pl1. bair _ n. _a house, a single house or dwelling (esp. of the larger and more permanent sort), a family dwelling. Q. mar (mard-).
Sindarin
bar-in-gwael
place name. Bar-in-Gwael
bar
noun. dwelling, home
bar
noun. inhabited land
bar
a house
bar
noun. house, dwelling, home
bar-in-mŷl
place name. Home of the Gulls
Name of cape southwest of Eglarest, also known as Ras Mewrim (WJ/190, WJ/379). The initial element of the name is bâr “home”, the second element is the plural in of the definite article i “the” and the final element is the plural mŷl “gulls”.
Conceptual Development: This name was earlier given as Bar-in-Gwael (WJ/418). In one place it was changed in pencil to Bar-i-Mŷl, a more accurate rendering of the result of nasal-mutation of the plural definite article in before m (WJ/418); hat-tip to Vyacheslav Stepanov for this suggestion.
Bar-en-Danwedh
noun. house of ransom
bar (“house”) + en (gen. article) + #dan (“back”) +#gwedh (“bond”) #We would expect it to be Bar-e-Ndanwedh, but this could be a dialectal variant of the name
bar-en-danwedh
place name. House of Ransom
bar-en-nibin-noeg
place name. House of the Petty Dwarves
bar-goll
place name. Hollow Dwelling
Another name for Nogrod (NS. Novrod), a more direct translation of Kh. Tumunzahar “Hollowbold” (WJ/414). The initial element of the name is bâr “dwelling” and the second element is the lenited form goll of coll “hollow” (WJ/414).
Bar-i-Mýl
noun. home of the gulls
(m-)bar (“dwell, inhabit”) + in (gen. pl. article) + mýl (pl. of mýl “gull”)
-bar
suffix. a region inhabited by a people
_ suff. _a region inhabited by a people. Only used in old names. Sindarin usually used -dor instead. Q. -mar. >> -dor
bar-
verb. to live, dwell, stay
bar
bar
bardor
noun. home land, native land
A word for “home land, native land” appearing in notes from the 1960s discussing the root √MBAR, a combination of bâr “dwelling” with dôr “land” (PE17/164). Tolkien gave an archaic pseudo-form bar-ndor to explain why the d in this word did not mutate to dh (c.f. bardh), stating that it was similar to Mordor < mor-ndor, where the ancient medial n prevented the mutation of d, then the vanished later.
bâr
noun. house, dwelling, home, house, dwelling, home; [N.] earth
The basic Sindarin word for “house, dwelling” derived from the root √MBAR “settle, dwell” (PE17/109; PE17/164). This Sindarin word (unlike its Quenya counterpart már) can also be used to refer to the “house” of a clan or family, as in Bar Bëora “House of Bëor” (WJ/230) and Narn e·mbar Hador “✱Tale of the House of Hador” (MR/373). It could also mean “-home (for a people)” in compound names for regions as in Eglamar “Home of the Eglain” and Brithombar (WJ/379; S/120), but it seems this use was archaic and in more recent names the trend was to use dôr “land” (PE17/164).
This word appears as both bâr with long â and bar with short a. As a general rule, it has a long â when used as an independent word, following the general Sindarin principle whereby short vowels (usually) lengthened in monosyllables. It has a short vowel when appearing in compounds or as a “pseudo-prefix” in names like Bar-en-Danwedh “House of Ransom” (S/203).
Conceptual Development: This word dates all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, where (adverbial?) G. bar appeared as a variant of G. barthi or barai “at home, home” (GL/21). In the Gnomish Lexicon its noun form seems to be G. bara “home” (GL/21), but in the contemporaneous Gnomish Grammar it was bar “home” (GG/8). These Gnomish words were all derived from the early root ᴱ√MBARA “dwell, live” (QL/63).
In Gnomish Lexicon slips, Tolkien modified the word to G. bawr “house” derived from primitive ᴱ✶mbāră (PE13/116). In the Name-list to the Fall of Gondolin Tolkien had G. bar “dwelling” (PE15/21). In the Early Noldorin Grammar of the 1920s it was ᴱN. bâr “house”, though a change in its mutated form {i·bhar >>} i·mâr indicates some vacillation on its primitive form (PE13/120 and note #2). In Early Noldorin word-lists of this period it was bar “house” (PE13/138).
