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JRRT

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  1. JRRT
    [There has been some recent interest in my
    very old, very outdated Matoran Dictionary as of late; due, I think, to the discussions in this very interesting topic. Well, interest breeds motivation, and I've worked up the motivation to work out some significant revisions to the Dictionary, bringing it up-to-date with my most recent conceptions of Matoran etymology, as discussed at length in the "Meaningless Names" series. So enjoy this "Second Edition", if you will.]






    [update 8/6:
    It is finished. Rejoice! I have split the completed dictionary into a series of Volumes, due to the fact that our silly blog software cannot handle formatting at this level of intensity. Stay tuned.]






    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition




    Original materials compiled by the Scholar Ihu, 80m., Ko-Metru, Metru Nui. This dictionary is organized according to the order of the first letter of the Matoran word, in the sequence in which these letters appear in the General Alphabet of the Matoran ( through ). Each entry provides a description of the basic meaning(s) of the word and parts of speech, followed by an explanation of the word’s usage, etymological history, form, and development. Words whose etymologies are uncertain are labeled as such.







    † Entries marked with this symbol are entirely “non-canon”, i.e., they are reconstructed from authentic lexical elements but are not themselves attested in any Matoran source document. These entries are solely the fabrications of the human writing under the alias “Tolkien” and should be denoted as such in academic references.


     

    VOLUME I :: A-D


     
    -A-
     
    aft |n.cmpd.| bright mind [aft < av-et, from av “elemental light” (variant of avo, see entry) and et, a heavily reduced form of atu “mind/will”]
    agi-ya |v.| to wash over, immerse [From the modified verbal stem agi “elemental water; washing, immersion” (see entry ga) and the verbal particle ya]
    agni |n.| guard, soldier; lit. “great bravery” [agni < aki-nī, from aki “courage, bravery; aptitude, capability” and nī, a reduction of nui “great, significant”]
    ahkmou |adj.| 1. fitting, proper; lit. “according to measure”; 2. subversive, dishonest; lit. “through deception/trickery” [ahkmou < a-hiki-mou, from hiki (multiple meanings, see entries hiki¹, hiki²) and the split-particle -amu (a...mou) “through, by (transitional-instrumental)”]
    ai |pro.| he/she/it [3rd pers. sg., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    ai-nā |pro.| they [3rd pers. pl., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    aiye |vn.| collecting, assembling, gathering up [aiye < a-yi-i, from the verbal complex yi-ya “to collect, gather, bring together” (see entry) with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle ya. Variant forms: ayi, ai, ī]
    aiyeto |n.cmpd.| assembly, construction [aiyeto < aiye-et-ō, from aiye “collecting, assembling, gathering up”, et, a heavily reduced form of atu “mind, will” (see entry), and the nounal particle ō]
    aiyetoro |n.cmpd.| assembly-line, construction process [aiyetoro < aiyeto-ro, from aiyeto “assembly, construction” and ro “line, edge” (variant of rho, see entry)]
    aju |adj./n.| intelligent; intelligence [aju < atu-zu, from atu “mind, will” and zu “tactical”]
    -ak |p.| intensive particle
    aka(i) |vn.| power, empowerment, ability; lit. “energizing, empowering, actualizing/activating [akai > a-ka-i, from the verbal complex ka-ya with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle]
    akaku |n.| x-ray vision; lit. “sight-of-sight” [akaku < aku-aku, from an intensivizing reduplication of aku “sight, vision”]
    akamai¹ |n.cmpd.| mastery of courage/bravery [akamai < aki-amayi, from aki “courage, bravery” and amayi “adeptness, flexibility, mastery”]
    akamai² |n.cmpd.| unified mastery of power [akamai < akai-mayi, from akai “power, empowerment, ability” (see entry) and the stem-compound ma-yi “unified-mastery”]
    akamu |adv.| skillfully; lit. “through skill” [akamu < aka-amu, an adverb grammaticalized from the nounal complex aka-amu, from aka(i) “power, empowerment, ability” and the particle -amu “through, by (transitional-instrumental)”]
    akari |vn.| exertion, resistance; lit. “exerting, applying power” [akari < a-kar-i, from the verbal complex kar-ya with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle]
    akataiku |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi) lit. “empowerment of heat-vision” [akataiku < aka-taiaku, from akai “power, empowerment, ability” and taiaku “heat-vision”. Variant forms: akataku, akatāku, akataiaku - FD: NM]†
    akawi |vn.| flying, soaring, moving freely [akawi < a-kau-i, from the verbal complex kau-ya, with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle ya]
    aki |n.| courage, bravery; aptitude, capability; (honorific) leader, lord [aki < akai-ī, from akai “power, empowerment, ability” and the nounal particle ī, with slight metaphoric semantic shift]
    akili |n.| athletic-skill, skillfulness, adeptness [akili < aki-li-ī, from aki “courage, bravery; aptitude, capability”, the primeval modifying particle li and the nounal particle ī]
    akilini |n.| great athletic-skill [akilini < akili-nī, from akili “athletic-skill, skillfulness, adeptness” and the particle nī, a reduction of nui “great, significant”. Used as a term for a highly competitive and skill-intensive Matoran sport]
    aku |n.| sight, vision [etymology uncertain; possibly from a primeval verbal stem akoi, derived from ko “elemental ice; clarity, focus” via verbal modification, i.e., addition of the verbal particle ya, with splitting+displacement (ko-ya > a-ko-i > akoi > aku)]
    akuavo |n.| sun, star; title of one of the twin suns of Metru Nui [Originates as a conjunction of the ancient elemental stem avo "light" and the term aku "sight, vision". The word's usage as a title for one of the twin suns in the city of Metru Nui is probably historically based upon the fact that vision is given through light (as in the light of the eyes of the Matoran), and more colloquially upon the idea that the twin suns somehow represent the "eyes of Mata Nui", an idea which is afforded little credence by the educated community]†
    akuhi |n.| eye(s); lit. “sight-things” [akuhi < aku-hī, from aku "sight, vision" and the particle hī "thing, object, place"]†
    akuta |n.| knowledge [akuta < aku-tau, from aku “sight, vision” and the u-modified elemental stem tau “elemental fire; spirit/essence, result of process”]
    aku-ya |v.| to know [From aku “sight, vision” and the verbal particle ya]†
    ally |vn.| excellence, kindness, good-naturedness; lit. “being good/excellent” [ally < a-la-i, from the verbal complex la-ya “to be good/kind” with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle ya. Variant form: alai]
    amahti |n.| hand, grip; lit. "thing that holds, grips" [amahti < amat-hī, from the stem amat "use, hold, utilize" and the particle hī "thing, object, place". Variant form: amahi]†
    amaja |n.| council; lit. “using/expounding strategy” [amaja < amat-za, from amat "use, hold, utilize" and the stem za “planning, tactic”]
    amaki |n.| finger; lit. "part of hand/grip" [amaki < amat-kī, from the stem amat "use, hold, utilize" and the particle kī "part, piece, portion of". Variant form: amatki]†
    amana |n.| (re)forming, (re)making; (Kanohi-) healing [etymology uncertain; - FD: NM]
    amat |v./stm.| use, hold, utilize [etymology uncertain; possibly amat < a-mat-i via verbal modification, i.e., addition of the verbal particle ya, with splitting+displacement]
    amaya |n.| lit. “jack of all trades” [amaya < amayi-ha, an independent lexicalization of the nounal complex amayi-ha, from amayi “adeptness, flexibility; lit ‘unified mastering’” and the particle ha “from, out of (origin)”]
    amayi |vn.| adeptness, flexibility, mastery; lit. “unified mastering” [amayi < a-mayi-i, from the verbal complex mayi-ya “to accomplish, achieve; lit. ‘master (a) unified whole’”]
    -amu |p.| through, during (transitional-instrumental) [Variant forms: o(u)...ma, a...mou, o...m/n (splitting+displacement) - FD: LM#8]†
    ān |n.| being, individual [Variant form: -ann (Skakdi variant)]
    ana |n.| group, host; many beings [ana < ān-nā, from ān “being, individual” and the plural particle nā]
    anae |vn.| proliferation, multiplying [anae < a-nai-i, from the verbal complex nai-ya “to multiply, proliferate” with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle ya]
    antai |vn.| enlightenment [antai < a-nita-i, from the verbal complex nita-ya “to uplift, enlighten” with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle ya]
    antro |n.| administration, rule; lit. “guidance of beings” [antro < ān-trē-ō, from ān “being, individual”, trē (< tēr) “guide, guiding force”, and the nounal particle ō]
    antroz |n.cmpd.| tyrant; lit. “violent ruler” [antroz < antro-azi, from antro “administration, rule” and azi (variant of zī, see entry) “violence, predatory”]
    aodhan |n.| traveler [aodhan < aodhi-ān, from aodhi “travel (on foot)” (variant of aoduhi, see entry) and ān “being, individual”]
    aoduhi |vn.| travel (on foot) [aoduhi < a-oduh-i, from the verbal complex oduh-ya “to walk, travel on foot” (see entry) with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle ya. Variant forms: aduhi, aodhi]
    arktinen |n.cmpd.| glacier-climber [arktinen < ari-kotini-ān, from ari “striving, struggling; climbing” (variant of rī, see entry), kotini “glacier”, and ān “being, individual”]
    arta |n.| bondage, hindrance, limitation; (a) prison; lit. against-the-spirit” [arta < ār-ta, from the particle ār “applied, application (of)” (with later semantic shift to “(applied) against, resistance, hindering”) and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” - FD: MN#6]
    artakha¹ |n.| (archaic) forger, crafter [artakha < ar-takha-a, from the split-particle ār (ar...a) “applied, application (of)” and takha “crafting, craft” (see entry) - FD: MN#6]
    artakha² |n.cmpd.| (modern) (a) refuge, safe haven; lit. out-of-bondage [artakha < arta-ha, from arta “bondage, hindrance, limitation” and the particle ha “from, out of (origin particle)” - FD: MN#6]
    arthra |n.| echo, resonance [From a word coinage meant to reflect the sound of an echo via a reversible syllable structure. Variant forms: atra, artra, arthro]
    arthron |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) sonar-user; lit. “one who echoes/resonates” [arthron < arthro-ān, from arthro “ech, resonance” (variant of arthra) and ān “being, individual”]
    artidax |n.cmpd.| lit. “bondage/imprisonment-toward-greater-order”; paraphr. “prison to promote greater order” [artidax < arta-īda-ak-si, from arta “bondage, hinderance, limitation; prison” (see entry), the nounal complex ī-da “toward order”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si - FD: MN#6]
    aso |n.| sand [etymology uncertain; possibly from a primeval stem ās with a rough meaning of "shifting/dispersing earth/sand" and the nounal particle ō - FD: MN#2]
    aso-mahri |n.cmpd.| sea-shore, beach [From aso "sand" and mahri "ocean, sea"; also see synonymous entry asoro]†
    asoro |n.| beach; lit. "sand-shore" [asoro < aso-rho, from aso "sand" and rho "line, edge"; also see synonymous entry asomahri]†
    atu |n.| mind, will [etymology uncertain; possibly from a primeval verbal stem atoi, derived from tō “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (variant of tā with final ā > ō vowel shift, see entry) via verbal modification, i.e., addition of the verbal particle ya, with splitting+displacement (tō-ya > a-tō-i > atoi > atu). Variant forms: et, at, oth]
    atui |adj.| willful; of the mind [atui < atu-ui, from atu “mind, will” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: atti, atī]
    atu-ma |v.| to want, will [From atu "mind, will" and the verbal particle ma]†
    auhno |n.| mimicry, impersonation; lit. “many imitations” [auhino < auhi-nā, an independent lexicalization of the nounal complex auhi-nā, from auhi “imitation, practice” (variant of auhui, see entry) and the plural particle nā (with final ā > ō vowel shift). Variant form: ōhno]
    auhui |vn.| imitation, practice [auhui < a-uhu-i, from the verbal complex uhu-ya “to practice; imitate” with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle ya. Variant forms: auhi, ōhi]
    avahi |n.| (period of) time [avahi < avai-hī, from avai “time, progression” and hī “thing, object, place”]†
    avai |vn.| progression (of time); lit. “progressing of time” [avai < a-vā-i, from the verbal complex vā-ya, with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle]†
    avak |n./adj.| great brightness; blazing/painfully bright [avak < av-ak, from av “elemental light” (variant of avo, see entry) and the intensive particle -ak]
    avaku |n.| sun, star; title of one of the twin suns of Metru Nui [avaku < avo-aku, from avo "elemental light" and aku "sight, vision"; also see entry akuavo for further discussion of origin and usage]†
    avo |n./stm.| elemental light [avo < āvo, from the primeval elemental stem āvo “elemental light”. Variant form: av]
    avoborui |n.cmpd.| lightvine [avoborui < avo-oborui, from avo “elemental light” and oborui “vine, creeper” (see entry)]†
    avohkah |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) thing of light and energy [avohkah < avohi-kahi, from the compound avohi “light-thing” and kahi “power/energy-thing”]
    avohkī |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) lit. “measurer/measurement of light” [avohkī < avo-hīkī, from avo “elemental light” and hīkī (> hiki) “measurement” (see entry hiki¹)]
    avotai |n.| (a) lit torch [avotai < avo-ta-hī, from avo "elemental light", ta “elemental fire”, and hī “thing, object, place”]†
    avsa |n.| (Kanohi-) hunger for light [avsa < av-sā, from av “elemental light” (variant of avo, see entry) and the primeval stem sā “hungering, devouring, scattering” (related to ās "shifting/dispersing earth/sand", see entry aso)]
    avu |adj.| revealed, (newly) discovered, exposed [avu < avo-u, from avo “elemental light” and the adjectival particle u. Variant form: ava]
    awai |vn.| (Kanohi-) growth; lit. “becoming large, increase” [awai < a-wa-i, from the verbal complex wa-ya, with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle - FD: NM]†
    axalara |n.cmpd.| boundless capability; lit. “more excellent untamed capability” [axalara < axo-la-ra, from axo “greater capability” (see entry), the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”, and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    axo |n.| greater capability, valor [axo < aki-si-ō, from aki “brave, courageous, capable” (see entry), the comparative adjectival particle si, and the nounal particle ō. Variant forms: akso]
    axon |n.cmpd.| valorous/capable being [axon < axo-ān, from axo “greater valor” and ān “being, individual”. Variant form: axonn]
    azahi |n.| crime [azahi < azai-hī, from azai “violence” and hī “thing, object, place”]†
    azai |vn.| violence; lit. “attacking” [azai < a-zā-i, from the verbal complex zā-ya, with splitting+displacement of the verbal particle]†
    azibo |n.| pressure, strain; structural stress [azi-bā, from azi (variant of zī) “violence, predatory” and the elemental stem bā “elemental gravity; weight” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]

    -B-
     
    ba |n./stm.| 1. elemental gravity; 2. weight, consideration, pondering [ba < bā, from the primeval elemental stem bā “elemental gravity”. Variant forms: ba-, bal (l-modification), bō (ā > ō / __#)]
    bahrag |n.cmpd.| lit. “elder of the followers, vigilant/waiting elders” [bahrag < boh-raga, from boh “vigilance, watchfulness; awaiting, on-standby, ready-to-respond” and raga “elder, wise one” - FD: MN#2]
    balta |n.| pondering spirit [balta < bal-ta, from the l-modified elemental stem bal “elemental gravity; weight, consideration, pondering” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    barra |n.| war, conflict; instability, imbalance, chaos [barra < ba-ār-ra, from ba-ār “stability, balance; lit. application-of-gravity” (compound of ba “elemental gravity” and ār “applied, application (of)”) and ra “wild(ness); untamed” - FD: MN#5]
    barraki |n.cmpd.| warlord, military leader [barraki < barra-aki, from barra “war, conflict; instability, imbalance, chaos” and aki “leader, lord” - FD: MN#5]
    bitil |n.cmpd.| attentive/mindful one, one who is aware of surroundings [bitil < bi-til, from the stems bi (< vibi < fi-pi) “subtle creature” and til (< ti-el) “attentive(ness); lit. ‘sense of space’”]
    bo |n./stm.| 1. elemental plant-life; the Green; 2. living, growing, thriving [bo < bō, from the primeval elemental stem bō “elemental plant-life”. Variant forms: bo-, bol (l-modification), boul/bul (u/l-modification)]
    boga |n.| (plant-)sap; blood [boga < bo-ga, from bo “elemental plant-life” and ga “elemental water”. Variant form: bogga]
    boggarak |n.cmpd.| lit. “scourge of sap/blood; dehydrator” [boggarak < bogga-rak, from bogga “(plant-)sap; blood” (variant of boga, see entry) and rak “menace, scourge”]
    boh |stm.| vigilance, watchfulness; awaiting, on-standby, ready-to-respond [etymology uncertain - FD: MN#2]
    bohi |n.| (a) plant; form of vegetation [bo-hī, from bo ”elemental plant-life” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]†
    bohrok |n.cmpd.| awaiting commands, vigilant for commands; vigilantly awaiting/following words [bohrok < boh-oro-ak, from boh “vigilance, watchfulness; awaiting, on-standby, ready-to-respond”, oro “word, unit of communication”, and the intensive particle -ak - FD: MN#2]
    boki |n.| leaf; branch [boki < bo-kī, from bo “elemental plant-life” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion; segment”]†
    bolo |n.| fruit [bolo < bol-ō, from the l-modified elemental stem bol “elemental plant-life” and the nounal particle ō]
    bomba |n.cmpd.| trunk, branch, limb of plant [bomba < bo-mī-ba, from bo “elemental plant-life”, mī “up, upward, above” and ba “elemental gravity”, yielding a sense of “plant that rises against gravity”]
    bomo |n.cmpd.| hunter, tracker; lit. “master of vigilance/patience” [bomo < boh-mā, from boh “vigilance, watchfulness” and mā “mastery, control” (variant of ma(t), see entry, with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    bomonga |n.cmpd.| lone hunter/tracker [bomonga < bomo-nga, from bomo “hunter, tracker” and nga “one; first, lone”]
    bonu |n.| grass [bonu < bo-onu, from bo “elemental plant-life” and onu “elemental earth”]†
    bonu-leru |n.cmpd.| acid-grass [From bonu "grass" and the adjective leru "acidic". A term for the species of acid-grass found in the Northern Continent and in the island of Xia]†
    bordakh |n.cmpd.| lit. “vigilant judge/law-keeper” [bordakh < bor-dahki-ak, from bor (reduction from bohrok, see entry), dahki “judge, law-keeper”, and the intensive particle -ak - FD: MN#3]
    boreas |n.cmpd.| jungle-bird [boreas < bo-reas, from bo “elemental plant-life” and reas “bird; nesting creature” (variant of ris, see entry). Variant form: boris]
    botar |n.cmpd.| overseer, monitor; lit. “vigilant guide” [botar < boh-tar, from boh “vigilance, watchfulness; awaiting, on-standby, ready-to-respond” and the stem tār (< tēr) “guidance; guiding force”]
    bour |n./stm.| wilderness, barrenness [bour < bo-ūru, from bo “elemental plant-life; living, growing, thriving” and ūr(u) “un-, negative, not”. Variant forms: bouru, buuru]
    brakas |n.cmpd.| rahi-monkey; lit. mischievous-kau [brakas < brā-kau-s, from the stem b(e)rā “antagonistic, warlike, rogueish, mischievous”, the onomotapoeic element kau (an imitation of the kau-kau call of the Brakas monkey), and the Rahi-designation affix -s. Variant forms: brākas, brakashi, berakas - FD: MN#5]
    brander |n.cmpd.| mischief-maker, practical-joker; lit. “application-of-cunning-mischief” [brander < brā-nidi-er, from the stem b(e)rā “antagonistic, warlike, rogueish, mischievous”, nidi “cunning, slyness; thievery” and the particle er (< ār) “application of” - FD: MN#5]
    brutaka |n.cmpd.| warlike lesser-spirit of power [brutaka < brautaka < brā-ūta-ka < brā-ukuta-ka, from the stem b(e)rā “antagonistic, warlike, rogueish, mischievous”, uk(u)ta “lesser-spirit, being-of-lesser-rank; (a) kuta-level being”, and ka “power, energy, force, ability” - FD: MN#5]
    bula |n.| good fruit, berry [bula < bol-la, from the u/l-modified elemental stem boul “elemental plant-life” and the modifying particle la “excellent, good”]
     
    -D-
     
    dahki |n.| judge, law-keeper; lit. measurer-of-authority/order [dahki < da-hiki, from da “authority, order” (< za-ta) and hiki¹ “measurement, extent” (see entry). Basically synonymous with the parallel term vahki (see entry)]†
    daikau |adj.| rahi-like, beast-like [daikau < daika-u, from daika (variant of dika²) “rahi, beast” and the adjectival particle u. Applied to a species of carnivorous plant]
    dalu |n.| confidence, self-assuredness; lit. “orderly awareness” [dalu < da-lu, from da “authority, order” (< za-ta) and the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking”]
    damek |n.| efficient organization [damek < dame-ak, from dame (variant of dami, see entry) “organization, engineering” and the intensive particle -ak]
    dami |n.| organization; engineering; lit. “increasing in order” [dami < da-mī, from the stem da “authority, order” and mī “up, upward, rising”]
    darex |n.cmpd.| high command; highest authority [darex < da-rex, from da “authority, order” and rex “superior command, upper echelon” (variant of orix). Variant form: drex]
    daxia |n.cmpd.| authority/order over planning/schematics [daxia < dā-xia, from dā “authority, order” and xia “planning, schematic, engineering” (variant of zia, see entry)]
    de |n./stm.| elemental sound [de < dē, from the primeval elemental stem dē “elemental sound”. Variant form: de-]
    defilak |n.cmpd.| lit. “very cunning voice” [defilak < dei-fili-ak, from dei (< dehi) “voice, mouth”, fili “subtle, cunning”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    dehi |n.| voice, mouth [From de "elemental sound" and hī “thing, object, place”]†
    deika |n.| note, music [From dei “(physical) noise, sound” (from de “elemental sound” and the nounal particle ī) and ka "(creative) power, energy, force, ability"]†
    dekar |n.cmpd.| distress call, cry of distress; lit. “struggling cry” [dekar < deka-ari, from deka “rahi-noise; cry” (variant of dika¹, see entry) and ari “striving, struggling; climbing” (variant of rī, see entry)]
    de-ma |v.| to make noise/sound [From de "elemental sound" and the verbal particle ma]†
    derui |n.cmpd.| jaw; lit. "joint of mouth" [derui < dehi-rui, from dehi "mouth" and rui "joint". Variant form: dehirui]†
    destral |n.cmpd.| guidance system, charted course; lit. “guided/controlled course” [destral < desi-trali, from desi (< duisi) “course, passage” and trali “guided controlled” (see entries)]
    dezalk |n.cmpd.| warning cry; lit. “voice sensing great danger” [dezalk < dei-zali-ak, from dei (< dehi) “voice, mouth”, zali “foreboding, premonition, sense of danger”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    dika¹ |n.| whistle, tune; rahi-noise, cry [dika < dīka < deika, an independent lexical item derived from older deika “note, music”]
    dika² |n.| rahi, beast [A further lexicalization from dika¹ "whistle, tune; rahi-noise, cry" (see entry), eventually embodying the concept “beast; thing that makes rahi-noises”]
    dikapi |n.| Rahi-bird; lit. “whistling creature” [dikapi < dika-pi, from dika¹ “whistle, tune; rahi-noise, cry” and the particle pi “creature”. Variant form: daikapi]
    dosne |n.cmpd.| vein of rock/earth [dosne < dosi-onew, from dosi “course, passage” (variant of duisi, see entry) and the u-modified elemental stem onew (also onuw) “elemental earth; firm, steadfast; earthy”]
    dui |n.| limb, appendage; extension [dui < du-hī, from the stem du “extension, scope, reach; influence” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    duisi |n.| course, passage [duisi < du-isi, from du “extension” and isi “possible; possibility”. Variant forms: desi, dosi]
    dume |n.| influence, (political) power; lit. “extending (one’s) reach” [dume < du-mē, from du “extension, scope, reach; influence” and mē “up, upward, rising” (variant of mī, see entry)]
     
    ---------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
     
  2. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME II :: E-J


     
    -E-
     
    e- |p.| make, cause (causative/transitive particle)†
    ehlek |n.cmpd.| effective contact/communication [ehlek < ehl-le-ak, from ehl “seeking/searching; detection, sense” (variant of el), the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking”, and the intensive particle -ak, yielding an original sense of “seeking to communicate”, referencing the earliest Matoran attempts to make contact with sentient amphibious races]
    e-ka-ma |v.| to move X: to put, to give, to take [From ka-ma "to move" and the causative/transitive particle e-]†
    e-kuru-ha |v.| to anger, enrage [From kuru-ha “to rage, become angry” and the causative/transitive particle e-]†
    el |stm.| finding, seeking/searching; detection, sense [etymology uncertain; possibly augmented from the elemental stem le - FD: MN#2]
    elda |n.| detection, finding [elda < el-tau, from the stem el “finding, seeking/searching; detection, sense” and the u-modified elemental stem tau “elemental fire; essence, result-of-process” - FD: MN#2]
    e-le-ha |v.| to listen [From le-ha "to hear" and the causative/transitive particle e. Variant Form: e-lu-ha]†
    el-ma |v.| to seek, search [From the stem el “seeking/searching; detection, sense” and the verbal particle ma. Basically synonymous with el-ya “to seek out”. Variant form: il-ma]
    el-ya |v.| to seek out [From the stem el “seeking/searching; detection, sense” and the verbal particle ya. Basically synonymous with el-ma “to seek, search”. Variant form: il-ya]†
    e-mī-ma |v.| to lift, raise up, elevate [From mī-ma "to rise, levitate" and the causative/transitive particle e-. Variant forms: e-mai-ma, e-mē-ma]†
    epena |n.| 1. quarry-master, foreman; 2. upper quarry, initial excavation [epena < eh-pena; from eh “high, upper; important” (modified from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)”) and pena “quarry, carvings” (see entries)]
    e-turu-ha |v.| to frighten, cause X to be afraid [From turu-ha “to fear, be fearful” and the causative/transitive particle e-]†
     
    -F (PH)-
     
    fa |n./stm.| elemental magnetism [fa < fā, from the primeval elemental stem fā “elemental magnetism”. Variant forms: fa-, ?fā(n) (see entry fā(n))]
    fā(n) |stm.| limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling; sky [Possibly a modified form of the elemental stem fa (< fā) “elemental magnetism”. Variant forms: phā(n), fao (u-modified), faol (u/l-modified)]
    fano |n.| barrier, ceiling/roof; sky [fano < fān-ō, from the stem fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling, sky” and the nounal particle ō. Variant form: phano]†
    fanto |n.| (archaic) flying-thing, bird; lit. “spirit of the sky” [fanto < fān-tā, from fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling” and tā “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (with final ā > ō vowel shift). Variant form: phanto]
    fantoka |n.cmpd.| powerful sky-spirit, spirit of the sky [fantoka < fanto-ka, a modern word-coinage from archaic fanto “flying-thing, bird; sky-spirit” with addition of ka “power(ful), force, ability”. Variant form: phantoka]
    fau |n.| under-roof [fau < fā-uw, from fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling” and the stem uw “under, lower, below”. Used as a placename for a swamp, referencing the dense canopy]
    faxo |n.| greater stamina/abilities; lit. “greater/higher limits” [faxo < fā-ak-si-ō, from fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling”, the intensive particle -ak, the comparative adjectival particle si, and the nounal particle ō]
    faxon |n.| (Kanohi-) lit. “one who has greater stamina/abilities” [faxon < faxo-ān, from faxo “greater stamina/abilities” and ān “being, individual”]
    fe |n./stm.| elemental iron [fe < fē, from the primeval elemental stem fē “elemental iron”. Variant forms: fe-, feu (u-modified, see entry feu)]
    fe-ha |v.| to shape, make, craft [From the u-modified elemental stem feu “elemental iron; shape, craft, craftsmanship” and the verbal particle ha. Variant form: fu-ha]
    felnas |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) power-disruption; lit. “disrupting one’s sense of limits” [felnas < fā-el-nas, from the stems fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof, ceiling, sky”, el “finding, seeking/searching; sensing; detection, sense”, and the stem nas “scattering, dispersing, disrupting” - FD: MN#2]
    fen |n.| spider [fen < fi-ān, from fi “subtle, cunning, strong; web” and ān “being, individual”. A Skakdi dialectal equivalent of vis “Rahi-spider” (see entry)]
    fenrakk |n.cmpd.| lit. “spider-scourge” [fenrakk < fen-rak, from fen “spider” (Skakdi dialectal term, see entry) and rakk “menace, scourage” (Skakdi dialectal variant of rak, see entry)]
    feu |n./stm.| elemental iron; shape, craft, craftsmanship [Derived from the elemental stem fe “elemental iron” (see entry) via u-modification. Variant form: fu]
    fikou |n.| Rahi-spider [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is fikou < fi-ku, from fi “subtle, fine, cunning; web, silk” and the particle kuw “middle”, yielding a meaning of “(in the) middle of web”; another proposal is fikou < fi-hiki-o, from fi “subtle, fine, cunning; web, silk”, hiki (multiple meanings, see entries), and the nounal particle ō. Such a compound could be interpreted in two ways: “measurer of web/silk” (hiki¹, see entry) or “deceptive web” (hiki², see entry)]
    fohrok |n.cmpd.| (see etym.) [A word coinage created in imitation of the original term bohrok (see entry), replacing the initial boh with the stem foh, derived from feu “elemental iron”, yielding a sense of “iron-Bohrok, crafted Bohrok”]
    foto |n.| ember, spark [foto < fo-tā, from (o)fo “end, finish” and tā “elemental fire” (with final ā > ō vowel shift). Variant form: photo]
    fotok |n.| bright/burning ember [fotok < foto-ak, from foto “ember, spark” and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: photok]
    fusa |n.| (Rahi-) leaping-thing; lit. “desire/hunger for the sky” [fusa < fao-sā, from fao “sky, roof” (u-modified from fā(n), see entry) and the primeval stem sā “hungering; desiring”]
     
