S. nef prep. “hither, on this (the speaker’s) side of; †beyond [loose translation]” (Category: Near)
A word appearing in the phrase nef aear, sí nef aearon “here ... beyond the Sea, beyond the wide and sundering Sea” (LotR/238), as well as an element in the name Nevrast “Hither Shore” (S/119; WJ/197) as opposed to Haerast “Far Shore” (PE17/27). In notes on Words, Phrases and Passages from the Lord of the Rings (WPP) from the late 1950s or early 1960s, Tolkien clarified that the actual meaning of nef was “on this (the speaker’s) side” and that it was derived from {✶nibā >>} ✶nebā based on {√NIB >>} √NEB “turn towards (speaker)” (PE17/27). In The Road Goes Ever On (RGEO) from 1967 he again said the literal translation of nef was “on this side of” (RGEO/64). Thus “beyond” is loose translations and “hither” is used in its archaic English meaning “situated on this side” rather than “**to here”.
Conceptual Development: The Early Noldorin Dictionary of the 1920s had ᴱN. neb “near” (PE13/164).
Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I would assume nef is a preposition and prefix meaning is “on this side of”, but as an adverb can be used in the sense “near” especially in opposition to something else that is “far” (and on the opposite side).
References ✧ LotR/238; PE17/27; RGEO/63-64
Glosses
Variations
Inflections
| nev | stem | ✧ PE17/27 |
Element In
Derivations
Phonetic Developments
| ✶nebā > nef | [nebā] > [neba] > [neva] > [nev] | ✧ PE17/27 |
ᴱN. neb adv. “near” (Category: Near)
Reference ✧ PE13/164 ✧ “near”
Element In