In The Etymologies of the 1930s it was N. bár “home” written in the margin next to the root ᴹ√MBAR “dwell, inhabit” (EtyAC/MBAR), but it also meant “Earth” in the name N. Barthan “Earth-smith” (Ety/TAN). In later notes (date unknown) this name was S. Barthan “World-artificer” (LT1A/Talka Marda). In notes on The Feanorian Alphabet from the 1930s it was †băr “home”, which became bār after vowels lengthened in monosyllables (PE22/36).
In notes from the 1960s, Tolkien described this word in some detail, first saying:
> In Sindarin bar [< ✱mbăr-] (pl. bair) was used for a single house or dwelling, especially of the larger and more permanent sort; barð [< ✱mbardā̆] was much as English “home”, the (proper) place for one (or a community) to dwell in (PE17/164).
Here it seems bar = “house, dwelling” but bardh = “home”. However, in a later iteration of these notes Tolkien said:
> There were thus tendencies both (a) for Noldorin terms for things peculiar to their culture to be translated into Sindarin forms or imitated ... Examples ... were (a) the use of Sindarin bâr (< ✱mbăr(a)) for “house” a settled built dwelling of a family, larger or smaller: in true Sindarin use it only denoted a small area in which some group had at last settled more or less permanently (PE17/164).
This was revised slightly to read:
> There was thus a tendency: (a) for Noldorin words and terms for things peculiar to their culture to be translated into Sindarin, or imitated ... Examples of these processes are: (a) the use of Sindarin bâr (< ✱mbăr(a)) for “house”: the permanent building serving as the home of a family, larger or smaller, though in genuine older Sindarin use this word referred to a (small) area, in which some group had at last settled, more or less permanently (PE17/164).
Both these later paragraph imply that the original sense of Sindarin bâr was something like “✱settlement (of a group or community)” but came to mean “house, dwelling” under the influence of Quenya már.
Of its uses in compounds Tolkien said:
> This was also in old compounds used (like Q -mar) for a region, but not in ordinary language ... Only in old names was -bar used like Q -mar for a region inhabited by a people. For this Sindarin used usually -dor (< ndor) “land” (PE17/165).
bardh
noun. home
A word for “home” appearing in draft notes from the 1960s discussing the root √MBAR, where it was contrasted with bâr “house, dwelling”:
> In Sindarin bar [< ✱mbăr-] (pl. bair) was used for a single house or dwelling, especially of the larger and more permanent sort; barð [< ✱mbardā̆] was much as English “home”, the (proper) place for one (or a community) to dwell in (PE17/164).
It was also contrasted with milbar “dear home” which was used for the “emotional senses ‘home’ as the place of one’s birth, or desire, or one’s home returned to after journey or exile” (PE17/164). In later versions of these notes on √MBAR, Tolkien mentioned bâr and milbar but not bardh (PE17/109).
Neo-Sindarin: Given its absence from the final version of the √MBAR notes, it is possible Tolkien abandoned bardh “home”. However, I prefer to retain it for purposes of Neo-Sindarin for the ordinary sense of “home”, and reserve milbar for one’s “emotional home” or “✱true home” from which one is currently separated, as opposed to the home that you are living now = bardh. I would use bâr primarily in the sense “house, dwelling”.
bar erib
place name. *House of the Lonely Ones
A stronghold in Dor-Cúarthol (UT/153). It appears to be a combination of S. bâr “house, home” and the plural form erib of the adjective ereb “lonely”, so perhaps: “✱House of the Lonely Ones” (hat tip to Gilruin for this suggestion).
-dor
suffix. a region inhabited by a people
_ suff. _a region inhabited by a people. Usually used instead of -_bar _in Sindarin. >> -bar
Dúnadan
noun. Man of the west, Númenórean
adan
noun. man, one of the Second People (elvish name for men)
adanadar
noun. man, one of the Fathers of Men
adanath
noun. men
bar bëora
proper name. House of Bëor
bardh
home
{ð}_ n. _home, the (proper) place for one (or a community) to dwell in.
bar haleth
place name. Bar Haleth
A transient replacement for Ephel Brandir (WJ/157), a combination of S. bâr “house, home” and the Edain name Haleth.
