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Ring Verse

Insription on the One Ring is the only example of text in Classical Black Speech and one of the earliest samples of Tengwar's General use mode.
The One Ring Inscription

"Ash nazg durbatulûk
ash nazg gimbatul
ash nazg thrakatulûk
agh burzum-ishi krimpatul"

which translates as

"One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, 
One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them"

The journal “Parma Eldalamberon”, issue 17, provides Tolkien's alternative meanings of these Black Speech words in addition to literal translation.

Black Speech
word
English translation Probable Etymology
agh and Urartian “aye”
ash one Urartian “she” 1)
-at (participle/infinitive suffix) Hurrian future tense marker -ed2)
burzum darkness Noldorin “maur” (gloom) < Etym. MOR (black)
Hurrian3) “wurikk-” (to be blind) from “wur-” (to see)
durb- rule,
constrain,
force,
dominate
Quenya “tur-” (to control, govern, wield) < Etym. TUR- (power, control, mastery, victory)
gimb- find,
seek out,
discover
Quenya “hir-“
Hurrian “ki(b)-” (take, gather)
-ishi in,
inside,
into
within
Quenya locative case ending ”-ssë”
krimp- bind,
tie
nazg ring (for finger) Valarin “naškad”
Gaelic “nasg, nasc”
thrak- bring (by force),
hale,
drag
Etym. TUK- (bring, draw)
Hurrian “thar-ik-” (to demand someone to send something)
-ûk all,
completely,
totally,
fully
Hurrian “-ok-” (fully, really)
-ul them Hurrian “-lla”
-um (particularizing suffix or article)

The full Ring Verse however is longer an is not translated into Black Speech by Tolkien himself. One of the first fan's attempt was done by Elerrina. And approach by Nûrlâm's author: full Ring Verse in Nûrlâm.


1)
cited from Alexandre Nemirovsky's analysis, Hurrian word seems was “shukki”
2)
cited from Alexandre Nemirovsky's analysis, other forms are -êti, -êto, -êtta
3)
cited from Alexandre Nemirovsky's analysis, actually more like Urartian
ring-verse.1626128252.txt.gz · Last modified: 2023/09/07 14:50 (external edit)