    -G-
     
    ga |n./stm.| 1. elemental water; 2. peace, calm, settledness; 3. tranquil, settled, undisturbed [ga < gā, from the primeval elemental stem gā “elemental water”. Variant forms: ga-, gal (l-modified), gau (u-modified), gaul/gol (u/l-modified), ag(a)i (verbal)]
    gadjati |adj.cmpd.| clear-minded, focused; lit. “mind-pattern like a pool of water” [gadjati < gadu-jatī, from gadu “body of water” and jatī, a reduction of jatui “personality; lit. ‘mind-pattern’” (see entry)]
    gadu |n.| pool, body of water [gadu < ga-du, from ga “elemental water” and du “extension, scope, reach; influence”]
    gadun |n.| water being/creature [gadun < gadu-ān, from gadu “pool, body of water” and ān “being, individual”]
    gadunka |n.cmpd.| powerful water-creature [gadunka < gadun-ka, from gadun “water being/creature” and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    gafna |n.| Rahi-rodent; lit. “many variations” [gafna < gaf-nā, from gaf “reflection; variation” (variant of gavi, see entry) and the plural particle nā. Applied to the gafna species of Rahi-rodent, referencing the various elemental breeds]
    gahi |n.| (water) droplet; ripple [gahi < ga-hī, from ga “elemental water” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    gahlok |n.| water-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    gāki |n.cmpd.| leader of water, water-leader [gāki < ga-aki, from ga “elemental water” and aki “leader, lord”]
    gali¹ |adj.| watery, wet [ga-li, from ga “elemental water” and the primeval modifying particle li]
    gali² |n.| water (in general); sea, ocean [gali < gal-ī, from the l-modified elemental stem gal “elemental water” and the nounal particle ī]
    galonu |n.cmpd.| mud, swampy earth [From the l-modified elemental stem gal “elemental water” and onu “elemental earth”. Variant form: galnu]†
    galonuhi |n.cmpd.| swamp [galonuhi < galonu-hī, from galonu “mud, swampy earth” (see entry) and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant form: galnuhi]†
    galonu-wahi |n.cmpd.| swamp [From galonu “mud, swampy earth” and wahi “region, place” (see entries). Basically synonymous with galonuhi (see entry). Variant form: galnuhi-wahi]†
    gamadu |n.cmpd.| jungle-tree; lit. “wet tree” [gamadu < ga-madu, from ga “elemental water” and madu “tree; spire, tower”]†
    gamaduhi |n.cmpd.| jungle; lit. “wet-tree place” [gamaduhi < ga-madu-hī, from ga “elemental water”, madu “tree; spire, tower”, and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]†
    gamadu-wahi |n.cmpd.| jungle [From gamadu “jungle-tree” and wahi “region, place” (see entries). Basically synonymous with gamaduhi (see entry)]†
    gar |n.| weight; importance [etymology uncertain]
    garai |n.| (Kanohi-) control of gravity/weight [etymology uncertain; potentially a compound incorporating a verbal noun arai “reacting; acting upon”]
    garan |n.| important one [garan < gar-ān, from gar “weight; importance” and ān “being, one”]
    gārdus |n.cmpd.| important advancement/improvement [gārdus < gār-du-s, from gār (> gar) “weight; importance”, du “extension, scope, reach; influence”, and the Rahi-designation affix -s]
    gavi |n.| reflection; variation [gavo < ga-avo-ī, from ga “elemental water”, avo “elemental light”, and the nounal particle ī. Variant forms: gafi, gaf]
    gavla |n.| good/pleasing reflection [gavla < gavi-la, from gavi “reflection; variation” and the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”]
    gheku |n.| fortune, luck [etymology uncertain; one proposed etymology is gheku < gahi-aku, from gahi “(water) droplets; ripples” and aku “sight, vision”, yielding an original sense of “watching droplets/ripples; watching where droplets fall”, possibly more in reference to “chance”]
    ghekula |n.| (Rahi-) good fortune/luck [ghekula < gheku-la, from gheku “fortune, luck” and the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”]
    gol-ya |v.| to water, make wet [From the modified u/l-elemental stem gol (< gaul) “elemental water” and the verbal particle ya]
    golyo |n.| watering, irrigating/irrigation [golyo < gol-ya-ō, from the verbal complex gol-ya “to water, make wet” and the nounal particle ō]
    gorast |n.cmpd.| storm, hurricane; lit. “scattering of wild water” [gorast < gau-ra-sta, from the u-modified elemental stem gau “elemental water”, ra “wild(ness), untamed”, and the stem sta “scattering, consuming” (< sā-ta)]
    grālo |n.| Rahi bear; Ash Bear [grālo < grāl-ō, from grāl, an onomatopoeic word symbolizing the roar of the Ash Bear, and the nounal particle ō]
    grālok |n.cmpd.| mighty Ash Bear [grālok < grālo-ak, from grālo “Ash Bear” and the intensive particle -ak]
    gukko |n.| Rahi bird-species [gukko < goko < goh-kua, a southern dialectal form of original goko , from goh (an onomatopoeic imitation of the call of the kahu subspecies of gukko) and the stem kua “flying thing” (see entry)]
    gūr |n.| disintegration, disturbance [gūr < ga-ūru, from ga “elemental water; tranquil, settled, undisturbed” and ūr(u) “un-, negative, not” - FD: MN#1]
    gūrahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “disintegrating wild thing; disintegrator” [gūrahk < gūr-rahk, from gūr “disintegration, disturbance” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
     
    -H-
     
    -ha |p.| verbal particle [Variant form: -kha]
    -ha |p.| from, out of (origin particle) [-ha (see allomorphs) < *-hā. Variant forms: -ka/-kha (after short vowels), -ga (after /n/ and long vowels), -ka (after consonants) - FD: LM#8]†
    ha |n./stm.| protection; peace/calm, safety, systems-normal [ha < hā. Variant forms: haha (intensive redup.), hō (ā > ō / __#)]
    hafu |vn.| expertise, craftsmanship; lit. “making, displaying craft” [hafu < ha-fu, from the verbal complex fu-ha “to shape, make, craft” (variant of fe-ha, see entry) with displacement of the verbal particle ha. Variant forms: hafe, khafu]
    hagah |n.cmpd.| guardian; lit. “one who protects tranquility” [hagah < hā-ga-hī, from hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”, ga “elemental water; serenity, tranquility”, and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant form: hagahi]
    hahli |adj.| peaceful, calm [hahli < hahi-li, from hahi, a variant of hai “shield, relief, respite” (see entry) and the primeval modifying particle li]
    hahna |adj.| loyal, highly protective; lit. “many shields” [hahna < haha-nā, from haha “protection, loyalty” (an intensivized reduplication of ha “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”) and the plural particle nā]
    hahnah |n.| fiercely loyal thing [hahnah < hahna-hī, from hahna “loyal, highly protective” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    hai |n.| (a) shield; (a) relief, respite; lit. “thing that protects, calms, brings peace” [hai < ha-hī, from the stem ha “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant form: hahi]
    hak |n.| armor, callous [hak < ha-ak, from ha “protection, peace/calm, safety, systems-normal” and the intensive particle -ak]
    hakann |n.| bully; lit. “armored/calloused one” [hakann < hak-ann, from hak “armor, callous”, the intensive particle -ak, and ann “being, individual” (Skakdi dialectal variant of ān, see entry)]
    hara |n.| rope; flax [etymology uncertain]
    harakeke |n.cmpd.| flax-bush, rope-bush [From hara "flax, rope" and keke "bush, shrub"]
    hau |adj.| defending, protecting, shielding [hau < ha-u, from the stem ha “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal” and the adjectival particle u]
    helryx |n.cmpd.| lit. “upper echelon/high commander of security” [helryx < hel-oryx, from hel (< hā-el) “security; lit. ‘sense of protection’” and oryx “superior command, upper echelon” (variant of orix, see entry)]
    -hi |p.| thing, object, place [hi < hī. Variant form: -hī]
    hikaki |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) measuring bravery [hikaki < hiki-aki, from hiki¹ “part/piece/portion of something; measurement” and aki “bravery, courage; aptitude, capability”. Applied to the common species of Dragon Lizard, in reference to the creatures’ penchant for swimming in molten magma]
    hiki¹ |p.cmpd.| piece/part/portion of something; measurement, extent [hiki < hī-kī, from the particle hī “thing, object, place” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    hiki² |p.cmpd.| trickery, deception; lit. “(only) part of a thing, not whole” [hiki < hī-kī, from the particle hī “thing, object, place” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    hoi |n.| (Rahi-) name of Shore Turtle [hoi < hō-hī, independently lexicalized form of hai “shield” (see entry), from hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    hor |adj./adv./stm.| half, partly, almost [hor < horo < huw-rho, from huw “activity, sport” and rho “line, edge, boundary”, yielding an original sense of “(on the) edge/boundary of activity/state; ‘almost there’”]
    hordika |n.cmpd.| half-beast [hordika < hor-dika, from the stem hor “half, partly, almost” and dika² “rahi, beast”]
    hoto |n.| fire-elemental Rahi-insect; lit. “protected by fire” [hoto < hō-tā, from hō “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal” and the elemental stem tā “elemental fire” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    huai |n.| large-scale sporting event [huai < huw-wa-ī, from huw “activity, sport”, wa “wide, great, large” and the nounal particle ī]
    hui |n.| sport, game, activity [hui < huw-ī, from huw “sport, activity” and the nounal particle ī. Variant form: hī]
    huki |n.| agent, participant; player/competitor, athlete; lit. “part of sport/activity” [huki < huw-kī, from huw “sport, activity” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”. Variant forms: huwki, hewkii]
    huna |n.| (Kanohi-) invisibility; lit. “hidden activity” [huna < huw-nua, from huw “activity, sport” and nua “hidden, unseen, secret”]
    hura |n.| agitation, wild activity [hura < huw-ra, from huw “sport, activity” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    husi |n.| (Rahi-) lively creature [husi < huw-s-ī, from huw “activity, sport”, the Rahi-designation affix -s, and the nounal particle ī]
    hyda |n.| protecting/order-keeping spirit [haida < hai-ta, from hai “(a) shield; (a) relief, respite” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”. Variant forms: haida, haita]
    hydraxon |n.cmpd.| brutally capable peacekeeper [hydraxon < hyda-ra-axon, from hyda “protecting/order-keeping spirit”, ra “wild(ness), untamed; brutal”, and axon “valorous/capable being”]
    hydruka |n.cmpd.| aquatic Rahi (see etym.) [hydruka < hyda-ru-kau, from hyda “protecting spirit”, ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and kau “free-flowing, breathing; breath” (see entry), yielding a sense of “protecting spirit oriented toward breath”, referencing the use of the hydruka by the Matoran of Mahri Nui as a means of harvesting precious air (“breath”) from airweed]
     
    -I-
     
    iden |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) 1. assembling mind and body; 2. one who fills vessels [multi. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is iden < aitaon < ayi-ta-on, from ayi “collecting, assembling, gathering up”, the stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”, and on, a heavily reduced form of onoi “body” (see entry); another proposed etymology is iden < aitan < ayi-atu-ān, from ayi “collecting, assembling, gathering up”, atu “mind, will”, and ān “being, individual”]
    idris |n.| high-flying bird [idris < ihti-ris, from ihti “high space” and ris “Rahi bird”]
    ign(a)i |n.| everything; lit. “all parts, every part” [ignai < iki-nai, from iki “part, piece” (variant of kī, see entry) and nai “all” (also variant nī)]
    ignalu |n.cmpd.| high-alert; lit. “listening to everything” [ignalu < ignai-lu, from ignai “everything” and the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking”. Used as a term for the highly dangerous Matoran sport of lava-surfing. Variant form: ignailu]
    ignika |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) power/force of life; lit. “power of everything, all parts” [ignika < igni-ka, from ign(a)i “everything” and ka ”power, force, ability”. Variant form: ignaika]
    ī(h)- |p.| to, toward (endpoint particle)†
    ihti |n.| high space [ihti < īh-ti, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and ti “space, area”]
    ihu |adj.| high, elevated; far-seeing, wise [ihu < ih-u, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and the adjectival particle u. Variant form: inihu]
    ikarax |n.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) motivator; lit. “toward greater motivation”; 2. (modern) agitator, usurper; lit. “toward greater resistance/conflict” [icarax < ī-kar-ak-si, from the particle ī- “to/toward (endpoint)”, the stem kar(a) “application of power/energy; rejection, repulsion” (< ka-ār), the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si. Variant form: icarax - FD: MN#4]
    ini |n.| star(s) [ini < inih, from the stem i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)”]
    inika |n.| star-energy; lit. “energy of a star” [inika < ini-ka, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    inikhi |n.| high-place; mountain-top [inihi < inih-hī, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant form: ikhi]†
    initoi |n.| the Red Star [initoi < ini-toi, from ini “star” and toi “red”]†
    ini-wahi |n.| the heavens; lit. “star-place(s)” [From ini “star” and wahi “region, place”]†
    ino |n.| mountain, peak [ino < ih-nu-ō, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)”, nu (< onu) “elemental earth”, and the nounal particle ō. Variant forms: inuo, inou]†
    iraka |vn.| wrongdoing, crime; murder [iraka < i-rak-a, from the verbal complex rak-ya “to commit crime/violence” (see entry) with uncommon splitting+displacement (i...a) of the verbal particle ya (see entry)]
    iruini |n.cmpd.| star-gazer; lit. “orientation toward the stars” [iruini < ī-ru-ini, from the particle ī- “to, toward (endpoint), ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”, and ini “star(s)”]
    isi |n.| possibility [etymology uncertain - FD: NM]
    isima |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) control of possibility [isima < isi-ma, from isi “possible; possibility” and ma(t) “mastery, control” - FD: NM]†
     
    -J-
     
    jā |n.| strategy, tactics; pattern [jā < tza < ta-za, from the stem ta ”elemental fire; leadership” and the stem za “planning, tactics”. Variant form: jō (ā > ō / __#)]
    jaga |n.| Rahi scorpion [etymology uncertain]
    jala |n.| excellent strategy [jala < jā-la, from jā “strategy, tactics; pattern” and the modifying particle la “good, excellent”. Variant form: jola - FD: MN#6]
    jaller |n.cmpd.| excellent strategist/tactician; lit. “application of good strategy” [jaller < jā-la-er, from jā “strategy, tactics; pattern”, the modifying particle la “good, excellent”, and the particle er (< ār) “application of” - FD: MN#6]
    jātikko |n.cmpd.| icy weather-pattern; lit. “pattern of icy wind” [jātikko < jā-tikko, from jā “strategy, tactics; pattern” and tikko “icy wind”]
    jatui |n.| personality; lit. “mind-pattern” [jatui < jā-atui, from jā “strategy, tactics; pattern” and atui “willful; of the mind”]
    jerbraz |n.cmpd.| veteran soldier/strategizer [jerbraz < jer-brā-azi, from the stem jer “strategizing” (< jā-er), the stem b(e)rā “antagonistic, warlike, rogueish, mischievous”, and azi (variant of zī) “violence, predatory”, yielding an original sense of “strategizing for warlike-violence”]
    jetrax |n.cmpd.| lit. “wild spirit of empty space” [jetrax < je-tara-ak-si, from je “empty/emptied space” (variant of ji), tara “wild spirit”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si. Variant forms: jetarax]
    ji |n./stm.| empty/emptied space [ji < ti-zi, from ti “space, area” and zi “empty, emptied out, drained” (variant of ze, see entry)]
    johi |n.| (a) strategy, complex pattern [johi < jō-hī, from jō “strategy, tactics; pattern” and hī “thing, object, place”]
    johmak |n.cmpd.| master of strategy/complex patterns [johmak < johi-ma-ak, from johi “(a) strategy, complex pattern”, ma(t) “mastery, control”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    jovan |n.| cunning strategist [jovan < jovi-ān, from jovi “subtle/cunning strategy” and ān “being, one”]
    jovi |n.| subtle/cunning strategy [jovi < jō-fi, from jō (< jā) “strategy, tactics” (see entry) and the stem fi “subtle, fine, cunning”]
    ju |adj.| drained, sapped, weakened [ju < ji-u, from ji “empty/emptied space” and the adjectival particle u]
    jutlin |n.| (Kanohi-) decay, weakening [jutlin < ju-otilin, from ju “drained, sapped, weakened” and otilin “steadily, soundly; structured, structurally sound”]
     
    --------------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
     
  3. JRRT
    [should've posted a reference-list like this a long time ago. Better late than never!]







    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    LIST OF VOLUMES


     

    =||=


     


    Volume I :: A-D







    Volume II :: E-J







    Volume III :: K







    Volume IV :: L-M







    Volume V :: N-P







    Volume VI :: R-S







    Volume VII :: T-U







    Volume VIII :: V-Z






    =||=


  4. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME V :: N-P


     
    -N-
     
    nā |p.| many, multiple (plural particle) [Variant forms: nāl (l-modified), -nō (ā > ō / __#]
    naho |n.| protection of many [naho < nā-hō, from the plural particle nā “many, plural” and hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    nai |n./p.| all [nai < nā-ī, from the plural particle nā and the nounal particle ī. Variant form: nī]
    nai-ya |v.| to multiply, proliferate [From nai “all” and the verbal particle ya]
    nalo |n.| group, collection, herd [nalo < nāl-ō, from nāl, a stem-modification of the plural particle nā, and the nounal particle ō]
    nekta |n.| overlord, high rank; lit. “very large spirit” [nekta < ne-ak-ta, from ne “great, big” (Skakdi dialectal variant of nui, see entry), the intensive particle -ak, and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    nektann |n.| overlord/high-ranking being [nektann < nekta-ann, from nekta “overlord, high rank” and ann “being, individual” (Skakdi dialectal variant of ān, see entry)]
    nga |adj./n.| one; first, lone [etymology uncertain]
    ngai |adj.| elite [ngai < ngaui, from nga “one; first, lone” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant form: ngoi]
    ngalawa |n.| boat-race; lit. “first-boat” [ngalawa < nga-lawa, from nga “one, first; lone” and lawa “boat, floating vessel”]
    ngu |adj./n.| last, final; alone [ngu < nga-u, from nga “one; first, lone” (see entry) and the adjectival particle u]
    ni |p.| one who (personifying particle)
    niazesk |n.| (Rahi-) terrible swarming predator [niazesk < niazis-ak, from niazis “Rahi-insect; swarming predator” and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: niazisak]
    niazis |n.| Rahi-insect; swarming predator [niazis < niya-azi-s, from niya “multiplying, swarming” (stem variant derived from the verbal complex nai-ya, see entry), azi “violence, predatory” (variant of zai, zī), and the Rahi-designation suffix -s]
    nidi |n.| cunning, slyness; thievery [nidi < ni-zi-ti, from the particle ni “person/place who”, zi “empty, emptied out” (variant of ze, see entry), and ti “vessel”, yielding an original sense of “one who empties vessels; thief”]
    nidhiki |n.cmpd.| 1. measurer of cunning; 2. cunning deception [nidhiki < nidi-hiki, from nidi “cunning, slyness; theivery” and hiki (multiple meanings, see entries)]
    nihu |adj.| starry; glittering, sparkling [nihu < nih-u, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and the adjectival particle u]
    niki |n.| (individual) star; lit. “piece of star(s)” [niki < nih-kī, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    nikila |n.cmpd.| precious falling-star [nikila < niki-la, from niki “(individual) star; lit. ‘piece of star(s)’” and the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”]
    nireta |n.| sailor, seaworthy one; lit. “spirit at home on the sea” [nireta < nī-rei-ta, from nī “(liquid) protodermis; sea, ocean”, rei “home, nest, safe place”, and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    nita |adj.| uplifted, enlightened [nita < ni-ta, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)” and the elemental stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    nita-ya |v.| to uplift, enlighten [From nita “uplifted, enlightened” and the verbal particle ya]
    nivawk |n.| Rahi-hawk; lit. “under the high sky” [nivawk < nih-fau-ak, from i(n)ih “high, elevated; star(s)”, fau “under-roof”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    nixie |n.| astrology, lit. “star-possibilities” [nixie < niki-isi, from niki “(individual) star(s), lit. ‘piece of star(s)’” and isī (< isi) “possible; possibility”]
    nohi |n.| face; mask [nohi < no-hī, from no (< ono) “protodermis” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Originates as a term used by mask-makers in reference to powerless Matoran masks]
    noi |n.| (liquid) protodermis; sea, ocean [noi < no-ī, from no (< ono) “protodermis” and the nounal particle ī. Variant form: nī]
    noka |n.| (Kanoka-) disk; powerful protodermic object [noka < no-ka, from no (< ono) “protodermis” and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    nokama |n.cmpd.| tide; current; lit. “movement of the sea (liquid protodermis)” [nokama < noi-kama, from noi “(liquid) protodermis; sea, ocean” and ka-ma “to move”]
    nokoro |n.| cliff, dome-barrier [nokoro < no-koro, from no (< ono) “protodermis” and koro “(archaic) wall, barrier”]†
    nokoro-nui |n.cmpd.| the Great Barrier [From nokoro “cliff, dome-barrier” and nui “great, significant”]†
    norik |n.| command of many [norik < nā-orik, from the plural particle nā “many, plural” and orik “command, authority”. Variant form: noryk]
    nua |adj.| hidden, unseen, secret [etymology uncertain; Variant forms: na, nu, ny]
    nuhvok |n.| earth-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    nuhrī |n.| mask-maker; lit. “oriented toward mask(s)” [nuhrī < nohi-rī, from nohi “face; mask” (see entry) and the particle rī, a reduction of rui “oriented toward” (< ru-ui). Variant form: nuri]
    nui |adj.| great, significant; large [nui < nā-ui, from the plural particle nā “many, multiple” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: -nī, ne- (Skakdi variant)]
    nui-jaga |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) giant Rahi-scorpion [From nui “great, significant” and jaga “Rahi-scorpion”]
    nui-kopen |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) giant flying carver [From nui “great, significant” and kopen “flying carver”]
    nui-rama |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) giant flying Rahi-insect [From nui “great, significant” and rama “flying Rahi-insect”]
    nuju |n.| secret intelligence [nu-ju < nu-aju, from nu “hidden, unseen, secret” (variant of nua, see entry) and aju “intelligent; intelligence”]
    nuparu |n.cmpd.| iron-monger; lit. “oriented toward earth and stone” [nuparu < nu-pa-ru, from nu “elemental earth”, pa “elemental stone”, and ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”]
    nūrakh |n.| firm-command-Vahki [nūrakh < nu-oro-akh, from nu “elemental earth” (variant of onu, see entry), oro “word, unit of communciation”, and the Vahki-designation affix -akh (reanalyzed from the older Vahki-designation terms, see entries bord-akh, rorz-akh, vorz-akh, zad-akh) - FD: MN#3]
    nuva |adj.cmpd.| new, brand new, original, unique [nuva < nui-ava, from nui “great, significant” and ava “revealed, (newly) discovered” (variant of avu, see entry)]
    nyn |n.| hidden/secret one(s) [nyn < ny-ān, from ny “hidden, unseen, secret” (variant of nua, see entry) and ān “being, individual”]
    nynrah |n.cmpd.| lit. “wilderness of the hidden/secret ones” [nynrah < nyn-rahī, from nyn “hidden/secret one(s)” and an archaic usage of the complex ra-hī “wild place, wilderness” (ra “wild(ness), untamed” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”)]
     
    -O-
     
    o |pro.| I [1st pers. sg., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    oa |pro.| you [2nd pers. sg., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    oa-nā |pro.| you all [2nd pers. pl., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    odina |n.cmpd.| hidden southern place [odina < odī-nua, from odī, a reduced variant of udui “south” (see entry), and nua “hidden, unseen, secret”]
    oduh-ya |v.| to walk, travel on foot [From oduh “leg” (variant of udui, see entry) and the verbal particle ya]
    ōhnorak |n.cmpd.| mimicking/impersonating menace; lit. “scourge of mimicry” [ōhnorak < ōhno-rak, from ōhno “mimicry, impersonation” (variant of auhno, see entry) and rak “menace, scourge”]
    -oki |p.| in, on, at; during (basic locative particle) [Variant form: ki/ke...o (splitting+displacement) - FD: LM#8]
    okoth |adj.cmpd.| adventurous, tenacious, exploratory; lit. “will of (a) diving-bird” [okoth < ukua-ath, from ukua “diving-bird” and ath “mind, will” (a heavily reduced form of atu, see entry). Variant forms: okotu, ukot, ukuatu]
    olisi |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) possible available courses/pathways [olisi < ol-isi, from the stem ol “door, gate, opening; available course/pathway” and isi “possible; possibility” - FD: MN#1]
    olmak |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) powerful control of doors/gateways (dimensional gates) [olmak < ol-ma-ak, from the stem ol “door, gate, opening; available course/pathway”, ma(t) “mastery, control”, and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: olmatak - FD: MN#1]
    olo |n.| door, entrance, gateway [olo < ol-ō, from the stem ol “door, gate, opening; available course/pathway” and the nounal particle ō - FD: MN#1]
    o-nā |pro.| we [1st pers. pl., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    one |adj.| firm, steadfast; earthy, foundational [one < onew, from the u-modified elemental stem onew “elemental earth; firm, steadfast; earthy” (variant of onuw, see entry)]
    onepu |n.cmpd.| firm/steadfast friend [onepu < one-pu, from one “firm, steadfast; earthy, foundational” and pu “friend, ally”. Variant form: onupu]
    onewa |n.cmpd.| firm/steadfast foundation [onewa < one-wa, from one “firm, steadfast; earthy, foundational” and the stem wa “wide, great, large; expanse”]
    ono |n./stm.| protodermis [Variant form: no]†
    onoi |n.| body, form [onoi < ono-hī, from ono “protodermis” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant form: onohi]†
    onu |n./stm.| elemental earth [onu < onū, from the primeval elemental stem onū “elemental earth”. Variant forms: onu-, nu-, onuw/onew (u-modified, see entry onuw)]
    onua |n.cmpd.| broad earth [onua < onu-wa, from onu “elemental earth” and the stem wa “wide, great, large; expanse”]
    onui |adj.| black [onui < onu-ui, from onu “elemental earth” and the adjectival particle ui]†
    onuw |adj./stm.| elemental earth; firm, steady, steadfast; earthy [Derived from the elemental stem onu “elemental earth” (see entry) via u-modification. Variant form: onew]
    orde |n.cmpd.| mind, language/communicative faculty; lit. "vessel of words" [orde < or-te, from or "word, unit(s) of communication" (variant of oro, see entry) and te "vessel, contained space"]
    ori |n.| word; command [ori < or-ī, from oro “word, unit(s) of communication” and the nounal particle ī]
    orik |n.| command, authority, echelon [orik < ori-ak, from ori “word; command” and the intensive particle -ak. Also see related entry orok. Variant form: oryk]
    orix |n.| superior command, upper echelon [orix < orik-si, from orik “command, authority” and the comparative adjectival particle si. Variant forms: oryx, -rex]
    orkahm |adj.| racing along, careening, fluttering [orkahm < o-rakauhi-m, an adjective grammaticalized from the nounal complex o-rakauhi-m, from the split-particle amu (o...m) “through, by, via (transitional-instrumental)” and rakauhi “wild bird”. Variant form: orkan (with alternate o...n particle-split, see entry -amu)]
    oro |n.| word; unit(s) of communication [etymology uncertain. Variant forms: ro, or]
    oro-ha |v.| to communicate [From oro “word, unit(s) of communication” and the verbal particle ha]†
    orok |n.| order, directive, command [orok < oro-ak, from oro “word” and the intensive particle -ak. Also see related entry orik]
    oropi |n.| word-creature, speaker [oropi < oro-pi, from oro “word, unit of communication” and pi “agent, perpetrator; creature”]
    otilin |adv./adj.| steadily, soundly; structured, structurally sound [otilin < o-ti-la-n, an adverb/adjective grammaticalized from the nounal complex o-ti-la-n, from ti “space, area”, the particle -la “good, excellent”, and a heavily reduced form of the split-particle -amu (o...n) ”through, by (transitional-instrumental)”]
     
    -P-
     
    pahrak |n.| stone-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    paka |n.| strength; lit. “power of stone” [paka < pa-ka, from pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry) and ka “power, force, ability”]
    pakari |vn.cmpd.| strength, durability; lit. “exerting power of stone” [pakari < pa-akari, from pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry) and akari “exertion, resistance”]
    pakastā |n.cmpd.| harsh weather/the elements; lit. “scattering/consuming strength” [pakastā < paka-stā, from paka “strength” and the stem stā (< sā-ta) “scattering, consuming, driving out”]
    pala |n.| good/quality stone [pala < pa-la, from pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry) and the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”]
    panur |n./stm.| shattering, breaking, fragmentation [panur < pa-nu-ūr, from pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry), nu “elemental earth” (variant of onu, see entry), and the particle ūr(u) “un-, negative, not” - FD: MN#1]
    panrahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “shattering wild thing; shatterer” [panrahk < panur-rahk, from panur “shattering, breaking, fragmentation” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    papa |adj.| extremely hard, stony [From an intensivizing reduplication of pa “elemental stone” (variant of po, see entry)]
    par |adj./stm.cmpd.| strong, stolid, robust; strengthened, made strong; lit. “application of strength” [par < po-ār, from po “elemental stone” and the particle ār “applied, application of; applied against, resistance, hindering”. Variant forms: para, pra]
    parakrekks |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) lit. “strengthened/robust, extremely resistant force” [parakrekks < para-krekka-s, from para “strong, stolid, robust; strengthened, made strong” (variant of par, see entry), krekka “extremely resistant force”, and the Rahi-designation affix -s - FD: MN#4]
    pavohi |n.| lightstone [pavohi < pā-avo-hī, from pa “elemental stone”, avo “elemental light”, and the particle hī "thing, object, place"]†
    pe |stm.| carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down [pe < peu < pau, derived from the elemental stem po “elemental stone” (see entry) via u-modification]
    pehiki |n.cmpd.| small unit; lit. “carving-measurement” [pehiki < pe-hiki, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and hiki¹ “piece/part/portion of something; measurement”. Originates as a stone-crafting term designating a (generally small) amount of material to be removed from a sculpture]
    pehkui |adj.| (Kanohi-) miniature, diminished [pehkui < pehiki-ui, from pehiki “small unit” and the adjectival particle ui]
    peke |n.| carving; carver [An agentive variant of pekeke “shard, fragment, pebble” (see entry peki)]
    peki |n.| shard, fragment, pebble; lit. “piece of carving” [peki < pe-kī, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”. Also found in an intensivized form pekiki, pekeke]
    pekka |n.| avalanche, rockslide [pekka < pekiki-ha, an independent lexicalization of the nounal complex pekiki-ha, from pekiki “many stones/pebbles” (intensivized variant of peki, see entry) and the particle ha “from, out of (origin)”]
    peli |adj.| carven, sculpted [peli < pe-li, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and the primeval modifying particle li]
    pelagia |adj.cmpd.| carved/sculpted by waves [pelagia < peli-agiya, from peli “carven, sculpted” and agi-ya “to wash over, immerse”]
    pen |n.| carver [pen < pe-ān, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and ān “being, individual”]
    pena |n.| (a) quarry; lit. “many carvings” [pena < pe-nā, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and the plural particle nā]
    pi |p.| agent, perpetrator; creature [etymology irrational]
    piatra |n.| lit. “echo of carving” [piatra < pe-atra, from the stem pe “carve, chip; carving, sculpting, paring down” and atra “echo, resonance” (variant of artra, see entry). Variant form: peatra]
    pin |n.| subject, target; lit. “agent-being” [pin < pi-ān, from pi “agent, perpetrator; creature” and ān “being, individual”. Variant form: pain]
    piraka |n.cmpd.| criminal, wrongdoer; (obscenity) thief/murderer [piraka < pi-iraka, from the particle pi “agent, perpetrator; creature” and iraka “wrongdoing, crime; murder”]
    piriahi |n.| experiment [piriahi < piri-ya-hī, from piri-ya “to manipulate” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    piri-ya |v.| to manipulate [piri-ya < pi-rī-ya, from pi “agent, perpetrator, creature”, rī, a reduction of rui “oriented toward” (rui < ru-ui) and the verbal particle ya, yielding a sense of “actively orienting/re-orienting”]
    piruk |n.| skilled scout/agent [piruk < pi-ru-ak, from the particle pi “agent, perpetrator; creature”, ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    po |n./stm.| elemental stone [po < pā, from the primeval elemental stem pā “elemental stone”. Variant forms: po-, pa, poh, pe (< pau, u-modified, see entry)]
    podu |n.| stone outcropping, pinnacle, spire [podu < po-du, from po “elemental stone” and du “extension, scope, reach; influence”]
    pohatu |n.cmpd.| 1. will of stone; 2. protecting will of stone [multi. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is pohatu < poh-atu, from poh (variant of po, see entry) “elemental stone” and atu “mind, will”; another proposed etymology is pohatu < po-ha-atu, from po “elemental stone”, ha “protection, peace/calm, safety, systems-normal”, and atu “mind, will”]
    poi |adj.| brown [poi < po-ui from po “elemental stone” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant form: paui]†
    pokawi |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) lit. “flight of/like stone” [pokawi < po-akawi, from po “elemental stone” and akawi “flying, soaring; moving freely”. Applied to the pokawi Rahi-bird, in reference to its flightlessness]
    pouks |n.| stone-dweller [pouks < po-oki-s, from po “elemental stone”, the particle oki “in/on/at; during (basic locative)”, and the affix -s, usually reserved for Rahi-designations]
    prida |n.| governance, rule, strong authority; lit. “applying strength toward order” [prida < pra-īda, from the stem-compound pra “lit. ‘application of strength’” (variant of par, see entry) and the nounal complex ī-da “toward order”. Variant form: praida]
    pridak |n.| great ruler, governor [pridak < prida-ak, from prida “governance, rule, strong authority” and the intensive affix -ak. Variant form: praidak]
    pu |n.| friend, ally [etymology uncertain; possibly a modification of the elemental stem po “elemental stone”. Variant form: pew]
    puku |n.| amiable friend [puku < pu-kau, from pu “friend, ally” and kau “free-flowing, unhindered” (see entry). Variant form: pewku]
     
    --------------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| - Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
     