cae
noun. earth
This word is indeclinable, according to the Etymologies
ceven
noun. Earth
dor
noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live
The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor
drúadan
noun. wild man, one of the Woses
drû
noun. wild man, Wose, Púkel-Man
In PE/11:31, an older Gnomish word drû, drui meant "wood, forest", and in PE/13:142, the early Noldorin word drú was assigned the meaning "dark". Drû pl. Drúin later came to be used for the name of the Woses, with other derivatives (Drúadan, etc.). "Wose" is actually the modernization of an Anglo-Saxon word wasa only found in the compound wudu-wasa "wild man of the woods", cf. UT/385 sq. In the drafts of the "Ride of the Rohirrim" in WR/343-346, the Woses first appeared as "the dark men of Eilenach". Though internally said to derive from drughu in their own tongue, Tolkien's choice for the Sindarin name of the Woses was apparently influenced by earlier meanings assigned to this word
dîr
noun. man, man, [N.] adult male; agental suffix
A word for “man” as a male person, attested only as an element in compounds or as (archaic?) ndir (PE17/60). This word likely refers to male individuals of all races including Elves, Men, Dwarves and so forth, much like its Quenya cognate Q. nér. This word must have been derived from the primitive subjective form ✶ndēr of the root √N(D)ER “male person”, where the ancient long ē became ī, and the initial cluster nd- became d-, though the ancient cluster would still be reflected in mutated forms, such as in i nîr “the man” rather than ✱✱i dhîr.
Conceptual Development: Perhaps the earliest precursor to this word is (archaic) G. †drio “hero, warrior” with variants driw, driodweg and driothweg, a cognate of ᴱQ. nēr (GL/22). This Gnomish word was derived from primitive ᴱ✶n’reu̯, where the initial nr- became dr-. At this early stage, the root was unstrengthened ᴱ√NERE (QL/65), as reflected in (archaic) ᴱN. nîr “hero, prince, warrior-elf” in the Early Noldorin Dictionary of the 1920s (PE13/164).
In The Etymologies of the 1930s the root became ᴹ√DER “adult male, man” of any speaking race and the derived form was N. dîr (Ety/DER). However, in this document Tolkien said:
> EN †dîr surviving chiefly in proper names (as Diriel older Dirghel [GYEL], Haldir, Brandir) and as agental ending (as ceredir “doer, maker”) ... In ordinary use EN has benn [for “man”] (properly = “husband”).
Thus in the scenario described in The Etymologies, dîr “man” was archaic and used only as an element in names or as a suffix. In ordinary speech it was replaced by N. benn, which used to mean “husband” but now meant “man”, while the word for “husband” became N. hervenn (Ety/BES). It is unlikely Tolkien imagined this exact scenario in later Sindarin, however, since the 1930s root for benn was ᴹ√BES “wed”, but by the 1960s the root for husband/wife/marry words had become √BER.
Neo-Sindarin: Since the status of N. benn is questionable given ᴹ√BES >> √BER, many Neo-Sindarin writers prefer to use S. ✱dîr as the Sindarin word for man. I am of the opinion that both dîr and benn are acceptable for “man, male person”. This is because I prefer to retain ᴹ√BES as the root for “marry, wed”, since it is the best basis for attested husband/wife words in (Neo) Sindarin.
dôr
noun. land, dwelling-place, region where certain people live
The form dor in the Etymologies is a misreading, see VT/45. In composition and in toponyms, the word is nevertheless reduced to Dor
dôr
noun. land, land, [N.] region where certain people live, [ᴱN.] country; [G.] people of the land
ennorath
noun. central lands, middle-earth
raud
lofty
sennas
noun. guesthouse
taer
lofty
adj. lofty. Q. tāra.
taer
adjective. lofty
A Sindarin word for “lofty” mentioned as the equivalent of Q. tára “tall”, proof that the primitive form was ✶tagra < √TAƷ since aʒr > air and then aer in Sindarin, but aʒr > ār in Quenya (PE17/186).
Conceptual Development: The Etymologies of the 1930s had ON. tōra “lofty” as the equivalent of ᴹQ. tára “lofty, high” under the root ᴹ√TĀ/TAƷ (Ety/TĀ; EtyAC/TĀ), but due to differences in the primitive form in ᴹ✶tārā in the 1930s, this produced N. taur which blended with primitive ᴹ✶taurā < ᴹ√TUR to gain the senses “vast, mighty, overwhelming, awful; high, sublime” (Ety/TUR).
