TEN
TEN is a Primitive Quendian root signifying "direction".
Other versions
TEƷ
In the Etymologies appears the root TEƷ- ("line, direction"). From this root derives:
- Primitive Quendian: teʒē
- — Quenya: tie
- — Noldorin: tê ("line, way")
TEÑ1 and TEÑ2
According to Christopher Tolkien, the root TEƷ- was changed to TEÑ. In this new entry, Quenya téra and Noldorin tîr derived from Primitive Quendian teñrā, where an intermediate form appears to be tēra.
There exists furthermore an additional entry on TEÑ in the Etymologies (for the sake of clarity, here called TEÑ2), yielding the derivatives Noldorin tî ("line, row"), tiwdi ("alphabet"), tær, taer ("straight"), and Quenya téma ("row, series, line"), tea ("straight line, road").
Note that there also exists a root TEÑ, with a different signification, in the manuscript "Eldarin Roots and Stems".
√ten
The complexity of the root TEN is has been discussed at length by Patrick H. Wynne. A very late (ca. 1968) manuscript by Tolkien includes an almost identical rendering of √ten as given in the version from "Eldarin Roots and Stems" (that is, the version used as the first definition in this article), which, however, was changed to a √men (yielding different derivatives). An earlier manuscript (late 1950s or early 1960s) by Tolkien also contains a mention of a √ten-, having a similar (but not identical) description.
Referencias
1. Esta ficha se ha importado inicialmente de TolkienGateway.net el día 30/05/2026.
