[ᴱ]*√IM root. “same, alike”
A root whose existence is implied in Tolkien’s writings from the 1950s and 60s by various reflexive pronouns such as Q. imni “myself” and S. im “self(same)” (VT47/37). Though the root itself did not appear in Tolkien’s later writings, it seems to have been a long standing idea of his, appearing as ᴱ√IMI¹ “same, alike” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives such as ᴱQ. iminqa “exactly alike, identical” and ᴱQ. inye- “imitate, make like” (QL/42). It seems to have had Gnomish derivatives from this period as well, such as G. inco “the same, the identical”, though Tolkien put this form under the root for the definite article: ᴱ√I (GL/50). In any case, √IM as the basis for “sameness” and reflexives seems to have been a well established idea in Tolkien’s languages.
Derivatives