Earlier still, the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. dara “lofty” (GL/29) equivalent to ᴱQ. tára “lofty” (QL/87). In this period the root likely began with D, as in ✱ᴱ√DAHA, since in Early Qenya of the 1910s, primitive initial voiced stops were unvoiced [ᴱ✶d- > ᴱQ. t-].
adab
house
(building), pl. edaib. In ”Noldorin”, the plural was edeb.
adan
man
(pl. Edain; the coll. pl. Adanath is attested). The word Adan came to be used primarily of a member of the Three Houses of the Edain, not of the mortal race of Men in general.
amar
earth
(archaic Ambar), pl. Emair
arth
lofty
- arth (noble, exalted), pl. erth, 2) brand (high, noble, fine), lenited vrand, pl. braind, 3) orchall (superior, eminent), pl. erchail (for archaic örchail), 4) taur (also tor-, tar- in compounds) (high, sublime, noble; vast, masterful, mighty, overwhelming, huge, awful), lenited daur, pl. toer. Note: homophones mean ”king (of a people)” and also ”great wood, forest”.
arth
lofty
(noble, exalted), pl. erth
bar telien
noun. gymnasium, (lit.) house of sport
brand
lofty
(high, noble, fine), lenited vrand, pl. braind
brannon
lord
(i** vrannon), pl. brennyn (i** mrennyn), coll. pl. brannonnath
bâr
dwelling
bâr (house, home, family; land, earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds
bâr
dwelling
(house, home, family; land, earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds
bâr
house
bâr (dwelling, home, family; land, earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.
bâr
house
(dwelling, home, family; land, earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.
bâr
earth
(dwelling, house, home, family; land) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.
bâr
home
bâr (dwelling, house, family; land, earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.
bâr
home
(dwelling, house, family; land, earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.
bâr
land
(dwelling, house, home, family; earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.
bôr
trusty man
(boron-) (i vôr, construct bor) (steadfast man, faithful vassal), pl. *b**ŷr* for older beryn, i meryn (archaic böryn, i möryn). In ”Noldorin”, the older pl. forms were berein, beren.
cae
noun. earth
cae
earth
(i gae, o chae). No distinct pl. form even if there is a pl., except with article (i chae). For ”earth” as a substance, see also
car
house
(building, dwelling-place) 1) car or cardh (i gar[dh], o char[dh]) (building), pl. cerdh (i cherdh) or cair (i chair). Note: cardh also means "deed, feat". Therefore, the form car may be preferred for clarity. 2) adab (building), pl. edaib. In ”Noldorin”, the plural was edeb. 3)
car
house
or cardh (i gar[dh], o char[dh]) (building), pl. cerdh (i cherdh) or cair (i chair). Note: cardh also means "deed, feat". Therefore, the form car may be preferred for clarity.
ceven
earth
- ceven (i geven, o cheven), pl. cevin (i chevin) (VT48:23), 2) (world) Amar (archaic Ambar), pl. Emair; 3) bâr (dwelling, house, home, family; land) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds. 4) (maybe ”earth” as substance) cae (i gae, o chae). No distinct pl. form even if there is a pl., except with article (i chae). For ”earth” as a substance, see also SOIL.
ceven
earth
(i geven, o cheven), pl. cevin (i chevin) (VT48:23)
curunír
man of craft
(i gurunír, o churunír) (wizard), no distinct pl. form except with article (i churunír), coll. pl. ?curuníriath.
dortha
dwell
dortha- (i northa, i ndorthar) (stay)
dortha
dwell
(i northa, i ndorthar) (stay)
dîr
man
- (adult male of any speaking race) dîr (dír-, also agentive ending -dir or -nir; with article, i nîr, hard mutation as in o ndîr), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ndîr); coll. pl. díriath. Also benn (i venn, construct ben), pl. binn (i minn). The latter is in archaic language used = "husband" (the etymological meaning). The ending -we in names may also express ”being, man, person”. 2) (mortal human as opposed to Elf) Adan (pl. Edain; the coll. pl. Adanath is attested). The word Adan came to be used primarily of a member of the Three Houses of the Edain, not of the mortal race of Men in general.
dîr
man
(dír-, also agentive ending -dir or -nir; with article, i nîr, hard mutation as in o ndîr), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ndîr); coll. pl. díriath. Also benn (i venn, construct ben), pl. binn (i minn). The latter is in archaic language used = "husband" (the etymological meaning). The ending -we in names may also express ”being, man, person”.
dôr
dwelling place
(i nôr, construct dor) (land, region), pl. dŷr (i ndŷr) (WJ:413).
