The grammar of nouns in Nûrlâm may be quite difficult, but we'll start from easy parts of it. Nouns in Nûrlâm do not have distinction in animacy, gender¹⁾ and even number! Yes, Nûrlâm do not have plural suffixes for nouns, moreover nouns are plural by default! For example “golug” may refer to one elf or many elves, but probably more than one. But how to specify that we are speaking about one person or object? Articles come to help!

Nûrlâm has words analogous to English articles. But to be precise, it has only one proper article – suffix “-um” (definite article).

“ash” (literally means “one”) is the equivalent of indefinite article “a”/“an”. The article “ash” clarifies that noun is singular, so it is used probably more often than English indefinite article. It introduces nouns that are referenced for the first time in the conversation or text, or nouns which identity, properties are unknown or not important. Example: “ash golug” = “an elf”, “one elf”. Indefinite article in Germanic and Romance languages actually also came from word “one”, but in Nûrlâm it haven't changed yet.

The definite article, similar to English “the”, in Black Speech is expressed with suffix “-um” added to the noun. “-um” always means that noun is singular, so “golugum” should be translated as “the elf”, not “the elves”. Article suffix “-um” is used with nouns that were introduced before, or it's clear for all participants of conversation that speaker means the one particular subject or object. Example: “Nazgum” means “the ring” that is already known to speaker and other participants of conversation or to reader.

The word “za”, which literally means “this” or “these”, may be used for translation of English article “the” with plural nouns. For example, Englis “the elves” should be translated into Nûrlâm as “za golug”, but it also may mean “this elf”.

Memorize the following words:

• ash (one, a, an)
• dog (slayer)
• golug (elf, elves)
• gûl (phantom, wraith)
• hont (eye)
• lag (sword)
• lug (tower, fortress)
• lûg (dragon, big serpent)
• mauh (warrior)
• nazg (ring)
• olog (troll)
• rod (mountain)
• tark (man, men, human)
• uruk (orc, goblin)
• za (the, this, these)

Some nouns are uncountable, they are usually marked in the dictionary of Nûrlâm. You can't use indefinite article “ash” with uncountable nouns. However definite articles may be used with them. Don't worry much about memorizing the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns. If you can add a number before noun in English, than the noun in countable, if the result makes not much sense in English (e.g. “five waters”), than the noun is uncountable.

The following words are uncountable:

• burz (darkness)
• dug (filth, dirt)
• dush (sorcery, witchcraft)
• ghâsh (fire)
• ghor (blood)
• nîn (water)
• push (shit, dung, excrements)

Translate from English into Nûrlâm:

1. the dragon
2. an elf
3. the eyes
4. the filth
5. the mountain
6. the orcs
7. a sword
8. a troll
9. the waters
10. the wraith

Translate from Nûrlâm into English

1. burzum
2. ash dog
3. dushum
4. za ghâsh
5. ghorum
6. za lug
7. ash mauh
8. ash nazg
9. pushum
10. za uruk

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