The Forgotten Realms Standard Elvish Grammar
Svar
Member Posts: 157
Below is a compilation of all of my notes on Standard Elvish as it appears in the Forgotten Realms setting. Much of this information is grammar/vocabulary I was able to deduce from data found in the Candlekeep Elvish Dictionary. Other parts, such as the pronouns and past/future verb endings, are things I invented myself in order to make this language more coherent and actually functional.
I tried to organize everything so that this information is more accessible to people who only know basic grammar concepts.
This is an ongoing project. Feel free to make suggestions or point out things I haven't accounted for in my rules. My goal is to make a more complete Elvish language for everyone to use and enjoy.
Pronouns
Nominative:
sal I - sar we
va you - var you (pl.)
su he - sen they (pl.)
si she
fae they/one
Genitive:
salen my - saren our
vian your - viaren your (pl.)
siun his - sienen their (pl.)
siin her
fiaen their/one's
Pronouns are typically only used for emphasis or to make it clear who is involved in a statement and are otherwise dropped from a sentence altogether, especially if the subject or object is inanimate. Elves don't really say “it”. They usually just repeat the name of the thing they are referring to or omit it if the context is clear.
Nouns
Elvish nouns do not have case. They used to, but since the coming of humans and the peace between the two races, Elvish as assimilated to some degree with human languages and lost its use of cases. All that remains is the nominative/genitive distinction in pronouns, which is used to show personal possession.
They can be modified using prefixes, suffixes, vowel insertion, or lenition (consonant sound change) to indicate a slight change in the meaning or to turn them into verbs or adjectives.
Their meaning can change based on syllable stress.
Ex.:
CormanthOR - “The King's Vow Forest”
CorMANTHor - “Place of Great Promise”
CORmanthor - “Ruler of the Forest True”
The plural can be formed multiple ways.
Words ending in -l change to -r. (except athil, which becomes athila)
Words ending in -ir change to -iae. (except qu'kiir, which becomes qu'kiira)
Words ending in -a or -ae add -r.
Words ending in -e add -n.
Words ending in -ss add -ir.
Words ending in anything else add -a.
The possessive, which is usually formed in English by using “'s”, is formed in Elvish by using of-phrasing, i.e. “the book of Sam”. “Of” in Elvish is the prefix “tel'".
Ex.: avae tel'e'sum - “joy of the son”
The only exception to this is the genitive pronouns, which function like adjectives.
Word Order
Subject Verb Object order.
Verbs
Known Canon Standard Elvish Verbs:
Descenthallon – to descend
Ikwe – to get back
Iorwe – to step aside
Iquar – to create
Lasz – to savagely stab, slash, or attack
Levarithin – to levitate
Maniferril – to reappear
Orar- to erode
Sig – to snow
Tanar – to send/cast
Tham – to be close to
Vanessaril – to disappear
Z'Ress – to hold dominance/remain in force
Verbs do not conjugate (change form) based on who is doing them. The infinitive/gerund (to __ and -ing forms) is the same as the present tense form of the verb, which is classified into one of three groups based on its suffix.
Ar Type
Most verbs are Ar Type and are characterized by their -ar suffix.
We Type
We Type verbs tend to be verbs that specifically involve movement of a person or object and are characterized by their -we suffixes.
Irregulars
Irregular verbs are all the verbs that do not have -ar or -we suffixes. They can come from many different sources. Some have borrowed roots from human languages (these tend to have -ril or -thin/thallon endings). Others have no regular suffix, but always end in a consonant.
Past and Future forms of a verb are formed by adding suffixes to the present form.
Past Tense
Ar Type: + -'and
We Type: + -'nand
Irregular: + -'and
Ex.: iquar'and – created, iorwe'nand – stepped aside, lasz'and – slashed
Past Perfect
Ar Type: + -'anden
We Type: + -'nanden
Irregular: + -'anden
Ex.: tanar'anden – had cast, ikwe'nanden – had gotten back, tham'anden – had been close to
Future
Ar Type: + -'illae
We Type: + -'sillae
Irregular: + -'ennae
Ex.: orar'illae – will erode, narwe'sillae – will stand, z'ress'ennae – will remain in force
Future Perfect
Ar Type: + -'illaen
We Type: + -'sillaen
Irregular: + -'ennaen
Ex.: nathar'illaen – will have ended, thimwe'sillaen – will have flown, sig'ennaen – will have snowed
The imperative mood (a command) is formed by adding the prefix “na'” to the present form of the verb.
Ex.: na'adonar – be at peace!, na'awe – go!, na'vanessaril – disappear!
The interrogative mood (a question) is formed by placing the verb first.
The subjunctive mood (a theoretical situation) is formed by adding the prefix “t'”.
