echil

collective name. Followers

Sindarin equivalent of Q. Hildor “Followers” as a name for Men (WJ/219). It is clearly derived from the same root √KHIL, but otherwise its etymology is unclear. Another Sindarin term with a similar meaning is Aphadon.

hên

noun. child

A word for “child” derived from the root √KHIN, more specifically from ✶khinā with short i which became e in Sindarin due to a-affection (WJ/403). It often appeared in its mutated plural form chîn in phrases like Narn i Chîn Húrin “Tale of the Children of Húrin” (WJ/160). This is pronounced with spirantal “ch” as in German Bach, not affricate “ch” as in English “church”.

Christopher Tolkien made the editorial decision to render this plural form as Hîn in The Silmarillion as published as well as in Unfinished Tales, where it “was improperly changed by me [Christopher Tolkien] to Narn i Hîn Húrin ... because I did not want Chîn to be pronounced like Modern English chin” (LR/322).

In the Quendi and Eldar (Q&E) essay of 1959-60, Tolkien said “S has hên, pl. hîn, mostly used as a prefix in patronymics or metronymics”, meaning this word was often used to mean “child of” in reference to one’s parents, for example Túrin hen-Chúrin [Húrin] or Túrin hen-Morwen [assuming nasal-mutation].

hên

noun. child (mostly used as a prefix in patronymics or metronymics)

gwinig

noun. little finger (Elvish play-name used by and taught to children)

hên

child

hên (i chên), pl. hîn (i chîn); also -chen, pl. -chín at the end of compounds (e.g. Eruchín ”Children of Eru”). _(WJ:403) _CHILDREN OF THE ONE (Elves and Men as children of God) Eruchín** **(sg. *Eruchen)

hên

child

(i chên), pl. hîn (i chîn); also -chen, pl. -chín at the end of compounds (e.g. Eruchín ”Children of Eru”). (WJ:403)

eruchen

children of the one

)

hîl

noun. heir

A word for “heir” appearing only as an element in Eluchíl “Thingol’s Heir” (S/188; PM/369). It is clearly the Sindarin equivalent of Q. hildë “heir”.

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. hilmir “heir (m. or f.)” based on G. hilm “posterity, descendants, progeny” (GL/49).

hîl

noun. heir

-eg

suffix. your

_2nd sg./pl. poss. suff. your.Maybe the familiar form of this suff. See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Later -gen_. >> -el, -gen

-el

suffix. your

_2nd sg./pl. poss. suff. _your. Maybe the polite form of this suff. See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Later -lein. >> -eg, -lein

-gen

suffix. your

_2nd sg. poss. suff. your.Maybe the familiar form of this suff. See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Earlier -eg_. >> -eg

-lein

suffix. your

_2nd sg. poss. suff. your.Maybe the polite form of this suff. See also the paradigm of poss. suff. in PE17:46. Earlier -el_. >> -el

graug

noun. a powerful, hostile and terrible creature, a demon

gwinig

noun. "litte baby"

lin

adjective. thy (reverential)

lín

adjective. thy (reverential)

moth

noun. dusk

raug

noun. a powerful, hostile and terrible creature, a demon

sellath

noun. all the daughters

dû

dusk

(i dhû) (night, nightfall, late evening, darkness), pl. dui (i nui) (SD:302).

graug

powerful, hostile and terrible creature

(i ’raug), pl. groeg (in groeg), coll. pl. grogath (WJ:415)

hîl

heir

1. #hîl (i chîl), same forms in pl., also with article (i chîl), coll. pl. híliath. Isolated from the name Eluchíl, heir of Elu (WJ:350). 2) rêd (construct red), pl.rîd (idh rîd). The word is presented as a borrowing from Beorian, so it may not be the normal Sindarin word for ”heir”.

hîl

heir

(i chîl), same forms in pl., also with article (i chîl), coll. pl. híliath. Isolated from the name Eluchíl, heir of Elu (WJ:350).

