how did tolkien make elvish

[frodosgirlfriend]

i've heard he mixed spanish and italian, but i don't know 4 sure, does anyone know how he made elvish???

[Ñólendil]

Whatever you heard about Spanish and Italian is entirely bogus.

He didn't just mix a couple languages together, he really did invent languages. There are many "Elvish" languages by the way, the two most famous ones, and the ones Tolkien spent the most time on, were Quenya and Sindarin, often called High-elven and Grey-elven. Although "Quenya" may be translated "Elvish", there is not one Elvish language all the Elves used, except their original tongue from which all Elven tongues derive: Primitive Quendian.

The structure of Quenya is based on Finnish and a bit of Latin, the structure of Sindarin is based on Welsh. But both are very much independent from any natural languages we know of. I suppose the pronunciation of Elvish languages is similar to the romance languages, that may have inspired what you heard about Spanish and Italian.

For you I would reccomend Tolkien's Not So Secret Vice (http://www.uib.no/people/hnohf/vice.htm) by Helgeh Fauskanger, it should answer your questions.

[Lightice]

He didn't mix anything. He made them completely up, trying to get them in way, that they had evolved during centuries.
Some forms of Quenya are taken from Finnish (my language. W00t! :) ) but rest come from Tolkien's head.

[ArwenEvenstar]

read "The lost road and other writings" its in the HOME, it has some stuff on the languges

[frodosgirlfriend]

thanx i'll e-mail this to my friend just to show i was right and she was wrong ;)