Any tips on learning Elvish?

[Elenaelin]

Any tips, trade secrets, etc. on learing elvish? I know some, but alas, I cannot commit large ammounts of time to this endeavor (unless i quit school to learn...always an option...after all....one must have one's priorities straight) Anyways...that random stream of conciousness aside...any advice?

[gate7ole]

It's difficult. I started a course, but there is no way that you will start speaking the language. the only think you may succeed in 2-3 months of continuous study is to understand phrases and probably write down your own (but really slowly and always using the dictionary).
It's not a usual language (Quenya), it is very strange for english speakers

[Elenaelin]

Thanks!:D

[Lantarion]

HAHA, the foolish English-speakers! With their fancy w's and ch's; they couldn't even pronounce ymmärtämättömyydelläänsäköhän properly!! MUAHAHAHAHAAAA!! :D :p (And for the record, yes that is a real word!).
Hehe, sorry- I find it fascinating how verbally and dipthongically(?) different languages can be: Finnish is perfect for learning Quenya, but English makes it a bit more difficult because of the completely different pronunciation system..
Anyway, welcome to the forum Elenaelin! An excellent site which I myself have often used is this (http://www.ardalambion.com). There is even a step-by-step course, which helps an immense amount.
:)

[Elenaelin]

Why thank you, O Evil Moderator

[Lord Aragorn]

I am currently studying Elvish as well, and the aforementioned guide is extremely helpful. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is attemping the language. Also, as an English speaking individual, I do find Quenya to be fairly difficult to learn.

[Legolas the Elf]

I too am learning elvish and its a bit tricky but u get the hang of it in a while.
to all those who are laerning elvish good luck to you.

[Khamul]

Well, it might be interesting to see if downloading the Tengwar font would help you understand the language better, and maybe using it as you type on TTF or in MSN.

[Lantarion]

Ach, it's no use. I've tried to write the Tengwar (or rather copy the Tengwar-font from Word) into one of these posts, but apparently the board does not acknowledge the tengwar-font. :(
The only way I could get any Tengwar on the board seems to be writing it and scanning it myself! :eek:

[Aragorn12345]

I'm learning elvish too i think its hard

[Elenaelin]

The only way I could get any Tengwar on the board seems to be writing it and scanning it myself!

Excuses....psh....

[tasar]

Yep, elvish is hard. And although it's kind of like finnish and estonian stuff, I sometimes have to remind myself that Tolkien was an englishman and probably still thought in a very english like manner. So when trying to think how to say some expression in elvish then I have to forget everything I know about estonian and start thinking in english (the scary thing is that I do it a bit too often).
That might not make any sense at all..so...
Example: an estonian expression 'tähele panema', literally 'to put on a star' means 'to pay attention'. If I wanted to say it in elvish and if I really knew the vocabulary then how should I say it?

[LúthienTinúviel]

I, along with a fellow staffer, created a huge Elvish resource list on another forum. I'd repost all that info here, but the list took me over an hour to compile and post, so I'm just going to link. Hope it's useful. I've tried to collect every last shred of internet info on Tolkienian languages.

Lúthien and Aura's Tolkienian Language Resource List (http://www.thereandbackagain.net/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic&f=15&t=000039)

[rasmusfreek]

i soooooooooo envy lauri now. for those of you who dont know who lauri is, hes the singer in the rasmus which are currently the best band in the world.
hes finnish which makes it sooo much easier for him to learn elvish (not that he is) :mad: http://www.therasmus.com take a look....im gonna look around to see wat can help me learn elvish...

[UNGOLIANT]

why dont you try learning finnish fist. since this is a real langauge you should have no trouble getting proper help. Idont no much about finnish except its similiar to Elvin languages

[Telëlambe]

Well what would you lot recomend learning in depth? sindarian or the high toung of quenya?

[Penngaladh]

learn quenya first... you can get much more information about it on the internet. especialy about grammar.

try that page: http://www.uib.no/People/hnohf

[spirit]

Any tips, trade secrets, etc. on learing elvish? I know some, but alas, I cannot commit large ammounts of time to this endeavor (unless i quit school to learn...always an option...after all....one must have one's priorities straight) Anyways...that random stream of conciousness aside...any advice?