iell

daughter

1. iell (-iel) (girl, maid), pl. ill, 2) sell (i hell) (girl, maid), pl. sill (i sill), coll. pl. sellath**. **DAUGTHER OF TWILIGHT, see NIGHTINGALE

iell

daughter

(-iel) (girl, maid), pl. ill

lín

thy

lín

lín

thy

moth

dusk

1. moth (i voth), pl. myth (i myth). David Salo would read *môth with a long vowel. 2) dû (i dhû) (night, nightfall, late evening, darkness), pl. dui (i nui) (SD:302).

moth

dusk

(i voth), pl. myth (i myth). David Salo would read ✱môth with a long vowel.

rêd

heir

(construct red), pl.rîd (idh rîd). The word is presented as a borrowing from Beorian, so it may not be the normal Sindarin word for ”heir”.

sell

daughter

(i** hell) (girl, maid), pl. sill (i** sill), coll. pl. *sellath***. **

tinnu

dusk

tinnu (i dinnu, o thinnu) (twilight, starlit evening, early night without a moon, starry twilight), pl. tinny (i thynny) if there is a pl.

tinnu

dusk

(i dinnu, o thinnu) (twilight, starlit evening, early night without a moon, starry twilight), pl. tinny (i thynny) if there is a pl.

ûn

creature

ûn (pl. uin).

ûn

creature

(pl. uin).

hildi

followers

hildi, -hildi noun "followers" (used = mortal men, the Second-born of Ilúvatar) (KHIL) (also Hildor, q.v.). Dat. pl. hildin "for men", a dative pl. occurring in Fíriel's Song. Cf. hildinyar "my heirs", evidently *hildë, hildo "follower, heir" + -inya "my" + -r plural ending (EO)

hína

noun. child

A word for “child” derived from the root √KHIN (PE17/157; WJ/403), most notably an element in Eruhíni “Children of God”, a term for Elves and Men as the children of Eru. This word illustrates that hína has an abnormal plural form: híni rather than the expected ✱✱hínar. A variant hina with a short i was “only used in the vocative addressing a (young) child, especially in hinya (< hinanya) ‘my child’ (WJ/403)”.

Conceptual Development: The term Êruhîn “Children of God” first appeared as an Adûnaic word in the 1940s (SD/247-8, 358), later adapted as Quenya Eruhíni and Sindarin Eruchîn, which seems to be the source of Q. hína and S. hên “child”. At one point Tolkien coined masculine and feminine variants Q. hindo and Q. hindë, but they were deleted (PE17/157). Tolkien often used an alternate Quenya form sén (MR/423; UT/274; RGEO/66), perhaps out of a desire to have a Sindarin form Eruhîn that was closer to the original Adûnaic form. This variant continued to appear as late as 1969, where sén was written below Eruhíni as a variant form in Late Notes on Verbs (LVS: PE22/158).

onna

noun. child, child, *offspring; [ᴹQ.] creature

A word for “child” appearing in various late notes and phrases (NM/31; PM/391; VT49/42), derived from the root √NŌ/ONO “beget, be born” and once appearing in a variant form onwe (PE17/170). Giving its derivation, its actual meaning may be closer to “✱offspring”, as first suggested to me by Tamas Ferencz.

Conceptual Development: In The Etymologies of the 1930s, ᴹQ. onna was instead glossed “creature”, though it was still derived from the root ᴹ√ONO “beget” (Ety/ONO).

hína

child

hína noun "child", also hina used in the vocative to a (young) child (also hinya "my child", for hinanya) (WJ:403). Pl. híni (surprisingly not **hínar) in Híni Ilúvataro "Children of Ilúvatar" (Silmarillion Index); dative hínin in VT44:35. In compounds -hin pl. -híni (as in Eruhíni, "Children of Eru", SA:híni). According to one source, the word is hín(i) and solely plural (PE17:157), but this is obviously contradicted by some of the sources quoted above.

