English - Sindarin - Tengwar

[LauraLily]

Hi, I am new to The Tolkien Forum 😊.

Is there anyone with any advice on translating English to Sindarin and then transcribing the text into Tengwar?

I have been wanting to get an Elvish tattoo for almost a decade. The one I want in particular is a bit complicated so I need to do further research. In the meantime, I have been considering starting off small with a simpler translation. As the meaning of my name isn't in any Sindarin or even Quenya translations (Laura derived from Latin "Laurus" - Laurel plant) I thought I would combine my name with some Elvish.

I found an online dictionary (ref: website Sindarin Ambar - Eldaron) where the Sindarin "Elleth" is for "Elf-woman." "Laurelleth" is what I came up with and I then tried two different sites to transcribe this into Tengwar. One is Tecendil and the other is Jens Hansen, whom I believe is the ringmaker who created the Ring of Power for both LOTR and The Hobbit. Interestingly, both results of the Tengwar writing came up the exact same.

However, I know it can be tough to get direct translations in many languages, let alone Elvish, and I am not sure I trust the Internet enough to go with the first translation I come across - especially for a tattoo. I also realise that it may not be possible to be too accurate as I am attempting to combine two different languages to create a name.

I would really appreciate any advice or information you may have.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Elaran]

The Ambar Eldaron dictionary is old and otherwise problematic. The "Jens Hansen" transcriber is faulty and limited, Tecendil is often accurate but can be buggy.

There is more than one way to decide on an Elvish name, but I would not count the "Laurelleth" approach among them. Sadly it is not quite possible to reach the true etymology of your name, so another approach like approximating the meaning (e.g. "plant / flower" to give a basic example) could work, for example the fact that the plant is "evergreen" can be used as an (or the) element in the translation (e.g. Himlaegil "Ever/continually-green-one(f.)", Uigalendis "Ever-green/bright-woman"). Alternatively one can translate a name that one wishes to have (my real name means "Knowledge" but my chosen Q./S. name is Elaran and means "Star-king").

I would not recommend attempting to tackle the "complicated" idea as a beginner. It is safe to say that no amount of immediate research would familiarise one enough to land on an accurate translation of a complex phrase.

 

[LauraLily]

Thank you for your response.

I like the idea of incorporating evergreen to symbolise it. I also did consider other names. Not this one in particular but I like how Tauriel means daughter of the forest. Something like that would be lovely.

Have you any recommendations on books or reputable sites to maybe learn some Quenya or Sindarin? Also then would Tecendil be OK to transcribe or have you a better source?

Thanks again 😊.

 

[Elthir]

I'm sure you've already thought of it but how about Laura in tengwar?

Laurefindel (Glorfindel) might pronounce it differently but so what

 

[LauraLily]

Ya I was thinking of just Laura in Tengwar script but I wanted to make it more Elven. Just here pretending I am in Middle-earth ha 🤣.

I suppose it would be the easiest option to transcribe English into Tengwar to start off anyway.

Thanks 😊.

 

[Elaran]

Thank you for your response.

I like the idea of incorporating evergreen to symbolise it. I also did consider other names. Not this one in particular but I like how Tauriel means daughter of the forest. Something like that would be lovely.

Have you any recommendations on books or reputable sites to maybe learn some Quenya or Sindarin? Also then would Tecendil be OK to transcribe or have you a better source?

Thanks again 😊.

I would recommend joining an active community of experts whose inputs (unlike any written lessons) remain up-to-date. Analysis never really settles, so even a month-old course can become partially obsolete with a new discovery between the lines. Now I know of only one such community, which happens to be mine. And though I have no particular interest in increasing the number of its members, sharing the invitation link could be seen as self-promotion, so it may be better to contact me privately.

I can help to form a name with a meaning like "Forest-daughter", but I would need to know what that meaning should be. And I mean English meanings, not particular Elvish words, the latter would be limiting and is prone to end up in uncharted waters (via unclear phonetic rules).