  5. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME VII :: T-U


     
    -T-
     
    ta |n./stm.| 1. elemental fire; 2. spirit, being, essence; 3. courage, ability, leadership; 4. fierce, rash, brash [ta < tā, from the elemental stem tā “elemental fire”. Variant forms: ta-, tal (l-modified), tau (u-modified, see entry tu), tah, tō (ā > ō / __# )]
    tahnok |n.| fire-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    tahtorak |n.cmpd.| very fierce speaker/orator [tahtorak < tah-toro-ak, from tah (variant of ta, see entry) “elemental fire; fierce, rash, brash”, toro “speaker, orator”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    tahu¹ |adj.| fiery, flaming [etymology uncertain; possibly tahu < tah-u, from tah (variant of ta, see entry) “elemental fire” and the adjectival particle u]
    tahu² |n.| play of flame; lit. “sport/activity of fire” [etymology uncertain; possible tahu < ta-huw, from ta “elemental fire” and the stem huw “sport, activity”]
    tai |n.| spirit, being, essence [tai < ta-ī, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and the nounal particle ī]
    taiki |n.cmpd.| lit. “spirit of (a) high place” [taiki < ta-ikhi, from the elemental stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and ikhi “high-place” (variant of inikhi, see entry)]
    taipu |n.cmpd.| friendly spirit [taipu < tai-pu, from tai “spirit, being, essence” and pu “friend(ly), ally”]
    taka |n.| firelight, torchlight, illumination; heat [taka < ta-ka, from ta “elemental fire” and ka “power, force, ability”, yielding a sense of “light cast by fire/torch; light that leads the way”]
    takado |n.cmpd.| lit. “order through enlightenment/illumination” [takado < taka-dā, from taka “illumination” (see entry) and dā “authority, order” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    takadox |n.cmpd.| lit. “greater order through enlightenment/illumination” [takadox < takado-ak-si, from takado “lit. ‘order through enlightenment/illumination’”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    takanuva |n.cmpd.| new illumination [takanuva < taka-nuva, from taka “illumination” (see entry) and nuva “new, original”]
    takea |n.| king of sharks [takea < ta-kea, from ta “elemental fire; courage, ability, leadership” and kea “Rahi-shark”]
    takha |vn.| crafting, craft [takha < ta-ha, nominalized from the verbal complex ta-ha “to heat, forge, weld; to craft (smthg); lit. make-with-fire” - FD: MN#6]
    taku |n.| Rahi-bird; flying spirit [taku < ta-kua, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and kua “bird, flying thing” (see entry). Applied to the taku subspecies of gukko-bird]
    takua |n.cmpd.| 1. bird of fire; 2. free/independent spirit; 3. broad illumination; great illuminator [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology, encompassing meanings 1. and 2., is takua < ta-kua, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and kua “bird; free, free-flying” (see entry); another proposed etymology is takua < taka-wa, from taka “firelight, torchlight, illumination” and the stem wa “wide, great, large”]
    talvi |n.| subtle flame [talvi < tal-fi, from the l-modified elemental stem tal “elemental fire” and fi “subtle, fine, cunning; web, silk”]
    tamaru |n.cmpd.| imagination, dream; lit. “flight of spirit” [tamaru < ta-mairu, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and mairu “levitation, floating” (variant of miru, see entry). Variant form: tamairu]
    tanma |n.cmpd.| soaring/uplifted spirit [tanma < ta-ān-mai, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”, ān “being, individual”, and mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry)]
    tara |n.| wild spirit; spirit of wildness [tara < ta-ra, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    tarakava |n.cmpd.| rapid/rushing spirit of wildness [tarakava < tara-kava, from tara “spirit of wildness” and kava “rapid, rushing, breathless”]
    te |stm.| vessel, contained space [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the stem ti “space, area” (see entry); one proposed etymology derives both stems from the elemental stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (see entry)]
    tehu |n.| archiving; archivist [tehu < te-huw, from the stems te “vessel, contained space” and huw “activity, sport”]
    tehutti |n.cmpd.| willful archivist [tehutti < tehu-atti, from tehu “archiving; archivist” and atti “willful” (variant of atui, see entry)]
    ter |stm./n.| 1. guidance, guiding-force; lit. “application of leadership” [ter < tēr < ta-ār, from ta “elemental fire; bravery, ability, leadership” and the particle ār “applied, application of; applied against, resistance, hindering”. Variant forms: -tar, tre, tra]
    teridax |n.cmpd.| lit. “guide toward greater order/greater execution of the Plan” [teridax < ter-īda-ak-si, from ter “guidance, guiding-force”, the nounal complex ī-da “toward order”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si - FD: MN#6]
    thok |adj.| extremely fierce [thok < tho-ak, from tho “fierce” (Skakdi dialectal variant of toi, see entry) and the intensive particle -ak]
    thulo |n.| obedience; lit. “excitement (about one’s) duty” [thulo < thou-lho, from thou “red; fiery, lively” (< tou, variant of toi, see entry) and lho “duty, function, assigned purpose”]
    thulox |n.| greater obedience [thulox < thulo-ak-si, from thulo “obedience”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    ti |stm.| space, area [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the stem te “vessel, contained space” (see entry); one proposed etymology derives both stems from the elemental stem ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (see entry)]
    tiki |n.| airspace; lit. “part of space” [tiki < ti-kī, from the stem ti “space, area” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    tikko |n.| icy wind [tikko < tiki-ko, from tiki “airspace; lit. ‘part of space’” and ko “elemental ice”]
    tiri |n.| wing, flat appendage [etymology uncertain; possibly tiri < ti-rui, from ti “space, area”] and rui “joint”]
    tiribomba |n.cmpd.| jungle-leaf; lit. “wing of branch/tree” [tiribomba < tiri-bomba, from tiri “wing, flat appendage” and bomba “trunk, branch, limb of plant”. Used as a term for the broad, spade-like leaves of the common gamadu tree]
    tiro |n.| narrow canyon/ravine; lit. “narrow/bounded space” [tiro < ti-ro, from ti “space, area” and ro “line, edge, boundary” (variant of rho, see entry)]
    toa |n.| hero, protector; lit. “spirit of protection” [toa < tau-hā, from the u-modified elemental stem tau “elemental fire; essence/spirit, result-of-process” and hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”. Variant forms: toua, tua]
    tobdu |n.cmpd.| iron will; lit. “will of (a) fiery being/creature” [tobdu < toubatu < tou-pi-atu, from tou “red; fiery, lively” (variant of toi, see entry), pi “agent, perpetrator; creature”, and atu “mind, will”]
    tobduk |n.| survivor, fighter [tobduk < tobdu-ak, from tobdu “iron will” and the intensive particle -ak]
    toi |adj.| red; fiery, lively [toi < ta-ui, from ta “elemental fire” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: taui, toui, tou, tuy, tho (Skakdi variant)]
    toro |n.| speaker, orator [toro < ta-oro, from ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and oro “word, unit(s) of communication”]
    toudo |n.| energetic/eccentric spirit [toudo < tou-tā, from tou “red; fiery, lively” (variant of toi, see entry) and tā “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    trali |adj.| guided, controlled [trali < tra-li, from tra “guidance, guiding force” (variant of tre < ter) and the primeval modifying particle li]
    trei |stm.| guiding together [trei < tre-yi, from the stem tre “guidance, guiding-force” (variant of ter, see entry) and yi “together, combined”]
    tren |n.| guide; lit. “guide-being” [tren < tre-ān, from the stem tre “guidance, guiding-force” (variant of ter, see entry) and ān “being, individual” - FD: MN#6]
    tridax |n.cmpd.| lit. “organizer of greater order/authority” [tridax < trei-da-ak-si, from the stem trei “guiding together”, da “order, authority”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    tryna |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) lit. “guiding together a great host” [tryna < trei-ana, from the stem trei “guiding together” and ana “group, host; many beings”. Variant forms: traina, treina]
    -tu |p.| spirit/essence; result of process [tu < tau, from the u-modified elemental stem tau “spirit/essence; result of process” (see entry ta). Variant forms: to-, -ta, -tau]
    tūli |adj.| animated, excited, energetic [tūli < tou-li, from tou “red; fiery, lively” (variant of toi, see entry) and the primeval modifying particle li]
    tur |n.| fear, terror [tur < ta-ūr, from ta “elemental fire; leadership, courage” and ūr(u) “un-, negative, not”]
    turaga |n.cmpd.| 1. courageous/leading elder; 2. elder-Toa [turaga < toa-raga, from toa “hero; protector” and raga “elder”]
    turahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “terrifying wild thing” [turahk < tur-rahk, from tur “fear, terror” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    turu-ha |v.| to fear, be fearful [From the stem tūr(u) “fear, terror” and the verbal particle ha]†
    tuyet |n.| fiery will [tuyet < toui-et, from toui “red, fiery” (variant of toi, see entry) and et “mind, will” (a heavily reduced form of atu, see entry)]
     
    -U-
     
    ua |pro.| one, they (impersonal) [4th pers., subject form - FD: LM#7]†
    udui |n.| leg; lit. “lower-limb” [udui < uw-dui, from the stem uw “under, lower, below” and dui “limb, appendage; extension”. Variant forms: odui, oduhi, oduh]†
    uduno |n.cmpd.| south (cardinal direction) [uduno < udui-ono, from udui “leg” and ono “protodermis”. This term patterns traditionally with terms for cardinal directions in that such terms appear to be derived from parts of the body (see entries maiduno, meno, midouno). Variant form: udouno]†
    uhu-ya |v.| to practice; imitate [From the stem uhu “practice, activity; imitation” (variant of huw “sport, activity”) and the verbal particle ya]
    -ui |p.| possessive particle [ui < *uai, originally denoting an object that possesses something. Variant form: wai- (see entry) - FD: MN#7]†
    uko |p.| outside, external (locative particle) [Variant form: ko...u (splitting+displacement)]
    ukua |n.| diving-bird [ukua < uw-kua, from uw “under, lower, below” and kua “bird, flying thing” (see entry)]
    (u)kuta |n.| lesser spirit, being of lesser rank [ukuta < uku-ta, from the particle (u)ku “middle, in the midst of” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    us |n.| steed; lit. “under-thing” [us < uw-s, from the stem uw “under, lower, below” and the Rahi-designation affix -s]
    us-ha |v.| to ride [From us “steed” and the verbal particle ha]
    ussa |n.| steed, mount, vehicle [ussa < us-ha, from the verbal complex us-ha “to ride”. Variant form: usha]
    ussal |n.| Rahi-crab; lit. “ridden/riding-thing” [ussal < ussa-li, from ussa “steed, mount, vehicle” and the primeval modifying particle li. Variant form: ushal]
    ussanui |n.cmpd.| great steed/vehicle [ussanui < ussa-nui, from ussa “steed, mount, vehicle” and nui “great, significant”]
    uw |adv./stm.| under, lower, below [Variant forms: u-, ū, au]
     
    ----------------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| - Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
     
  6. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME VIII :: V-Z


     
    -V-
     
    vā |stm.| 1. (abstract) time; 2. timeline, progression, advance, headway [Variant forms: vō (ā > ō / __#), vah-]
    vahi |n.| (Kanohi) lit. “time-thing” [vahi < vā-hī, from vā “(abstract) time” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    vahki |n.| judge, law-keeper; lit. “measurer of limits” [vahki < fā-hiki, from fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling, sky” and hiki¹ “measurement, extent” (see entry) - FD: MN#3]
    vakama |n.cmpd.| (the) future; lit. “movement of time” [vakama < vā-kama, from vā “time” and ka-ma “to move”]
    vako |n.| species of Rahi-bull; lit. “part of stampede/charge” [vako < va-kī-ō, from vā “time; timeline, progression, advance, headway”, the particle kī “part, piece, portion of” and the nounal particle ō. The term is applied in reference to the behavior of vako herds]
    valma |vn.| awaiting; lit. “seeking (a particular) time” [valma < vā-elma, from vā “time” and el-ma “to seek, search”]
    valmai |n.| (archaic) place of awaiting; cursed place [valmai < valma-hī, from valma “awaiting” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    vamprah |n.cmpd.| always feeding/devouring; lit. “continuously made strong/satiated thing” [vamprah < vamu-pra-hī, from vamu “always, continuously”, the stem pra “strengthened, made strong” (variant of par, see entry), and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    vamu |adv.| always, continuously [vamu < vā-amu, an adverb grammaticalized from the nounal complex vā-amu, from vā “time; progression, advance” and the particle amu “through, by (transitional-instrumental)”]
    varian |n.| 1. time-struggler; lit. “one who strives against time”; 2. prisoner; lit. “one who strives against bonds/limits” [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is varian < vā-ari-ān, from vā “time”, ari “striving, struggling; climbing” (variant of rī, see entry), and ān “being, individual”; another proposed etymology is varian < fā-ari-ān, from fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling”, ari “striving, struggling; climbing” (variant of rī see entry), and ān “being, individual”]
    vatuka |n.| (Rahi-) limited will-power [vatuka < fa-atu-ka, from fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling”, atu “mind, will”, and ka “power, force, ability”. Applied to the elemental vatuka rock-creatures, in reference to their apparently half-sentient nature]
    veli 1. |vn./adj.| (archaic) awaiting, abiding; 2. |n.| (modern) riddle, secret knowledge [veli < vel-ī, from vel-, a contraction of earlier valma “awaiting” (vel- < vā-el- < vā-el-ma) and the nounal particle ī]
    velika |n.cmpd.| 1. powerful abiding/awaiting one; 2. riddler, keeper of secret knowledge [velika < veli-ka, from veli “awaiting, abiding; riddle, secret knowledge” and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    vezo |n./adj.| double, twofold [etymology uncertain]
    vezok |n.| duplicity, treachery; lit. “very two-faced” [vezok < vezo-ak, from vezo “double, twofold” and the intensive particle -ak]
    vezon |n.| double, twin, doppleganger [vezon < vezo-ān, from vezo “double, twofold” and ān “being, individual”]
    vhiso |n.| scholar; lit. “desiring subtle-things/facts” [vhiso < fi-hī-sā, from fi “subtle, fine, cunning; web”, the particle hī “thing, object, place”, and the primeval stem sā “hungering, desiring”]
    vhisola |n.cmpd.| excellent scholar [vhisola < vhiso-la, from vhiso “scholar” and the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”]
    vika |n.cmpd.| cunning power/ability [vika < fi-ka, from the stem fi “subtle, fine, cunning; web” and ka “power, force, ability”. Variant form: vica]
    vikan |n.cmpd.| one with cunning ability [vican < vika-ān, from vika “cunning power/ability” and ān “being, individual”. Variant form: vican]
    vira |n.| 1. wildly cunning; 2. sprawling web [vira < fi-ra, from fi ”subtle, fine, cunning; web” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    vis |n.| Rahi-spider; lit. “web-creature” [vis < fi-s, from fi “subtle, fine, cunning; web” and the Rahi-designation affix -s]
    viso |n.| poison; lit. “spider-substance” [viso < vis-ō, from vis “spider” and the nounal particle ō]
    visorak |n.cmpd.| poisonous scourge, menace [visorak < visou-rak, from visou “poisonous” and rak “extreme wildness, lawlessness, violence; menace, scourge”]
    visou |adj.| poisonous [visou < viso-u, from viso “poison” and the adjectival particle u]
    vo |n./stm.| elemental lightning [vo < vō, from the primeval elemental stem vō “elemental lightning”. Variant forms: vo-, vol (l-modified)]
    vohi |n.| spark; discharge [vohi < vo-hī, from vo “elemental lightning” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    voho |n.| static, static charge [voho < vohi-ō, from vohi “spark; discharge” and the nounal particle ō]
    vohon |n.| static/charged being [vohon < voho-ān, from voho “static, static charge” and ān “being, individual”]
    vohta |n.| discharging/aggressive/volatile spirit [vohta < vohi-ta, from vohi “spark; discharge” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    vohtarak |n.cmpd.| lit. “volatile/aggressive menace” [vohtarak < vohta-rak, from vohta “discharging/aggressive/volatile spirit” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    voli |adj.| flickering, flashing, wavering [voli < vo-li, from vo “elemental lightning” and the primeval modifying particle li]
    volitak |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) stealth; lit, “flickering/wavering spirit” [volitak < voli-ta-ak, from voli “flickering, flashing, wavering”, ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    volo |n.| vitality, energy (substance) [volo < vol-ō, from the l-modified elemental stem vol “elemental lightning” and the nounal particle ō]
    vopo |n.| time-passing, age, erosion, entropy [vopo < vapo < vā-pā, from vā “time” and pā “elemental stone” (with final ā > ō vowel shift), yielding a sense of “time’s effect on stone; erosion”]
    voporak |n.cmpd.| lit. “scourge of time/entropy” [voporak < vopo-rak, from vopo “time-passing, age, erosion, entropy” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    vor |n.| hunger, energy-draining [vor < vō-ūr, from vo “elemental lightning” and the particle ūr(u) “un-, negative, not” - FD: MN#1]
    vorahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “devouring wild thing; devourer” [vorahk < vor-rahk, from vor “hunger, energy-draining” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    voriki |n.cmpd.| (a) lightning bolt, shaft of lightning [voriki < vo-rī-kī, from vo “elemental lightning”, rī “wild, uncontrolled, violent”, and kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    vorzakh |n.cmpd.| lit. “great restricting judge/law-keeper” [vorzakh < vor-zatahki-ak, from vor (< fā-oro, a compound of fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction” and oro “word, unit of communication” in imitation of boh-oro, see entry bohrok), zatahki “judge, law-keeper” (an earlier form of dahki, see entry), and the intensive particle -ak - FD: MN#3]
    vo-ya |v.| to conduct energy, flow (along), journey [From vo “elemental lightning” and the verbal particle ya]
    voya-nui |n.cmpd.| great journey [From voya “journey, current” (nominalized from the verbal complex vo-ya) and nui “great, significant”]
    vua |n.| great energy; power-reservoir [vua < vo-wa, from vo “elemental lightning” and wa “wide, great, large”]
    vuata |n.| power source; lit. “essence of great energy” [vuata < vua-ta, from vua “great energy” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    vuata-maca |n.cmpd.| power source and power distributor [From vuata “power source” and maca “power distributor”]
    vultraz |n.cmpd.| bird of prey; lit. “predatory sky-wing” [vultraz < fultriazi < faol-tiri-azi, from the stem faol “sky, ceiling” (u/l-modified from fā(n)), tiri “wing, flat appendage”, and azi “violence, predatory” (variant of zī, see entry)]
     
    -W-
     
    wa |adj./stm.| wide, great, large
    wahi |n.| region, place [wahi < wa-hī, from wa “wide, great, large” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    wai- |p.| possessive particle [wai < *uai, originally denoting an object as being possessed (by something). Variant form: -ui (see entry) - FD: MN#7]
    waikiru |n.| (Rahi) possessing tusks [waikiru < wai-kiru, from the possessive particle wai (originally denoting possession of the object) and kiru “tusk, tooth”]
    wairuha |n.| possessing wisdom [wairuha < wai-ruha, from the possessive particle wai (originally denoting possession of the object) and ruha “contemplation, stillness; wisdom” (variant of rua, see entry)]
    whe |n.| underground [whe < uw-hī, from uw “under, lower, below” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    whenua |n.cmpd.| hidden/secret underground [whenua < whe-nua, from whe “underground” and nua “hidden, unseen, secret”]
     
    -Y-
     
    -ya |p.| verbal particle [Variant forms: i...a, a...i (splitting+displacement)]
    yi |adv./stm.| together, combined
    yi-ya |v.| to collect, gather, bring together [From the stem yi “together, combined” and the verbal particle ya]
     
    -Z-
     
    za |n./stm.| planning, tactic [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the set of stem-forms zī, zē, zai “strategy, planning, scheming; violence; predatory” (see entry zī). Variant form: xa]
    zadakh |n.cmpd.| lit. “great judge/law-keeper” [zadakh < zatahki-ak, from zatahki “judge, law-keeper” (an earlier form of dahki, see entry) and the intensive particle -ak - FD: MN#3]
    zahi |n.| plan, schematic, strategy [zahi < za-hī, za “planning, tactics” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    zakaz |n.| war-zone, extreme violence; lit. “violence of violence” [zakaz < zai-ak-azi, from zai “violence” (variant of zī, see entry), the intensive particle -ak, and azi “violence, predatory” (variant of zī, see entry)]
    zakta |n.| very cunning spirit; lit. “spirit of great strategy/tactics” [zakta < za-ak-ta, from za “planning, tactic”, the intensive particle -ak, and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    zaktan |n.| lit. “one with a very sly/cunning spirit” [zaktan < zakta-ān, from zakta “very cunning spirit” and ān “being, individual”]
    zali |n.| foreboding, premonition, sense of danger [zali < zai-el-ī, from zai “strategy, planning, scheming; violence; predatory” (variant of zī, see entry), the stem el “seeking/searching; detection, sense”, and the nounal particle ī]
    zamor |n.| sphere [etymology uncertain; one proposed etymology attributes the development of zamor to a rarely-attested primeval form sferu (sferu > sefur > zevor > zamor), frequently appearing as part of a compound sferu-makna. The meaning of this term is uncertain, although it is found exclusively in texts related to the Great Beings. It does not appear to be Matoran in origin]
    zaria |vn.| retaliation; counterattacking, counter-strategy [From the verbal complex zari-ya “to retaliate, counterattack”]
    zari-ya |v.| to retaliate, counterattack [zari-ya < za-ari-ya, from za “planning, tactics”, ari “striving, struggling; climbing” (variant of rī, see entry), and the verbal particle ya]
    zatth |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) summoning; lit “mind/will of authority” [zatth < zata-ath, from a primeval compound za-ta (later da) “authority, order” and ath, a heavily reduced form of atu “mind, will”]
    ze |adj./stm.| empty, emptied out, drained [Variant forms: zi, se]
    zemi |n.| absence, excavation; lit. “increasing emptiness” [zemi < ze-mi, from ze “empty, emptied out, drained” and mi “up, upward, rising”]
    zem-ya |v.| to excavate, empty/hollow out [zem-ya < zemi-ya, from zemi “absence, excavation” and the verbal particle ya]
    zī |n./stm.| strategy, planning, scheming; violence; predatory [Variant forms: zai, zē, zy, xi, azi]
    zia |vn.| planning, schematic, engineering [From the verbal complex zī-ya “to strategize”. Variant form: xia]
    zivon |n.| creature of violent energy [zivon < zī-vo-ān, from zī “strategy, planning, scheming; violence; predatory”, vo “elemental lightning; energy”, and ān “being, individual”]
    zu |adj.| tactical [zu < za-u, from za “planning, tactics” and the adjectival particle u]
    zya |v.| (archaic) to strategize, attack [zya < zī-ya, from zī “strategy, planning, scheming; violence; predatory” and the verbal particle ya]
    zyglak |n.cmpd.| lit. “extremely treacherous/traitorous power” [zyglak < zy-kal-ak, from zy “strategy, planning, scheming; violence; predatory” (a variant of zī, see entry), the modified stem kal “power, force, ability”, and the intensive particle -ak]
     
    --------------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| - Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
     
