| People | |
| Kinn-lai | |
|---|---|
| General Information | |
| Languages | one of the many Avarin languages |
| Physical Description | |
| Lifespan | Immortal |
Kinn-Lai was a term used by some Avari to describe themselves. It is unknown if the name "Kinn-Lai" was applied to a particular group of Avari specifically or to all Avari as a whole.
Etymology
It is an Avarin word meaning "the People". It derives from Primitive Quendian kwendī.[1] The suffix -lai may be related to Quenyan lië "people", coming from the root LI (whence also Quenyan -li) by A-infixion, attested in the primitive language.[2]
See also
Portrayal in adaptations
1982-97: Middle-earth Role Playing:
- Kinn-lai, an articulation of "Quendi" (the most ancient name of the Elves), is also the name of a tribe of Avari Elves of the jungles of the Mûmakan in the Utter South of Middle-earth.[3]
2024: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- The branch of Avari corresponding to the Kinn-lai are found in the land of Near Harad, or "Shagâna" as it is called by the locals, and call themselves Avabár-kinta (People Without Home), or simply Kintai. They seek not to travel west either in life or after death, believing that the way there is forever closed to them, and have developed an elaborate system of beliefs and rituals regarding their fate after death, whether through fading or through violence in battle. The Wise who journey through those lands eventually reveal to some of the Kinta that some of what they believe is not entirely true.
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The War of the Jewels, "Part Four. Quendi and Eldar: Author's Notes to Quendi and Eldar", Note 9, p. 410
- ↑ "Avarin: All Six Words", Ardalambion [1], accessed 11 February 2024
- "The stem LI, the source of Quenya lië, may have produced lai by A-infixion (well attested in the primitive language)."
- ↑ Mark R. Feil (1997), Hands of the Healer (#2026), p. 18