onwë

child

onwë noun "child" (PE17:170)

selda

child

selda adj.?noun? (meaning not clear, related to seldë "child" (meaning changed by Tolkien from "daughter") and seldo "boy". Thus selda may be an adjective "childlike", since -a is a frequent adjectival ending. Alternatively, as suggested in VT46:13, selda may be a neuter noun "child", corresponding to masc. seldo "boy" and fem. seldë "girl" (before Tolkien changed the meaning of the latter to "child"). (SEL-D, cf. VT46:22-23)

seldo

child

seldo noun (meaning not quite clear, likely the masculine form of seldë "child", hence *"boy") (SEL-D, VT46:13, 22-23)

seldë

child

seldë noun "child" (meaning changed by Tolkien from "daughter"; in his later texts the Quenya word for "child" is rather hína, and the final status of seldë is uncertain. See also tindómerel.) (SEL-D, VT46:13, 22-23) In one late source, Tolkien reverts to the meaning "daughter", but this may have been replaced by anel, q.v.

sén

noun. child

onwë

noun. child

eruhin

proper name. Child of Eru (God)

A name for Elves and Men as children of Eru (God), frequently appearing in its plural form Eruhíni (Let/189, MR/320, WJ/403). It is a compound of Eru “God” and a suffixal form -hin of hína “child” (SA/híni).

Conceptual Development: This name first appeared in the tales of the Fall of Númenor from the 1940s as the Adûnaic word #Êruhin, attested only in its plural forms Êruhîn(im) (SD/247-8, 311). See that entry for further discussion of its early history.

onya

noun. my child

An affection term for “my child”, a reduction of the 1st sg. possessive form onnanya of onna “child” (PE17/170; UT/174-5).

seldë

noun. daughter, daughter; [ᴹQ.] child [f.], *girl

This seems to be the word that Tolkien favored for “daughter” in his later writings (PE17/170; VT47/10; PE19/73), though it had competition from other forms like Q. yeldë.

Conceptual Development: The earliest word resembling this form was ᴱQ. sui “daughter” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s under the early root ᴱ√SUẈU (QL/87), a word also mentioned in the Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa (PME/87). This became ᴱQ. silde “daughter” in Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s (PE16/135).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s, Tolkien experimented with several different forms. He had ᴹQ. yelde “daughter” under the root ᴹ√YEL, but this entry was deleted (Ety/YEL). Tolkien also had a root ᴹ√SEL(D) “daughter” with a derivative ᴹQ. selde, but the meaning of this root was changed to “child”, and masculine and neuter forms ᴹQ. seldo and ᴹQ. selda were added to the entry (Ety/SEL-D). Finally, under the entry for ᴹ√YŌ or YON “son”, Tolkien added a primitive feminine variant ᴹ✶yēn or yend “daughter”, producing ᴹQ. yende and (suffixal?) yen (Ety/YŌ).

These vacillations continued in later writings, where at one point Tolkien wrote “Q[uenya] Wanted: Son, Daughter” (PE17/170). In Notes on Names (NN) from 1957 Tolkien wrote Q. sel-de for “daughter”, but above it he wrote a variant form anel. In rough notes from around 1959 Tolkien explored a large number of masculine and feminine suffixes, and on the page he had yeldë “daughter”, though at the end of the sentence he wrote “also yen” (PE17/190). In notes on Eldarin Hands, Fingers and Numerals from the late 1960s, Tolkien wrote selyë as a diminutive/affectionate word for “daughter”, with seltil as a play name for the fourth finger representing a daughter (VT47/10, 27).

Also of note is Tolkien’s Quenya name for S. Tinúviel “Daughter of Twilight”, which he generally represented as something like Q. Tindómerel < ✶Tindōmiselde. Tolkien was fairly consistent in this Quenya form starting in the 1930s (Ety/SEL-D; PE19/33), with examples in the 1950s (PE19/73) and 1960s (VT47/37) as well. Indeed, in a couple cases he used this name to illustrate how medial s generally became z and eventually r in Quenya (PE19/33, 73), so it seems that for this name Tolkien consistently imagined the primitive form for “daughter” as ✶selde.

