Tolkien’s Elvish
Burgess’s Nadsat
Artificial Languages
Eáránë Culnámo
Gilraen Helyanwë
http://www.chriswetherell.com/elf/
Artifical Language
• An artifical language is created by the conscious
formualtion of its phonology, grammar, and/or
vocabulary, rather than by evolving naturally.
• Why create a language?
- To assist communication
- Linguistic experimentation
- As a game between a group of people
- To bring a fictional world to life.
Elvish vs. Nadsat
Tolkien’s Elvish has a complete
phonological and grammatical
system.

 Burgess’s Nadsat concentrates
solely on vocabulary.
 This allows them to accomplish
different things in their fictional
worlds. Tolkien is able to
establish a complete Elvish
culture in his books, while
Burgess is able to incorporate his
language in a way that is
accessible to readers.
J.R.R Tolkien
• "I was from early days grieved by the
poverty of my own beloved country: it
had no stories of its own, not of the
quality that I sought, and found in
legends of other lands. There was Greek,
and Celtic, and Romance, Germanic,
Scandinavian, and Finnish, but nothing
English, save impoverished chapbook
stuff."
• Language embodies culture, which
Tolkien was trying to create.
The Tengwar
• The Quenya alphabet.
• These letters indicate
only consonants.
• Vowels are shown with
marks made above the
preceding consonant.
• If there is no preceding
consonant, the mark is
made above a carrier.
Namárië (Farewell)
Ai! laurië lantar lassi súrinen,
yéni únótimë ve rámar aldaron
Yéni ve lintë yuldar avánier
mi oromardi lissë-miruvóreva
Andúnë pella, Vardo tellumar
nu luini yassen tintilar i elen
ómaryo airetári-lírinen.
Sí man i yulma nin enquantuva?
An sí Tintallë Varda Oiolossëo
ve fanyar máryat Elentári ortanë
ar ilyë tier undulávë lumbulë
ar sindanóriello caita mornië
i falmalinnar imbë met,
ar hísië untúpa Calaciryo míri oialë.
Sí vanwa ná, Rómello vanwa, Valimar!
Namárië! Nai hiruvalyë Valimar!
Nai elyë hiruva! Namárië!
http://www.youtube.com/wa
tch?v=6de_SbVUVfA
Making Words Plural
Ai! laurië lantar lassi
súrinen
Ah! like gold fall the
leaves in the wind
Words are made plural
by adding “r” or “i”
“i” is used after a
consonant or in place
of a final “e”
Lanta = to fall
Lasse = leaf
Verb Tenses
Sí man i yulma nin enquantuva?
Who now shall refill the cup for me?
Present Tense: subject pronoun
suffix added. No suffix is used for
3rd person singular.
Ex: enquanta = He refills.
Perfect past: -nie suffix.
Ex: enquantanie = He has refilled.
Imperfect past: -ne suffix
Ex: enquantane = He refilled.
Future Tense= -uva suffix
Ex. enqantuva = He shall refill.
Word Formation
ar hísië untúpa Calaciryo míri oialë.
and mist covers the jewels of Calacirya for ever.
 Quenya has numerous prefixes and suffixes to
modify words, and thus create new words.
 The suffix for intensifying a word is – (a)le.
 Oia = always.
 Oialë = forever.
 The suffix for diminshing words is – lle.
 Oialle = almost always; sometimes.
 Other prefixes and suffixes can change the
meaning of words or their parts of speech.
Syntax
ar ilyë tier undulávë lumbulë
and all paths are drowned deep in shadow
ar =and
ilya = all
tie = path
undulave = drown
lumbe = shadow
Syntax
Sí man i yulma nin enquantuva?
Who now shall refill the cup for me?
Now who the cup for me shall refill?
Sí vanwa ná, Rómello vanwa, Valimar!
Now lost, lost to those of the East is Valimar!
Now lost to, those of the east lost, Valimar!
Integrate Elvish into Your Lifestyle
(We’re not kidding)
A Few Elven Insults
1. Much wind pours from your mouth.
Antolle ulua sulrim
/ αntolə uluə sulrim/
Elven Insults
2. You are king in your imagination.
Lle naa haran e’ nausalle
/lə nα hαrαn ε nαhusαlə/
3. You smell like a human.
Lle holma ve’ edan
/lə holmα vε edαn/
And now… something slightly less nerdy
(but not by much)…
NADSAT
created by Anthony Burgess for the novel
A Clockwork Orange
“nadsat” means “-teen” in Russian
Language of the Teenagers!
Burgess=Burgeoning Genius
• A Clockwork Orange written in 1962
• Adapted into film by Stanley Kubrick
• Teenagers rule the world?
• Sex, violence… and SLANG!
Nadsat
•
•
•
•
•
“Teen vocabulary of the future”
Capturing the vernacular of a sub-culture
250+ words
Folk etymology?
Influences
– Russian
– Cockney rhyming slang!
– English
• Associations
• Amputations
• Combinations
Comprehensible…
“You could viddy that poor old Dim the
dim didn’t quite pony all that, but he
said nothing for fear of being called
gloopy and a domeless wonderboy.”
Russian Influences
Burgess uses Russian loanwords
ingeniously transformed or analogized
•
•
•
•
•
“Biblio”: biblioteka, library
“Gulliver”: golova, head
“Horrorshow”: khorosho, good or well
“Millicents”: militsia, militia or police
“Rozz”: rozha means grimace; Alex uses it to
mean police
• “Neezhnies”: neezhny means lower; Alex
uses it to mean underpants
Other Influences
Cockney rhyming slang
“hound-and-horny”: corny
Associations
“cancer”: cigarette
Transformations
“appy polly loggy”: apology
Amputations
“sarky”: sarcastic
“sinny”: cinema
Combinations
chatter + mumble = “chumble”
mouth + munch = “mounch”
Words You Might’ve Guessed
• Em=Mom
• Pee=Father
• Fagged=Tired
• Prod=To produce
• Guff=Laugh
• Sarky=Sarcastic
• Horn=To Cry Out
• Snuff It=To Die
• In-out-in-out=Sex
• Warble=Song
Language as Identity
• What does it mean
that Burgess gives his
violent, teenage
protagonist his own
language, which is
only spoken among
his other violent,
teenage friends?
• How does slang
improve/deteriorate a
language?
Deciphering from Context…
“And then in the afterlunch I might
perhaps, if I still felt like it, itty off to
the old skolliwoll and see what was
vareeting in that great seat of
gloopy useless learning” (35).
Farewell…
My heart shall weep until it sees thee again
Cormamin niuve tenna' ta elea lle au’
May the leaves of your life tree never turn brown
Aa' lasser en lle coia orn n' omenta gurtha