Ex.: t'manthar - “might vow”, t'ilelwe'sillaen - “might have fallen”, t'maniferril - “might reappear”
The volative mood (a wish) is formed by adding the suffix “-el” to the the verb (after removing the -ar or -we ending, if there is one).
Ex.: tha’aillesel va - “may you be saved”, thimel si - “may she fly”, sigel “may it snow”
The passive voice (the subject isn't the one doing the verb) is formed by adding the prefix “tha'”
Adjectives
Adjectives do not change. They do not need to agree with their nouns in number. To attach an adjective to a noun, one simply has to put it directly in front of the noun.
Ex.: dross kelytha - “gray horse”
The only exception to this is if the adjective comes in the form of a suffix.
To make a noun an adjective, add the suffix “-lith”.
In order to form a comparative or a superlative…
If the adjective ends in a vowel: -liast, -x
If the adjective ends in a consonant: -liast, -ex
Ex.:
much (base), more (comparative), most (superlative) -> que, queliast, quex
great, greater, greatest -> cor, corliast, corex
beautiful, more beautiful, most beautiful -> veluthe, velutheliast, veluthex
Adverbs
Adverbs are typically formed by adding the suffix “-nan” to the end of an adjective and placing it before a verb.
Articles
The indefinite and definite articles (a and the) exist in Elvish, but are usually only used for emphasis. They are “al” and “tath” respectively.
This/that and these/those are used much more frequently. They are the following:
this - de
that - the
these - dea
those - thea
Alphabet and Transliteration
In the Forgotten Realms setting, Elvish uses an alphabet called Espruar. This is different from the Elvish Script found in the 5th Edition Player’s Handbook.
The letters correspond to the following sounds:
a, b, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, qu, r, s, sh, t, th, dh, u, v, w, x, y, z, ch, ng
In the process of transliterating Elvish words into the Common alphabet (Thorass), things get a bit weird, because Thorass doesn’t have some of these letters and it has a few that Espruar is missing. This is why there is a certain degree of inconsistency between sounds and spelling. Humans can’t agree on what system to use for transliterating Elvish.
In Thorass, Elvish...
k is sometimes c or q
i is sometimes ee
sh is sometimes sz
u is sometimes oo
v is sometimes bh or mh
ch is sometimes kh or gh
Accent marks ( `or ´ ) sometimes appear over vowels in transliteration to make it easier for non-native Elvish speakers to know what syllable to stress or whether to lengthen the vowel. ˆ over a vowel is exclusively to indicate the lengthening of the vowel.
I tried to organize everything so that this information is more accessible to people who only know basic grammar concepts.
This is an ongoing project. Feel free to make suggestions or point out things I haven't accounted for in my rules. My goal is to make a more complete Elvish language for everyone to use and enjoy.
Pronouns
Nominative:
sal I - sar we
va you - var you (pl.)
su he - sen they (pl.)
si she
fae they/one
Genitive:
salen my - saren our
vian your - viaren your (pl.)
siun his - sienen their (pl.)
siin her
fiaen their/one's
Pronouns are typically only used for emphasis or to make it clear who is involved in a statement and are otherwise dropped from a sentence altogether, especially if the subject or object is inanimate. Elves don't really say “it”. They usually just repeat the name of the thing they are referring to or omit it if the context is clear.
Nouns
Elvish nouns do not have case. They used to, but since the coming of humans and the peace between the two races, Elvish as assimilated to some degree with human languages and lost its use of cases. All that remains is the nominative/genitive distinction in pronouns, which is used to show personal possession.
They can be modified using prefixes, suffixes, vowel insertion, or lenition (consonant sound change) to indicate a slight change in the meaning or to turn them into verbs or adjectives.
Their meaning can change based on syllable stress.
Ex.:
CormanthOR - “The King's Vow Forest”
CorMANTHor - “Place of Great Promise”
CORmanthor - “Ruler of the Forest True”
The plural can be formed multiple ways.
Words ending in -l change to -r. (except athil, which becomes athila)
Words ending in -ir change to -iae. (except qu'kiir, which becomes qu'kiira)
Words ending in -a or -ae add -r.
Words ending in -e add -n.
Words ending in -ss add -ir.
Words ending in anything else add -a.
The possessive, which is usually formed in English by using “'s”, is formed in Elvish by using of-phrasing, i.e. “the book of Sam”. “Of” in Elvish is the prefix “tel'".
Ex.: avae tel'e'sum - “joy of the son”
The only exception to this is the genitive pronouns, which function like adjectives.
Word Order
Subject Verb Object order.
