topon.
Quenya
morinóre
t^7T5~N7R noun. black-lands, dark-lands, darklands
Sindarin
Mordor
Mordor
Mordor
Mordor
Mordor
noun. black land
morn (“dark, black”) + (n-)dor (“land, dwelling place”)
mordor
place name. Black Land
The home of Sauron, usually translated “Black Land” (Let/178, RC/75) but sometimes “Black Country” (RC/766, RS/216) or “Land of Darkness” (WJ/370). This name is a combination of morn “black” and dôr “land” (Let/427; SA/mor, dôr).
Conceptual Development: The name Mordor “Black Country” first appeared in the tale of the Fall of Númenor (LR/29), and appeared consistently in this form in Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s.
Elements
Word Gloss morn “black, dark; night” dôr “land, land, [N.] region where certain people live, [ᴱN.] country; [G.] people of the land” Variations
- morñdor ✧ Let/427
- mordor ✧ PE17/073
barad-dûr
place name. Dark Tower
Sauron’s fortress in Mordor, translated “Dark Tower” (LotR/555). It is a combination of barad “tower” and dûr “dark” (PE17/22, 85; RC/274; SA/barad, dûr).
Conceptual Development: In Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s, this name was already N. Barad-dûr when it first appeared (TI/178).
Cognates
- Q. Lúnaturco “?Dark Stronghold” ✧ PE17/022
- Q. Taras Lúna “*Dark Tower” ✧ PE17/022
- Bs. Lugbúrz “Dark Tower” ✧ LotR/0564; LotRI/Barad-dûr; PE17/012
Elements
Word Gloss barad “tower, great towering building, tower, great towering building, [N.] fort, fortress” dûr “dark (with evil implications), gloomy, hellish” Variations
- barad-dûr ✧ PE17/086
Mordor
Mordor
The term Mordor translates to "The Black Land" or "The Dark Land" in Sindarin. mor = "dark, black", dôr = "land" (The Silmarillion, Appendix - Elements in Quenya and Sindarin Names). Mordor is also coincidentally Quenya for "shadows" (plural), though the direct calque of Sindarin Mordor was Morinórë or Morinor, a name also used for the Dark Land.
Black Speech
lugbúrz
place name. Dark Tower
Cognates
Elements
Word Gloss lûg “fortress, lock-up, prison” búrz “dark” Variations
- Lugbûrz ✧ PE17/012
- Lugburz ✧ SD/024; SDI1/Lugburz; WR/049; WRI/Lugburz
Khuzdûl
nargûn
place name. Mordor
Elements
Word Gloss narâg “black” -n “-one”
Noldorin
mordor
place name. Black Country
barad-dûr
place name. Dark Tower
Cognates
- Bs. Lugbúrz “Dark Tower” ✧ SD/024
Elements
Word Gloss barad “fort, tower, fortress” dûr “dark” Variations
- Baraddur ✧ SD/024; WRI/Barad-dûr
topon. >> mor