S. -eg¹ suf. “diminutive/singular ending” (Category: Small, Little)
This is the usual Sindarin diminutive suffix, appearing as either -eg or -ig (VT42/30 note #42). The -ig form is derived from the early primitive diminutive ✶-iki (VT47/14 note #21). The -eg variant is derived from ✶-ikā (PE23/136) where the e is the result of a-affection. Based on the example N. {lhaweg >>} lhewig “ear” from The Etymologies of the 1930s (Ety/LAS²; EtyAC/LAS²), it seems the -ig variant would cause internal i-affection. The -ig variant seems to be favored after the vowels e, i while -eg is favored after other vowels.
The normal function of this suffix is to produce affectionate or diminutive word forms, such as affectionate honeg “little brother” and nethig “little sister”, or diminished Nogotheg “Dwarflet” and lebig “little finger”. However, -eg is sometimes used to produce singular forms from normally plural words, such as lotheg “single flower” from loth “inflorescence” (VT42/18) or gwanunig “single twin” from gwanūn “pair of twins” (WJ/367). See the entry on unusual plurals for more on singular suffixes.
Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Grammar of the 1910s had superlative diminutive G. {-inca >} -inci vs. regular diminitive G. -inthir (GL/16), while the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon had “dim[inutive] suffix” G. -chi or -chin(t) (GL/25). The suffixes -eg/-ig emerged in The Etymologies of the 1930s as noted above (Ety/LAS², PHILIK).
References ✧ PE23/136; VT42/30
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| ✶-ikā > -eg | [-ikā] > [-ika] > [-eka] > [-ek] > [-eg] | ✧ PE23/136 |
N. -eg¹ suf. “diminutive/singular ending” (Category: Small, Little)
Reference ✧ Ety/LAS² ✧ #-eg
Element In