Morwen

noun. dark lady

mor (stem“dark, black”) + gwend (“woman, maiden”); [Etym. WEN-] since it shows no -d even in the archaic spelling, it probably contains derivative of WEN-, not WENED- stem and the last element is Ilk. gwen (“girl”).

morwen

feminine name. Dark Maiden

Wife of Húrin and mother of Túrin (S/148), her name was translated “Dark Maiden” (WJ/409), a combination of the element MOR “black” and the suffixal form -wen of gwend “maiden” (SA/mor, wen).

Conceptual Development: In draft notes from the 1910s she was first called ᴱQ. Tiranne (LT2/139), but the earliest Lost Tales themselves, this character was named G. Mavwin (LT2/70). In Lays of Beleriand from the 1920s, her name was revised first to ᴱN. Morwin (LB/22) and then Morwen (LB/104). Her name was N. Morwen in Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s (SM/23, LR/276). The name Morwen also appeared in The Etymologies (Ety/MOR).

Element in

• S. ar Nienor sel Morwen Níniel “*and Nienor daughter of Morwen, Níniel” ✧ VT50/18
• S. Tol Morwen “*Island of Morwen”

Elements

Word	Gloss
MOR	“black, dark, darkness”
-wen	“maiden, *female suffix”

Morwen

Morwen

Morwen means "Dark Maiden" in Sindarin (from môr = "darkness, dark, night" and gwenn = "maiden"). Her epithet, Eledhwen, means "Elf-maiden" (from edhel = "Elf" and gwenn = "maiden"); Tolkien also translates it as "Elfsheen", which is a rendeding of Old English ælf-scīene "bright as fairy, of elfin beauty". Both definitions are in reference to her noble bearing.