  7. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME III :: K


     
    -K-
     
    ka |n./stm.| (non-elemental) power, force, energy; ability, (creative) potential [ka < kā. Variant form: ca]
    kabolo |n.| fruit of power [kabolo < ka-bolo, from ka “power, force, ability” and bolo “fruit”. Variant form: cabolo]
    kadin |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) flight; lit. “power of high-space” [kadin < ka-ti-ini, from ka “power, force, ability”, the stem ti “space, area” (variant of te, see entry), and ini “star(s); height”]
    kahgai |adj.| elite, powerful; lit. “immersed in power” [kahgai < kahi-agai, from kahi “power/energy thing” and the modified verbal stem agai “elemental water; washing, immersion” (see entry ga)]
    kahgarak |n.cmpd.| elite/powerful menace [kahgarak < kahgai-rak, from kahgai “elite, powerful” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    kahu |n.| Rahi-bird species (gukko-subspecies) [kahu < kau-huw, from kau “free-flowing, unhindered; flying” and huw “activity, sport”]
    kai¹ |n.| skill, ability [kai < ka-ī, from ka “power, force, ability” and the nounal particle ī]
    kai² |n.| unity; lit. “unified/combined power, force, ability” [kai < ka-yi, from ka “power, force, ability” and yi “together, combined”. Variant form: ky]
    kailani |n.| prowess, expertise, high-skill [kailani < kai-la-nī, from kai “skill, ability” (see entry), the particle la “good, excellent”, and the particle nī, a reduction of nui “great”]
    kaita |n.| spirit of unified/combined power [kaita < kayi-ta, from kayi “unified/combined power” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    kaj |n.| excavation, quarrying [kaj < ka-ji, from ka “power, force, ability” and the stem ji “empty/emptied space”]
    kakama |n.| (Kanohi-) speed; lit. “movement-of-movement” [kakama < ka-kama, from an intensivizing reduplication of the verbal complex ka-ma “to move”]
    kal¹ |n./stm.| action, capability [stem l-modified from ka “power, force, ability” (see entry)]
    kal² |n.| seeking power; lit. “detecting/finding/sensing power” [kal < ka-el, from ka “power, force, ability” and el “seeking/searching; detection, sense” - FD: MN#2]
    kalama |n.cmpd.| highly skilled/capable one; lit. “master of excellent ability” [kalama < ka-la-ma, from ka “power, force, ability”, the modifying particle -la “good, excellent”, and ma(t) “mastery, control”]
    kali |n.| ability, capability [kali < kal-ī, from kal¹ “power, force, ability” and the nounal particle ī. Variant form: cali]
    kalix |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) greater capability [kalix < kali-ak-si, from kali “ability, capability”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si. Variant form: calix]
    kal-ma |v.| to act, lead, initiate [From the modified stem kal¹ “power, force, ability” and the verbal particle ma]
    kalmah |n.| leader, forerunner, figurehead; lit. “thing that acts/is able” [kalmah < kalma-hī, from the verbal complex kal-ma “to act, lead, initiate” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    ka-ma |v.| to move [From ka “power, force, ability” and the verbal particle ma]
    kame |n.| finesse, increasing skill/ability [kame < ka-me, from ka “power, skill, ability” and mē “up, upward, rising” (variant of mi, see entry)]
    kamen |n.| apprentice, learner; lit. “one who increases in skill/ability” [kame-ān, from kame “finesse, increasing skill/ability” and ān “being, individual”]
    kanae |n.| harshly proliferating [kanae < ki-anae, from the stem ki “sharpness, harshness, biting” (variant of khi) and anae “multiplying, proliferation”. Largely a Le-Matoran dialectal term, applied to large bodies of water, in reference to choppy (“harsh”) waves]
    kane |n.| Rahi-bull [etymology uncertain]
    kane-ra |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) lit. “wild bull” [From kane “Rahi-bull” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    kano |n.| forged mask of power [kano < kanohi, a reduced form of older kanohi “mask of power” (see entry), also found further reduced as an affix -kan(o)]
    kanohi |n.cmpd.| mask of power [kanohi < ka-nohi, from ka "power, force, ability" and nohi “face; mask”]
    kanoka |n.cmpd.| disk of power [kanoka < ka-noka, from ka "power, force, ability" and noka “disk; powerful protodermic object”]
    kantai |n.cmpd.| power of enlightenment [kantai < ka-antai, from ka “power, force, ability” and antai “enlightenment”]
    kao |n.| power, energy [kao < ka-ō, from ka “power, force, ability” and the nounal particle ō. Variant forms: kō, cō]
    kapura |n.cmpd.| wise and powerful friend [kapura < ka-pu-rua, from ka “power(ful), force, ability”, pu “friend, ally”, and rua “contemplation, stillness, wisdom”]
    kar |n./stm.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) application of power/energy; 2. (modern) application of power against (something), repulsion, rejection, subjugation; 3. (modern) resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier [kar < ka-ār, from ka “power, force, ability” and the particle ār “applied, application of; applied against, resistance, hindering”. Variant forms: kara, cara, kera, kra, kre - FD: MN#4]
    karapar |n.cmpd.| stubbornness; lit. “strong/robust resistance (shell)” [karapar < kara-par, from the stem-compound kara “resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier” (variant of kar, see entry) and the stem-compound par “strong, stolid, robust; strengthened, made strong”. Variant form: carapar - FD: MN#4]
    karda |n.| heart, core, engine; lit. “ordered/rhythmic application of power” [karda < kar-da, from the stem-compound kar “application of power/energy” and da “authority; order”]
    karda-nui |n.cmpd.| great heart/engine [From karda “heart, core, engine” and nui “great, significant”]
    kardas |n.| (Rahi-) lit. “engine-Rahi” [kardas < karda-s, from karda “heart, core, engine” and the Rahi-designation affix -s]
    kar-ya |v.| to exert, apply power/force [From the stem-compound kar “application of power/energy” and the verbal particle ya]†
    karzahni |n.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) lit. “one who applies power according to plan/strategy”; 2. (modern) anomaly, enemy, error; lit. “one who rejects plan/strategy” [karzahni < kar-zahi-ni, from the stem-compound kar “application of power/energy” (see entry), zahi “plan, schematic, strategy”, and the particle ni “one who...” - FD: MN#4]
    kau 1. |n./stm.| breath; breathing; 2. |adj.| free-flowing, unhindered; flying [etymology uncertain; possibly kau < k-wa-u, from the split-particle (u)ku (k...u) “middle, in the midst of” and the stem wa “wide, great, large”, yielding an original sense of “out/in the middle of wide/open space”. Variant forms: ko, ku, ka]
    kaukau |n.| (Kanohi-) water-breathing; lit. “breath-of-breath” [From an intensivizing reduplication of kau “breath; breathing” (see entry)]
    kau-ya |v.| to move freely, fly, swim [From kau “free-flowing, unhindered” (see entry) and the verbal particle ya]
    kava |adj.| rapid, rushing, breathless; lit. “time of (a) breath” [kava < kau-vā, from kau “free-flowing, breathing” and vā “time”]
    kavinika |n.cmpd.| Rahi-canine [kavinika < kava-ini-kau, from kava “rapid, rushing, breathless”, ini “star(s)” and kau “free-flowing; breathing; howling” (see entry), yielding a sense of “breathless star-howler”, in reference to the nocturnal behavior of kavinika]
    ka-ya |v.| to empower, energize [From ka “power, force, ability” and the verbal particle ya]
    kazi |n.cmpd.| strategic ability [kazi < ka-zī, from ka “power, force, ability” and zī (zai, zē) “strategy, planning, scheming”]
    kē |n.| whole(ness); regeneration, restoration [kē < kī-yi, from the particle kī “part, piece, portion of” and yi “together, combined”]
    kea |n.| Rahi-shark/marine predator [etymology unknown]
    keahi |n.| tooth, fin; lit. “shark-thing” [keahi < kea-hī, from kea “Rahi-shark” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    keke |n.| bush, shrub [etymology uncertain; possibly from a reduplication of boki “leaf” (see entry): boki-boki “many leaves” > bokiki > keke]
    kēlerak |n.cmpd.| shrieking/screaming menace [kēlerak < kē-le-rak, from kē “sharp, biting/gnawing”, le “elemental air”, and rak “menace, scourge”]
    kērakh |n.cmpd.| harsh-command-Vahki [kērakh < kē-oro-akh, from kē “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu, see entry), oro “word, unit of communciation”, and the Vahki-designation affix -akh (reanalyzed from the older Vahki-designation terms, see entries bord-akh, rorz-akh, vorz-akh, zad-akh) - FD: MN#3]
    keras |n.| Rahi-crab; lit. “shell-spawn” [keras < kera-s, from the stem kera “resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier” (variant of kar, see entry) and the Rahi-designation suffix -s - FD: MN#4]
    kēto |n.| healer, lit. “spirit of regeneration” [kēto < kē-tā, from kē “whole(ness); regeneration, restoration” and tā “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    kētongu |n.cmpd.| lit. “last of healers” [kētongu < kēto-ngu, from kēto “healer” and ngu “last, final; alone”]
    khiara |n.| chain-lightning; lit. “wild(ly) stabbing” [khiara < khiya-ra, from khi-ya “to cut, stab” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”. Variant form: chiara]
    khirox |n.| lit. “many more teeth” [khirox < khiru-ak-si, from khiru (variant of kiru, see entry) “tooth, tusk”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si. Variant forms: khirux, chirox]
    khiu |adj.| sharp, biting/gnawing [khiu < khi-u, from the stem khi “sharpness, harshness, biting” and the adjectival particle u. Variant forms: khu, chiu, kē]
    khi-ya |v.| to cut, stab [From the stem khi “sharpness, harshness, biting” and the verbal particle ya. Variant form: chi-ya]
    kī |p.| part, piece, portion (of)
    kika |n.| (a) croak; croaking [From an onomatopoeic coinage kika, in imitation of the croaking of the makika Rahi-toad (see entry makika)]
    kikanalo |n.cmpd.| strength in numbers; lit. “group (made up) of powerful parts” [kikanalo < ki-ka-nalo, from the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”, kai “power(ful), force, ability”, and nalo “group, collection, herd”]
    kini |n.| temple; lit. “great part, significant part” [kini < kī-nī, from the particle kī “part, piece, portion of” and the particle nī, a reduction of nui “great, significant”]
    kini-nui |n.cmpd.| great temple [From kini “temple” (see entry) and nui “great, significant”]
    kinloka |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) powerful biting/gnawing horde [kinloka < ki-nalo-ka, from the stem ki “sharpness, harshness, biting” (variant of khiu, see entry) and nalo “group, collection, herd”, and ka “power(ful), force, ability”. Variant forms: kinaloka, khinloka, khinaloka]
    kirik |n.| chirp, chirping; chirping insect [From an onomatopoeic coinage kirik, imitating the sound of the kirikori Rahi-insect (see entry kirikori)]
    kirikori |n.cmpd.| Rahi-insect; lit. “creature communicating with chirps” [kirikori < kirik-or-ī, from kirik “chirp, chirping”, or “word, unit of communciation” (variant of oro, see entry), and the nounal particle ī]
    kirikori-nui |n.cmpd.| great kirikori [From kirikori “Rahi-insect” and nui “great, significant”]
    kiril |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) regeneration, restoration; lit. “oriented toward wholeness/restoration” [kiril < kē-ril, from kē “whole(ness); regeneration, restoration” and the modified stem ril (< ru-li) “orientation; oriented toward; intention”. Variant form: keril]
    kiro |adj.| bounded, within an edge/boundary [kiro < ki-rho-o, from the split-particle oki (ki...o) “in/on/at; during (basic locative)” and the stem rho “line, edge, boundary”]
    kirop |n.| soothing/restorative speaker [kirop < kē-oropi, from kē “whole(ness); regeneration, restoration” and oropi “word-creature, speaker”]
    kiru |n.| tusk, tooth; jaw [etymology uncertain; possibly kiru < ki-rui from ki “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu, see entry) and rui “joint; oriented thing”. Variant forms: khiru, chiru]
    kivi |n.| detail, facet [kivi < kī-fi, from the particle kī “part, piece, portion of” and fi ”subtle, fine, cunning; web”, yielding a sense of “subtle part”]
    ko |n./stm.| 1. elemental ice; 2. stillness, silence; clarity, focus; 3. icy, stern [ko < kō, from the primeval elemental stem kō “elemental ice”. Variant forms: ko-, koul/kul/kyl (u/l-modified)]
    koda |n.| determination, resolve [koda < kau-da, from kau “free-flowing, unhindered; flying” (see entry) and da “authority, order”. Variant form: kauda]
    kodan |n.| determined one [kodan < koda-ān, from koda “determination, resolve” and ān “being, individual”]
    kodrex |n.cmpd.| lit. “highest authority/control of power” [kodrex < kō-drex, from kō “power, energy” (variant of kao, see entry) and drex “high command; highest authority” (variant of darex). Variant form: codrex]
    kofo |adj.| small, little [kofo < kau-fā, from kau “free-flowing, breathing” (see entry) and fā(n) “limit, barrier, restriction; roof/ceiling, sky” (with final ā > ō vowel shift), yielding an original sense of “limit of/restriction on free movement”, eventually shifting toward “small space/range of movement” and repurposed as an adjectival modifier. Variant forms: kofa/kova; -k'fa > -fa, -va (heavily reduced, affixal)]
    kofo-jaga |n.cmpd.| small Rahi-scorpion [From kofo “small, little”, and jaga “Rahi-scorpion”]
    kohrak |n.| ice-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    koi |adj.| white [koi < ko-ui, from the elemental stem ko “elemental ice” and the adjectival particle ui; Variant form: koui]†
    kojol |n.cmpd.| icy/stern tactician [kojol < ko-jola, from ko “elemental ice; icy, stern” and jola “excellent strategy” (variant of jala, see entry)]
    koki |n.| snowflake [koki < ko-kī, from ko “elemental ice” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”. Also found in an intensivized form kiki (also kokiki), see entries boki, keke for a parallel development]
    kokkan |n.| lover of snowflakes; lit. “snowflake-being” [kokkan < kokiki-ān, from kokiki “(many) snowflakes” (intensivized variant of koki, see entry) and ān “being, individual”]
    kolhii |n.| game of koli [koli-hui, from koli “free-flowing, running; a Matoran sport” and hī, a reduction of hui “sport, game, activity”]
    koli |adj./n.| free-flowing, running; a Matoran sport [koli < kau-li, from kau “free-flowing, breathing” (see entry) and the primeval modifying particle li]
    komau |n.| (Kanohi-) mind control [komau < ko-ma-u, from the split-particle uko (ko...u) “outside, external (locative)” and ma(t) “mastery, control” - FD: NM]
    kongu |n.| solo-flight [kongu < kau-ngu, from kau “free-flowing, breathing; flying” and ngu “last, final; alone”. Variant forms: kaungu, koungu]
    kopaka |n.cmpd.| strength of ice [kopaka < ko-paka, from ko “elemental ice” and paka “strength”]
    kopeke |n.cmpd.| 1. ice-carving; carver of ice; 2. silent carver [kopeke < ko-peke, from ko “elemental ice; stillness, silence” and peke “carving; carver”]
    kopen |n.cmpd.| Rahi-wasp; lit. “flying carver” [kopen < kua-pen, from kua “flying thing” (see entry) and pen “carver”. Variant form: kuapen]
    kordak |n.cmpd.| desolation, destruction; lit. “powerful repulsion/explosion” [kordak < kardu-ak, from the stem-compound kar “resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier”, du “extension, scope, reach; influence”, and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: cordak]
    koro |n.| village, town, settlement defined by borders [koro < kar-rhō, from the stem-compound kar “resistance, resisting/repulsing; shell, barrier” and the stem rhō “ring, boundary, edge”, yielding a meaning of “edge/boundary of resistance” with reference to the outlying borders of early Matoran settlements, which were frequently delimited by walls or barriers. Variant forms: korro, karo]
    kotini |n.| glacier [kotini < ko-ti-nī, from ko “elemental ice”, ti “space, area”, and nī, a reduction of nui “great, significant”]
    kotu |n.| icicle [kotu < ko-tu, from ko “elemental ice” and tu (< du) “extension, scope, reach; influence”]
    krā |n./stm.| elemental shadow [From the primeval elemental stem krā “elemental shadow”]
    krāhi |n.| (a) shadow; darkness, gloom [krāhi < krā-hī, from krā “elemental shadow” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]†
    krahka |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) power in shadow/gloom [krahka < krāhi-ka, from krāhi “shadow, gloom” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    krāhkan |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) Mask of Shadows [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is krāhkan < krā-hiki-ān, from krā “elemental shadow”, hiki¹ “part/piece/portion of (something]; measurement”, and ān “being, individual”, yielding a meaning of “measurement of (one’s) shadow”; another proposed etymology is krāhkan < krāhi-kan(o), from krāhi “(a) shadow; darkness, gloom” and an affixed form of kano “forged mask of power” (see entry), yielding a (somewhat straightforward) meaning of “mask of shadows/darkness”]
    krāhu |n.| lit. “shadowy activity” [krāhu < krā-huw, from krā “elemental shadow” and huw “activity, sport”]
    krakua |n.cmpd.| shadow-bird, night-singing bird [etymology uncertain; one proposed etymology is krakua < krā-kua, from krā “elemental shadow” and kua “bird, flying thing” (see entry)]
    kralhi |adj.cmpd.| clandestine, surreptitious; lit. “fulfilling duty/function in the shadows” [kralhi < krā-lhi, from krā “elemental shadow” and lhi “fulfilling duty/function”]
    krana |n.| hive, hive-mind; lit. “many subjugations” [krana < kra-nā, from kra “subjugation; application of power against (something)” (variant of kar, see entry) and the plural particle nā]
    kranua |n.| lit. “hidden in shadow” [kranua < krā-nua, from krā “elemental shadow” and nua “hidden, unseen, secret”]
    krast |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) repulsion, rejection; lit. “driving out via repulsion” [krast < krā-sta, from kra “resistance, repulsion” (variant of kar, see entry) and the stem sta “scattering, consuming, driving out” (< sā-ta). Variant form: crast - FD: MN#4]
    krāta |n.| spirit of shadow [krāta < krā-ta, from krā "elemental shadow" ta "elemental fire; spirit, being, essence"]
    krāwa |n.| (Rahi-) lit. “large shadow” [krāwa < krā-wa, from krā “elemental shadow” and the stem wa “wide, great, large”. Coined as the name of a dangerous Rahi encountered in Metru Nui with the ability to dramatically increase its size by absorbing kinetic energy]
    krekka |n.cmpd.| extremely resistant force [krekka < krē-ak-ka, from kre “resistance, repulsion” (variant of kar, see entry), the intensive particle -ak, and ka “power, force, ability”. Variant form: krakka - FD: MN#4]
    krika |n.cmpd.| powerful insect [krika < kirik-ka, from kirik “chirp, chirping; chirping insect” and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    krom |n.cmpd.| lesser-master; lit. “master-within-boundaries” [krom < kiro-ma, from kiro “bounded; within an edge/boundary” and ma(t) “mastery, control”. Variant forms: kroma, kromata, kiro-mata - FD: MN#6]
    kua 1. |n.| bird, flying thing; freedom, independence; 2. |adj.| liberated, independent; free-flowing, flying, leaping [etymology uncertain; possibly kua < ku-wa, from the particle (u)ku “middle, in the midst of” and the stem wa “wide, great, large”, yielding an original sense of “out/in the middle of wide/open space”. Variant forms: ko, ku, ka, kual (l-modified)]
    kualsi |n.cmpd.| teleportation, quick-travel; lit. “flying/leaping between possibilities” [kualsi < kual-isi, from kual “free-flowing, flying, leaping” (l-modified form of kua, see entry) and isi “possible; possibilities”]
    kualus |n.cmpd.| converser with birds [kualus < kua-lu-s, from kua “bird, flying thing” (see entry), the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking”, and the affix -s, usually reserved for Rahi-designations]
    kuma |n.| Rahi-rodent; lit. “master of biting/gnawing” [kuma < kiu-ma, from kiu “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu, see entry) and ma(t) “mastery, control”. Applied to a common variant of the kinloka species of Rahi-rodent]
    kuma-nui |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) great kuma [From kuma “Rahi-rodent” and nui “great, significant”]
    kume-ha |v.| to hone, sharpen [kume-ha < ku-mē-ha, from ku “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu), mē “up, upward; rising/increasing” (variant of mi, see entry), and the verbal particle ha]
    kumo |n.| refinement, sharpening, honing [kumo < ku-mē-ō, from ku “sharp, biting/gnawing” (variant of khiu), mē “up, upward; rising/increasing” (variant of mi, see entry), and the nounal particle ō]
    kumu |adj.| partly-changed; lit. “in the middle of change” [kumu < ku-mu, from the primeval particle (u)ku “middle, in the midst (of)” and the stem mu “change, variation, difference”]
    kuna |n.| Rahi-snake; lit. “much twisting/turning/slithering” [kuna < kau-nā, from kau “free-flowing, breathing” and the plural particle nā]
    kur |n.| anger, rage [kur < ko-ūr, from ko “elemental ice” and the particle ūr(u) “un-, negative, not”. Variant form: kour - FD: MN#1]
    kurahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “raging wild thing” [kurahk < kur-rahk, from kur “anger, rage” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    kuru |adj.| angry, enraged [kuru < kur-u, from kur “anger, rage” and the adjectival particle u]†
    kuru-ha |v.| to rage, become angry [From the stem kūr(u) “anger, rage” and the verbal particle ha]†
    kyl-ma |v.| to freeze, frost over [From the u/l-modified elemental stem kyl (< koul) “elemental ice” and the verbal particle ma. Variant forms: koul-ma, kul-ma]
    kylma |vn.| deep-freeze, freezing, frosting over [From the verbal complex kyl-ma “to freeze, frost over”. Variant forms: koulma, kulma]
    kyrehx |n.cmpd.| unified power of community [kyrehx < ky-rehix, from ky “unity; lit. ‘unified power’” (variant of kai, see entry) and rehix “community”]
     
    ------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
  8. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME IV :: L-M


     
    -L-
     
    -la |p.| good, excellent (modifying particle) [etymology uncertain; possibly la < li-hā, from the primeval modifying particle li and the stem hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”]
    lari |adj.| refined, perfectionistic; lit. “oriented toward excellence” [lari < la-rī, from the particle la “good, excellent” and rī, a reduction of rui “oriented toward” (< ru-ui)]
    lariska |n.cmpd.| powerful refined-creature/perfectionist [lariska < lari-s-ka, from lari “refined, perfectionistic”, the Rahi-designation affix -s, and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    la-ya |v.| to be good/kind [From the particle -la “good, excellent” and the verbal particle ya]
    lawa |n.| boat, floating vessel [etymology uncertain]
    le |n./stm.| elemental air [le < lē, from the primeval elemental stem lē “elemental air”. Variant forms: le-, leu (u-modified, see entry leu)]
    lehvak |n.| air-designation Bohrok [FD: MN#2]
    lekha |vn.| interaction, conversing; hearing+speech [lekha < leu-ha, nominalized from the verbal complex leu-ha (see entry lu-ha). Variant forms: lukha, also found affixed as -lek]
    ler |n.| toxicity, poison [ler < lē-ūr, from le “elemental air” and the particle ūr(u) “un-, negative, not”. Variant form: lūr - FD: MN#1]
    lerahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “poisonous wild thing; poisoner” [lerahk < ler-rahk, from ler “toxicity, poison” and rahk “wild/untamable thing” - FD: MN#1]
    leru |adj.| acidic, toxic [leru < lēr-u, from the stem lēr “noxious, toxic; poison(ous)” and the adjectival particle u]†
    leso |adj.| wandering; lit. “scattering wind” [leso < le-sā, from le “elemental air” and sā “scattering, consuming” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    lesovikk |n.cmpd.| wandering judge [lesovikk < leso-vikk, from leso “wandering” and vikk, an extreme reduction of vahki “judge, law-keeper” (earlier vahiki > vaiki > vīk, vikk)]
    leu |n./stm.| elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking [Derived from the elemental stem le “elemental air” (see entry) via u-modification. Variant form: lu]
    leva |n.cmpd.| weather, weather-cycle [leva < le-vā, from le “elemental air” and vā “time; timeline, progression, schedule, cycle”]
    lewa |n.cmpd.| open air [lewa < le-wa, from le “elemental air” and wa “wide, great, large”]
    le-ya |v.| to hear; to receive [From the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking” and the verbal particle ya. Variant form: lu-ya]†
    lhī |adj.| virtuous, good, noble; fulfilling-duty/function [etymology uncertain; possibly an extreme reduction lhī < l’hui < li-hā-ui, from the primeval modifying particles li and ui (analogous to u/l-modified elemental stems, perhaps split from an even earlier particle -uil, -ol) and the stem hā “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”, yielding a meaning of “functioning well/normally; performing one’s function”]
    lhika |n.| integrity, uprightness; lit. “power/ability of fulfilling-duty” [lhika < lhī-ka, from lhī “virtuous, good, noble” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    lhikan |n.| upright one, duty-bound hero [lhikan < lhika-ān, from lhika “integrity, uprightness” and ān “being, individual”]
    lho |n.| duty; function, assigned purpose [lho < lhī-ō, from lhī “fulfilling-duty/function” and the nounal particle ō]†
    lohi |n.| cry, screech, scream [lohi < leu-hī, from the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    lohrak |n.cmpd.| screeching menace [lohrak < lohi-rak, from lohi “cry, screech, scream” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    lu-ha |v.| to interact, interface with; to converse [From the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking” and the verbal particle ha]†
    lui |adj.| green [lui < le-ui, from le “elemental air” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: leui, leo]†
    lumi |n.| greater insight; lit. “increasing perception” [lumi < lu-mi, from the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking” and mi “up, upward, rising”]
     
    -M-
     
    -ma |p.| verbal particle
    madu |n.| tree; spire, tower; lit. “extending upward” [madu < mai-du, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and the particle du “extension, scope, reach; influence”. Variant forms: maidu, midu]
    madumei |n.cmpd.| canopy; lit. “tree-head” [madumei < madu-mehi, from madu “tree” and mehi “head”]†
    maglya |vn.| succeeding, advancing; lit. “mastering power/force/ability” [maglya < makal-ya, from the verbal complex makal-ya “to succeed, advance, master/learn (a) skill”. Variant form: amagli]
    ma-ha |v.| to ascend/descend, move vertically [From mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and the verbal particle ha. Variant form: mai-ha]†
    mahi |n.| Rahi cattle, beast of burden, lit. “controlled-thing” [mahi < ma(t)-hī, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    mahiki |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) mastery of deception; deception-master [mahiki < ma-hiki, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and hiki2 “trickery, deception”]
    mahri |n.| ocean, depths; descent/ascent (through water); lit. “violent ascent/descent” [mahri < maha-rī, from ma-ha “to ascend/descend” and rī “wild, uncontrolled, violent” (< ra-ui). Variant forms: mahari, maihri, mahrui]
    mahri-nui |n.cmpd.| great ocean/depths [From mahri “ocean, depths; descent/ascent” and nui “great, significant”]
    maiduno |n.cmpd.| east (cardinal direction) [maiduno < maidui-no, from maidui “arm” (variant of midui, see entry) and ono “protodermis”. This term patterns traditionally with terms for cardinal directions in that such terms appear to be derived from parts of the body (see entries meno, midouno, uduno). Variant form: meduno]†
    maka |n.| power distributor; lit. “mastery of power” [maka < ma-ka, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and ka “power, force, energy”. Variant form: maca]
    makal-ya |v.| to succeed, advance, master/learn (a) skill [makal-ya < ma-kal-ya, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, the modified stem kal “power, force, ability”, and the verbal particle ya]
    makani |n.| shooting star, comet; lit. “star of/with flying power” [makani < mai-ka-ini, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry), ka “power, force, ability”, and ini “star”]
    makika, n .cmpd. (Rahi-) croaker, one who croaks; lit. “master of croaking” [makika < ma-kika, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and kika “croaking”]
    mako |n.| lock, bond; lit. “control of freedom” [mako < ma-kua, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and kua “freedom, independence” (see entry]
    makoki |n.| (archaic) key; lit. “piece/part of a lock” [makoki < mako-kī, from mako “lock, bond; lit. ‘control of freedom’” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    maku |n.| light-heartedness, optimism; lit. “upward-sight, looking-up” [maku < māku < mai-aku, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and aku “sight, vision”. Variant forms: macku, maiaku, mēku]
    makuta¹ |n.cmpd.| 1. master of knowledge; 2. higher knowledge [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is makuta < ma-akuta, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and akuta “knowledge”; another proposed etymology is makuta < mai-akuta, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and akuta “knowledge”]
    makuta² |n.cmpd.| master of lesser-spirits [makuta < ma-kuta, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and (u)kuta “lesser spirit, being of lesser rank”. Largely a scholarly term, indicating the hierarchical rank of the Makuta in relation to other beings]
    mamru |n.| crane/lift-operator, lit. “mastery of suspension” [mamru < ma-mi-ru, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, mi “up, upward, above”, and the particle ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”]
    mana |n.| servant, slave; enslavement; lit. “much control” [mana < ma-nā, from ma(t) “master, control” and the plural particle nā]
    mana-ko |n.cmpd.| silent slave [From mana “servant, slave; enslavement” and ko “elemental ice; silence, stillness”]
    manas |n.| monster, servant of evil; lit. “enslaved spawn” [manas < mana-s, from mana “servant, slave; enslavement” and the Rahi-designation suffix -s]
    mangai |n.| elite protector [mangai < ma-hā-ngai, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, hā “protection; peace/calm, safety, systems-normal”, and ngai “elite”. Variant form: mahangai]
    mangaia |n.| under-Mangai [mangaia < mangai-au, from mangai (used as a placename, see entry) and the stem au “under, lower, below” (variant of uw, see entry)]
    mantax |n.| conqueror, subjugator; lit. “spirit of greater-enslavement” [mantax < mana-ta-ak-si, from mana “servant, slave; enslavement”, ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    manu |adj.| enslaved, chained [manu < mana-u, from mana “servant, slave; enslavement” and the adjectival particle u]
    manutri |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) lit. “chained wings” [manutri < manu-tiri, from manu “enslaved, chained” and tiri “wing, flat appendage”. Applied to the common aquatic species of Rahi-bird, referencing their flightlessness]
    marka |n.| swimming, treading water [marka < marī-kau, from marī “arm(s)” (a reduced variant of mirui) and kau “free-flowing, breathing” (see entry)]
    ma(t) |n./stm.| mastery, control; master [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the coeval stems me(t) “upper-part, head; primary system” and atu “mind, will”, as well as the stem mi “up, upward, above” (see entries). Variant form: ma]
    mata |n.| master of spirits; master-spirit [mata < ma-ta, from ma(t) “mastery, control; master” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    mata-nui |n.cmpd.| great master of spirit; great master-spirit [From mata “master of spirit; master spirit” and nui “great, significant”]
    matatu |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) mastery of will(power) [matatu < mat-atu, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and atu “mind, will”]
    matau |n.| (high-)elevation, altitude; lit. “result/essence of upward-movement” [matau < mai-tau, from mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry) and the u-modified elemental stem tau “elemental fire; spirit/essence, result-of-process”]
    matoro |n.| mastery of words, word-master [matoro < mat-oro, from ma(t) “mastery, control; master” and oro “word(s)”]
    matoran |n.| speakers; lit. “word-master-beings; those who use words” [matoran < matoro-ān, from matoro “word-master” and ān “being, individual”]
    mat-ya |v.| to master, use [From ma(t) “mastery, control; master” and the verbal particle ya]†
    mavrah |n.cmpd.| lit. “master of revealed/discovered Rahi” [mavrah < ma-avu-rahi, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, avu “revealed, (newly) discovered”, and rahi “beast, wild thing”]
    maxi |n.| enforcement, pacification; lit. “more intensive control” [maxi < ma-ak-si, from ma(t) “mastery, control”, the intensive particle ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    maxilos |n.cmpd.| peacekeeper, security-unit; lit. “unit with enforcement/pacification function” [maxilos < maxi-lo-s, from maxi “enforcement, pacification, peacekeeping”, lo (< lho) “duty, function”, and the affix -s, usually reserved for Rahi-designations]
    mazeka |n.cmpd.| powerful spy/infiltrator [mazeka < maze-ka, from maze “spy, infiltrator” (variant of mazi, see entry) and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    mazi |n.| spy, infiltrator [mazi < ma-zī, from ma(t) “mastery, control” and the stem zī (zai, zē) “strategy, planning, scheming”. Variant form: maze]
    mehi |n.| head; skull [mehi < me-hī, from me(t) “head; mind” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant form: mei]†
    mehirui |n.cmpd.| neck; lit. "head-joint" [mehirui < mehi-rui, from mehi “head; skull” and rui “joint”. Variant form: meirui]†
    meno |n.| north (cardinal direction) [meno < me-no, from me(t) “head; mind” and no (also ono) “protodermis”. This term patterns traditionally with terms for cardinal directions in that such terms appear to be derived from parts of the body (see entries maiduno, midouno, uduno)]†
    me(t) |n./stm.| upper-part, head; primary system [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the coeval stems ma(t) “mastery, control” and atu “mind, will”, as well as the stem mi “up, upward, above” (see entries)]
    meto |n.| mind-brain, mental system [meto < met-ō, from me(t) “head; mind” and the nounal particle ō]†
    metu |adj.| mental, of the mind [metu < met-u, from me(t) “head; mind” and the adjectival particle u]†
    metru |n.| city; lit. “oriented toward the head” [metru < met-ru, from the stem me(t) “head; mind” and the particle ru “orientation, intention; oriented toward”. The application of this term to the city of Metru Nui is unclear, although it may pattern along with terms for cardinal directions, which appear to be derived from parts of the body (see entries maiduno, midouno, meno, uduno)]
    metru-nui |n.cmpd.| great city [From metru “city” and nui “great, significant”]
    mi |adv.| up, upward, above [mi < mī. Variant forms: mai, mē]
    midak |n.| lit. “fervently reaching upward” [midak < mid’ak < mi-du-ak, from mi “up, upward, above”, the stem du “extension, scope, reach; influence”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    midouno |n.cmpd.| west (cardinal direction) [midouno < midui-ono, from midui “arm” and ono “protodermis”. This term patterns traditionally with terms for cardinal directions in that such terms appear to be derived from parts of the body (see entries maiduno, meno, uduno). Variant form: midono]†
    midui |n.| arm; lit. “upper-limb” [midui < mi-dui, from mi “up, upward, above” and dui “limb, appendage; extension”. Variant forms: medui, maidui]†
    midurui |n.cmpd.| shoulder; lit. “arm-joint” [midurui < midui-rui, from midui “arm” and rui “joint”]†
    mi-ma |v.| to rise, levitate [From the stem mi “up, upward, above” and the verbal particle ma. Variant forms: mai-ma, mē-ma]†
    miru |n.| (Kanohi-) levitation, floating; lit. “upward orientation” [miru < mi-ru, from mi “up, upward, above” and the particle ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention”]
    misi |adj.| unknown, indistinct; misty, hazy [misi < me-isi, from me(t) “head; mind” and isi “possibility; possible”, yielding a sense of “possible thoughts, unknown thoughts”. Variant forms: meisi, metisi]
    miserix |n.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) high-level command of the mind; 2. mysterious/unknown high-level command [miserix < misi-orix, from misi “unknown, indistinct; misty, hazy” and orix “superior command, upper echelon”. Variant forms: miseryx, meserix]
    miso |n.| mist, fog, haze [miso < misi-ō, from misi “unknown, indistinct; misty, hazy” and the nounal particle ō]
    mistai |n.| unknown being, stranger, silhouette; lit. “unknown-spirit, spirit of mist” [mistai < misi-tai, from misi “unknown, indistinct; misty, hazy” and tai (also tī) “spirit, being, essence”. Variant forms: misti, misitai]
    mistika |n.cmpd.| powerful unknown spirit, spirit of mist [mistika < misti-ka, from misti “stranger, silhouette” (variant of mistai, see entry) and ka “power(ful), force, ability”. Variant form: mistaika]
    mo |n.| plains, broad expanse of land [mo < mō < no-wa, from no (also ono) “protodermis” and the primeval stem wa “wide, great, large” (with final ā > ō vowel shift), yielding a sense of “expanse of protodermis”]
    moa |n.| desert bird; lit. “from the plains; plains-dweller” [moa < mo-kha < moha, from mo “plains, broad expanse of land” and an extreme reduction of the origin particle ha]
    mohi |n.| (an) alternate, variant [mohi < mou-hī, from mou “change, variation, difference” (variant of mu(t)) and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    mohtrek |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) time-duplication; lit. “guide of alternate(-versions)” [mohtrek < mohi-trē-ak, from mohi “(an) alternate, variant”, the stem trē (< tēr) “guidance, guiding-force”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    mora |adj.| moody, tempermental [mora < mou-ra, from mou “change, variation, difference” (variant of mu(t)) and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    morak |n.| very tempermental [morak < mora-ak, from mora “moody, tempermental” and the intensive particle -ak]
    morbuzakh |n.cmpd.| treacherous sentient plant [morbuzakh < mor-bo-u-zakh, from mor “word-usage, sentience”, bo “elemental plant-life”, the adjectival particle u, and the adjectival stem zakh “treacherous”]
    motara |n.cmpd.| desert, wilderness; hot, barren region [motara < mo-ta-ra, from mo “plains, broad expanse of land”, ta “elemental fire”, and ra “wild(ness), untamed”, yielding a sense of “hot, untamed expanse of land”]
    mua |n.| Rahi cat/feline [etymology uncertain]
    muaka |n.cmpd.| powerful Rahi-cat [muaka < mua-ka, from mua “Rahi cat/feline” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    mukau |n.cmpd.| Rahi-bovine; lit. “mu-breath” [mukau < mu-kau, from an onomatopoeic coinage mu (in imitation of the lowing of bovinous Rahi) and the stem kau “free-flowing, unhindered; breathing”]
    mutra |adj.| erratic, volatile, unpredictable, eccentric; lit. “wildly changing” [mutra < mut-ra, from the stem mu(t) “change, variation, difference” and ra “wild(ness), untamed”]
    mutran |n.| eccentric being, maverick; lit. “one who changes wildly” [mutran < mutra-ān, from mutra “erratic, volatile, unpredictable, eccentric” and ān “being”]
    mutatu |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) charisma; lit. “change-mind/will” [mutatu < mut-atu, from mu(t) “change, variation, difference” and atu “mind, will” - FD: NM]†
    mutru |n.| lit. “oriented toward change; process of mutation” [mutru < mut-ru, from mu(t) “change, variation, difference” and ru “orientation; intention; oriented toward” - FD: NM]†
    mutu |adj.| different, unlike [mutu < mut-u, from mu(t) “change, variation, difference” and the adjectival particle u - FD: NM]†
    mutuku |n.| emulation; lit. “not-different” [mutuku < mutu-ku, from mutu “different, unlike” and the negative particle -ku - FD: NM]†
     
    --------------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| - Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
     
  9. JRRT
    A Matoran Dictionary



    2nd Edition







    VOLUME VI :: R-S






    -R-
     
    ra |adj./stm.| 1. wild, free, untamed; 2. strive, struggle; climb [Variant form: ar(a)i (verbal)]
    radi |n.| laughter; wild, gibbering sound [radi < ra-de, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and de “elemental sound”]
    radiak |n.| raucous sound/laughter [radiak < radi-ak, from radi “laughter; wild, gibbering sound” and the intensive particle -ak]
    raga |n./stm.| elder, wise one; lit. “tamed, wildness-at peace” [raga < ra-ga, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and ga “elemental water; peace, calm, settledness”]
    rahaga |n.cmpd.| 1. guardian of wild(-things), beast-master; 2. wild guardians [rahaga < ra-hagah, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and hagah “guardian”]
    rahi |n.| Rahi, wild thing, beast [rahi < ra-hī, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]
    rahi-nui |n.cmpd.| great rahi [From rahi “wild thing, beast” and nui “great, significant”]
    rahk |n.| wild/untamable thing [rahk < ra-hī-ak, from ra “wild(ness), untamed”, the particle hī “thing, object, place”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    rahkshi |n.cmpd.| (Rahi-) wild/untamable offspring/spawn [rahkshi < rahk-shi, from rahk “wild/untamable thing” and shi “offspring, spawn” - FD: MN#1]
    rak |n./stm.| extreme wildness, lawlessness, violence; menace, scourge [rak < ra-ak, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: rakk (Skakdi dialect)]
    rakauhi |n.| wild bird [rakauhi < ra-kau-hī, from ra “wild(ness), untamed”, kau “free-flowing, breathing; flying” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”. Variant forms: rakohi, rockoh]
    rak-ya |v.| to commit crime/violence, to wrong; to murder [From the stem rak “extreme wildness, lawlessness, violence” and the verbal particle ya]†
    rama |n.| flying Rahi-insect [rama < ra-mai, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and mai “up, upward, above” (variant of mi, see entry), yielding a sense of “flying wild-thing”. Variant forms: ramai, rami]
    ranama |n.| predatory Rahi; lit. “mastery of many wild things” [ranama < ra-nā-ma, from ra “wild(ness), untamed”, the plural particle nā, and ma(t) “mastery, control”. Applied to the ranama species of Rahi-toad, referencing their fierce predatory nature]
    rau |n.| (Kanohi-) translation, understanding [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to oro “word, unit of communication”, possibly rau < roua < ro-wa, from ro “word, unit of communication” and wa “wide, great, large; expanse”, yielding an original sense of “many words, expanse of words”]
    rehi |n.| home, homeland [rehi < rei-hī, from rei “home, nest, safe place” and the particle hī “thing, object place”]
    rehix |n.| community; lit. “greater home” [rehix < rehi-ak-si, from rehi “home, homeland”, the intensive particle -ak, and the comparative adjectival particle si]
    rei |n./stm.| home, nest, safe place [etymology uncertain. Variant forms: rey, rye, rī, rea]
    reidak |n.| extremely wild/violent spirit [reidak < rei-ta-ak, from rei “wild, uncontrolled, violent” (Skakdi dialectal variant of rī, see entry), ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence” and the intensive particle -ak]
    reysa |n.| homesickness; lit. “hunger for home” [reysa < rey-sa, from rey (variant of rei, see entry) and the stem sa “hungering; desiring”]
    rho |n./stm.| line, edge, boundary [etymology uncertain; Variant forms: ro, rō]
    rhotu |n.| wheel, ring, circle [etymology uncertain; undoubtedly related to the stem rho “line, edge, boundary”, possibly rhotu < rho-tu, from rho “line, edge, boundary” and tu (< du) “extension, scope, reach; influence”]
    rhotuka |n.cmpd.| wheel of energy [rhotuka < rhotu-ka, from rhotu “wheel, ring, circle” and ka “power, force, ability”]
    rī |adj.| wild, uncontrolled, violent [rī < ra-ui, from ra “wild(ness), untamed” and the adjectival particle ui. Variant forms: raui, rai, rei (Skakdi variant)]
    ris |n.| bird; nesting creature; lit. “nest-spawn” [ris < rī-s, from rī “home, nest, safe-place” (variant of rei, see entry) and the Rahi-designation affix -s. Variant form: reas]
    rōdaka |n.cmpd.| heir, ascendant; lit. “(on the) edge of powerful authority” [rōdaka < rō-da-ka, from rō “line, edge” (variant of rho, see entry), da “order, authority”, and ka “power(ful), force, ability”]
    rode |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) truth, clarity, clear communication; lit. “sound of word” [rode < ro-de, from ro “word, unit of communication” (variant of oro, see entry) and de “elemental sound”]
    ropo |n.| patience [ropo < ro-po, from ro “contemplation, stillness” (variant of rua, see entry) and po “elemental stone”, yielding a sense of “stillness of stone”]
    roporak |n.cmpd.| patient menace; lit. “scourge of patience” [roporak < ropo-rak, from ropo “patience” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    rorzakh |n.cmpd.| lit. “great limiting judge/law-keeper” [rorzakh < rhor-zatahki-ak, from rhor (from rho-oro, a compound of rho “line, edge, boundary” and oro “word, unit of communication” in imitation of boh-oro, see entry bohrok), zatahki “judge, law-keeper” (an earlier form of dahki, see entry), and the intensive particle -ak - FD: MN#3]
    ru |n./adj./stm.| orientation; oriented toward; intention [etymology uncertain]
    rua |n.| (Kanohi-) contemplation, stillness; wisdom; lit. “peaceful orientation/intention” [rua < ru-ha, from ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and ha “protection, peace/calm, systems-normal”. Variant forms: ruha, ro-]
    rui¹ |n.| joint; lit. “orienting thing” [rui < ru-hī, from ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and the particle hī “thing, object, place”]†
    rui² |adj.| oriented toward [rui < ru-ui, from ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and the adjectival particle ui]
    ruki |n.| school-swimming Rahi-fish; lit. “part of (larger) orientation” [ruki < ru-kī, from ru “orientation; oriented toward; intention” and the particle kī “part, piece, portion of”]
    ruru |n.| (Kanohi-) sensory-awareness, night-vision; lit. “orientation-of-orientation” [From an intensivizing reduplication of ru “orientation; intention”]
     
