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Valarin, also called the Eldest Speech,[1] was the tongue of the Ainur.


[edit] Description

As angelic beings with the ability to communicate through thought, strictly speaking the Valar had no need for a spoken language, but it appears that it was adopted as part of their assumption of physical, humanlike forms.

Valarin was extremely alien to the ears of the Elves, sometimes to the point of genuine displeasure, and very few of them ever learned the language, only adopting some of the Valarin words into their own Quenya. The Valar learnt Quenya instead, and used that to converse with the Elves, or with each other if Elves were present. Valarin seemed to use long words, for example the Valarin word for Telperion, Ibrīniðilpathānezel is eight syllables long. The Vanyar adopted more words from Valarin into their dialect Quendya than the Noldor, as they lived closer to the Valar.

Valarin is unrelated to all the other Languages of Middle-earth as it arose outside of Arda, and except for a few words (mainly proper names) nothing is known of the language. Before it, the only form of language was the Music of the Ainur, the purest form of language, as it was thought itself, with no need for reference; Each thought was a definite article in and of itself, and as such, the Music was entirely self-sufficient structure. Eru only showed the Ainur their music in a different form by adding the final note to their song: , "Be".

[edit] Other versions of the Legendarium

In older versions of The Silmarillion and in the Lhammas, Valarin is further subdivided in Oromëan, Aulëan and Melkian. In this conception, all Elvish languages arose from Oromëan, but this view was later dropped.

[edit] Inspiration

Helge Fauskanger has noted suggestions that Valarin might have been influenced by ancient Babylonian:


[edit] See also

[edit] External links


  1. J.R.R. Tolkien, "Tengwesta Qenderinwa and Pre-Fëanorian Alphabets Part 2", in Parma Eldalamberon XVIII (edited by Christopher Gilson, Arden R. Smith, and Patrick H. Wynne), p. 71
  2. Helge Fauskanger, "Valarin - like the glitter of swords", Ardalambion (accessed 2 July 2011)