sil-

verb. shine (white)

cimba

noun. edge, brink

ríma

edge, hem, border

ríma noun "edge, hem, border" (RĪ)

réna

edge, border, margin

réna noun "edge, border, margin" (REG)

lanc

noun. sharp edge (not of tools), sudden end (as a cliff-edge, or the clean edge of things made by hand or built)

rîw

noun. edge, hem, border

lanc

sharp edge

(sudden end, brink), pl. lainc, coll. pl. langath. Note: homophones mean ”naked” and also ”neck, throat”.

rîw

edge

*rîw (construct riw) (hem, border), no distinct pl. form except with article (idh rîw). Suggested Sindarin form of ”Noldorin” rhîf.

rîw

edge

(construct riw) (hem, border), no distinct pl. form except with article (idh rîw). Suggested Sindarin form of ”Noldorin” rhîf.

kil

root. choose, select, choose, select; [ᴹ√] divide; [ᴱ√] edge

This root has a long history in Tolkien’s writing, but it evolved in meaning over Tolkien’s life. The earliest form of this root was ᴱ√KILI “edge” from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, with derivatives like ᴱQ. kíla/G. cilm “edge, rim” and ᴱQ. kilme/G. cail “lip” (QL/46, GL/24, 26). In The Etymologies of the 1930s it became ᴹ√KIL “divide” with derivatives ᴹQ. kilya/N. cîl “cleft, pass between hills, gorge” (Ety/KIL). This sense seems to have been abandoned when Tolkien changed ᴹQ. Kalakilya “Pass of Light” (LR/173) to Q. Calacirya (LotR/377).

In etymological notes from 1969 Tolkien gave √KIL “choose, select” vs. √KIM “edge, brink of”, along with various derivatives of √KIL having to do with choices (PE22/149). One of these, Q. cilmë, appeared as an element in words from several essays on Elvish names from the 1950s and 60s: Q. Essecilmë “[Ceremony of] Name-choosing” (MR/214; PE21/84) and Q. kilmessi “self-names, names of personal choice” (PM/339). But it seems even in the 1969 note mentioned above that Tolkien was considering the earlier senses of the root, since he first gave √KIL/√KILIM as the basis for edge words (PE22/149 note #26).

The difference in sense is not that great between 1910s ᴱ√KILI “edge” >> 1930s ᴹ√KIL “separate” >> 1960s √KIL “choose”, so Tolkien’s conceptual shifts on the meaning of this root seem to be gradual, with him still considering the earlier meanings into the late 1960s.

Derivatives

• ᴺQ. cil- “to choose, select”
• Q. cilmë “choice, choosing, choice, choosing, *selection” ✧ PE22/149
• ᴺQ. cilta- “to divide, separate”
• ᴺS. cil- “to choose, select”
• ᴺS. cilith “choice, choosing, *selection”

kim

root. edge, brink of

Tolkien used the root √KIM and similar roots for a wide variety of purposes throughout his life. Perhaps the earliest of these was the Early Qenya word ᴱQ. kim- “heed” from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s, but all of its Gnomish cognates begin with g-, as in G. gima- “hear” and G. gimri “hearkening, attention” (GL/38), so this early root was most likely ✱ᴱ√GIMI. In the Quenya Verbal System of the 1940s, Tolkien had ᴹ√KIM “light on, find, come by” and along with a verb ᴹQ. kim- of similar meaning (PE22/103, 108, 125) but most likely this meaning of the root was transferred to √KHIR and Q. hir- “find” (PE17/75).

Finally in notes from 1969 Tolkien gave √KIM “edge, brink of”, replacing deleted forms √KIL and √KILIM, with the root √KIL being reassigned the meaning “choose, select” (which seems to be the normal meaning of √KIL throughout the 1950s and 60s). Note that the early root ᴱ√KILI the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s also meant “edge”, but somewhat interestly there is a Gnomish word G. cim “blade”, perhaps indicating that this vacillation between √KIM vs. √KIL for “edge” had a longer history in Tolkien’s conceptual development of the languages.

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I would recommend using √KIM = “edge” and √KIL = “choose”.

Changes

• KIL → KIM ✧ PE22/149

Derivatives

• Q. címa “edge of a cutting weapon/tool” ✧ PE22/149; PE22/149
• Q. cimba “edge, brink” ✧ PE22/149; PE22/149
• ᴺS. cim “blade”

Element in

• Q. cirmacin “knife-edge” ✧ PE22/149; PE22/149 (kirmakil)

Variations

• KIL ✧ PE22/149 (KIL)
• KILIM ✧ PE22/149 (KILIM)

(ñ)gil

root. shine (white); silver glint; white or silver light

This root was the basis for Elvish words for stars and starlight, especially in the Sindarin branch of the Elvish languages. It first appeared as ᴱ√Gil- in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like G. gil- “gleam”, G. giltha “white metal, †silver”, and (probably) G. gail “star” (GL/37-38). Its Early Qenya derivatives were ᴱQ. ilsa “mystic name of silver” (QL/42) and ᴱQ. īle “star” (GL/37), indicating the true form of the root was probably ᴱ√ƷILI, since initial voiced stops were unvoiced in Early Qenya, so that ancient ✱gīle would become ✱✱kíle, not íle.

This root appeared as ᴹ√GIL “shine (white or pale)” in The Etymologies of the 1930s with derivatives like N. geil “star” and ᴹQ. Ilma “Starlight” (Ety/GIL). The root regularly appeared in this unstrengthened form in Tolkien’s later writing, for example as √GIL “shine (white)” in a 1955 letter to David Masson (PE17/152) or as gil “white or silver light” in a 1958 letter to Rhona Beare (Let/278). In one place Tolkien considered giving it a kil- variant, analogous to √GAL vs. √KAL for “(golden) light” (PE17/50), but that seems to have been a transient idea. In other notes dating to the late 1950s Tolkien gave the root in strengthened form as √NGIL “silver glint” (MR/388; PE17/22) and also √GIL >> √ÑGIL as the basis for the initial element of the name S. Gil-galad (PE17/23).

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I think it is best to assume the root was originally unstrengthened √GIL, but was sometimes strengthened to √ÑGIL to produce words like Q. ñille “silver glint”.

Changes

• GIL → NGIL ✧ PE17/022
• GIL → ÑGIL ✧ PE17/023

Derivatives

• ✶gilyā “silver spark” ✧ PE17/152
  • S. gil “star; (bright) spark, silver glint, twinkle of light” ✧ PE17/152
• ✶ñgillē “silver glint” ✧ PE17/023; PE17/023
  • Q. nillë “silver glint; Valinorian imagines [images of real stars]”
• Q. ilca- “to gleam (white)”
• Q. Ilma “Starlight”
• Q. nillë “silver glint; Valinorian imagines [images of real stars]” ✧ MR/388; PE17/022; PE17/022
• S. gil “star; (bright) spark, silver glint, twinkle of light” ✧ MR/388; PE17/022; PE17/152
• ᴺS. gil- “to gleam, shine pale and silver (as of the moon [or stars])”

Element in

• ✶Gillingalati “radiant stars, Gil-galad” ✧ PE17/152
• S. Gilthoniel “Star-kindler” ✧ MR/388

Variations

• gil ✧ Let/278; PE17/050
• GIL ✧ PE17/022 (GIL); PE17/023 (GIL); PE17/069; PE17/152; PE17/153
• kil ✧ PE17/050

rhîf

noun. edge, hem, border