    -S-
     
    -s |aff.| Rahi-designation [An affix derived from shi “offspring, spawn” (see entry)]
    sa |stm.| hungering, desiring [sa < sā, from the stem sā “hungering desiring”. Variant forms: sā, -so (ā > ō / _#)]
    san |stm./adj.| precise, accurate, clear [etymology uncertain]
    sano |n.| accuracy, precision [sano < san-ō, from the stem san “precise, accurate, clear” and the nounal particle ō]
    sanok |n.| (Kanohi-) extreme accuracy/precision [sanok < sano-ak, from sano “accuracy, precision” and the intensive particle -ak]
    sanso |adj.| focused, obsessive; lit. “desire for precision” [sanso < san-sā, from the stem san “precise, accurate, clear” and sā “hungering, desiring” (older form of sa, see entry, with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    sare |adj.| nostalgic, wistful, sad [sare < sa-rei, from sa “hungering, desiring”, rei “home, nest, safe-place”]
    sarda |n.| nostalgic/wistful/sad spirit [sarda < sare-ta, from sare “nostalgic, wistful, sad” and ta “elemental fire; spirit, being, essence”]
    sau |adj.| hungry, desirous; living, active [sau < sa-u, from sa “hungering, desiring” and the adjectival particle u. Variant form: sū]
    se |n./stm.| elemental psionics [se < sē, from the primeval stem sē “elemental psionics”. Variant forms: se-, ce-, sul (u/l-modified)]
    sentrahk |n.cmpd.| lit. “emptying (a) being-vessel of untamable-wildness” [sentrahk < se-ān-te-rahk, from se “empty, emptied out” (variant of ze, see entry), ān “being, individual”, te “vessel, contained space”, and rahk “wild/untamable thing”]
    shasa |n.| reserved, shy; lit. “desiring silence” [shasa < shai-sa, from shai “silence; mute, quiet” (variant of she, see entry) and sa “hungering, desiring”]
    she |n.| silence, muteness; whisper [she < shē, from the stem shē “silence; mute, quiet”. Variant forms: sha, shai, shī]
    shelek |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) complete deaf-muteness [shelek < she-leu-ak, from the stem she “silence, muteness; whisper”, the u-modified elemental stem leu “elemental air; listening/hearing/speaking”, and the intensive particle -ak]
    shi |n.| offspring, spawn [shi < isi-hī, from isi “possibility; possible” and the particle hī “thing, object, place” - FD: MN#1]
    shu |adj.| silent; whispering [shu < she-u, from she “silence, muteness; whisper” and the adjectival particle u]
    sido |n.| commander, decision-maker; lit. “authority over possibilities” [sido < isi-dā, from isi “possible; possibility” and dā “authority, order” (with final ā > ō vowel shift)]
    sidorak |n.cmpd.| commander of the menace/scourge [sidorak < sido-rak, from sido “commander, decision-maker” and rak “menace, scourge”]
    solek |n.cmpd.| blazing wind [solek < su-le-ak, from su “elemental plasma; bright, blazing”, le “elemental air”, and the intensive particle -ak. Variant form: sulek]
    spinax |n.cmpd.| great tracker/hunter [spinax < sa-pin-ak-s, from sa “hungering, desiring”, pin “subject, target”, the intensive particle -ak, and the Rahi-designation suffix -s. Variant forms: spainax, spinaks]
    spiriah |n.cmpd.| 1. (archaic) strategic experiment; 2. (modern) empty experiment; failure [mult. potential etymologies; one proposed etymology is spiriah < zī-piriahi, zī “strategy, planning, scheming” and piriahi “experiment”; another proposed etymology is spiriah < zi-piriahi, from zi “empty/emptied space” and piriahi “experiment”]
    su |n./stm.| elemental plasma [su < sū, from the primeval elemental stem sū “elemental plasma”. Variant form: su-]
    sūko |n.| stasis, suspension [sūko < sū-ko, from sū “living, active” (variant of sau, see entry) and ko “elemental ice”. Variant form: sauko]
    sūkorak |n.cmpd.| scourge of stasis/suspension [sūkorak < sūko-rak, from sūko “stasis, suspension” and rak “menace, scourge”. Variant form: saukorak]
    suletu |n.cmpd.| (Kanohi-) psionic will, mind of psionics [suletu < sul-atu, from the u/l-modified elemental stem sul “elemental psionics” (see entry se) and atu “mind, will” - FD: NM]
    suva |n.| shrine, gathering place [etymology uncertain; possibly related to vā “time”, with reference to the design-parallels between the suva-mechanisms and the common layout of the Matoran sundial]
     
    --------------------
     
    Key:
    |adj.| - Adjective
    |adj.cmpd.| - Adjective Compound
    |adv.| - Adverb
    |aff.| - Affix
    |n.| - Noun
    |n.cmpd.| - Noun Compound
    |p.| - Particle
    |p.cmpd.| - Particle Compound
    |pro.| - Pronoun
    |stm.| - Stem
    |v.| - Verb
    |vn.| - Verbal Noun
    |vn.cmpd.| - Verbal Noun Compound
     
    Some entries are marked with FD “Further Discussion”, followed by a reference to a blog entry containing more explanatory content related to that etymology. The references are as follows:
     
    NM - “Nameless Masks”
    MN#1-X... - “Meaningless Names #1-X...”
    LM#1-X - “Learning Matoran, Lesson 1-X...”
     
  10. JRRT
    I've posted a few examples of texts in the Matoran language on this blog so far, and if you lurk elsewhere on the internet, you may have seen quite a few more. Most of these translations make use of a particular model of Matoran grammar, one that has undergone many alterations over the years. At this point, I thought it might be useful/interesting to share that grammar in its current state. So here's a basic overview—a cheatsheet, if you will. Have fun with it.
     
     
     

    ==============================



    Matoran Grammar: A Primer



    ==============================






     
    1. Syntax I:

    Before getting into the nitty-gritty details of nouns, verbs, inflections/affixes, etc., here are some general principles governing how words are organized syntactically in Matoran. Keep these rules in mind as you encounter examples of clauses and other syntactic units in the following sections!
     
    - Rules for clauses

    #1: The verb goes last. That's basically the only rigid rule.
    #2: The subject goes first.
    #3: Object(s) go after the subject (but before the verb).
     
    The combination of these three rules yields the following overall syntactic pattern for clauses in Matoran: Subject – Object – Verb (SOV).
     
    - Other rules
     
    #4: A modifier (an adjective/adverb) that is placed before the unit it modifies will yield a concrete/physical meaning:
     
    nui – jaga "big scorpion"
    kofo – jaga "small scorpion"
    nui – rama "big flying-insect"
     
    #5: A modifier (an adjective/adverb) placed after the thing it modifies will yield an abstract/evaluative meaning:
     
    mata – nui "great spirit"
    rahi – nui "great Rahi"
    mana – ko "silent/still monster"
     
    ==============================
     
    2. Verbs:
     
    Verbs are generally distinguished by the presence of a derivative suffix -ya or -kha attached to the stem. All other inflections are added after this suffix. Verbs are inflected for tense and negation, as well as aspect/mood (not discussed here). This section will also provide information on the formation of interrogative clauses (questions).
     
    - Tense
     
    Tense is marked on verbs by a series of suffixes added to the verbal complex, as follows:
     
    Past: -nu
    Present: -pa/-po (optional)
    Future: -ko
     
    Examples (check Section 6 for a glossary with full definitions—all words used in examples are marked with * in the wordlist):
     
    (1) Matoran voya-nu. "The Matoran went/travelled."
    (2) Toa zya(-pa). "The Toa attacks."
    (3) Turaga akuya-ko. "The Turaga will see (it)."
     
    **Note: You can also form imperative constructions (i.e. commands) by using the basic, uninflected form of the stem: Manas zya! "Attack the monster!"
     
    - Negation
     
    Negation (English "not") is marked on verbs by adding the suffix -rhu (can be reduced to -ru) to the verbal complex after all other suffixes have been added.
     
    Examples:
     
    (4) Matoran voya-nu-rhu. "The Matoran did not go/travel."
    (5) Toa zya-rhu. "The Toa does not attack"
    (6) Turaga akuya-ko-rhu. "The Turaga will not see (it)."
     
    - Questions
     
    Three types of questions are distinguished in Matoran. Two of them correspond to "information questions" (or "wh-questions" in English); they are used to question the subject (Who did that?) and object (She did what?) of a verb, respectively. The remaining question-type is the standard yes/no-question ("Did you do that?").
     
    Info-Q Subject: ke-
    Info-Q Object: -ki, -kai
    Yes/No-Q: i-...-ka
     
    Examples:
     
    (7) Rahi ke-zyanu? "Who/what attacked the Rahi?"
    (8) Toa zyanu-ki? "Who/what did the Toa attack? / The Toa attacked who/what?"
    (9) Toa i-zyanu-ka? "Did the Toa attack?"

    - "To be" (the copula verb)
     
    There is no Matoran equivalent of the English verb "to be"! Instead, English constructions such as "X is Y" or "Y is X" (basic equative or copula constructions) are simply expressed as "X Y" or "Y X" in Matoran. Such constructions can involve a noun and an adjective (N+A), two adjectives (A+A), or two nouns (N+N).
     
    But if there's no overt verb corresponding to "to be", you might ask, how is tense (or negation, or a question) marked in such constructions? Simply put, the necessary affixes (tense, negation, etc.) are attached to whichever element (N or A) is placed in final position (where the verb would normally go).
     
    Examples:
     
    (10) Matoran kofo. "The Matoran [is] small." (N+A)
    (11) Nui kofo. "Big [is] small." (A+A)
    (12) Rahi jaga. "The Rahi [is] a scorpion." (N+N)
    (13) Toa matoran-nu. "The Toa was a Matoran."
    (14) Manas rahi-pa. "The Manas is a Rahi."
    (15) Matoran toa-ko-rhu. "The Matoran will not be a Toa."
    (16) Ke-matoran-nu? "Who was the Matoran?"
    (17) Toa-pa-ki? "Who is the Toa? / The Toa is who?"
    (18) Toa i-matoran-nu-ka? "Was the Toa a Matoran?"
     
    ==============================
     
    3. Pronouns:
     
    Pronouns stand in for full nouns. They come in three different flavors: first person, second person, and third person. Number (i.e. singular vs. plural) is not marked. Pronouns are inflected according to their function in the clause, subject or object:
     
    - Subject form
     
    1st o, oa "I, we"
    2nd ou "you, you all"
    3rd ai, oi "she/he/it, they"
     
    Examples:
     
    (1) o voya. "I/we go/travel."
    (2) ou zya. "You/you all attack."
    (3) ai akuya. "She/he/it/they sees."
     
    - Object form
     
    1st ako, akoa "me, us"
    2nd akou "you, you all"
    3rd akai "her/him/it, them"
     
    Examples:

    (4) Matoran ako zyanu. "The Matoran attacked me/us."
    (5) Toa akou zyanu. "The Toa attacked you/you all."
    (6) Turaga akai zyanu. "The Turaga attacked her/him/it/them."
     
    - Possessive form
     
    Pronouns are also used to denote possession relationships, in which case they are suffixed to the noun that is possessed.
     
    **The third person affix -ai/-oi can also be used to indicate possession when a full noun possesses another full noun. In such a case, it is suffixed to the noun which is possessed, and the possessor noun is usually placed directly before the possessed noun (see examples 10 and 11).
     
    1st -o, -oa "my, our"
    2nd -ou "your"
    3rd -ai, -oi "her/his/its, their"
     
    Examples:
     
    (7) ni-o "my/our star"
    (8) koro-ou "your village"
    (9) madu-ai "her/his/its/their tree"
    (10) Toa rahi-ai "the Toa's Rahi; lit. 'The Toa, her/his/their-Rahi"
    (11) Matoran koro-ai "the Matoran's village; lit. 'The Matoran, her/his/their-village"
     
    ==============================

    4. Nouns:
     
    Nouns come in many different forms! They can be modified by adjectives (see Section 1) as well as by an array of different affixes. Affixes can be suffixes (attached to the end of the noun-stem), prefixes (attached to the beginning of the noun-stem), or circumfixes (attached "around" the noun-stem, basically a combination of a prefix and a suffix). I include four different categories of affixes, containing twelve affixes total.
     
    **All of the affixes discussed in this section can also be added to pronouns!
     
    - Basic location/direction
     
    #1 - of, from; after: i-, ai-
    #2 - in, on, at; during: i-...-a
    #3 - to, toward; before: -i, -ai
     
    Examples:
     
    (1) i-ni "of/from a star"
    (2) i-koro-a "in/at a village"
    (3) madu-i "toward a tree"
     
    - Upward orientation
     
    #4 - up away from (motion): mi-, mai-
    #5 - up at (location): i-...-ma
    #6 - up toward (motion): -ma, -mai
     
    Examples:
     
    (4) mi-ni "upward, away from a star"
    (5) i-koro-ma "up at a village"
    (6) madu-ma "upward, toward a tree"
     
    - Downward orientation
     
    #7 - down away from (motion): u-, au-
    #8 - down, under, below (location): u-...-a
    #9 - down toward (motion): -a, -au
     
    Examples:
     
    (7) u-ni "downward, away from a star"
    (8) u-koro-a "under/below a village"
    (9) madu-a "downward, toward a tree"
     
    - Transitional/instrumental
     
    #10 - through away from (motion): mo-, mua-
    #11 - through, via (location): a-...-mu
    #12 - through toward (motion): -mua
     
    Examples:
     
    (10) mo-ni "through, away from a star"
    (11) a-koro-mu "through/via a village"
    (12) madu-mua "through, toward a tree"
     
    ==============================
     
    5. Syntax II:
     
    Now that you've got a sense of the possibilities for nouns and verbs, we can get a bit more detailed on how to put them together. While SOV is the standard word order for clauses in Matoran, the order of subject and object (Rules 2 and 3 from Section 1 above) can be subverted. For example, if you want to put the object first, you can add one of the affixes from section 4 to explicitly mark it as the object. This makes for a lot of potential variation. We'll start with the following standard sentence:
     
    (1) Toa rahi zyanu. "The Toa attacked the Rahi."
     
    Now, if we wanted to switch this sentence up by placing the object first, we might add an affix like #3, -i "to, toward", to the object:
     
    (2) Rahi-i toa zyanu. "The Toa struck at/toward the Rahi."
     
    From the paraphrase you can see how this alteration might subtly change the meaning of the sentence as a whole. Let's try some other affixes, such as #4, -mi "upward (movement)", #8, u-...-a "down, down on (location)", or #9, -a "downward (movement)".
     
    (3) Rahi-mi toa zyanu. "The Toa struck upward at the Rahi."
    (4) Rahi-a toa zyanu. "The Toa struck downward toward the Rahi."
    (5) U-rahi-a toa zyanu. "The Toa bore down on the Rahi."
     
    **Final note: All of these variations with nominal affixes could also be expressed using the standard SOV order! An object-first ordering could, however, be used to emphasize the object.
     
    ==============================
     
    6. Glossary:
     
    This glossary should provide you with a basic vocabulary to start with. Check out the volumes of the Matoran Dictionary for a (slightly) wider selection.
     
    **All of the words used in the examples above are marked with *!
     
    - Verbs
     
    akuya* "to see, sense; know"
    aruya "to take"
    boya "to grow, live; remain"
    haya "to protect, maintain systems-normality"
    kokha "to cool (smthg.), calm (smthg.) down; clarify"
    kya "to do, act, take initiative"
    mya "to control, use"
    orukha "to build, construct"
    oruya "to work, labor"
    pakuya "to read; lit. 'to see carvings'"
    peya "to carve"
    rokha "to speak (to)"
    roya "to determine, single out; name"
    s(a)uya "to consume, convert"
    seya "to think"
    takha "to make, craft; forge"
    v(a)ukha "to conduct, transmit"
    vokha "to empower, energize"
    voya* "to go, journey, travel"
    zya* "to attack, strike; plan, scheme"
     
    - Nouns
     
    aki "valor, courage, initiative"
    bohi "plant; form of vegetation"
    dau "direction, extension; route"
    dehi "mouth; lit. 'sound-thing'"
    fani "sky; lit. 'star-field'"
    gadu "pool (of water/liquid)"
    gura "disintegration, disruption"
    hahi "shield; guardian"
    hau "shielding, protection"
    hiki "measurement; deception, trickery"
    jaga* "(Rahi) scorpion"
    ka "power, energy"
    kanohi "mask; lit. 'object-of-power/energy'"
    kau "breath, spirit; lit. 'life-process'"
    kini "temple"
    koro* "village"
    kua "(Rahi) bird; freedom"
    kura "anger, rage"
    ledu "wind, breeze"
    lera "poison, toxicity"
    madu* "tree"
    mana(s)* "monster"
    mata* "spirit; lit. 'master-spirit'"
    matoran* "Matoran-unit; lit. 'builder/worker-of-Mata'"
    mehi "head, skull"
    metru "city"
    ni* "star"
    nohi "object (of protodermis)"
    paka "strength, sturdiness"
    panura "fragmentation"
    peki "shard, fragment, pebble"
    rahi* "wildlife, beast"
    rama* "(Rahi) flying-insect"
    ro "unit, individual; name; (honorific) sister/brother/comrade"
    rua "wisdom"
    tahi "flame (substance); spirit"
    taka "light, illumination"
    taki "spark, ember; lit. 'part-of-fire'"
    toa* "hero, protector"
    tura "fear, cowardice"
    turaga* "elder"
    vahi "time"
    vora "hunger, energy-draining"
    wahi "region, place"
     
    - Adjectives
     
    baui "measured, balanced"
    gaui "blue, watery; calm, peaceful"
    kofo* "small, little; lesser"
    koui "white, icy; silent, clear"
    laui "good, positive, happy"
    leui "green, airy; light, cheerful"
    noui "black, earthy; deep, secret, hidden"
    nui* "large; great"
    nuva "new, original"
    paui "brown, stony; strong, firm"
    taui "red, fiery; spirited, lively, living"
  11. JRRT

    Learning Matoran: Lesson 1

    By JRRT,

    Ke ovahi o kii vahi,
    Mata Nui uamo.
    inihe ka usmo ia ngie,
    ke orna hu Matoran,
    lhe ii arta.
     
    In the time before time
    The Great Spirit descended
    Out of the Heavens carrying we,
    The ones called the Matoran
    To this paradise.
     
    --First lines of "The Legend of Mata Nui"
     
    =l Preface l=


    First, I must make a confession. For the past ten (or so) years, my primary hobby has been an obsession with constructing languages: "conlanging". In the words of J.R.R himself, it is the "secret vice". And, as might be expected, I have not been able to keep it from spilling over into my interest of Bionicle. This is the result: an attempt to formulate a grammar of the Matoran Language (using the basis of the dictionary already posted elsewhere in the blog).
     
    As a basic principle, I have attempted to imitate some grammatical structures common to Polynesian languages such as Hawaiian, Māori, and Samoa. Ultimately, however, the majority of the grammar is more or less arbitrary (or "a-priori"). And, of course, this means that (almost) the entirety of the grammar presented here is non-canon.
     
    But now to the point! This grammar will be posted in a series of lessons designed specifically for "beginners" (or, at least, "people who aren't hard-core linguistics-people"). A good general knowledge of "grammar" and "phonetics" will be an advantage to any reader here, but I will aim to present linguistic concepts in the least jargon-heavy manner I can come up with (no promises ). I'll be starting out with a discussion of phonology in this post, followed by posts on Nouns, Verbs, the Matoran Alphabet itself, Adjectives, Syntax (Sentence Structure), etc.
     
    Enjoy, if you will.
     
    Or as the Matoran say:
     
    A kanga ri o'atukhe.
     

    =l Lesson 1 l=


    Basic Pronunciation
     
    First, it's best to establish that, while Matoran obviously don't have the same vocal organs as humans (teeth? tongues? what?!), they are capable of producing a similar array of sounds; or, at least, similar enough that we humans can come pretty close.
     
    With that said, here's a basic list of the principal sounds of Matoran with English equivalents where necessary. Unless otherwise specified, all sounds are pronounced as in English:
     
    -Consonants:
     
    b
    c – as <k>, except at the beginning of some words, where it is pronounced as <s> (an unfortunate hold-over from English orthography...>.<)
    ch – always <k>
    d
    f – also spelled <ph> (a more archaic orthographic convention in Matoran)
    g – always as in "dog"
    h
    kh –like the German <ch>, harsher than English <h> (would be called a "velar fricative")
    j – optionally pronounced as in "jar" or "yard" (like <y>)
    k
    l
    m
    n
    ng – as in "sing" at the beginning of a word; as in "finger" in all other positions
    p
    r – trilled, as Spanish <r>
    rh – not trilled, more like English <r>
    s
    sh
    t
    th – as in "think" (very rare)
    v
    w
    y
    z
     
    -Vowels:
     
    a – as in "all"
    e – as in "rate"
    i – as in "machine"
    o – as in "go"
    u – as in "loose"
    y – as German <ü> (rare sound). Pronouncing <i> ("machine") while rounding the lips like <u> ("loose") gives a close approximation.
     
    All vowels can be either short or long. Long vowels are written simply by doubling the letter (aa, ee, oo, etc.) and are held twice as long as short vowels.
     
    If you haven't dealt with spelling systems other than English before, the most important thing to remember is that every letter represents a sound—every letter is pronounced. There are no "silent letters" in Matoran, and there are only a few "digraphs" (two consonants with one sound: th, ch, etc.).
     
    -----
     
    And that concludes Lesson 1. Thanks for reading if you got this far. Next up: Lesson 2--Intro to Nouns, which will hopefully be a little more interesting.
     
    JRRT
  12. JRRT
    [bump'd, 4/21/11. Because I wanted to. So there.]
     
    [Wouldn't you know it: I go to add new material to this, and it tells me I've reached the limit for a blog entry. So be it. I've thus split this "dictionary" into two "volumes" (because "volume" just sounds so much more important).
    In terms of describing the content of this "update": I've added around 120-130 new entries in all, in addition to modifying and revising older entries. Most of the words have to do with plants, landforms, colors, and the Matoran body. So enjoy, if you will. I know I did.]
     
     

    =ll=
     
    A Dictionary and Etymology of the Matoran Language
     
    =l Volume I l=
     
    As inscribed by the Scholar Ihu of the Knowledge Tower Oroko in Ko-Metru in the Great City of Metru Nui.
     
    This record being written in the ninth century of the Golden Age of Metru Nui: the year 79908 since the Beginning and the Time of the Great Beings.
     
    Prefatory Notes:
    The organization of this dictionary is according to the order of the first letter of the Matoran word, in the sequence in which these letters appear in the Alphabet of the Matoran. Thus Volume I begins with those words which start with A and continues until L, while Volume II begins with M and continues to Z.
    Each entry gives a description of the basic meaning and classification of a word, followed by a more thorough explanation of the word's usage, as well as its etymological history, form, and development. Those words whose etymologies are uncertain are labeled as such.


    -A-
     
    aan, n. being, individual [etymology uncertain; also used as the name for the letter a]
    aavel¹, n. brightness, shining [Derived from the elemental word avo "elemental light"; it originates from an ancient stem modification involving the suffix -li and the reduplication of the stem vowel as a prefix, forming the hypothetical form *aavoli, eventually to aaveli, with usual vowel change of o > e and eventual loss of -i, finally becoming aavel]
    aavel², adj. bright, shining, luminous [Originates as an adjectival form of the noun aavel¹ (see entry); used frequently in compounds]
    aka, n. power, ability [An independent augmented form of the original element ka (see entry ka)]
    akaku, n. cmpnd. the power of vision [From the elements aka "power, ability" and aku "sight, vision"]
    aki, n. courage, bravery, ambition; (honorific) leader, lord [Historically a conjunction of the semantic suffix -ak, at the time meaning something like "active" or "intensified" (although now it has come to have negative connotations), and the general nounal suffix -i; basically synonomous with the term tai (see entry)]
    aku, n. sight, vision
    akuavo, n. sun, star; title of one of the twin suns of Metru Nui [Originates as a conjunction of the ancient elemental stem avoi "light" and the term aku "sight, vision". The word's usage as a title for one of the twin suns in the city of Metru Nui is probably historically based upon the fact that vision is given through light (as in the light of the eyes of the Matoran), and more colloquially upon the idea that the twin suns somehow represent the "eyes of Mata Nui", an idea which is afforded very little credence by the educated community]
    akuhii, n. lit. things of sight; eye(s) [Formed from the elements aku "sight" and the suffix -hii "thing, object, place"]
    amahti, n. hand, grip; lit. "thing that holds, grips" [From the modified stem (a)mat "hold, grip, contain" with addition of the suffix -hii "thing, object, place"]
    amakii, n. finger; lit. "part of hand/grip" [From the modified stem (a)mat "hold, grip, contain" with addition of the suffix -ki(i) "part/piece of"]
    amakii-ovo, n. cmpnd. fingertip [A compound formed from the elements amakii "finger" and -ovo "end, finish"]
    apalikavo, n. cmpnd. lit. light-power in hardness; lightstone [Originates from the archaic word apali "hardness, rigidity" (see entry opoli) and the compound form kaavo "light power/energy"(from the elements ka "energy" and avo "elemental light")]
    arratu, n. resonating musical instrument [From the word coinage artra (see entry) with addition of the nounal suffix -tu, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning]
    arta, n. refuge, haven
    arti, n. prison; banishment
    ar(t)ra, n. echo, resonance [From a word coinage artra, based on a reversible syllable structure meant to reflect the sound of an echo; variants include eastern ardra, ardro and southern arthra, arthro]
    ar(t)rau, adj. echoing, resonant [From the word coinage artra (see entry) with addition of the adjectival suffix -u]
    aso, n. sand [Derived from the stem aes "sand, gravel, dirt" with addition of the suffix -o denoting a substance or physical concept; also appears as a variant form aswe with alternate suffix -we]
    aso-mahri, n. cmpnd. sea-shore, beach [Formed from the elements aso "sand" and mahri "ocean, sea"; also see synonymous entry asorho]
    asorho, n. beach; lit. "sand-shore" [Formed from the element aso "sand" and the suffix/prefix rho "line, edge"; also see synonymous entry aso-mahri]
    aswe; see entry aso
    atu, n. mind, will [etymology uncertain; it appears that the word atu may have diverged from the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" at a very early point. In meaning it refers specifically to the Will of an individual, as distinct from thought or intellect (ideas associated with the similar term metye (see entry))]
    atuma, v. to think, consider [Formed from the element atu "mind, thought, will" with addition of the verbal suffix -ma]
    avaku, n. sun, star; title of one of the twin suns of Metru Nui [Originates as a conjunction of the ancient elemental prefix av(o)- "light" and the term aku "sight, vision"; also see entry akuavo for further discussion of origin and usage]
    avenerui, n. lightvine [Originates as a conjunction of the ancient elemental prefix av(o)- "light" and the term enerui "vine, creeper"]
    avo(h), n. elemental light [Originally avoi, still attested in some rare cases; also found as the adjectival prefixes av- and avo-]
    av(o)ta, n. (a) light, torch [From the elemental word avo "elemental light" with addition of the nounal suffix -ta, denoting a concept or thing that embodies the stem meaning]
     
    -B-
     
    barra, n. war, conflict
    Barraki, n. cmpnd. lit. war-leader; (honorific) Warlord [From the elements barra "war, conflict" and aki "leader, lord" (see entries)]
    bohye, n. vigilance, watchfulness [From the ancient stem bo "vigilance, watchfulness" with addition of the nounal suffix -hye, denoting a general universal concept; also realized simply as boh]
    bora, n. watcher, guard [From the ancient stem bo "vigilance, watchfulness" with addition of the agental suffix -ra]
     
    -D-
     
    daika, n. note, music [Originally a compound of the ancient stem dae (an augmented form of the elemental word dei "elemental sound") and the element ka "creative power" with development of the diphthong ae > ai]
    deh, n. elemental sound [Originally dei, still attested in some rare cases; also found as the adjectival prefix de-]
    dema, v. to make noise/sound (base-stem) [From the stem deh "elemental sound" (older dei) with addition of the general verbal suffix -ma]
    deta, n. voice, mouth [From the elemental word deh "elemental sound" (older dei) with addition of the suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning]
    detarui n. cmpnd. jaw; lit. "joint of mouth" [Composed of the elements deta "mouth" and -rui "joint" (see entry)]
    dika¹, n. whistle, tune; rahi-noise, cry [A further progression from the term daika "note, music" (see entry) with development of the original diphthong ae > ai > i]
    dika², n. rahi, beast [Developed from the similar dika¹, meaning "whistle" or "tune", but more importantly "rahi-noise, cry" (see entry), eventually embodying the concept of a beast or a thing that makes rahi-noises; also found as diika]
     