Verbs
Known Canon Standard Elvish Verbs:
Descenthallon – to descend
Ikwe – to get back
Iorwe – to step aside
Iquar – to create
Lasz – to savagely stab, slash, or attack
Levarithin – to levitate
Maniferril – to reappear
Orar- to erode
Sig – to snow
Tanar – to send/cast
Tham – to be close to
Vanessaril – to disappear
Z'Ress – to hold dominance/remain in force
Verbs do not conjugate (change form) based on who is doing them. The infinitive/gerund (to __ and -ing forms) is the same as the present tense form of the verb, which is classified into one of three groups based on its suffix.
Ar Type
Most verbs are Ar Type and are characterized by their -ar suffix.
We Type
We Type verbs tend to be verbs that specifically involve movement of a person or object and are characterized by their -we suffixes.
Irregulars
Irregular verbs are all the verbs that do not have -ar or -we suffixes. They can come from many different sources. Some have borrowed roots from human languages (these tend to have -ril or -thin/thallon endings). Others have no regular suffix, but always end in a consonant.
Past and Future forms of a verb are formed by adding suffixes to the present form.
Past Tense
Ar Type: + -'and
We Type: + -'nand
Irregular: + -'and
Ex.: iquar'and – created, iorwe'nand – stepped aside, lasz'and – slashed
Past Perfect
Ar Type: + -'anden
We Type: + -'nanden
Irregular: + -'anden
Ex.: tanar'anden – had cast, ikwe'nanden – had gotten back, tham'anden – had been close to
Future
Ar Type: + -'illae
We Type: + -'sillae
Irregular: + -'ennae
Ex.: orar'illae – will erode, narwe'sillae – will stand, z'ress'ennae – will remain in force
Future Perfect
Ar Type: + -'illaen
We Type: + -'sillaen
Irregular: + -'ennaen
Ex.: nathar'illaen – will have ended, thimwe'sillaen – will have flown, sig'ennaen – will have snowed
The imperative mood (a command) is formed by adding the prefix “na'” to the present form of the verb.
Ex.: na'adonar – be at peace!, na'awe – go!, na'vanessaril – disappear!
The interrogative mood (a question) is formed by placing the verb first.
The subjunctive mood (a theoretical situation) is formed by adding the prefix “t'”.
Ex.: t'manthar - “might vow”, t'ilelwe'sillaen - “might have fallen”, t'maniferril - “might reappear”
The volative mood (a wish) is formed by adding the suffix “-el” to the the verb (after removing the -ar or -we ending, if there is one).
Ex.: tha’aillesel va - “may you be saved”, thimel si - “may she fly”, sigel “may it snow”
The passive voice (the subject isn't the one doing the verb) is formed by adding the prefix “tha'”
Adjectives
Adjectives do not change. They do not need to agree with their nouns in number. To attach an adjective to a noun, one simply has to put it directly in front of the noun.
Ex.: dross kelytha - “gray horse”
The only exception to this is if the adjective comes in the form of a suffix.
To make a noun an adjective, add the suffix “-lith”.
In order to form a comparative or a superlative…
If the adjective ends in a vowel: -liast, -x
If the adjective ends in a consonant: -liast, -ex
Ex.:
much (base), more (comparative), most (superlative) -> que, queliast, quex
great, greater, greatest -> cor, corliast, corex
beautiful, more beautiful, most beautiful -> veluthe, velutheliast, veluthex
Adverbs
Adverbs are typically formed by adding the suffix “-nan” to the end of an adjective and placing it before a verb.
Articles
The indefinite and definite articles (a and the) exist in Elvish, but are usually only used for emphasis. They are “al” and “tath” respectively.
This/that and these/those are used much more frequently. They are the following:
this - de
that - the
these - dea
those - thea
Alphabet and Transliteration
In the Forgotten Realms setting, Elvish uses an alphabet called Espruar. This is different from the Elvish Script found in the 5th Edition Player’s Handbook.
The letters correspond to the following sounds:
a, b, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, qu, r, s, sh, t, th, dh, u, v, w, x, y, z, ch, ng
In the process of transliterating Elvish words into the Common alphabet (Thorass), things get a bit weird, because Thorass doesn’t have some of these letters and it has a few that Espruar is missing. This is why there is a certain degree of inconsistency between sounds and spelling. Humans can’t agree on what system to use for transliterating Elvish.
In Thorass, Elvish...
k is sometimes c or q
i is sometimes ee
sh is sometimes sz
u is sometimes oo
v is sometimes bh or mh
ch is sometimes kh or gh
Accent marks ( `or ´ ) sometimes appear over vowels in transliteration to make it easier for non-native Elvish speakers to know what syllable to stress or whether to lengthen the vowel. ˆ over a vowel is exclusively to indicate the lengthening of the vowel.
Post edited by Svar on
15
Comments
Added the volative mood, comparatives and superlatives, and some information about orthography, spelling, and pronunciation.
I am working on an English-Elvish dictionary. I have completed words beginning with A and B as well as some of C.