Tengwar for Sindarin

Tengwar is Tolkien's primary script for Sindarin. There are two Sindarin Tengwar modes; this page covers both in detail. For casual learners, master the Standard Mode first. The Mode of Beleriand (used on the Doors of Durin) is more beautiful and easier to read but less commonly taught.

What Makes Sindarin Tengwar Different from Quenya

Tolkien wrote most of his Tengwar samples in Quenya, so many online resources describe Quenya Tengwar rules. Sindarin Tengwar works differently:

Feature	Quenya Tengwar	Sindarin Standard Mode
Vowel placement	Tehtar above preceding consonant	Tehtar above following consonant
Double consonants	Written once with bar below	Same
Final vowels	Above previous consonant	Above silent carrier (telco)
Mode type	Ómatehtar (vowels = marks)	Ómatehtar (same type)
Word-final short vowel	Short carrier with tehta	Short carrier with tehta

This means if you see a Sindarin word with consonant clusters, the vowel mark sits above the consonant that follows the vowel in the word, not the one that precedes it.

Sindarin Standard Mode: Letter Assignments

Primary Consonant Letters

Tengwa Name	Letter	Sindarin Sound	Notes
Tinco	t	t [t]
Parma	p	p [p]
Calma	c/k	c [k]	also kh sounds
Quessë	—	(Quenya qu)	rarely used in Sindarin
Ando	d	d [d]	also nd
Umbar	b	b [b]	also mb
Anga	g	g [g]	also ng [ŋg]
Ungwë	gw	gw [gw]
Thûle	th	th [θ]	voiceless TH
Formen	f/ph	f [f], ph [f]
Harma/Aha	ch	ch [x]	guttural; Aha in many analyses
Hwesta	hw	hw [ʍ]	voiceless w
Anto	dh	dh [ð]	voiced TH
Ampa	v	v [v]
Anca	—	—
Unquë	—	—
Númen	n	n [n]
Malta	m	m [m]
Noldo	ng	ng [ŋ]	word-final ng
Nwalme	—	—
Óre	r	r [r]	used in Standard Mode for r
Vala	w	w [w]	also v in some analyses
Anna	—	used for short vowels sometimes
Vilya	—	—
Romen	rh	rh [r̥]	voiceless r
Arda	—	—
Lambe	l	l [l]
Alda	lh	lh [ɬ]	voiceless l (Welsh ll)
Silmë	s	s [s]
Silmë Nuquerna	s (variant)	—
Essë	ss	ss	doubled s
Essë Nuquerna	—	—
Hyarmen	h	h [h]
Hwesta Sindarinwa	ch	ch [x]	Sindarin-specific Tengwa for ch
Yanta	y	y [j] (consonantal)
Úre	w	w [w]

Additional Sindarin Tengwar

The Sindarin Standard Mode uses some letters that are not the same as their Quenya counterparts:

The hwesta sindarinwa (a special letter for [x]) is the Sindarin-specific Tengwa for the ch sound [x] — distinct from the Quenya harma which has a slightly different sound distribution
Anto (normally nd in many analyses) is used for Sindarin dh [ð]

Vowel Signs (Tehtar) in Standard Mode

Vowel	Tehta	Placement
a	Three dots (above)	Above following consonant
e	Acute stroke	Above following consonant
i	Single dot	Above following consonant
o	Right curl	Above following consonant
u	Left curl	Above following consonant
y	Special mark	Above following consonant

Key rule: Tehtar in Sindarin go above the following consonant.

If the vowel is at the end of a word (no following consonant): write the tehta above a short silent carrier (telco).

Long Vowels

Long vowels (marked with acute accent: á, é, í, ó, ú) are indicated by:

Writing the tehta with a bar below the letter it sits on, OR
Using the long carrier (anna) instead of the short carrier

Mode of Beleriand: Full Mode

In the Mode of Beleriand, vowels are full letters (not diacritical marks). This makes the text easier to read but requires learning additional letter assignments.

Special Rules in Mode of Beleriand

Vowels use specific tengwar as full letters:
- a → Anna (a specific tengwa)
- e → Yanta (variant)
- i → another form
- o → óre variant
- u → úre
In this mode, the letter óre represents n, and vala represents m (different from Standard Mode)
Nasalized consonants (nd, mb, ng) are written with the base letter + a bar above
Diphthongs ae and oe are sometimes written as two separate tengwar

The Doors of Durin Inscription

The most famous example of Mode of Beleriand. The inscription reads:

Ennyn Durin Aran Moria: pedo mellon a minno.
Im Narvi hain echant: Celebrimbor o Eregion teithan i thiw hin.

Translation: "The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria. Speak, friend, and enter. I, Narvi, made them. Celebrimbor of Eregion drew these signs."

This is Tolkien's most complete example of Sindarin written in Mode of Beleriand Tengwar.

Practice Resources

Tecendil (tecendil.com) — Type Sindarin and see it rendered in Tengwar; supports multiple modes; also has a detailed handbook at tecendil.com/tengwar-handbook/
RealElvish Academy: Teitho Edhellen! — Full course on writing Sindarin in Tengwar from Fiona Jallings
Tolkien Gateway Tengwar article — Historical information and letter tables
Omniglot Sindarin (omniglot.com/conscripts/sindarin.htm) — Concise mode overview

Common Beginner Mistakes

Using Quenya vowel placement — putting tehtar above the preceding consonant instead of the following one
Using the wrong mode — Standard Mode and Mode of Beleriand have different letter assignments
Forgetting the silent carrier for word-final vowels
Using the Quenya assignment for anto and ampa — in Sindarin Standard Mode these represent dh and v respectively, not the Quenya sounds

Font Resources

Several free Tengwar fonts exist for digital use:

Tengwar Annatar — one of the most beautiful and widely used Tengwar fonts
Tengwar Formal — cleaner, easier to read
Tengwar Sindarin — specifically optimized for Sindarin mode

Find them via the Elvish Linguistic Fellowship website or by searching "Tengwar font free download."