    -E-
     
    edrai, v. to control, rule (ai-stem, e-declens.) [Derived historically from the ya-stem verb terya "to influence, persuade" (see entry; originally from the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose") with addition of the prefix e-, denoting that the action is turned fully outward (tereya > eterai > etrai > edrai)
    ehel, n. flow, course, current [Historically from elemental word gae; it derives from an ancient stem modification involving the suffix -li and the reduplication of the stem vowel as a prefix, forming the hypothetical form *agali, eventually to egeli, with usual vowel change of a > e and loss of -i, finally becoming ehel (with eventual weakening of intervocalic g)]
    ekama, v. to move (something); to send (away) (base-stem, e-declens.) [Derived from the base-stem verb kama "to move" with addition of the prefix e-, denoting that the action is turned outward]
    ekurma, v. to anger, enrage (base-stem, e-declens.) [Derived from the base-stem verb kurma "to rage, be angry" with addition of the prefix e-, denoting that the action is turned outward]
    elesma, v. to listen; eavesdrop (base-stem, e-declens.) [Derived from the base-stem verb lesma "to hear" (see entry) with addition of the prefix e-, denoting that the action is turned outward]
    emaima, v. to lift, raise (base-stem, e-declens.) [Derived from the base-stem verb maima "to rise" (see entry) with addition of the prefix e-, denoting that the action is turned outward]
    ematya, v. to take, possess (ya-stem, e-declens.) [Derived from the ya-stem matya "to master, use" with addition of the prefix e-, denoting that the action is turned outward]
    eneh, n. stem [Derived from the ancient elemental stem nei "elemental plant-life" (modern neh)]
    eneh-palnehu, n. cmpnd. bamboo, tree-trunk; lit. "woody-stem" [Composed of the noun eneh "stem" and the adjective palnehu "woody"]
    enerui, n. cmpnd. vine, creeper; lit. "jointed stem" [Composed of the elements eneh "stem" and -rui "joint" (see entry)]
    eterma, v. to plan, arrange (base-stem, e-declens.) [Derived historically from the base-stem verb terma "to guide" with addition of the prefix e-, denoting that the action is turned fully outward]
    ezai, v. to attack, strike at (ai-stem, e-declens.) [supplanted older archaic zya; originally from the same root zaa "violence, retribution" with addition of the prefix e-, denoting that the action is turned outward, along with the verbal suffix -ya, forming the hypothetical *ezaaya > *ezaai > ezai]
     
    -F/PH -
     
    fanne, n. sky; ceiling, roof
    phantoka, n. cmpnd (archaic) lit. spirits of the sky; birds, flying things [From the older element phane "sky" (see modern fanne) and -tika "spirit, form, shape" with alteration of -tika to -toka in accordance with historical vowel pattern a-o-a]
     
    -G-
     
    gah, n. elemental water [Also has connotations of peace, purity, and serenity; Originally gae, still attested in some rare cases; also found as the adjectival prefix ga-]
    gahre, n. weight, mass, importance [From older garahye, originally from the ancient stem gar(a), with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a generally universal concept; also attested as garye]
    galinyohi, n. cmpnd. jungle; lit. "wet-forest" [Composed of the elements gal- "wet" and inyohi "forest"; also found as galinyo-wahi]
    galinyo-wahi; see entry galinyohi
    galno; see entry galnu
    galnu, n. mud, swampy earth [Contracted from an older compound gal-onu "wet earth"; also found as a variant galno]
    galonuhi n. swamp; lit. "watery earth" [Derived from the older compound gal-onu with addition of the nounal suffix -hii "thing, place"]
    galonu-wahi; see entry galonuhi
    garai, v. 1 (phys.) to weigh 2 (meta.) to consider, weigh, ponder [From the ancient stem gar(a) with original addition of the verbal suffix -ya (garaya > garai)]
    garye; see entry gahre
    gauru, adj. discordant, conflicting; separate [Probably derived from an intermediary term *gauur (elemental gah and suffix -uur, see entry guur) with adjectival suffix -u]
    gea(-o), adj. blue [Originally from an augmented form of gae "elemental water" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    gehel, n. river, stream [Contracted from the original compound ga-ehel "flow, current of water" (see entry ehel)]
    graal, n. rahi bear; Ash Bear [Originally an onomatopoeic word symbolizing the roar of the Ash Bear]
    gukko, n. rahi bird species [The term is a southern dialectal form of the original word goko (still used in some dialects), which was historically gokua; goko is used to define a specific species of rahi bird, including the kahu, kewa (or goko-kahu) and taku and originates as a compound of the onomatopoeic word goh (imitating the call of the kahu subspecies) and the element kua "flying thing" (related to stem kua "free, free-flowing, flying")]
    guur, n. discord, fragmentation, separation [A perversion of the elemental word gae with addition of the negative suffix -uur]
     
    -H-
     
    hah, adj. calm, peaceful [From the stem hah "peace, calm, safety"]
    hahu, adj. calm, peaceful [From the stem hah "peace, calm, safety" with addition of the general adjectival suffix -u]
    hara n. rope; flax [etymology uncertain; may be descended from a hypothetical stem *haar(a) "fiber, weave"]
    harakeke, n. cmpnd. lit. "flax-bush" or "rope-bush" [Composed of the elements hara "flax, rope" and keke "bush, shrub"]
    hau, adj. defending, protecting; used as the name of the Kanohi Mask of Shielding [Originates from the ancient stem haa (also attested as hoh) "protection, defense" with addition of the adjectival suffix -u, denoting an "active" or "outwardly focused" meaning]
    haye, peace, security, calm [From the stem hah "peace, calm, safety" with addition of the nounal suffix -hye, denoting a universal concept]
    hoi, n. shield, protecting thing [Originally hohii, from the ancient stem hoh "protection, defense" with addition of the suffix -hii "thing". Originally used in reference to the protective Kanohi shell of the Hoi Turtle, the first of which were actually Kanohi Hau (to which the word hoi is etymologically related)]
     
    -I-
     
    ihnenu, n. tall/high grass [Formed from a conjunction of the elements iih "high, high up" and nenu "grass"]
    ihneye, n. tree [Formed from a conjunction of the elements iih "high, high up" and neye "plant"; also found as contracted forms inye, inyo (see entries)]
    i(h)no; see entry ihnu
    ihnu, n. hill/mound [Formed from the conjunction of the elements iih "height, high up" and (o)nu "elemental earth"; also attested as later forms ihno and ino]
    iihe, n. high place; mountain-top [From the stem iih "height, high up" and the suffix -hii with alteration of -hii to -he due to the presence of preceding long i in the stem; also see related entries iiho and iiho-nuyo]
    iiho, n. peak, crest [From the stem iih "height, high up" with the nounal suffix -o, denoting a physical concept; also see related entries iihe and iiho-nuyo]
    iiho-nuyo, n. cmpnd. mountain peak, crest [Composed of the elements iiho "peak, crest" and nuyo "mountain"; also see related entries iihe and iiho]
    iiho-yehonu, n. cmpnd. ridge [Composed of the elements iiho "peak, crest" and yehonu "slope, incline"]
    iihu, n. high, far-seeing; wise, transcending (as a proper noun) [From the stem iih "height, high up" with addition of the adjectival suffix -u]
    ik(i), adj. high, tall; happy [A Le-Matoran dialectal convention derived from the stem iih "high up"; also found as ikh(i) and ih(i)]
    Inai(tea), n. the Red Star [From the stem inaeh "star", along with the adjectival tea-o "red, fiery"; also attested as Initeo]
    ini, n. star [Historically inaeh or iniih]
    inihe, n. lit. star-places, the heavens [Formed from the modified stem iniih "star" (descended from an earlier inaeh) and the suffix -hii with alteration of -hii to -he due to the presence of a preceding (historically) long i in the stem.]
    inika, n. cmpnd. lit. star-energy/power, energy of a star [Formed from the elements ini "star" and ka "power, energy"]
    ino-nui, n. cmpnd mountain [Composed of the noun ino "hill, mound" (from ihno) and the adjective nui "great, mighty, vast". Synonyms: (o)nuiwe, (o)nuyo]
    inye n. tree [Contracted from the older ihneye "tree"; also found as a variant inyo]
    inyo; see entries ihneye, inye
    inyo-galnu swamp tree
    inyohi n. forest, wood [A more modern term derived from the word inyo "tree" (itself contracted originally from the earlier ihneye) with addition of the nounal suffix -hii "thing, place"; also found as a variant compound inyo-wahi]
    inyo-wahi; see entry inyohi
     
    -J-
     
    jaga, n. rahi scorpion
    johve, n. subtlety, cleverness [From older jovohye, originally from the ancient stem jov(o), with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a generally universal concept; also attested as jovye]
    jota, n. detail, complexity [Originally from the ancient stem jov(o) with addition of the suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning]
    jovye; see entry johve
    jutma, v. to collapse, decay
     
    -K-
     
    ka, n. power, energy; ability, (creative) potential [Theoretically is may have developed from a form *kae; also spelled cah or ca (using the old orthographic c); also realized as aka, akha, kan, kar, kha(r ) and in very rare cases as the prefix gah- (separate from the elemental ga-)]
    kaatu, n. color [Derived from a hypothetical root *kaa "energy, light, color" (related to ancient stem *kae) with addition of the abstract nounal suffix -tu]
    kaatuhi, n. flower [Derived from the word kaatu "color" with addition of the suffix -hii "thing, object"]
    kai, n. skill, talent, ability [An augmented form of ka "power, ability, potential" (see entry) with addition of general abstract suffix -i]
    kaihe, n. Unity [Developed from the older compound form ka "energy, potential", the adjectival form yi "together, combined", and the nounal suffix -hye, denoting a universal concept; also see analogous entry kaita]
    kai-o, adj. colorful [Originally from an augmented form of ka "power, energy, light" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    kaita, n. lit. potential combined/together; unity [Developed from the older compound form kayita, which is composed of the elements ka "energy, potential", the adjectival form yi "together, combined", and the abstract, nounal suffix -ta; also see analogous entry kaihe]
    kama¹, v. to move [From the element ka "energy, potential" with addition of the general verbal suffix -ma]
    kama², n. motion, speed [Originates as an abstract nounal form of the verb kama¹ (see entry)]
    kan; see entry ka
    kane, n. energy, passion; rahi bull [This term has come to be associated principally with the species of rahi-bull; kane "power, energy, passion" is formed of the element kan "power, energy" and the general nounal suffix -e]
    Kane-ra, n. cmpnd. wild bull [used to describe the Kane-ra species of bull; it is formed of the word kane "bull" (see entry) and the term ra "wild" used here as a type of adjectival compound]
    kano, n. mask [used as an alternate term for kanohi; the term kano originated as a craft-word used by those of the mask-making profession and only passed into common use after the origination of the kanoka disks, in which word it is used (see entry kanoka for further historical notes)]
    kanohi, n. cmpnd. mask of power [Formed from the word nohi "face, mask" and the element ka "power, ability"]
    kanoka, n. cmpnd. disk of power [The etymology of this term is rather complex. When the first of the disks of power, from which Kanohi masks are more easily forged, were created, the Scholars decided upon the term kanoka by considering the history of the word kanohi, since the two objects—disk and mask—are closely related. Kanohi comes originally from nohi, which means both "face" and "mask". And nohi, in turn, derives from its ancient form noihii, made up of the elements -hii "thing, object" and noi, the elemental word for the substance of Protodermis. The Scholars chose to form a new word—noka—from the elements noi and ka "power" to define the concept of the disks, which, in essence, utilize the power of Protodermis, and they made the further addition of the element ka to better distinguish the Disks of Power as unique. Thus, the term kanoka was formed and has since passed entirely into common use.]
    kar; see entry ka
    kara; see entry kharra
    karahe, adj. passionate, rash, reckless; unstable [From the compound element ka-ra (ka "energy", ra "wild, untamed") and the adjectival suffix -he "having"]
    karda, n. heart, core, engine [From the element kar "energy, power" (see entry ka) and the suffix -ta, denoting a concept or thing that embodies the meaning of the stem, with eventual assimilation of t > d, due to the preceding r]
    kau, n. breath [From the element kau "breathing, free-flowing"]
    kea, n. rahi shark
    keke, n. bush, shrub [etymology uncertain]
    kha(r ); see entry ka
    kharma, v. to make, form [Originally from the element khar "energy, ability, potential" with addition of the verbal suffix -ma]
    kharra, n. maker, builder, shaper [Formed from the element khar "energy, ability, potential" and the agental suffix -ra; also attested in a simplified form kara]
    kh(i)ye, n. that/the place, thence [A grammatical function word. It originates historically from a conjunction of the suffixes -hii "place" and -hye "abstract concept", forming the hypothetical compound *hiihye, which was then later contracted and strengthened to khiye]
    kini, n. temple
    koh, n. elemental ice [Also has connotations of sternness, and severity, as well as silence, calm, and composure; originally koi, still attested in some rare cases; also found as the adjectival prefix ko-]
    koro, n. village, town; walled city [Originally from a stem (o)kor "wall, barrier, landform", which is derived from an older hypothetical form *kaer "hinder, repulse" under influence of a coeval stem rho(k) "boundary, ring, edge". The term has gradually shifted its meaning from "wall, barrier" to a "walled city" and thence to "village, town"; see related entry korwe]
    korwe, n. wall, barrier [Originally from a stem (o)kor "wall, barrier, landform" (see entry koro for full etymology) with addition of the nounal suffix -we "substance, physical concept"]
    korwe-mahri, n. cmpnd. sea cliff [Composed of elements korwe "wall, barrier[/i] and mahri "sea, ocean"]
    kou adv. external, outside; around [etymology uncertain]
    koyo, adj. white [Originally from an augmented form of koi "elemental ice" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    kraah, n. elemental shadow [Originally krae; also found as the adjectival prefix kraa-]]
    kraahkan, n. cmpnd. power/energy of shadow [From the elements kraah "elemental shadow" and kan "energy, power"]
    kraata, n. cmpnd the will of shadow [Formed from the elements kraah "elemental shadow" and atu "will, mind, thought", with eventual assimilation of final -u to -a]
    kua, n. bird, flying thing; liberty, independence
    ku-amahi, n. cmpnd. palm; lit. "mid-palm" [Composed of the initial element (u)ku "middle, half" (modified from an older stem keu(n)) and the form amahi, contracted from amahti "hand" (see entry)]
    ku-ino, n. cmpnd valley; lit. "between hills" [Composed of the initial element (u)ku "middle, half" (modified from an older stem keu(n)) and the form ino "hill" a variant of ihno (see entry)]
    ku-mirehe, n. cmpnd. elbow; lit. "mid-arm" [Composed of the initial element (u)ku "middle, half" (modified from an older stem keu(n)) and the word mirehe "arm" (see entry)]
    ku-noiwe, n. cmpnd. see entry ku-noyo
    ku-noyo, n. cmpnd. waist, lit. "mid-body" [Composed of the initial element (u)ku "middle, half" (modified from an older stem keu(n)) and the word noyo "body" (see entry); also appears as a variant form ku-noiwe]
    kuta, n. knowledge
    kur, n. anger, rage [A perversion of the elemental word koi with addition of the negative suffix -uur]
    kurma, v. to rage, be angry (base-stem) [From the stem kur "anger, rage" with addition of the general verbal suffix -ma]
    ku-warehe, n. cmpnd. knee; lit. "mid-leg" [Composed of the initial element (u)ku "middle, half" (modified from an older stem keu(n)) and the word warehe "leg" (see entry)]
     
    -L-
     
    leh, n. elemental air [Originally lei, still attested in some rare cases; also found as the adjectival prefix le-]
    ler, n. acid, poison; sickness, illness [A perversion of the elemental word lei with addition of the negative suffix -uur; also found as luur]
    leru, adj. acidic [From the stem ler with addition of the general adjectival suffix -u]
    lehel, n. wind, breeze, wind current [Contracted from the original compound le-ehel "flow, current of air" (see entry ehel); synonymous with the later term lehelye (see entry)]
    lehelye; see entry lehel [A synonymous term for "wind, breeze" derived from lehel with the abstract nounal suffix -hye]
    leo, adj. green [Originally from an augmented form of lei "elemental air" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o; also found as ly in southern dialects (with shift of diphthong eo > y]
    lesma, v. to hear (base-stem) [From the verbal stem les "hear" (from lus, older lues) with addition of the general verbal suffix -ma]
    lhihke, n. righteousness, virtue, honor [From the stem lhi(k) "virtue, justice" with addition of the nounal suffix -hye (lhihkye > lhihke)]
    lhii, adj. virtuous, right, honorable [From the stem lhi(k) "virtue, justice" with addition of the adjectival suffix -ii; also found as hli in some compounds and as a feature of Le-Matoran dialects (see entry)]
    lhikhe, n. just, fair [From the stem lhi(k) "virtue, justice" with addition of the adjectival suffix -he]
    lusak, n. deafness [A more colloquial word used to describe deafness that is unnatural or was caused by something and has negative results; originates from the stem lus "hearing" (older lues) with addition of the negative suffix -ak; common southern dialect forms include lesek (with common alteration of -ak to -ek) and shorter lesk (lek in compounds or names); also see entry lusuur]
    lusse, n. listening, hearing [From the stem lus "hearing" (older lues) with addition of the general abstract suffix -e]
    lusta, n. ear [From the stem lus "hearing" (older lues) with addition of the suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning]
    lusuur, n. deafness [From the stem lus "hearing" (older lues) with addition of the negative suffix -uur; primarily used as a scientific or medical term; also see entry lusak]
     
    Here ends Volume I. Volume II continues with entries M-Z.
     
    JRRT
  13. JRRT

    Nameless Masks

    By JRRT,

    What do you know: looks like I’m still on a Matoran Language streak these days, despite another interstate relocation (back to my natural habitat in the dry-bare-sandy southwest US...it’s good to be home). This time though, I’m taking a break from those pretentious Lessons in order to play around with a tangent on nameless Kanohi masks, i.e. official (and some unofficial) Kanohi masks that never received official (or unofficial) Matoran names. With a universe as sprawling as that of Bionicle, you can be sure that there are quite a few. Here are some musings on what some of those masks might have been called if they had only been important enough:
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Vaamaku, n.cmpd. “Mask of Psychometry; allows the wearer to see the history of an object/place through physical contact” [variant vāmaku]
     

    Etymology:


     
    vā, stm. “time (absract)”
    -amu, p. “through, during (transitional-instrumental particle)”
    aku, n. “sight”
     
    The element vā-amu translates straightforwardly to “through/across time”, with the application of the transitional-instrumental particle (see Lesson 8, section IIf.). This is combined with aku “sight” to yield the historical compound vā-amu-aku “through/across-time sight”, modern form vaamaku.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Amana, n.cmpd. “Mask of Healing; allows the wearer to heal visible/known physical injuries” [variant form mana]
     

    Etymology:


     
    amana, n. “(re)forming, (re)making; healing”
     
    The element amana is of uncertain etymology. It is almost certainly related to (or even directly derived from) the ancient stem ma(t), denoting “control, mastery, use, etc.”, with a variant meaning of “form, shape, create”. See dictionary entries <mat> and <manta>.
     
    One possible solution involves an etymology patterned after the name Mata (lit. All-Master: cf. Mata Nui “the Great Spirit”), which derives from the ancient stem mat combined with a (generally intensive) particle ā. Application of such a particle to a hypothetical stem ?man could yield a form ?man-ā, with displacement of the particle (“variable placement”*) resulting in a further form a-man-a, dividing the particle ā (literally aa) into two units: a and a. This would be in accord with the variant form mana (see variant form above) and with the attested dialectal variants of the Mata-name, namely Amata, as well as with the obscure title Amana Nui, which, in Matoran cosmology, may in fact be a further pseudonym for Mata Nui himself, with a meaning roughly analogous to “Great Healer”, “Great (Re)Former”, or (post-Bara Magna) “Great Melder”.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Onweku, n.cmpd. “Mask of Intangibility; allows the wearer to become intangible (non-solid)”
     

    Etymology:


     
    onwe, adj. “solid, stable”
    -ku, p. “non-, un- (negative particle)”
     
    The element onwe derives from the metaphoric meaning of the elemental stem onu “earth”, with application of the (relatively rare) adjectival particle -ee (onu-ee > onwe). This is combined with the general negative particle ku, yielding the compound onwe-ku “non-solid; intangible”.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Isima, n.cmpd. “Mask of Possibilities; allows the wearer to subtly alter fields of probability”
     

    Etymology:


     
    isi, n. “possibility”
    ma(t), stm. “mastery, control”
     
    The element isi combines straightforwardly with the element ma(t), yielding the compound isi-ma(t) “control of possibility”, modern form isima.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Awai, n.cmpd. “Mask of Growth; allows the wearer to increase in physical size” [variant forms waia, waya, waaya]
     

    Etymology:


     
    wā, stm. “great, large, broad; large size”
    ya p. “verbal particle”
     
    The original stem wā denotes “great, large, broad; large size”. This stem is verbalized by the addition of the verbal particle ya, yielding a compound wā-ya roughly with the meaning of “become large”. The particle ya exhibits “variable placement”*. It can be “split” into two separate units i and a, with the latter unit being displaced before the stem to which the particle is applied. In this case, this yields the form a-wā-i, modern form awai. This basic verbalization of a stem with displacement of the verbal particle is frequently used to denote a generalized (nounal) event, equivalent to a gerund (or possibly infinitive) in English: “becoming large, increasing, growing”. Variants of this mask-name do appear without the displaced particle (see variant forms above), but they are dialectically very restricted.
     
    -----------
     
    Kanohi Mautru, n.cmpd. “Mask of Mutation; allows the wearer to mutate organisms”
     

    Etymology:


     
    mautru, n. “change, mutation”
     
    The original stem maut denotes “change, differentiation”. Application of the (relatively rare) nounal particle -rū, denoting an object or place embodying a concept, yields the compound maut-rū, modern form mautru.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Mutuku, n.cmpd. “Mask of Emulation; allows the wearer to analyze and replicate the powers of other beings temporarily”
     

    Etymology:


     
    mutu, adj. “different, unlike”
    -ku, p. “non-, un- (negative particle)”
     
    The element mutu derives from the older stem maut “change, differentiation”, with application of the adjectival particle -u (maut-u > mut-u). This is combined with the general negative particle ku, yielding the compound maut-u-ku “not-different, not-unlike”, modern form mutuku.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Mautatu, n.cmpd. “Mask of Charisma; allows the wearer to convince others to agree with the wearer’s perspective/will by subtly altering their perception of the world”
     

    Etymology:


     
    maut, stm. “change, differentiation”
    atu, n. “mind, will”
     
    The original stem maut denotes “change, differentiation”. In combination with atu, this yields the compound maut-atu “lit. change-mind/will; changing/altering the mind or will”.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Eyi, n.cmpd. “Mask of Fusion; allows the wearer to forcibly fuse with one or more beings to form a single, larger being”
     

    Etymology:


     
    e-, p. “make/cause X (causative particle)”
    yi, adj/adv. “together”
     
    The adjectival element yi is combined with the causative (verbal) particle e-, yielding a semi-verbal compound e-yi “make together; cause-to-be-together”.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Konomau, n.cmpd. “Mask of Biomechanics; allows the wearer to interface with and assume mental control over (bio)mechanical systems” [variant form konomatu, konoimau, konoimatu; noimatuko, noimauko]





    Etymology:


     
    uko, p. “outside, external (locative particle)”
    noi, n. “(physical protodermic) body”
    ma(t), stm. “control, mastery”
     
    The elements noi and ma(t) combine to form the compound noi-ma(t) “body-control”. The element noi is used in reference to the (bio)mechanical nature of the Matoran body. The particle uko exhibits “variable placement” (see Lesson 7 IIId., Lesson 8 Ia.). It can be “split” into two separate units u and ko, with the latter unit being displaced before the stem to which the particle is applied. In this case, the particle uko is applied to the compound noi-ma(t), yielding the form ko-noi-ma(t)-u “external body-control; body-control from outside“, modern forms konomau (-noi- > -no-) and konomatu. Variants of this mask-name also exist using the unsplit form of the particle (see variant forms above).
     
    ----------
     
    [Note: the following masks are not officially confirmed Kanohi powers, but they are powers that (I think) could be exhibited by Kanohi (e.g. Makuta/Rahkshi powers)]
     
    Kanohi Koramau, n.cmpd. “Mask of Rahi Control; allows the wearer to exert control over various species of Rahi” [variant forms korahimau, korahimatu; rahimat-uko, rahima-uko]
     

    Etymology:


     
    uko, p. “outside, external (locative particle)”
    rahi, n. “Rahi, animals, fauna (general term)”
    ma(t), stm. “control, mastery”
     
    The elements rahi and ma(t) combine to form the compound rahi-ma(t) “rahi-control”. The particle uko exhibits “variable placement”*. It can be “split” into two separate units u and ko, with the latter unit being displaced before the stem to which the particle is applied. In this case, the particle uko is applied to the compound rahi-ma(t), yielding the form ko-rahi-ma(t)-u “external rahi-control; rahi-control from outside“, modern forms koramau (-rahi- > -ra-) and koramatu. Several variants of this mask-name did exist early on using the unsplit form of the particle (see variant forms above) but these were dialectically very restricted.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Kokrimau, n.cmpd. “Mask of Insect Control; allows the wearer to exert control over various species of Insect Rahi” [variant forms kokirimau, kokirimatu; kirimat-uko, kirima-uko]
     

    Etymology:


     
    uko, p. “outside, external (locative particle)”
    kiri, n. “insects (general term)”
    ma(t), stm. “control, mastery”
     
    The elements kiri and ma(t) combine to form the compound kiri-ma(t) “insect-control”. The particle uko exhibits “variable placement” (see Lesson 7 IIId., Lesson 8 Ia.). It can be “split” into two separate units u and ko, with the latter unit being displaced before the stem to which the particle is applied. In this case, the particle uko is applied to the compound kiri-ma(t), yielding the form ko-kiri-ma(t)-u “external insect-control; insect-control from outside“, modern forms kokrimau (-kiri- > -kri-) and kokrimatu. Several variants of this mask-name did exist early on using the unsplit form of the particle (see variant forms above) but these were dialectically very restricted.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Akataiku, “Mask of Heat Vision; allows the wearer to project beams of heat along the wearer’s line of sight” [variant forms akataku, akatāku, akataiaku]
     

    Etymology:


     
    aka, n. “power, ability” [independent augmented form of ka, see dictionary entries <aka>, <ka>]
    taiaku, n.cmpd. “heat-vision” [from ancient compound tae-aku; also tāku]
     
    The element aka combines straightforwardly with the element taiaku, yielding the compound aka-taiaku “power of heat-vision”, modern form akataiku (also see variants above).
     
    ----------
     
    [Note: the following masks are not actually nameless. They have official names, but no official etymologies. Here are unofficial etymologies for them.]
     
    Kanohi Komau, n.cmpd. “Mask of Mind Control; allows the wearer to exert mental control over a target” [variant forms komatu, matuko, mauko]
     

    Etymology:


     
    uko, p. “outside, external (locative particle)”
    ma(t), stm. “control, mastery”
     
    The particle uko exhibits “variable placement”*. It can be “split” into two separate units u and ko, with the latter unit being displaced before the stem to which the particle is applied. In this case, the particle uko is applied to the stem ma(t), yielding the form ko-ma(t)-u “external control; control from outside“, modern forms komau (more frequent) and komatu. Variants of this mask-name did exist early on using the unsplit form of the particle--mat-uko and ma-uko—but these were dialectically very restricted.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Suletu, n.cmpd. “Mask of Telepathy; allows the wearer to communicate with others telepathically, along with a range of other telepathic abilities” [variant form selatu]
     

    Etymology:


     
    seu(l), stm. “elemental Psionics” (modified form of elemental prefix se-, ce-)
    atu, n. “mind, will”
     
    The element seu(l) is an elaboration of the elemental Psionics prefix se- (also spelled ce-) modified along a similar pattern as, e.g. ga > (a)gal- (see dictionary entries <gah>, <ehel>, <galnu>). This is combined with atu (from older *aetu) to yield a compound seul-aetu “psionic will; mental will”, modern forms suletu (more frequent), selatu.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Mahiki, n.cmpd. “Mask of Illusion; allows the wearer to create and manipulate visual illusions”
     

    Etymology:


     
    ma(t), stm. “control, mastery”
    hiki, n. “deception, trickery”
     
    The ancient stem ma(t) combines with the element hiki to form the compound ma-hiki “control of deception/trickery”. The etymology of hiki is somewhat interesting to note. The concept of deception or trickery in the emergent Matoran culture appears to have been associated with “incompleteness”, “part of a whole”, or “something held back”. The composition of hiki reflects this association: the element ki denotes “(a) part, piece”, while hī denotes “(a) thing, place”, with the original meaning of hiki being “part of a thing”.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Akaku, n.cmpd. “Mask of (X-Ray) Vision; allows the wearer to see with enhanced vision, even through solid matter”
     

    Etymology:


     
    aka, n. “power, ability” [independent augmented form of ka, see dictionary entries <aka>, <ka>]
    aku, n. “sight, vision”
     
    The element aka combines straightforwardly with the element aku, yielding the compound aka-aku “power of vision”, modern form akaku.
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Kakama, n.cmpd. “Mask of Speed; allows the wearer to move at extremely high speeds” [variant form kamaka]
     

    Etymology:


     
    ka, n. “power, energy”
    ka-ma, v. “to move”
     
    The element ka combines with the verbal complex ka-ma to form the compound ka-kama “power of moving/movement”. In order to express the generalized (nounal) event of “moving, movement” intended here, the verbal particle is also sometimes displaced (“variable placement”*), yielding the variant verbal complex ma-ka (and the variant form kamaka, see variant form above).
     
    ----------
     
    Kanohi Vahi, n.cmpd. “Mask of Time; allows the wearer to control the flow of time itself”
     
    vā, stm. “time (abstract)”
    hī, stm. “thing, place”
     
    The elements vā and hī combine straightforwardly to yield the compound vā-hī, literally meaning “time-thing”, modern form vahi.
     
    [*see Lesson 6 I., Lesson 7 IIId., Lesson 8 Ia. for more information on “splitting” particles and “variable placement”]
  14. JRRT
    [cross-post]
     
    Another year, another birthday, and today’s mine. Seems like a good occasion for gift-giving, so here’s one for you all.
     
    Several months ago, I posted a link on tumblr to an unfinished Matoran Language translation of the script of Bionicle: Mask of Light. At the time, it was only about 25% complete. Well, some time (and procrastination) has passed since then...and now it’s 100% complete.
     
    Link to the document
     
    There’s the link to the Google doc, with comments enabled. And just to give you a taste of what the document contains, I'll conclude with a few short snippets. Enjoy!
     
    ==========
     
    JALLER
     
    ENG: Toa Tahu, Takua? He didn’t…? You’re alive! Kohli-head! You could’ve been lava bones!
     
    MAT: Toa Tahu, Takua? Ai-rhu...? Ou ikau-pa! Kohlii-meki! Ou tanuzaki-nuse!
     
    TAKUA
     
    ENG: Could’ve been, but I’m not.
     
    MAT: O hi-nuse, fa o-rhu.
     
    ==========
     
    POHATU
     
    ENG: Always a pleasure Gali. You two still so ill-at-ease? Put your petty differences aside, rejoice!
     
    MAT: Ta o hiki-po! Avamu rukhapo, Gali. Ou-anga ihua uluraiwa-po? Kofo-khuhi’u ihiki kya, ladeya!
     
    GALI
     
    ENG: Ha, I think my brother is afraid of having his fire extinguished.
     
    MAT: Ha, o ge seyaga ge ro'o ge turyaga ge tahai gamayago.
     
    TAHU
     
    ENG: Hahaha! Sister, against me you’d be nothing but steam. Hot air as they say.
     
    MAT: Hahaha! Ro'o, o'i ou igalorhu-se. Lo-taui, ke ai rokha.
     
    ==========
     
    MAKUTA
     
    ENG: The earth shudders my brother. The seventh Toa has begun its approach. Again the prophecies of the Matoran oppose my will. Must I release those who should never see the light of day? I must preserve your slumber. Their Unity will be poisoned. Their Duty will be broken. Their Destiny I must shatter. Go my sons, use the shadows and keep my brother asleep.
     
    MAT: Onu voya, ro’o. Toa-Nanga hiki'i voyata. Anga imatoran-vakamaja atu'o rakha. O akai ki rhui avahi akuyasu ikuakaryasuka? O voko'u mayasu. Kaita'ai lerayako. Maita'ai guurayako. O vaita'ai panrayasu. Shi'o voya. Krahi maya. Ivoko'a ro'o maya.
     
    ==========
     
    LEWA
     
    ENG: Walk? Ha, not-never! If you ride with me, there be no foot-walking, just air-flying. Ever wind-fly a Gukko-bird?
     
    MAT: Odai? Eke, ru-ru! Oi usai-sa, odi-dai-koru, nga le-mirai. Vai Goko leki-mirai?
     
    TAKUA
     
    ENG: I’ve been a second, but I’ve never flown one myself. (MNOG ref ftw)
     
    MAT: O khanga-nu, fa o nga mirukhanu-rhui.
     
    LEWA
     
    ENG: Then today is for quick-learning. Stay sharp and follow well.
     
