Finding solace in Quenya

So as not to leave my brain free to think really Sith-like thoughts, I've decided to get on with studying Quenya and found some peace in doing so. Studying a new language is always rewarding, and who cares if you can't use it to speak to anyone in your immediate vicinity? (or in this case, your immediate reality?) At least it keeps the brain cells humming. And it's downright fun! What good times Tolkien must have had when he started putting the High-Elven tongue together.

I've managed to cover nouns, adjectives, plurals, and present tense verbs, as well as pronunciation. Although that isn't enough to really make any convincing attempt at truly expressing one's self freely, I decided to give it a try, since I seem to be having writer's block in English anyway. And the mental exertion veers you away from the Dark Side.

So straight out of Lesson Five and the very limited English-Quenya wordlist, comes my first attempt at Quenya poetry.... By poetry of course, I only mean words and phrases that describe how I feel right now. Somehow, just knowing nouns, adjectives, plurals, and present tense verbs won't win you an Elven writing award....

The "poem" is appropriately entitled: Nainië (A Lament)

Nainië

Órenya ráca.
Melenya vanwa.
I menel ná morë.
Ringa lómë lantar.
Eressë....
Mera an cala....
Metya naicelenya.
Ára tultar.
Melinyel.
Melenya, námarië....

--- Almeldiel ná mi rúcima náicelë / Yavannië 25, 2003

Whew. My Quenya grammar, heck, even my English grammar for this poem must be terrible. But at least doing this helps me get a feel for the language. Correcting the grammar can come later.

Whaaaat? Surely you don't expect an English translation? You already know the title. Go figure. :p

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Egad. Something must be terribly wrong with me. After I'd typed the sentences "You already know the title. Go figure.", I could somehow hear a voice saying "I'd like to know" the way Anakin Skywalker said it when he was interrogating Zam Wessell, said it in that pleading yet threatening way....

Okay, okay, I have to snap out of this. Geeky me.


.:chronicled by senator skywalker at 2:12:00 AM:.
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