Sindarin Pronouns
Sindarin personal pronouns: subject, object, and possessive forms — with worked examples from attested texts.
Sindarin pronouns are partially attested and partially reconstructed. Subject pronouns often appear as verb suffixes rather than independent words, while object and possessive pronouns are better documented.
Subject Pronouns
Subject pronouns in Sindarin can be expressed as:
- Verb suffixes (most common)
- Independent pronouns (for emphasis or clarity)
Verb Suffixes (Subject)
| Person | Suffix | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. (I) | -n, -on | tolon | I come |
| 2nd sg. fam. (thou) | -g, -og | tolog | you (familiar) come |
| 2nd sg. pol. (you) | -odh | tolodh | you (polite) come |
| 3rd sg. (he/she/it) | (none — bare stem) | tôl | he/she comes |
| 1st pl. (we) | -m, -om | tolom | we come |
| 2nd pl. (you pl.) | -dh | tolodh | you (plural) come |
| 3rd pl. (they) | -r, -ir | tolir | they come |
Note: 2nd person has a distinction between familiar (-g: addressing close friends, family, equals) and polite (-dh: formal, respectful). This is like French tu/vous or German du/Sie.
Independent Subject Pronouns
| Person | Pronoun | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. | im | "I" (emphatic); related to Quenya ni |
| 2nd sg. fam. | le (?) | disputed; le is attested as object |
| 3rd sg. masc. | e or ho | "he" |
| 3rd sg. fem. | he or hî | "she" |
| 1st pl. | men or ammen | "we/us" |
| 2nd pl. | le (pl.) | disputed |
| 3rd pl. | hain | "them" (attested) |
Attestation for independent subject pronouns is limited. Im is the best attested ("I" in emphatic position).
Object Pronouns
Object pronouns are better attested. They appear after the verb as independent words:
| Person | Object Pronoun | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. (me) | nin | annon nin | I give to me? (=an nin perhaps) |
| 2nd sg. (thee/you) | le | le linnathon | I will sing to thee |
| 3rd sg. masc. (him) | e | — | |
| 3rd sg. fem. (her) | he | — | |
| 1st pl. (us) | men, ammen | Boe ammen | It is necessary to us |
| 3rd pl. (them) | hain | — |
Key attested example: le linnathon — "I will sing to thee/you" (from A Elbereth Gilthoniel)
- le = thee/you (2nd person singular, object)
- linnathon = I will sing (lin- + future -tha- + 1st sg. -n)
Possessive Pronouns
Possessives are formed as suffixes on nouns:
| Person | Suffix | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. (my) | -n (after vowel), -in (after consonant) | ionnin | my son (ion + -in) |
| 2nd sg. fam. (thy) | -g | ionnog (?) | thy son |
| 2nd sg. pol. (your) | -dh | — | |
| 3rd sg. (his/her) | -e, -o | — | |
| 1st pl. (our) | -m | ionnom (?) | our son |
| 3rd pl. (their) | -in | — |
Note: These forms are reconstructed from limited evidence. The possessive system is one of the least-certain parts of Sindarin grammar.
Attested: Ionnath nín — "my sons" or "sons of mine" — nín is a separate possessive pronoun (my, mine) that follows the noun. This pattern (noun + independent possessive) may be more common than the suffix pattern.
Independent Possessive Pronouns
| Person | Possessive | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. | nín | "my, mine" — attested in Ionnath nín |
| 2nd sg. | lín | "your, yours" (familiar) |
| 3rd sg. | tîn | "his/her, theirs" |
| 1st pl. | mín | "our, ours" |
These follow the noun: galadh nín (my tree), galadh lín (your tree).
Demonstrative Pronouns
| Pronoun | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| si | this, here | sí = here/now in A Elbereth |
| sen | this (one) | |
| han | that (one) |
Relative Pronouns
Sindarin uses i as a relative pronoun (same as the definite article — distinguished by context):
- i chennas — "who dwells" or "the one who dwells"
- i·pheriain i aníra iest lín — "the hobbits who desire your wish" (complex relative clause)
Example Sentences with Pronouns
| Sindarin | Translation | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Le abdollen | Thou art late | le (you, 2nd sg.) + abdollen (past participle "been delayed") |
| Le linnathon nef aear | I will sing to thee on this side of the sea | le = object "to thee"; linnathon = I will sing |
| Boe ammen tirno | We must guard | ammen = to us; impersonal boe |
| Im Narvi hain echant | I, Narvi, made them | im = I (emphatic); hain = them |
| Ionnath nín | My sons | nín = my (possessive follows noun) |
The phrase Im Narvi hain echant is inscribed on the Doors of Durin — the only first-person statement with an emphatic pronoun fully attested in Tolkien's Sindarin texts.