    MAT: Le iki-aku. Kee no yai-yai.
  15. JRRT

    The Glyphs of Okoto

    By JRRT,

    Since the release of the Bionicle 2015 media, various people have taken note of the system of symbols or glyphs that consistently appear throughout the island of Okoto. They show up in nearly every one of the story animations--on ruins, statues, the Temple of Time...even the Mask of Creation is covered in them. This has, unsurprisingly, generated questions about whether or not these symbols are purely decorative or if they in fact constitute a functioning writing system, along the lines of the G1 Matoran Alphabet. After a good deal of discussion, however, the consensus (which I agree with) appears to be that these symbols are purely aesthetic and do not carry any linguistic significance.
     
    But even so, using a bit of creativity, it may still be possible to derive something meaningful from these symbols for use by Bionicle fans. My goal here is not to construct a complete "Okotoan Alphabet", but instead to simply take a first step in that direction and see where it leads; hopefully inspiring the creativity of others along the way. With that said, let's begin:
     
    There are two main sources from which I will draw examples of the relevant symbols: those found on the Mask of Creation and those found in the Temple of Time. This is because these sources provide very clear and consistent examples of the glyphs, without heavy modification due to, e.g. the simplified style of the animations, and also because the primary string of symbols that can be derived from these sources shows up only in bits and pieces elsewhere (sometimes partly obscured), rather than being attested in full, as it is in these two contexts.
     
    So, first, here is a facsimile of the symbols found on the Mask of Creation (click here for a hi-res version of the original picture).
     
    1.

     
    Next, a facsimile of the block of symbols found on the interior of the Temple of Time (see this image--specifically the symbols on the left side of the temple, middle row, far right column). The lefthand vertical column of this block is a full 180-degree rotation of the righthand vertical column, and the righthand column partially matches the central vertical crest on the MoCr.
     
    2.

     
    It’s pretty clear at this point that there is actually only one string of symbols involved in both cases. This string is modified/truncated/mirrored/rotated in various ways to fit whatever space is required. Here is the primary string in isolation (basically identical to the righthand column of the Temple of Time version, but mirrored horizontally to match that on the MoCr):
     
    3.

     
    Next, let’s focus on how this string is implemented on the Mask of Creation, since the MoCr provides good examples of repetition of specific sequences of glyphs and truncation of the primary sequence. My goal is to use whatever patterns of repetition/omition that can be found in order to decompose the primary string into individual units, which might then serve as independent “letters” (or graphemes). Here we go:
     
    - The central vertical crest exhibits the full primary string, plus a partial repetition. I have coded the repeated segment in blue, the non-repeated segment in green:
     
    4.

     
    - The two lesser vertical crests exhibit a non-repeating version of the full string which is nevertheless truncated via removal of the largest symbol (marked in red on the original string). Note that the left crest is oriented identically to the central crest, and the right crest is a horizontal mirror of the left.
     
    5.

     
    - The two internal vertical sequences on the “forehead” of the mask include the entire segment that is repeated twice on the central vertical crest, plus one additional symbol. I have preserved the blue-green coloring from (4) to illustrate this.
     
    6.

     
    - The four horizontal crests on the lower edges of the mask all make use of the primary sequence rotated 90 degrees, but with nearly half the sequence omitted. The upper horizontal crests have one glyph more than the lower horizontal crests, which are also flipped vertically. Once again, I have preserved the blue-green color-coding to better illustrate the extent to which certain sequences are preserved and/or omitted.
     
    7.

     
    With these observations in place, here is an updated version of the full schematic of the MoCr with blue-green color-coding.
     
    8.

     
    Now, as stated previously, my goal here is to figure out which symbols are independent and separable and which symbols form “blocks” with each other in order to dissolve the primary string into its constituent units. The patterns of omition on the MoCr give some good clues about this. For example, the fact that a symbol can be omitted from the primary string on the lesser vertical crests (the symbol marked red in (5) above) shows that this symbol is a separable glyph. Likewise, the individual glyphs that are added to fill space on the internal vertical crests (see (6)) and the horizontal crests (see (7)) show that these specific glyphs are also independent and separable. All of these observations lead to the following:
     
    9.

     
    And now, to bring us full circle, we can apply the color-coding to the primary string only, as follows:
     
    10.

     
    As can be seen, my assumption here is that the glyphs that are colored identically form a unit with one another, and based on this assumption, I have broken up the primary string into 8 separate units. Note that the decision to separate 1 and 2 was my own, since, if these symbols had been combined, it would make for a very complex symbol indeed. In addition, the decision to include the single horizontal line as a part of symbol 2, rather than a separate symbol, was made based on the observation that (1) these two components are never separated, and (2) that the two components are clearly printed as a single unit on the lesser vertical crests of the MoCr.
     
    Now the question is, where to go from here? I don’t really know. As a fun creative exercise, we could, of course, assign an alphabetic value to each of the eight “letters” represented here—preferably values that together form some significant eight-letter word without any repeating letters (assuming that this is an alphabetic writing system, similar to the G1 Matoran alphabet). A couple of ideas occur to me:
     
    First, there is the word CREATION. It has eight letters, non-repeating. If we do the value-assignment as suggested, that would make our primary string spell out as follows (Note that, because we have no indications as to which way to read the glyphs (upwards or downwards), either way could work, and so I have provided both up-down and down-up value-assignments):
     
    11.

     
    Secondly—and perhaps more interestingly—there is the word BIONICLE, which is also eight letters, but has a repetition of the letter <i>, which makes it not quite as practical if we want to maximize the number of letters we have at our disposal. However, this problem can be partly resolved by the following observation: The word does have a repetition of the letter <i>, but both occurences have completely different phonetic values, i.e. the first <i> is the sound in “bite”, while the second is the sound in “bit”. If we can withstand this slight complication, this version might very well work.
     
    12.

     
    I will leave it at that. I hope you enjoyed this detour into possible Okotoan orthography, and I also hope that the ideas sketched out here--legitimate or not--serve to generate further creativity on the subject. Have fun.
     
    JRRT
  16. JRRT
    [also hey look
    a tumblr]


    Treatise: Translating the Avohkii



    : Part 1 :



    It has come to my attention that the novelization of the Mask of Light film includes the following passage:


    This is supposed to be Nokama’s reading of the inscription found on the Avohkii. Interesting, no? Even if the novelization is only semi-canon, this could provide material for expanding our (admittedly completely made-up) knowledge of the Matoran language. Where to begin?
     
    I began by seeking out the scene from the film itself where Nokama translates the inscription. I remember watching this years ago and hearing her utter some gibberish, but it never occurred to me that it might have been meaningful gibberish. Unfortunately for linguists attempting to reconstruct Matoran, the comparison of the film and the text from the novelization raises some problems. The bad news: The passages aren’t completely identical. The film-version is definitely truncated. The good news: While the film-version is shorter, it actually shares many elements with the novel-version. Both of these passages clearly come from the same source, and it appears that the film-version may be a pared-down form of the version presented in the book.
     
    So which one do we use? Maybe we can use both. First off, however, we need a transcription of the passage from the film. Here’s mine:

     
    Notes:
    - ' indicates stress on the following syllable. This won’t play a huge role, but it does help in determining some of the word breaks.
    - <break> indicates a brief pause, which I take to indicate a word-break in most cases.
    - ? in brackets [?] indicates an indistinct sound. The first [??] indicates that there may have been something within the break, but it was indecipherable.
     
    If we compare this transcription with the text from the novelization, we can further refine the analysis to include the more well-motivated word-breaks:


    I’ve put a dash between wenu and kakit[?] based on the orthography of the novel-version (wehnua-hakeeta). Likewise, for now I’ve kept [?]ke separate from wenu based on ...kanokee wehnua...
     
    [Real world intrusion here—this strikes me as very Maori, and I would not be surprised if we were dealing with a non-phonetic version of Maori text in the novelization, with the actress who voiced Nokama in the film just reading it off the script phonetically (hence the extreme reduction). That doesn’t work for everything, of course, since the novel-version includes words that don’t seem likely to be completely lost through pure phonological reduction: rahun-akh, panokeeta, etc.]
     
    Anyways, now that we’ve compared both versions a bit, the next question is: Which one is canon? As far as I know, the novelization is only semi-canon, while the film is full-canon, at least when it comes to events. It would be easy to just drop the novel-version, but then we’d lose a significant piece of potential data. Ideally, we should be able to come up with an analysis that accounts for and is informed by both.
     
    So here’s the plan: I will start with the film-version, taking it at face value, rather than as a truncation of the “full” version in the novelization. If we can come up with a bare-bones translation for that, the translation of the novel-version should come easily. With that in mind, I’ll revise the transcription from the film:

     
    Full disclosure: In anticipation of the final analysis below, I’ve filled in the [?]-gaps from the original in a way that I think is plausible (kit[?] > kitu, [?]hano > ahano, tak[?] > taka). I’ve also modified the spelling slightly (wenu > whenu). There is definitely some potential for error here, and there will be a few more modifications before we’re finished, but this should work for now.
     
    Next step: What could this possibly mean? We never get a straightforward translation. Here’s what Nokama says after translating the passage (taken directly from MoL): “This is the great Kanohi Mask of Light. A mask to be worn by a seventh Toa...A Toa of Light.”
     
    That’s pretty much it. Main points: The inscription may identify the mask as the Mask of Light, but then again, it may not, since the Turaga already knew what it was—they were the ones who hid it, after all. Likewise, the fact that it can only be worn by a “Seventh Toa” wouldn’t make a whole lot of sense in the inscription, since a seventh Toa isn’t all that special—there were hundreds (more on that later!). I think it’s likely that most of the dialogue related to the inscription was, in fact, theatrics. The Turaga simply revealed to the Matoran that the mask was the MoL and that there would be a “seventh” Toa—all of which the Turaga knew beforehand.
     
    Instead, in attempting to translate this inscription, it may be more useful to look at the origins of the MoL itself. Who wrote this inscription and why? The MoL was made on Artakha, and it was created for the specific purpose of combatting the Brotherhood of Makuta should they ever leave the straight and narrow. Artakha himself may have been the one to write the inscription, but regardless, the mask had a purpose from the beginning, and it would make sense for the inscription to pertain to that purpose: If the Makuta ever go bad, take this mask and find an Av-Matoran. I think it makes sense, at least! But we won’t know until we’ve got a translation, will we? This post has set the stage for just such an endeavor...
     
    Next time.
     
  17. JRRT
    A Dictionary and Etymology of the Matoran Language
     
    =l Volume II l=
     
    Compiled by Ihu, Scholar of Metru Nui, k. 79908. This volume continues with entries M through Z.


    -M-
     
    mahri, n. ocean
    m(a)i, adv. up, above, over [From the stem *maeh "up, above, over"]
    maima, v. to rise (base-stem) [From the stem *maeh "up above, over" with addition of the general verbal suffix -ma]
    maita¹, n. brain [From the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the nounal suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning, and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > ai]
    maita², adj. mental, of the mind [Originally maihta, the word eventually merged in form with the earlier maita¹ (see entry). It derives from the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the adjectival suffix -ha, and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > ai]
    mai(h)te, adj. intelligent, mindful, reasoned [From the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the adjectival suffix -he "having" and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > ai]
    Makuta, n. cmpnd. Master of Knowledge [From elements ma- "master, user of" and kuta "knowledge"]
    manas, n. monster, fearful thing
    Mana-ko, n. cmpnd silent monster [From older Manasko]
    manta, v. to create (base-stem) [From the element man (see entry mat) and the general verbal suffix -ta]
    mareno, n. (the) West [Apparently derived from an older stem mairee- (which eventually produces our modern term mirehe "arm"), in conjunction with the ancient elemental stem (o)noi, referencing the element of Protodermis.The term follows a trend in the derivation of "location-words" in which the words for the cardinal points originate from terms for parts of the body. See related entries metiono "north", merhono "east", and wareno "south" for further discussion]
    mat (ma-), n. user, master, creator [etymology uncertain; it is believed that mat first originated as *maa but this is not definitively attested; also appears as man]
    Mata, n. lit. Master of All [used only in reference to the Great Spirit; mata is formed of the element mat "master, user" and the ancient intensive suffix -a]
    matatu, n.cmpnd. master/user of the mind [From the elements mat "master, user" and atu "mind, will"]
    mator(o), n. cmpnd. word master, a master of words [From the two elements ma(t) "master (of)" and oro "word(s)"]
    Matoran, n. lit. word-master-beings, generalized as "speakers", "those who speak" [From the older matoroan, it is formed from the element mator(o) "word master" and the suffix -an "being, individual"]
    matya, v. to master, use (ya-stem) [From the element mat "master, user" and the verbal suffix -ya]
    mau(h)te, adj. changed, altered [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the adjectival suffix -he "having"]
    mautur, n. ruin, distortion [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the negative suffix -uur, denoting an opposite meaning; the term originally meant "idleness" or "stagnation", but later took on the meaning of a similar word mutak "ruin, distortion", eventually supplanting the term and losing the historical meaning]
    mautye, n. change, modification; mutation [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the nounal suffix -hye, denoting a generally universal concept; also found as the more modern muhtye, with development of diphthong au > u]
    merhono, n. (the) East [Apparently derived from an older stem mairee- (which eventually produces our modern term mirehe "arm"), in conjunction with the ancient elemental stem (o)noi, referencing the element of Protodermis. This origin is identical with the related term mareno "west", differing only in the combination of the two elements (merhono showing the gradual prevalence of the onoi element, whereas mareno shows the opposite). The term again demonstrates the usual convention by which the names of the cardinal points all originate from terms for parts of the body. See related entries metiono "north", mareno "west", and wareno "south" for further discussion]
    metii, n. head [From the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the nounal suffix -hii "thing, place" and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > e]
    metineye, n. cmpnd canopy; lit. "tree-head" [Composed of the noun metii "head" and a contracted form of ihneye "tree"]
    metirui, n. neck; lit. "head joint" [Composed of the elements metii "head" and -rui "joint" (see entry)]
    met(i)ono, n. (the) North [Apparently derived from an older form of the stem met-, at the time meaning "mind" or "head", in conjunction with the ancient elemental stem (o)noi, referencing the element of Protodermis. There is still debate over the exact motivation for the derivation of this term, although some have proposed that it is related to the location of the city of Metru Nui in the north of the world, the term metru sharing the same or similar etymology (from the ancient stem maet "mind, thought"); also see related entries mareno "west", merhono "east", and wareno "south", all of which seem to be derived from terms for parts of the body]
    metru, n. city [etymology uncertain; it appears that metru originated from the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with obscure suffix -uu (which may signify a place embodying a concept), eventually becoming -ru with loss of preceding diphthong ae. It is unclear why a term for a city originated from such a stem; however, this could be explained by the fact that maet may have developed from the older hypothetical stem *maa (see entry mat), connecting its meaning with the early construction of a city. There is no considerable consensus on this (or the preceding) interpretation.]
    metye, n. mind, intellect [From the ancient stem maet "mind, thought" with addition of the nounal suffix -hye and with development of the ancient diphthong ae > e]
    mirehe, n. arm [Historically composed of the adjectival element mai- "up, upper" and the word reehe "limb, appendage"]
    mirehovo, n. cmpnd. wrist [A compound formed from the elements mirehe "arm" and -ovo "end, finish"]
    misso, n. mist, fog [Formed from the stem miis "mysterious, unkown" with addition of the suffix -o denoting a substance or physical concept; also appears as a variant form miswe with alternate suffix -we]
    missu, adj. unknown, mysterious [From the stem miis "mysterious, unkown" with addition of the adjectival suffix -u]
    miswe; see entry misso
    misye, n. mysteriousness, (the) Unknown [From the stem mis "mysterious, hidden, unknown" with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a universal concept; also found as mishe in southern and eastern dialects, with common dialectal shift of sy > sh]
    mo, n. field, plain, country
    moa, n. lit. of the plains; plains-dweller, desert bird [Historically moha, from the elements mo "plain, country" and the adjectival suffix -ha "of the…"]
    mora, n. wilderness, wild country; landscape [From the elements mo "field, plain, country" and ra "wild untamed"]
    motara, n. desert; hot, barren region [Historically a triple-compound formed from the elements mo "field, country", ta "fire, hot", and ra "wild, untamed"]
    mua, n. rahi cat, tiger
    mudra, n. changer (one who changes things) [Historically mutra, it originates from the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the agental suffix -ra and with usual later development of diphthong au > u; complementary to the similar word munna (see entry)]
    muhtye; see entry mautye
    mukai, v. to ruin, distort (ai-stem) [Historically derived from the ya-stem verb mutya through analogy of the archaic stem mutak, forming the hypothetical form *mutakya (with insertion of -ak into the stem), eventually developing into the form mukaya and thence to mukai]
    munna, n. changer (one who changes) [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the agental suffix -na and with usual later development of diphthong au > u; complementary to the similar word mudra (see entry)]
    mutaku, adj. ruined, distorted, disparate [Originally derived from an archaic stem mutak "ruin, distortion" (now unused, supplanted by more recent mautur (see entry)) with addition of the general adjectival suffix -u]
    mutu, adj. different, unlike [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the adjectival suffix -u and with usual later development of diphthong au > u]
    mutya, v. to change (ya-stem) [From the ancient stem maut "change, difference" with addition of the verbal suffix -ya and with usual later development of diphthong au > u]
     
    -N-
     
    neh, n. plant-life element [Originally nei; also realized as the adjectival prefix ne-]
    neto, n. leaf [Derived from a stem (e)net, modified form of the elemental root nei, with addition of the nounal suffix -o "physical concept"]
    nekua, adv. thus, so, in that way [etymology uncertain]
    nenu, n. grass [etymology uncertain]
    nenu-leru, n. cmpnd acid grass [A term for the species of acid grass found in the Northern Continent and in the island of Xia, it is composed of the noun nenu "grass" and the adjective leru "acidic"]
    neo, n. nature; the Green [Originally from the ancient elemental root nei "elemental plant-life" with addition of the nounal suffix -o "physical concept"; also found as ny in southern dialects (with shift of diphthong eo > y). Translation of the term as "the Green" stems from the similarity of the modern form of the word to other color-words derived from elemental stems (cf. leo "green")]
    neto-kaatuhi, n. cmpnd. petal; lit. "flower-leaf" [Composed of the elements neto "leaf" and kaatuhi "flower"]
    neye, n. plant [Modified from the ancient elemental root nei "elemental plant-life"]
    nohi, n. (outer) face, mask [used by mask-makers to refer to the powerless Matoran mask; nohi comes from the ancient form noihii, which, in turn, is formed from the ancient elements -hii "thing, object" and noi, the elemental word for the substance of Protodermis. Thus, nohi may, historically, be rendered as "thing of Protodermis"]
    noiwe; see entry noyo
    noka, n. disk [A more modern addition to the Matoran lexicon, noka is formed from the elements noe "elemental protodermis" and ka "power, ability" to have the historical meaning of "power of protodermis". (see entry kanoka for further historical notes)]
    noyo, n. body [Derived from the ancient stem onoi, with the repurposing of the initial o as a suffix]
    nui, adj. great, powerful
    nuva, adj. new
    nuyorho, n. mountain range [Originates as a conjunction of the word (o)nuyo "mountain" and the suffix/prefix rho "line, edge"]
     
    -O/Y-
     
    ohama, v. to come, move toward (base-stem) [Formed from the older verb kama "to move", with addition of the prefix o(h)-, denoting that the action is turned inward]
    okune, n. (a) silence, pause, rest [From the element koh "elemental ice (also connoting 'silence' and 'calm')" with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem"; the development of the theoretical historical form *okoohi into the modern form okune occurs according to a process by which the -hi suffix, in the presence of a preceding "back" consonant sound (in this case k), is strengthened to -ne, while the historically long vowel oo is raised to u due to the effect of the original -hi]
    onkoro, n. cliff [Derived from the word koro in combination with the elemental earth prefix onu-; also appears as a variant onkorwe with suffix -we "physical concept"]
    onkoro-nui, n. cmpnd. the Great Barrier [composed of the noun onkoro "cliff" and the adjective nui "great, mighty, vast"]
    onkorwe; see entry onkoro
    (o)nuiwe, n. mountain [Originates from the ancient elemental stem onue "elemental earth" with addition of the stem iih "high, high up" and the nounal suffix -we "physical substance/concept" [onue-iih-we > onuih-we > onuiwe]. Synonyms: (o)nuyo, ino-nui]
    (o)nuyo, n. mountain [Originates from the ancient elemental stem onue "elemental earth" with addition of the stem iih "high, high up" and the nounal suffix -o "physical substance/concept" [onue-iih-o > onuih-o > onuio]. Synonyms: (o)nuiwe, ino-nui]
    onne, n. solidness, steadfastness, loyalty; stubbornness [A very ancient word derived from the element onu "elemental earth (also connoting 'solidness' and 'loyalty')" with addition of the general nounal suffix -e]
    on(o)to, n. tool, instrument; weapon [From the older form ono "tool, weapon, implement" (etymology uncertain), with further addition of the suffix -to, also indicating a tool or implement; the stem ono is possibly descended from an older form *hno, similar in shape to the hypothetical stem *hro, see entry oro]
    ono-vawe, n. cmpnd. island [A compound of the elements ono "elemental protodermis" (derived from the ancient stem (o)noi) and vawe "foundation" (see entry). Synonyms: pauhi, pa-nui, vawe]
    (o)nuh, n. elemental earth [Originally (o)nue; also realized as nu, nuu, and as the adjectival prefix onu-]
    onwo, adj. black [Originally from an augmented form of onue "elemental earth" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    opahi, n. (a) stone, rock [From the element pah "elemental stone" with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem"]
    oraha, v. to say, speak (base-stem) [Consists of the verbal stem ora, which is in turn derived from the older stem of oro "word" with addition of the verbal suffix -ha]
    yraha, v. to tell, relate (base-stem) [Originally derived from the older verb oraha "to say, speak", with addition of the prefix e- (forming the archaic eoraha), denoting that the action is turned outward; it then exhibits the development of the diphthong eo > y in initial position]
    oran, n. word being, being(s) who use words (language) [used as a reference to those races throughout the universe who speak with language, Matoran or otherwise; oran (older oroan) is formed from the element oro "word" and the suffix -an "being, individual" with eventual absorption of the -o in oro.]
    oro, n. word [etymology uncertain; possibly descended from a stem *hro]
    oturhe, n. (a) fear, fright [From the word tur " fear, cowardice" (older tuur) with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem"]
    ovahi, n. (a) time, instance, moment [used in reference to a specific point in time; it is formed from the elemental word vae, with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem", so "a specific point within the concept of time"]
    ozahi, n. violent act, crime [From the element zaa "retribution, conflict, violence" with addition of the circumfix o-…-hi construction, denoting "an instance/object within the concept of the stem"]
     
    -P-
     
    paavelta, n. cmpnd. lit. luminous stone; lightstone [Originates from the elements pao "elemental stone" (see entry poh) and the archaic word aavelta "luminous, shining thing" (itself formed from the element aavel "shining, luminous" and the suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning)]
    pah; see entry poh
    paka, n. strength, hardness [Physically, denotes the strength of a physical object or individual, but metaphorically paka can refer to a hard or stern personality; paka is formed from the elements pa "elemental stone" and aka "power, ability" to have a literal, historical, meaning of "power of stone"]
    palneh, n. trunk; lit. "hard stem" [Contracted from an older compound pal-eneh "hard stem"]
    palnehu, adj. woody [Derived from the older compound pal-eneh "hard stem (trunk)" with addition of the general adjectival suffix -u]
    palnewe, n. wood [Derived from the older compound pal-eneh "hard stem (trunk)" with addition of the nounal suffix -we "substance"]
    pa-nui, n. cmpnd. island [Composed of a variant of the ancient elemental stem pao "elemental stone" and the adjective nui "great, mighty". Synonyms: pauhi, vawe, ono-vawe]
    pauhi, n. island [Derived from the ancient elemental stem pao "elemental stone" with addition of nounal suffix -hii "thing, place". Synonyms: vawe, ono-vawe, pa-nui]
    pawo, adj. brown [Originally from an augmented form of pao "elemental stone" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    piraka, n. cmpnd lit. "agent of evil"; (obscenity) a thief or murderer [Formed from the elements piir "perpetrator, agent of" and -raka "great destruction, evil" (from -rak and older intensifier -a)]
    pire, n. perpetrator, agent; participant [From the stem pir (older piir) with addition of the general nounal suffix -e]
    poh, n. elemental stone [Originally pao, still attested in some rare cases; also realized as pah and as the adjectival prefix po-]
    pura, n. friend, companion [From the stem pu (originally from the elemental po) "friendly, pleasant" with addition of the agental suffix -ra]
     
    -R-
     
    ra, 1 adj. wild, free, untamed; 2 n. wildness, freedom [An extremely ancient word element applied mostly to animate things, it has inherently both nounal and adjectival properties which have never been separated into distinctly different words; historically raa]
    rahi, n. wild thing/creature [Formed from the element ra "wild" and the suffix -hii "thing"; historically raahii.]
    rama, n. flying rahi insect
    rau, n. understanding, translation, decipherment [Originates from the stem oro "word" (see entry)]
    raura, n. teacher; translator, "understander" [Derived from the word rau "understanding, decipherment" (originally from the older oro "word") with addition of the agental suffix -ra]
    reehe, n. limb, branch; appendage [Probably from a stem like *(e)ree (modified from the ancient stem raa "wild, chaotic, deviant"), signifying "divergence" or "branching off", also with addition of the suffix -hii "thing, object, place"]
    rehovo, n. cmpnd. foot; lit. "end of limb" [A compound formed from the elements reehe "limb" and ovo "end, finish"; also found as an alternate form warehe-ovo, with more modern warehe "leg"]
    rhot(t)u, n. ring, wheel [Historically rhoktu, from the stem rho(k) "ring, circle, edge" with addition of the nounal suffix -tu, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning]
    rhovawe, n. shore, shoreline [Composed of the element vawe "foundation, basis, island" and the suffix/prefix rho "line, edge, circle"]
    rho(we)-nuyo, n. cmpnd. mountain range [Composed of the elements rho(we) "line, edge" (with nounal suffix -we "physical concept") and nuyo "mountain"]
    rodye; see entry rohte
    rohte, n. truth, reality [From older rotohye, originally from the older stem rot(o) (augmented from the stem oro, see entry), with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a generally universal concept; also attested as rodye]
    rui(hi), n. joint [etymology uncertain; possibly derived from an earlier modification of the ancient stem form raa "wild, chaotic, deviant", with a reversal of the meaning (thus "together, converging, united, etc.")]
    rui-mirehe, n. cmpnd shoulder [A compound formed from the elements mirehe "arm" and rui "joint"]
    rui-rehovo, n. cmpnd toe-joint [A compound formed from the elements rehovo "foot" and rui "joint"]
    rui-warehe, n. cmpnd hip [A compound formed from the elements warehe "leg" and rui "joint"]
     
    -S-
     
    sa(a), conj. and [A conjunction used to connect words of the same type (noun-noun, verb-verb, etc.)]
    suva, n. shrine, gathering place
     
    -T-
     
    tah, n. elemental fire [Also has connotations of courage, bravery, and leadership; originally tae, still attested in some rare cases; also found as the adjectival prefix ta-]
    tai¹, n. courage, bravery, leadership [From the elemental word tah (older tae) with addition of the general nounal suffix -i; the term merged at an early point with the adjectival form taii (see entry tai²); also see synonomous term aki]
    tai², adj. brave, courageous, bold [From the elemental word tah (older tae) with addition of the adjectival suffix -ii (*taeii > taii > tai)
    taka, n. light, illumination [Can refer more to the light of a fire or a torch, thereby also carrying the connotation of "leading" or "revealing", as the light of a torch reveals the way]
    takea, n. all-king (honorific) [The etymology of this term is at once simple and obscure. This is primarily because of its usage: the term takea can be used as an honorific of great respect, denoting mastery and power, but it is also used as the name of the Rahi Takea Shark. This dual usage has resulted in a double meaning of sorts, since, as the name of a Rahi, it is used to mean "king of sharks". The constructions used for this latter meaning are the elemental prefix ta-, denoting authority and leadership, and the word kea "rahi shark". However, in its primary (or historical) usage, takea can be traced back to the ancient word aki "leader, lord" with the intensive suffix -ea (historically -eaa). This forms the term akea, which, combined again with the prefix ta-, yields the "all-king" honorific. Because of this variety in meaning, it may perhaps be simpler to classify both words as completely separate.]
    tea(-o), adj. red, fiery [Originally from an augmented form of tae "elemental fire" with addition of the usual adjectival color-suffix -o]
    ter(e)na, n. keeper, guider [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the agental suffix -na]
    terenhe, adj. purposeful, meaningful [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the adjectival suffix -he "having"]
    terenye, n. guidance, direction, purpose [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a generally universal concept]
    terma, v. to guide (base-stem) [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the general verbal suffix -ma]
    terne, n. intention, goal [From the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the general nounal suffix -e]
    terya, v. to influence, persuade (ya-stem) [simplified from older tereya; it originates from the obscure ancient word form ter(e)n "guidance, direction, purpose" with addition of the general verbal suffix -ya (terenya > tereya > terya)]
    tika, n. spirit, form, shape
    tur, n. fear, terror, cowardice [A perversion of the elemental word tae with addition of the negative suffix -uur]
     
    -U-
     
    ua-eneh, n. cmpnd root; lit. "under-stem" [Composed of the adjectival element ua- "down, lower, under" and the word eneh "stem"]
    ua(h), adv. down, beneath, under [etymology uncertain]
    uama, v. to descend, go down; drop (base-stem)
    ussa, n. steed [etymology uncertain]
    usya, v. to ride (ya-stem)
     
    -V-
     
    vah, n. elemental time [Originally vae, still attested in some rare cases]
    vahye, n. Time [used in reference to Time as a universal concept, in contrast to the elemental concept, represented by vah; it is formed originally from the elemental word vae with the addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a universal concept]
    vau, adj. treacherous, dangerous [From the stem bwa "treacherous, trickery" with addition of the adjectival suffix -u and with usual change of bw > v; also found as a place name Fau, with de-voicing of initial consonant characteristic to Le-Matoran dialects]
    vawe, n. foundation, basis; island [From the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" with addition of the nounal suffix -we, denoting a physical substance or concept embodying the stem meaning (vuawe > vaawe > vawe); also see entry ono-vawe "island"]
    vawe-nui, n. cmpnd. continent, large landmass [Composed of the nounal element vawe "foundation, island" and the adjective nui "great, vast, mighty"]
    vike , n. edge, sharp edge [etymology uncertain; possibly related to the adjectival prefix vi- "narrow, fine"]
    vikuino n. cmpnd. ravine, crevasse, narrow valley [Composed of the element ku-ino "valley" and the prefix vi- "narrow"]
    visso, n. venom, poison [From the stem viis "poison, venom" with addition of the nounal suffix -o, denoting a physical substance; also found as viswe with alternate suffix -we]
    vissu, adj. venomous, poisonous, deadly [From the stem viis "poison, venom" with addition of the general adjectival suffix -u]
    viswe; see entry visso
    voake, n. greed, gluttony [From the stem bwo "hunger, need, consumption" with addition of the abstract, negative suffix -ak (with usual development of -ak > -ake in vowel-final, monosyllabic stems); also voage]
    voakhe, adj. greedy, gluttonous [From the original form voak (see entry voake) with addition of the adjectival suffix -he "having"]
    vohye, n. hunger, appetite; desire, need [From the stem bwo "hunger, need, consumption" with addition of the suffix -hye, denoting a universal concept]
    voita, n. end, completion, termination [Derived from a stem voe "end, finish, completion" with addition of the nounal suffix -ta "concept embodying stem meaning"]
    vuana, n. founder, beginner [From the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" with addition of the agental suffix -na; synonomous with the term vuara (see entry)]
    vu(a)neye, n. seed, spore; lit. "plant-source" [Contracted from an older compound vua-neye]
    vuara, n. founder, beginner [From the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" with addition of the agental suffix -ra; synonomous with the term vuana (see entry)]
    vuata, n. source, beginning [From the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" with addition of the nounal suffix -ta, denoting a thing or concept that embodies the stem meaning]
    vuneye-nenu, n. cmpnd. fern; lit. "spore-grass" [Composed of the elements vuneye "seed, spore" and nenu "grass"]
    vurenye, n. Destiny [Historically a compound of the stem vu(a) "source, beginning" and the older word terenye "guidance, purpose" (vuaterenye > vuatrenye > vurenye); also realized as the more archaic compound ter(e)vua]
     
    -W-
     
    wa, adj. wide open, great, large [Historically waa]
    wahi, n. region, place [From the elements wa (historically waa) "wide open, large" and -hii "place, thing"]
    wanoyo, n. chest [From the elements wa "wide" and noyo "body, torso"]
    warehe, n. leg [Historically composed of the adjectival element ua- "down, lower" (eventually contracting to wa-) and the word reehe "limb, appendage"]
    wareh(e)ki, n. shin [Derived historically from the word warehe "leg" with the suffix -ki(i) "part, piece of". The term is more modern than warehe, since at the time of its derivation the -hii suffix in warehe (older wareehii) had already been retracted to -he [ua-ree-hii > wareehii > warehe-kii > wareheki]]
    warehe-ovo; see entry rehovo
    wareno, n. (the) South [Apparently derived from an older stem uaree- (which eventually produces our modern term warehe "leg"), in conjunction with the ancient elemental stem (o)noi, referencing the element of Protodermis, exhibiting the general convention of deriving "location-words" from terms for parts of the body. See related entries metiono "north", merhono "east", and mareno "west" for a more thorough discussion]
     
    -Y-
     
    yehe, n. back, side; surface [Originally a development from an older form ike- (from which is also derived the grammatical particle ihe "before, behind") with addition of the nounal suffix -hii; frequently appears as a prefix ye- in compounds]
    yehonu, n. cmpnd slope, incline, hill-side [Composed of the noun yehe "side" and the ancient stem onu "elemental earth", here used to represent "hill, mountain"]
    yemetii, n. cmpnd back of head [Composed of the initial element ye- "back, rear, side" and the word metii "head" (see entry)]
    yenoyo, n. cmpnd back, spine [Composed of the initial element ye- "back, rear, side" and the word noyo "body" (see entry)]
    yerehovo, n. cmpnd heel [Composed of the initial element ye- "back, rear, side" and the word rehovo "foot" (see entry)]
     
    -Z-
     
    zya, v. (archaic) to attack (ya-stem) [A highly archaic term, usually supplanted by the more modern ezai (see entry); historically it originates from the stem zaa, with a meaning of "violence" or "retribution", and the addition of the verbal suffix -ya (*zaya > zya)]
     
    Here ends the Dictionary.
     
