Quenya is the J.R.R. Tolkien Elvish language chiefly inspired by Finnish.
Tolkien was a professional philologist with a deep interest in the structure and history of languages. He used Finnish as an important model for Quenya’s sound patterns and grammar, while also drawing on other linguistic influences, including Latin and Greek. Quenya was conceived as an ancient, formal language associated especially with the High Elves.
Sindarin is another major Elvish language in Tolkien’s legendarium, but it was influenced more strongly by Welsh. This distinction is one of the most common points of confusion when readers discuss Tolkien’s invented languages. Quenya and Sindarin are related within the fictional history of Middle-earth, yet they have different roles and linguistic inspirations.
Quenya appears in names, poems, ceremonial speech, and songs across Tolkien’s writings. It is not simply a translation code for English: Tolkien developed it as part of a broader family of fictional languages with their own histories and relationships.