dôr
land
- dôr (i nôr, construct dor) (dwelling place, region), pl. dŷr (i ndŷr), coll. pl. dorath (WJ:413), 2) bâr (dwelling, house, home, family; earth) (i mâr, o mbâr, construct bar), pl. bair (i mbair). Also -bar, -mar at the end of compounds.
dôr
land
(i nôr, construct dor) (dwelling place, region), pl. dŷr (i ndŷr), coll. pl. dorath (WJ:413)
dúnadan
man of the west
(i Núnadan), pl. Dúnedain (i Ndúnedain) (WJ:378, 386).
ennor
place name. central land, middle-earth
firion
mortal man
(pl. firyn).
gobel
enclosed dwelling
(i ’obel) (walled house or village, ”town”), pl. gebil (i ngebil = i ñebil). Archaic pl. göbil.
gobel
village
(i ’obel) (enclosed dwelling, ”town”), pl. gebil (i ngebil = i ñebil). Archaic pl. ✱göbil.
grôd
underground dwelling
(i ’rôd, construct grod) (cave, delving, excavation), pl. grŷd (in grŷd) (WJ:414)
heron
lord
(i cheron, o cheron) (master), pl. heryn (i cheryn), coll. pl. heronnath** (VT45:22). Since the pl. heryn clashes with the fem. sg. heryn** ”lady”, other words for ”lord” may be preferred.
hîr
lord
- hîr (i chîr, o chîr; also hir-, her- at the beginning of compounds) (master), no distinct pl. form, not even with article (i chîr), coll. pl. híriath (Letters:282, 386; VT41:9); 2) heron (i cheron, o cheron) (master), pl. heryn (i cheryn), coll. pl. heronnath (VT45:22)._ _Since the pl. heryn clashes with the fem. sg. heryn ”lady”, other words for ”lord” may be preferred. 3) brannon (i vrannon), pl. brennyn (i mrennyn), coll. pl. brannonnath; 4) tûr (i dûr, o thûr, construct tur) (mastery, power, control; master, victor), pl. tuir (i thuir), coll. pl. túrath.
hîr
lord
(i chîr, o chîr; also hir-, her- at the beginning of compounds) (master), no distinct pl. form, not even with article (i chîr), coll. pl. híriath (Letters:282, 386; VT41:9)
nand
wide grassland
(construct nan) (valley), pl. naind, coll. pl. **nannath **(VT45:36);
noss
house
(family) 1) noss (construct nos, pl. nyss) (family, clan), 2) nost (pl. nyst) (family) (PM:360), 3) nothrim (family); no distinct pl. form (PM:360)
noss
house
(construct nos, pl. nyss) (family, clan)
nost
house
(pl. nyst) (family) (PM:360)
nothrim
house
(family); no distinct pl. form (PM:360)
orchall
lofty
(superior, eminent), pl. erchail (for archaic örchail)
ortha
raise
ortha- (i ortha, in orthar);
ortha
raise
(i ortha, in orthar);
orthad
raising
(MR:373)
parth
enclosed grassland
(i barth, o pharth) (field, sward), pl. perth (i pherth);
rhavan
wild man
(?i thravan or ?i ravan – the lenition product of rh is uncertain), pl. rhevain (?idh revain) (WJ:219). – The following terms apparently apply to ”men” of any speaking race:
rhûd
dwelling underground
(construct rhud, with article ?i thrûd or ?i rûd – *the lenition product of rh- is uncertain) (artificial cave, rockhewn hall, mine), pl. rhuid (?idh ruid) (PM:365)*.
sennas
guesthouse
(i hennas), pl. sennais (i sennais), coll. pl. sennassath (RC:523)
taur
lofty
(also tor-, tar- in compounds) (high, sublime, noble; vast, masterful, mighty, overwhelming, huge, awful), lenited daur, pl. toer. Note: homophones mean ”king (of a people)” and also ”great wood, forest”.
thalion
dauntless man
(hero), pl. thelyn. Also used as an adj. ”dauntless, steadfast, strong”.
tûr
lord
(i** dûr, o thûr, construct tur) (mastery, power, control; master, victor), pl. tuir (i** thuir), coll. pl. túrath.
An earlier name for Bar-in-Mŷl “Home of the Gulls” (WJ/418). The initial element of the name is bâr “home” and the second element is the plural in of the definite article i “the”, but the meaning of the final element is unclear. It may be a variation of gwae “wind”.