    ...whew.
     
    JRRT
  18. JRRT

    ya for verbs

    By JRRT,

    [and tumblr too]
     
    This post, we're taking a brief detour from other projects to talk about something slightly more mundane: Is there something in the Matoran Language that marks verbs as verbs and distinguishes them from non-verbs? I would like to propose that there is at least one verb-marker expressed as a suffix (or "derivative particle") -ya.
     
    What's the evidence? Admittedly, there is only one canon piece of evidence, since we have only one confirmed verb in Matoran: zya "to attack". This verb occurs in the phrase Manas zya! "Attack the monster!" The verb is technically in the imperative (command) form, and so one might argue that it is a special form and shouldn’t be representative of what verbs in Matoran look like overall. However, making use of some insights from human language, this argument may be countered:
     
    Imperative verb-forms frequently represent the basic, unmodified state of verbal-morphology (witness English "Go!" same as present tense "They go" and infinitival "to go"). It stands to reason that the Matoran Language could follow the same pattern for purely functional reasons (e.g. commands must be transmitted quickly and efficiently). For this reason, I will assume that zya does in fact reflect the basic form of the Matoran verb.
     
    Back to the proposal: How can we apply the postulated verb-marker -ya elsewhere? Does it provide us with any insights? Enter voya:
     
    voya "journey" (cf. Voya Nui "Great Journey")
     
    This word is presented as a noun; however, it isn't unreasonable to allow the possibility that voya could be a deverbal noun derived from an older verb vo-ya. This is indeed what I propose, as exemplified by the following entries from the Matoran Dictionary:
     
    vo-ya |v.| to conduct energy, flow (along); to journey [From vo “elemental lightning” and the verb-marker -ya]
    voya-nui |n.| great journey [From voya “journey, current” (nominalized from the verbal complex vo-ya) and nui “great, significant”]
     
    So, the application of -ya in this case has provided us with some interesting insights into the history of voya (notice the fortuitous incorporation of the elemental stem vo "elemental lightning/electricity"). Where else can we go with this? For the purposes of this post, I will simply list several sets of words that might provide further support for the -ya proposal, with comments:
     
    amaya (a Ga-Matoran)
    maglya (a Ta-Matoran)
    zemya (an Onu-Matoran)
     
    Based on the proposal, all of these words could also be analyzed as verbs (or deverbal nouns derived from older verbs). Check out their respective dictionary entries for some possible etymologies.
     
    The words in the next set do not directly exhibit -ya, but could potentially contain a spelling variant -ia (once again, see corresponding dictionary entries for proposals):
     
    pelagia (a Ga-Matoran)
    zaria (a Toa of Iron)
    xia (a placename for the island inhabited by the Vortixx species)
    daxia (a placename for the island where the Order of Mata Nui has its primary base)
     
    The words in this final set all contain ia word-internally (either in stressed or unstressed position), but because of other factors the possibility that this is an example of -ya is even more remote. Hopefully they are helpful as reference:
     
    radiak (a Shadow Matoran, formerly Av-Matoran)
    spiriah (a Makuta)
    varian (a Toa of Psionics)
    chiara (a Toa of Lightning)
    niazesk (an swarming insect-Rahi)
    piatra (a Po-Matoran)
     
  19. JRRT
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0mhtDAJjqs


    (starts at ~0:47)


     

    "Battle Chant of the Toa (Prayer to Mata Nui)"







    O’I HIKI HOIHA



    OU IHIKI HAHKO ... HAHKO!



    O’I HIKI HAUIHA



    OU IHIKI HAHI


     
     
     
     
     
    ======================
     
    Literal Translation:
    1. Protect us from deception;
    2. You will save us from deception.
    3. Make us safe from deception;
    4. You are a protector against deception.
     
    ======================
     
    Note: I've been a bit fast-and-loose with constructing vocabulary here--you won't find most of these words in the Dictionary.
     
    Wordlist:
    o |pron.| I, we (first person)
    ou |pron.| you, you-all (2nd person)
    hiki |n.| deception
    hahi |n.| protector
    -i |aff.| to, toward
    i- |aff.| from, against
    hoi-ha |v.| to protect, defend against [hoiha < ha-yi-ha, from ha "protection", yi "together, unified", and the verbal affix -ha]
    ha-ha |v.| to protect, save, cleanse [ha-ha, from ha "protection" and the verbal affix -ha]
    haui-ha |v.| to defend, make safe [haui-ha, from haui "safe, protected" and the verbal affix -ha]
     
    ======================
     
    Line-by-line explanation:
    1. The verb hoi-ha appears in this line in the imperative (command) form, taking the objects o-i "to-us" and hiki "deception", with an implied subject "you" (Mata Nui). Literal gloss: "to-us deception protect".
    2. The verb ha-ha is inflected for future tense with the suffix -ko, thus: haha-ko > hahko "will protect/save/cleanse". The subject is ou "you". The noun hiki also appears here with the affix i- "from, against" (i-hiki "against deception"). Literal gloss: "you against-deception protect-will".
    3. The verb haui-ha also appears in the imperative here, with objects o-i and hiki, identical to line 1. Literal gloss: "to-us deception make-safe"
    4. This line contains the elements ou "you", i-hiki "against deception" (same as line 3), and hahi "protector". There is no overt verb, but it is understood to be "be", thus the literal gloss: "you [are] against-deception protector".
     
     
  20. JRRT

    Learning Matoran: Lesson 3

    By JRRT,

    Ke ovahi o kii vahi,
    ne kharra noie ma
    ke kraa o karho,
    Kii usmo Mata Nui
    A avo inihe ka.

    In the time before time
    The builders of this world
    Labored in Darkness,
    Before the Great Spirit brought
    Light out of the Heavens.

    --From "The Legend of the Bionicle"

    =l Intro to Verbs l=
    Verbs in Matoran are slightly different from Nouns in that they do not rely solely on grammatical particles. There are some areas where particles are used, but overall these are not prevalent.

    Verbs in Matoran indicate Tense (present, past, etc.), as well as Aspect—the “nature” of an action, finished or unfinished (if this is important to express). These functions are indicated by inflections, either in the form of suffixes or in the form of a process I will refer to as “gradation”, both of which are applied to the stem of the verb.

    In this lesson, the three Tenses—Present, Past, and Future—will be discussed, in addition to the overall appearance of verbs.

    General Appearance
    Verbs in Matoran can be identified by their distinctive endings, which take the form of suffixes affixed to the verbal stem. There are a variety of these suffixes, but the four most common are -ma, -ha, -ya and -ai.

    Examples:

    -ma – kama “to move”
    -ha – oraha “to speak”
    -ya – matya “to use”
    -ai – terai “to struggle, strive”

    Other suffixes include -ne, -re, and -we. These will be discussed in later lessons.

    Basic Present Tense and Gradation
    The present tense of a verb indicates an action which occurs in the present time.

    The present tense is indicated by applying gradation to the verb-stem. Gradation refers to a process by which the consonants of the verbal suffixes are altered. The four primary suffixes listed above are gradated in the following way:

    -ma becomes -nna
    -ha becomes -kha
    -ya/-ai* does not undergo gradation (although some exceptions)

    *To clarify, the -ya/-ai suffixes are not normally gradated, but there are some verbs in which they undergo irregular changes. These instances will be discussed later.

    The following are some examples of gradation at work in forming the present tense. I have listed the infinitive form of the verb (equivalent to the English “to [verb]”), followed by the present tense form. It can be seen that, in the case of the -ya/-ai stems, the present tense form is the same as the infinitive.

    kama – “to move”
    kanna – “move”

    oraha – “to speak”
    orakha – “speak”

    matya – “to use”
    matya – “use”

    terai – “to struggle, strive”
    terai – “struggle, strive”

    Basic Past Tense
    The basic past tense indicates an action that occurred before the present time.

    It is formed with the suffix -o, which replaces the final vowel of the verb stem. Thus:

    kama – “to move”
    kamo – “moved”

    oraha – “to speak”
    oraho – “spoke”

    matya – “to use”
    matyo – “used”

    terai – “to struggle, strive”
    teraio – “struggled, strove”

    Note the past tense inflection of terai, where the suffix does not replace a final vowel and is instead added directly to the stem.

    Basic Future Tense
    The basic future tense indicates an action occurring in the future, after the present time.

    It is formed by a combination of gradation and the suffix -e, which replaces the final vowel of the verb stem in the same way as the past tense suffix.

    kama – “to move”
    kanne – “will move”

    oraha – “to speak”
    orakhe – “will speak”

    matya – “to use”
    matye – “will use”

    terai – “to struggle, strive”
    teraie – “will struggle, strive”

    As in the past tense, the inflection of terai shows that the future tense suffix does not replace the final vowel.

    -------

    Next up: Lesson 4—Nouns Continued.

    JRRT
  21. JRRT

    star power

    By JRRT,

    This post, I'm gonna to talk about some ideas related to other potential affixes, one in particular that I think can be quite straightforwardly derived using some comparative evidence centered around the following word:
     
    inika "energies of a star"
     
    Note that the translation we are given for this word is unique in that it is apparently a compound of two semantic units: "energy" and "star". That's different from the single-word definitions we usually get, and it also provides us with an example of what may be a noun+noun compound. Normally, we only get noun+adjective or adjective+noun sequences (e.g. mata+nui, kofo+jaga). In contrast, the word inika is apparently an example of two nominal units combined into a single lexical unit. Fascinating. I think we can take advantage of this.
     
    Alright, let's try to break down inika into its constituent parts (assuming we can). As stated in the previous post, I define ka as "power, energy, ability". This provides us with some immediate insight into the composition of inika: the unit ini must encode the meaning "of (a) star". Now, as it stands, we don't really have a way to separate whatever encodes "star" from whatever encodes "of", if they are even separable at all. We'll have to do some guesswork in order to move forward here.
     
    The first issue to be addressed is whether or not we should even assume that a meaning like "of" is even encoded here. We might easily assume that ini is "star", ka is "energy", and the combination is to be translated straightforwardly as "star-energy". We could do that, of course, and that would be the end of it. Blog post over! However, my purpose here is explicitly to consider places where we might be able to postulate affixes and, by implication, units with functional/grammatical meanings exactly like "of". The word inika provides us with the opportunity to derive just that: a morpheme encoding "of". Because of this, I will choose not to set it aside.
     
    Now that we've got that out of the way, let's try to break ini down further. First off, are there any other words that might provide clues on how to analyze ini? A quick search of the available Matoran lexicon gives a few exact matches – akil-ini, iru-ini, kav-ini-ka, k-ini – although none of these have canon translations except for kini "temple", which certainly doesn't reference stars overtly. Furthermore, if we relax the search parameters a bit, there are also numerous words containing elements like in and ni.
     
    As a side note, we may also observe that the phonetic structure of ini is a little odd in comparison to the overall patterns of Matoran syllable-structure. Most syllables in Matoran are of the form consonant+vowel, CV, but the first syllable of ini (i-ni) violates this pattern. That's interesting, and it's also interesting that this initial i- pattern shows up in a few other places as well: i-carax, i-den, i-dris, i-gnika, and i-hu.
     
    Alright, taking everything into account, does this help us at all? I think it does, actually. Here’s how: Among the various words containing variants of ini, I'd like to draw your attention to one in particular: nixie. Nixie is the name of a Ga-Matoran astrologer – a Matoran who studies the stars and their prophecies. Wouldn’t it make sense for an astrologer's name to reference the stars? I think it would.
     
    This leads me to the following proposal: Based on the fact that nixie clearly shows ni, I propose to analyze ini as a complex i-ni: ni "star" with a prefix i- "of, from".
     
    Are there any further advantages to this analysis? Well, let's consider the status of this newly-postulated affix i- and compare it with the other affix that's been defined thus far, that being the verbal marker -ya. One immediate contrast presents itself: -ya is a derivative affix, meaning that it is used to derive one type of word from another. In this case, -ya would derive verbs from non-verbs (stems, nouns, whatever).
     
    On the other hand, i- is not derivative—it is what might be called a functional or grammatical affix, meaning that it adds on to the meaning of the word to which it is applied, rather than creating a completely new word, as -ya would. In this case, i- is being applied to ni "star", which is presumably a noun, and the affix contributes the meaning "of" to the original meaning of the noun, hence "of (a) star".
     
    So that's one difference right off the bat. Do these affixes have anything in common though? Here are a couple of ideas: Recall from the last post that I've proposed that -ya can technically be dissolved into two units, i-a, and this becomes clear when -ya is split into its circumfixal form a-...-i. So we can say that -ya is to be reconstructed as *-ia. No problem. On a different but related note: elsewhere in Matoran etymology, I've made use of a particular phonological shift whereby a sequence <ai> changes to <i>, <e>, or <a> (presumably with an intermediate <ii> stage). The advantage of this postulated sound-change is that it allows us to tie together elements of words like miru, midak, damek, and madu, as well as even metru and matau.
     
    Alright, back to *-ia: If *-ia is the original verbal marker, we could postulate that there are other affixes constructed from the same building blocks, but simply applied in a different way (e.g. affixes that are applied to nouns as grammatical/functional affixes instead of derivative affixes). Combining this with the phonological rule described above, we may have a plausible origin for the affix i-. Here's the proposal:
     
    The prefix i- "of, from" derives from an older form *ai-, which can also be dissolved into two units a-i.
     
    Okay, I think we've stretched the available data about as far as we can, so here’s a disclaimer: At this point I’m entering the realm of pure speculation and invention. Follow along if you dare!
     
    Ultimately, I would like us to have a few more grammatical/functional affixes at our disposal in order to be able to translate texts into the Matoran Language. I will propose two such affixes based on the known prefix i-, hopefully with as little invention-work as possible.
     
    First off, we already have an affix meaning "of", which, in this case, we could also paraphrase as "from" (as in "originating from") or even "after", if we want to think in temporal terms (originating from a point in time, i.e. after a point in time?). What's the opposite of "of, from"? How about "to, toward"? Alright, what kind of affix could we use to represent this? Since this affix will express a meaning that is opposite to i-, it might make sense for that opposition to be reflected in the form of the affix itself, as follows:
     
    Proposal 1: There is a suffix -i which derives from older *-ai and expresses a meaning "to, toward" or "(temporally) before".
     
    So that's one more grammatical/functional affix to work with, and we've managed to derive it simply as a reversal of i-. Excellent! What else can we do? At this point I'd like to turn your attention to a Matoran narrative device that should be familiar:
     
    "In the time before time..."
     
    This phrase seems to be used to introduce Matoran legends/mythohistory. Note that it makes use of grammatical/functional units like "in" and "before". There's a reason I have proposed that -i expresses a meaning like "to, toward; before". We now have a means of translating part of this phrase. But what about the remaining "in"? My second proposal will provide us with a means of expressing this concept, as follows:
     
    The concept of "in the time" can be more accurately paraphrased as "during the time". This concept of "in, during" seems to fall somewhere between "from" and "to". Based on that observation, we might postulate that a corresponding grammatical/functional affix would reflect this in-between status in the same way that -i "to, toward" reflected its opposition to i- "of, from":
     
    Proposal 2: There is a circumfix i-...-a which is derived as a split variant of the older affixes *-ai and *ai- and expresses a meaning "in" or "(temporally) during".
     
    This leaves us with three grammatical/functional affixes to use on nouns in Matoran, as follows:
     
    1. i-, ai- "of, from; after"
    2. i-...-a "in; during"
    3. -i, -ai "to, toward; before"
     
    To conclude, I'll make use of the second and third affixes in translating the classic phrase "In the time before time...", using vahi as a stand-in for both instances of "time" (even though technically they represent different concepts: period of time vs. time as an abstract concept):
     
    i-vahi-a "in/during (the) time"
    vahi-ai "before time"
     
    Ivaha vahai...
    "In the time before time..."
     
    Notes:
    - I've reduced i-vahi-a to ivaha as a general rule. Technically we could represent it in a different way: ivahia, ivahi'a, etc.
    - For vahai, I've used the older -ai form of the third affix when it's applied to a word already ending in -i and reduced vahi-ai to vahai. This is simply to make it clear which affix is present. Again, this could be represented differently: vahii, vahiai, etc.
     
    end
  22. JRRT

    breaking up

    By JRRT,

    [tumblr it up]
     
    If you've ever browsed through the entries of the Matoran Dictionary or been brave enough to delve into those old Learning Matoran lessons, you may have run into a concept that goes under the (pretty obtuse) name of "splitting+displacement" or (even worse) "variable placement". It's usually applied to things called "particles" or "affixes", and usually very little explanation is provided for what it is and where it comes from. Sorry.
     
    In this post, I’ll attempt to add some flesh to the bones of this concept, which applies to grammatical affixes in the etymologies of Matoran words and involves breaking these units apart and moving them around for various purposes. The idea itself is of my own fabrication, and therefore has no real basis in the canon, so I won't really spend much time making a case that it "exists". However, I will make a case that the concept, even if non-canon, is really, really useful if applied systematically, so why not use it?
     
    First, some terminology: I will for the most part dispense with the "splitting+displacement" label. The right word is actually circumfix. What is a circumfix? It's basically just another kind of affix, alongside prefixes (affixes attached at the beginning of a word), suffixes (affixes attached at the end of a word), and even infixes (affixes attached inside of a word).
     
    Circumfixes are attached "around" a word, so they are technically like a prefix that is added along with a suffix. We clear? Great.
     
    Jumping right in, here's my proposal for affixes in Matoran: I have found that it is useful to assume that some of the prefixes and suffixes postulated in Matoran etymology can be converted into a circumfix-form for various reasons--mostly deriving new words from old ones. This would look something like the following, using a postulated verb kya (Recall from the last post that -ya is assumed to be an affix in this case, so that's what will be undergoing modification):
     
    Step 1: kya = kia (ya consists of two units, -i- and -a)
    Step 2: k-i-a > a-k-i (the -a unit is displaced as a prefix before the stem k-, leaving -i behind as a suffix)
    Step 3: aki
     
    Pretty simple, no? The same process can easily be applied to other affixes/particles: as long as we can split the original affix/particle into two discrete units (in this case, -ya > i-, -a), we can displace the second unit as a prefix on the stem. And there are a couple of further variations that might be possible as well. We'll stick to the basics for now though.
     
    Anyways, what could this kind of circumfixal variant be used for? Well, think about it: The splitting and displacement of the original affix technically obliterates the affix as a discrete unit. We could easily associate this kind of change with, say, a change in meaning—perhaps a change in word category? I have done just this: When the verbal affix -ya is split into a circumfixal variant, this corresponds to a change in the category of the stem from verb to (deverbal) noun.
     
    At this point, you may be able to glimpse some possible applications of this system. Consider this: We just derived a word aki, presumably a noun, from a postulated verb kya. Aki happens to be the name of the Kanohi Mask of Valor. Technically, this is backwards: When I first came up with this system, I started with aki and reverse-engineered it to kya. Either way, it works. Let's see how else we can apply this.
     
    Sticking with aki for the moment, there's another word that is closely associated with it: Akamai, the name of the Toa Kaita (the "Spirit of Valor") who is the wearer of the Kanohi Aki. In-universe, there is clearly a relationship between Akamai and Aki, and the nature of this relationship is further strengthened if we look at another example of a Toa Kaita: Wairuha, the "Spirit of Wisdom" who wears the Kanohi Rua. Even more parallels? So the names of the Toa Kaita are related in some way to the names of their Kanohi masks. Focusing on aki/akamai, let's do some more reverse-engineering:
     
    Note that akamai exhibits the same a-...-i pattern that results from the splitting+displacement of -ya, as already exemplified by a-k-i. If we assume that akamai is derived via the same verb > noun process as aki, we can easily trace back through the steps:
     
    Step 3: akamai
    Step 2: a-kama-i > kama-i-a
    Step 1: kamaia = kamaya
     
    Presto! We have derived akamai from an original verb kamaya. What could this verb mean? In order to find out, let's return to aki for a moment. According to canon, aki means "valor". Thus far, I have postulated that aki is derived from a verb kya, which I would further derive from an older form *ka-ya. For numerous reasons, I define ka as "power, energy, ability", hence, I translate kya (roughly) as "to do, act, take initiative", and based on these assumptions, aki could easily be translated as "(taking) action, initiative", later construed as "courage, valor".
     
    That takes care of aki. Now on to akamai: If kya originates from ka, according to the same pattern, kamaya would clearly originate from kama. I define ma as "mastery, control". Keeping with the definition of ka above, ka-ma would mean roughly "mastery of power/energy/ability", while the verbal form kamaya would end up as "to master doing/acting/taking initiative". According to the same process of construal applied to aki above, this means that akamai could eventually be translated "master of courage/valor". In all, I think that fits pretty darn well.
     
    So the upshot of this post is that I've (hopefully) illustrated some of the potential applications of the "circumfix-variant" idea in the form of providing some (I think) very appropriate, interrelated etymologies for the words Aki and Akamai. All in a day's work.
  23. JRRT

    Learning Matoran: Lesson 2

    By JRRT,

    Oe a gauru ur a terenye.
    Vemo Mata Nui na lhihke lhia,
    K’a kaihe a karnye a terevua.
    Oe lhe na veta ovemo.

    We were separate, and without purpose
    So the Great Spirit gave us the Three Virtues:
    Unity, Duty, and Destiny.
    And these gifts we embraced.

    --from “The Legend of Mata Nui”

    =l Intro to Nouns l=
    At the most basic level, Matoran and English nouns are, well, nouns. They represent persons, places, things, ideas, etc. Grammatically, however, Matoran nouns exhibit some features that are quite different from those in English.

    The most pervasive feature of Matoran nouns is the system of grammatical particles by which the roles of different nouns are defined. Particles are function words which can indicate the grammatical roles of nouns, verbs, and/or adjectives in a sentence. In English, some prepositions actually approach the category of “particle” in some verbal constructions.

    There are 9 particles in all, split into 3 distinct groups: Case, Motion, and Time/Location. The first group—Case particles—is the most vital to understand and will be discussed first.

    [Although the other two categories of Motion and Time/Location should technically also be considered cases, I will separate them here because of the fact that they have much in common with adverbial elements.]

    Case Particles:
    First, it would be appropriate to explain the concept of Case. If you know or have taken a language like German, Dutch, or even Latin, you’ll know exactly what case is: the role that a noun plays within the structure of a sentence.

    In English grammar, the roles of Subject, Direct Object, Indirect Object, Possessive, etc. are all functions of case. These roles are primarily indicated in English grammar by “word-order”: the placement of a noun in a sentence.

    For example, the subject of a sentence is usually placed before the verb, while a direct or indirect object normally follows the verb. In many other languages, these roles can be indicated in a variety of different ways (inflection, for example), and word order is not emphasized as much.

    This is the situation in Matoran, with different cases being indicated by particles, rather than word-order or inflection (suffixes, prefixes, etc.). As mentioned above, there are three particles to indicate case: subject, object, and possessive.

    Subject (Nominative) Case
    The Subject (or Nominative) Case, as evidenced by its name, marks the Subject of a sentence—the noun which performs the action of the verb.

    It can be indicated by the particle word i, but this is not actually required and can frequently be dropped. Therefore:

    matoran “Matoran”
    (i) matoran “Matoran (as subject of sentence)" << Parentheses indicate that the particle is optional.

    As can be seen, this particle is always placed before the noun. There is also a plural form of the particle: ne (also placed before the noun):

    ne matoran “Matoran (pl., as subject of sentence)”

    Object (Objective) Case
    The Object (or Objective) Case marks a noun as the Direct or Indirect Object of a sentence—the noun which receives the action of the verb or to/for whom the action is done.

    It is indicated by the particle a or ea (both are interchangeable). Like the Subject Particle, these are also placed before the noun. The plural forms of the Object Particle are na or nea. Examples:

    a/ea matoran “Matoran (as direct or indirect object of verb)”
    na/nea matoran “Matoran (pl.)”

    Distinguishing whether or not the Objective Case is used as a direct or indirect object is a topic that will be discussed in a later lesson.

    Possessive (Genitive) Case
    The Possessive (or Genitive) Case indicates the possessor of an object—a noun which possesses another noun.

    It takes the particle ui or wa (also interchangeable), which differ from the other two case particles in that they can be placed before or after the noun, depending on the sentence. The plural forms of the Possessive Particle are mi or ma. Examples:

    rahi ui/wa matoran – “Matoran’s Rahi” (Matoran = possessor)
    rahi matoran ui/wa – “Matoran’s Rahi”
    rahi mi/ma matoran – (pl.)
    rahi matoran mi/ma – (pl.)

    Although the particle can be placed before or after the noun, it should be noted that the possessor-noun (here matoran) always follows the noun which is possessed (rahi).

    Etymologically, the origin of the two distinct particle forms for the Genitive Case can be traced to a much earlier stage of the Matoran Language when ui and wa indicated, respectively, possessor and possessed. In time, the role of wa was decreased, and eventually it came to be used simply as a variant of ui.

    -------

    Now that we have these three basic cases, we are one step closer to being able to compose simple sentences. The only thing lacking is Verbs, and these will be covered (somewhat) in the next lesson: Lesson 3—Intro to Verbs. Stay tuned.

    JRRT
  24. JRRT

    Mask Maker

    By JRRT,

    As a final act in 2016, I've posted an epic entitled Mask Maker. It's a final take on the Bionicle G1 storyline that has been taking shape for a few years now. Here's the main topic and the review topic if you're interested in reading and/or commenting. It'll also be on my tumblr blog. See ya '16.
     
    Updates:
     
    CH 1 Labor
    CH 2 Deadline
    CH 3 Last
    CH 4 Embrace
    CH 5 All Wrong
    CH 6 Ages
    CH 7 Invert
    CH 8 No
    CH 9 Door
    CH 10 Goodbye
    CH 11 Mask Maker (Final)
  25. JRRT

    Learning Matoran: Lesson 5

    By JRRT,

    Hi folks. It's been a terribly long count of years (months), but I'm still, here, writing this stuff. I think it helps keep me sane. . .Whatever the case, if you're here to read this new lesson on the Matoran Language, it might do to read up on some of the older stuff. I don't know, maybe like the previous four lessons?
     
    Lesson 1
    Lesson 2
    Lesson 3
    Lesson 4
     
    And now that that it's all fresh in your mind, move on to Lesson Five: Pronouns I:

    =l Pronouns I l=


     
     
    Matoran pronouns have much the same function as they do in English: they replace nouns, serving as the subject or object of a sentence, and fulfill most of the roles played by nouns. Consequently, Matoran pronouns are modified for the same functions that nouns are: Case, Motion, and Time/Location.
     
    However, the current means of modification is through inflection, rather than a particle system. Although pronouns were previously modified by particles, these particles have since become “eroded,” in a sense, and have now developed new pronoun forms.
     
    Pronouns and Case:
     
    Pronouns are inflected for the same three-fold case system of Nominative (Subject), Objective (Object), and Genitive (Possessive).
     
    Now, in English, whereas nouns function in these roles by their Word Order in a sentence, pronouns also have the extra feature of inflection. For example, the Nominative (Subject) form of the first person pronoun is “I”, while the Objective (Object) form is “me” and the Genitive (Possessive) form is “my”. These characteristics manifest in the other persons as well. Third person Nom. “he/she/it”, Acc. “him/her/it”, Gen. “his/her/its”. Second person Nom. “you”, Gen. “your”, etc.
     
    Matoran features a similar—if a bit more complex—structure, with pronouns being marked for the various cases and numbers (singular or plural). As with nouns, we’ll start off with the Case Pronouns:
     
    -Nominative:
     
    As is the case with all the pronouns, there are three Persons: first, second, and third. These come in singular and plural forms, the plurals being historically formed from the singulars by a particle -ee, which has since been assimilated to the pronoun stem. There is also a "fourth" person, which is the equivalent of English "one," as in "One is bored when one has nothing to do." This is classified as the "impersonal" subject and has no plural form.
     
    Here are the forms of the nominative pronouns, beginning with the singulars:
     
    1 o – “I”
    2 oa – “you”
    3 ia, ai – “he/she/it”
    4 hua – “one”
     
    Now the plurals:
     
    1 oe, u – “we”
    2 ue – “you (pl.), you all”
    3 ie – “they”
     
    These pronoun forms are usually placed directly before or after the verb, regardless of the verb’s position in the sentence. This is a pretty strict placement rule.
     
    -Objective:
     
    Next, the objective case forms. Historically the singulars were formed with the addition of a particle aak-. The plurals were formed by a combination of the ee particle and the addition of the n-prefix from the nounal case particles.
     
    Singular:
     
    1 ako – “me”
    2 akoa – “you”
    3 akia, akai – “him/her/it”
    4 ahua – “one”
     
    Plurals:
     
    1 ngoe, ngu – “us”
    2 ngue – “you (pl.), you all”
    3 ngie – “them”
     
    -Genitive:
     
    Lastly, the genitive pronouns. Singulars are formed with the addition of the genitive particle ui (which you should recognize from the general nounal particles). Plurals are formed by the further addition of plural ee and the n-prefix (with subsequent assimilation):
     
    Singular:
     
    1 uio – “my”
    2 uikoa – “your”
    3 uikia, uikai – “his/her/its”
    4 uihua – “one’s”
     
    Plural:
     
    1 moe, mu – “our”
    2 mue – “your (pl.)”
    3 mie – “their”
     
    Genitives are placed after the nouns they modify in the same way that genitive-case nouns are.
     
    -Usage and Examples:
     
    The usage of the different cases with respect to pronouns is the same as with nouns. Thus, nominative pronouns are used as subjects, objectives are used as direct or indirect objects, and genitives are used to show possession. I will now offer some examples of these different cases forms:
     
    Ia teryo ea matoran.
    “He/she/it attacked the Matoran.”
     
    Teryo i rahi uikia akia.
    “His/her/its Rahi attacked him/her/it.”
     
    O kanna wo wahi a.
    “I went through the region.”
     
    Na oro orakhe oa.
    “You will say words.”
     
    Matoran akia kharmo.
    “The/a Matoran made it.”
     
    Oe kamo ii koro uio.
    “We went toward my village.”
     
    Na kanohi moe kharmo ie.
    “They made our Kanohi (pl.).”
     
    [Note once again that the word order is not crucial in these examples (except for the placement of genitive pronouns, of course): it is the case inflection that determines the role of a noun or pronoun in the sentence.]
     
    This concludes the discussion of case for pronouns. Still to come: Time/Location Particles on Nouns, Motion/Time/Location and Pronouns, Adjectives. Stay tuned.
     
    JRRT
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