balan

noun. Vala, divine power, divinity

balan

Vala

pl1. Belain** ** n. Vala.

balan

noun. Vala, Vala, [N.] Power, God

At one point (Let/427), Tolkien stated that the plural form Belain (and presumably its singular Balan) did not exist in Sindarin and its derivative Orbelain “Vala-day” was a phonetic translation of Q. Valanya. Elsewhere, though, Balan is well attested as a Sindarin word.

Cognates

• Q. Vala “(Angelic) Power, ‘God’, Authority, (Angelic) Power, Authority, God” ✧ PE17/048; SA/val

Derivations

• ✶Balaniā ✧ Let/427
• √BAL “power; powerful, mighty; have power” ✧ PE17/048; SA/val

Element in

• S. Balannor “Land of the Valar”
• S. Orbelain “*Day of the Valar, Friday” ✧ Let/427

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
✶Balaniā > Belain	[balanjā] > [balanja] > [balania] > [belenia] > [beleni] > [belein] > [belain]	✧ Let/427

rodon

noun. Vala

A Sindarin term for the Vala (PE17/33), appearing in its plural form S. Rodyn as one of the days of the week (LotR/1110) and also in the Sindarin name for Valinor: Dor-Rodyn (MR/200). It is derived from the prefixal form rod- of raud “noble” (PE17/118, 186). Its final element might be the augmentative suffix -on, perhaps literally meaning “✱Most Noble”. It could also be the agental suffix -on, as suggested by David Salo (GS/283), but that suffix is usually masculine (WJ/400), whereas Rodon seems to apply to all Valar.

Element in

• S. Dor-Rodyn “*Land of the Valar” ✧ MR/200
• S. Rodyn “alternate name of the last day of the Eldarin six-day week”

Elements

Word	Gloss
raud	“noble, eminent; lofty, high, tall; excellent”
-on	“augmentative suffix”

tûr

power

tûr (i dûr, o thûr, construct tur) (victory, mastery, control; master, victor, lord), pl. tuir (i thuir), coll. pl. túrath.

rodon

vala

1) Rodon (pl. Rodyn, coll. pl. Rodonnath), 2) Balan (i Valan), pl. Belain (i Melain). In ”Noldorin”, the pl. form used with the article was "iMbelain" (LR:365 s.v. KIRIK).