... dhîn |
Your...(informal) |
i ... gîn |
Your...(informal) |
i ... gîn |
His/Hers/Its... (1st person referred to) |
i ... în |
Their... |
i ... în |
His/Hers/Its... (2nd person referred to) |
i ... dîn |
Their... |
i ... dîn |
This... |
i ... hen |
These... |
i ... hin |
That... |
i ... han |
Those... |
i ... hain |
From reading the earlier lessons you may have realised that all of these pronouns have undergone soft mutation. For example the original form of 'This' is 'sen', but because it is acting as a modifier, it has changed to 'hen'. You will never see the possessive pronouns in their 'original' forms, you will always use those in the table above.
First/Second person referred to
I have until now taught that the possessive pronoun în is reflexive (meaning it could be used for 'my own book', 'his own tower', 'their own flowers' etc.)
Having re-examined the King's Letter from which it comes, I now think this is wrong. Here are the salient lines:
Having re-examined the King's Letter from which it comes, I now think this is wrong. Here are the salient lines:
ar e aníra ennas suilannad mhellyn în phain = and he desires there to greet all his friends
ar Elanor, Meril, Glorfinniel, ar Eirien sellath dîn = and Elanor, Rose, Goldilocks and Daisy his daughters
ar Iorhael, Gelir, Cordof, ar Baravorn, ionnath dîn = and Frodo, Merry, Pippin and Hamfast, his sons
ar Elanor, Meril, Glorfinniel, ar Eirien sellath dîn = and Elanor, Rose, Goldilocks and Daisy his daughters
ar Iorhael, Gelir, Cordof, ar Baravorn, ionnath dîn = and Frodo, Merry, Pippin and Hamfast, his sons
In the first line the pronoun 'his' refers to Aragorn, the letter's author. In the second and third lines the 'his' refers to Sam. Although Sindarin may not differentiate for gender, it would appear to differentiate for self and others so that it is clear to whom you are referring. For example: the sentence "I saw his picture and her picture beside it" would have previously read as "Egenin i em dîn a nef den i em dîn," with no way of differentiating which picture was which between two individuals.
Examples:
Sa i gor în a ha i higil dîn = That is his ring and that is her necklace
I mar în vi i ost dîn = His home is in his city (the first 'his' referred to = a man of Minas Tirith, the second = Aragorn)
Examples:
Sa i gor în a ha i higil dîn = That is his ring and that is her necklace
I mar în vi i ost dîn = His home is in his city (the first 'his' referred to = a man of Minas Tirith, the second = Aragorn)
Possessive pronouns with adjectives
How do we say "My red book" or "His black cat"? From Ae Adar Nîn we have an example of this:
i mbas ilaurui vîn = our daily bread
As you can see, the adjective ilaurui = daily goes inside the possessive pronoun structure.
Examples:
i barf garan nîn = My red book
i vŷg vorn în = His black cat
i 'annel thent dîn = Their small harp
i aew vallen hen = This golden bird
i varad dond han = That tall tower
i mbas ilaurui vîn = our daily bread
As you can see, the adjective ilaurui = daily goes inside the possessive pronoun structure.
Examples:
i barf garan nîn = My red book
i vŷg vorn în = His black cat
i 'annel thent dîn = Their small harp
i aew vallen hen = This golden bird
i varad dond han = That tall tower
Possessive pronouns with plurals
When the noun is plural (My green books, these brown dogs), i takes nasal mutation just as it would in any other situation. This is attested from the Moria gate inscription:
Celebrimbor o Eregion teithant i thiw hin = Celebrimbor of Eregion drew these signs
What you don't need to do is follow the table marked 'In or I?' in Lesson 10. In possessive pronouns, i is always i, never in or idh etc. Just remember to use nasal mutation.
Examples:
i pherf gerain nîn = My red books
i mŷg vyrn în = His black cats
i ngennil thent dîn = Their small harps
i aew vellin hin = These golden birds
i meraid dynd hain = Those tall towers
Celebrimbor o Eregion teithant i thiw hin = Celebrimbor of Eregion drew these signs
What you don't need to do is follow the table marked 'In or I?' in Lesson 10. In possessive pronouns, i is always i, never in or idh etc. Just remember to use nasal mutation.
Examples:
i pherf gerain nîn = My red books
i mŷg vyrn în = His black cats
i ngennil thent dîn = Their small harps
i aew vellin hin = These golden birds
i meraid dynd hain = Those tall towers
