Insription on the One Ring is the only example of text in Classical Black Speech and one of the earliest samples of Tengwar's General use mode.
"Ash nazg durbatulûk ash nazg gimbatul ash nazg thrakatulûk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul"
which translates as
"One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them"
The journal “Parma Eldalamberon”, issue 17, provides Tolkien's alternative meanings of these Black Speech words in addition to literal translation.
Black Speech word | English translation | Probable Etymology |
---|---|---|
agh | and | Urartian “aye” |
ash | one | Urartian “she” 1) |
-at | (participle/infinitive suffix) | Hurrian future tense marker -ed2) |
burzum | darkness | Noldorin “maur” (gloom) < Etym. MOR (black) Hurrian3) “wurikk-” (to be blind) from “wur-” (to see) |
durb- | rule, constrain, force, dominate | Quenya “tur-” (to control, govern, wield) < Etym. TUR- (power, control, mastery, victory) Hurrian “turobe” (predestined evil, enemy) |
gimb- | find, seek out, discover | Quenya “hir-“ Hurrian “ki(b)-” (take, gather) |
-ishi | in, inside, into within | Quenya locative case ending ”-ssë” |
krimp- | bind, tie | Hurrian “ker-imbu” (lenghten or tie) |
nazg | ring (for finger) | Valarin “naškad” Gaelic “nasg, nasc” |
thrak- | bring (by force), hale, drag | Etym. TUK- (bring, draw) Hurrian “thar-ik-” (to demand someone to send something) |
-ûk | all, completely, totally, fully | Hurrian “-ok-” (fully, really) |
-ul | them | Hurrian “-lla” |
-um | (particularizing suffix or article) |
The full Ring Verse however is longer an is not translated into Black Speech by Tolkien himself. One of the first fan's attempt was done by Elerrina. And approach by Nûrlâm's author: full Ring Verse in Nûrlâm.