Take it easy. You can always manages while still in school. Seriously, if I can do that, anyone can do that! ;)

Start with the smaller words, and easy vocab. Trust me. If you jump straight into the phrases and the more complicates part, you'll drown. :eek: And I'm not a good swimmer to come and save you!

Best time to learn is when you're calm and relaxed. Hyperness makes you very enthuastic which willl make you want to jump i nthe deep end. So..try that!

[spirit]

learn quenya first... you can get much more information about it on the internet. especialy about grammar.

And also, it's the "prettier" and better sounding language! :p

[Penngaladh]

And also, it's the "prettier" and better sounding language! :pI think the best sounding of all middle-earth-languages is Entish. Not like in the films.. like the Tolkien-Entish (A-lalla-lalla-rumba-kamanda-lindor-burúmë) But there is unfortunatly not that much material about Entish.

[spirit]

I think the best sounding of all middle-earth-languages is Entish. Not like in the films.. like the Tolkien-Entish (A-lalla-lalla-rumba-kamanda-lindor-burúmë) But there is unfortunatly not that much material about Entish. I see what you mean... but I'm a Quenya-lover.

Also...makes you wnat to think what it would be like if the dear Professor had not departed this world... :(

[Penngaladh]

I see what you mean... but I'm a Quenya-lover.
Well... it makes me think of somethink... there's this Entish-style Quenya... wait a moment...

Right, here it is: "Taurelilómëa-tumbalemorna Tumbaletaurëa Lómeanor". It means something like "Forestmanyshadowed-deepvalleyblack Deepvalleyforested Gloomyland" or, for those who do not understand: "there is a black shadow in the deep dales of the forest".

[galadhur]

keep in mind that elvish is an acutally language, and not a word for codes.


le peditha
you will speak

peditha le
he/she/it will speak to you

peidithan le
i will speak to you

le peditha anim
will you speak to me?

peth bennen
spoken words
(lit: words spoken, adjectives always follow the thing it modifes)


any quetions?

:D

[Haldatyaro]

Elvish is not a language. In Tolkien's work it's a family of related languages, going from Primitive Elvish, through all the other sub-languages like Sindarin, Quenya, Silvan, etc.

Here's the most comprehensive site I've found on Tolkien's invented languages, including what little is known about Dwarvish, the Black Tongue and Valinorean.

http://www.uib.no/People/hnohf/

[galadhur]

I was generalizing, i hate generalizing but it is the only way a new fan will distingugish what it is. alright "Sindarian," if you prefer the more technical correctness. :)

[Haldatyaro]

I was generalizing, i hate generalizing but it is the only way a new fan will distingugish what it is. alright "Sindarian," if you prefer the more technical correctness. :)
Actually, it's "Sindarin", not Sindarian. For some reason that word keeps cropping up... :confused:

[galadhur]

that is true, when i was first saying it i added the "a" and it has been forever been there. sindarin, thanks.

[Annaheru]

for anyone who is truly serious about learning Quenya (or Sindarin), be prepared to work hard. I'm learning arabic right now, and I spend 2-4hr every night memorizing words, grammer, sentence structure, etc. Learning Quenya is very similar, because it's like a non-Latin based language, that uses a different alphabet (learning tengwar is crucial to 'proper' Q), and is highly, highly inflective. In order to realistically learn as much of the language as exists, be prepared to spend a minimum of a year (if it takes you less time, great- if it takes more, don't worry). Many native english speakers would probably reap enormous benefits from either learning a non-Latin language, or getting learning tips from someone who teaches a non-Latin language.

Of course, it's entirely possible to learn without any of this, and to enjoy yourself, but personally I've found that it all falls in place better when I treat it like arabic.

[Aisteru]

hey, i too am brushing up on my elvish and found a great site for it. http://khallandra.tripod.com/sindarin/ (http://khallandra.tripod.com/sindarin/) is as good a site as i could find and i searched a lot to find an "official" page. hope it helps


Aisteru