Which Tolkien-created Elvish language was developed with strong influence from Finnish?

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Quenya is the Tolkien-created Elvish language developed with strong influence from Finnish.

Tolkien began constructing the language before writing much of the mythology in which it appears. He admired Finnish and drew on its sound patterns and grammatical features while developing Quenya, although Quenya is an original language rather than a form of Finnish.

In Tolkien’s linguistic history, Quenya is associated especially with the High Elves and with the ancient realms of Valinor and Númenor. Sindarin is another major Elvish language, but Tolkien based much of its development on Welsh influences. The two languages are related within Tolkien’s fictional history but are not interchangeable.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Oct. 2026

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