Common Elvish

Common Elvish is ...

Phonology

Vowel inventory Consonant inventory Syllable structure Stress Intonation

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Morphology

ni ben, embë bemmë ae bes, elyë berrë il beli, endë belembar e-i [3p]

The root QUE- "vocal sound" descends from Adamic -q-f-l- "speech"

quap qua quat

Sound Laws

Common Elvish

• If two bordering syllables/syllable portions possess the same consonant, the consonant of the weakest syllable (portion) disappears.
  

EX: Adamic vāl "person" and vār "people" become alf (not *falf) and elbi.

• Assimilation:
• Harmony: [a > e > i] or [i > e > a]
  
• Mutation: consonants extend grade until there is only one.
  

m/n + p -mb [extension of p]
m/n + t -nd [extension of t]
r/l + f -lb [extension of l]
r/l + c -rd [extension of r]
r/l + m = -lm [extension of m]
r/l + n = -rn [extension of n]

• /s/ and /d/ can only happen before /a/, and if the opposite were to happen, the nucleus would be dropped.

alba "people" [alf, elbi] arda "things" [arc, irida] alma "high faculties" [a, elmi] arna "emotions, sensations" [an, erni] amba "time" [amf, embi] anda "space" [anc, inida] - endar "land", arni "lands" embal "celestial body", ambeli...

NA > ni [0], nae [1] alba enir ni, pe, ae MA NA PA TA LA RA - ALBA ARDA AMBA ANDA ALMA ARNA

iru > eri > ere anu > ni

Morphology

The Bright Tongue is mostly composed of stems, which modify roots.

ni irida eren...

From one root, many stems are forged

ncl > ner (*nendir), cilba, arnic, nalbi (*nadelbi)...

ALMA > ELEME eldar (alba-endar) erbal (arda-elbar) arbelë ilben, ilbini eleben, af lef, felin ilmen, ilmini elemen, am lem, melin

irdem, irdimi eredem, erc rec, cerin