Neo-Quenya: I’d assume selde is the main word for “daughter” for purposes of Neo-Quenya, but I’d assume a variant form yeldë, especially since -iel was the most common suffix for “daughter of”. This variant probably arose very early under the influence of √YON “son”.

senya

noun. *my child

An affection term used by Isildur when addressing his son Elendur, very likely a reduction of 1st sg. possessive ✱sén-nya “✱my child” from sén “child” (UT/274); hat-tip to Lokyt for suggesting this connection to me.

winë

noun. baby, little-one, child not yet full grown

A word glossed “baby” (VT47/10), “child not yet full grown” (VT47/26), or “little-one, baby” (VT48/6) in notes associated with Elvish Hands, Fingers and Numerals from the late 1960s, sometimes appearing beside longer variants winimo or win(i)ke (VT47/10; VT48/6). It was derived from the root √WIN (VT47/26).

Neo-Quenya: Tolkien said that “Pengoloð gives these in archaic Quenya form before the change of w, in most situations to v” (VT48/6), but I would keep this word as wine since that would be easier for an infant to pronounce. I would use it only as an affectionate or play name, using longer †winimo (modern vinimo) as the proper term for “baby”.

lómëar

child of gloom

lómëar noun "child of gloom" (pl. evidently Lómëarni) (LT1:255, 259)

oar

child of the sea, merchild

oar (2) noun "child of the sea, merchild" (LT1:263; hardly valid in Tolkien's later Quenya)

onta-

verb. to beget, to beget, *conceive (a child); [ᴹQ.] to create

A verb in Tolkien’s writings glossed “beget” and derived from the root √NŌ/ONO (PE17/170; Ety/ONO). In The Etymologies of the 1930s it had a second gloss “create” (Ety/ONO).

Conceptual Development: The Early Qenya Grammar of the 1920s had the word ᴱQ. puita- “beget” (PE14/77), likely based on the early root ᴱ√PU(HU) “generate” (QL/75).

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I’d use this verb primarily with the sense “beget = ✱conceive (a child)”, as opposed to nosta- “to beget = give birth to”. I’d use this verb irrespective of the gender of the parent. When used of non-living or abstract things, it would have the sense “create”: ontanen vinya parma lírion “I begat [= created] a new book of songs”.

onya

my child

onya noun "my child", "my son" (not the normal word for "son", however [cf. yondo] onya seems to be derived from the stem ONO "beget") This may be a shortened form of *onnanya (see onna), like hinya "my child" (q.v.) is shortened from hinanya. It may be, then, that onya (like hinya) is only used in vocative. (UT:174)

wine

noun. baby, child not yet fully grown

winë (stem *wini-, given the primitive form ¤wini) noun "baby, child not yet fully grown", "little-one", also used in children's play for "little finger" or "little toe" (VT46:10, 26, VT48:6, 16). Synonyms win(i)cë, winimo. In Exilic Quenya, this word would appear as *vinë; compare the related word winya > vinya "young, new".

nai amanya onnalya ter coivierya

*may your (sg.) child be blessed throughout his/her life

nai calambar onnalda ter coivierya

*may your (pl.) child be light-fated throughout his/her life

heconna

noun. child born out of wedlock, bastard

A neologism for “child born out of wedlock, bastard” coined by Tamas Ferencz, a combination of the root √HEK “separate” with Q. onna “child, ✱offspring”.

olta-

verb. raise (a child or animal), bring up

A neologism for “raise (a child or animal), bring up” coined by Luinyelle posted on 2025-05-12 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), a causative form of OL “grow (up)”, so “cause to grow”. Note that this use of the same term for both children and animals implies the Elvish fondness for creatures under their care rather than their disregard for their own children.

hinyë

noun. baby

A word for a “baby” in rough notes on Elvish finger names (VT47/27), probably some kind of diminutive formation from √KHIN “child”. It had a variant hintil that is clearly specific to fingers only: = √KHIN + √TIL “✱baby finger, (lit.) child tip”.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, it is probably better to use one of the baby words from the more finished versions of these notes, such as vinimo.

-lda

your

-lda (1) "your", 2nd person pl. possessive suffix (VT49:16). Onnalda *"your child" (VT49:42). In an earlier manuscript, this ending was used for singular "you" instead, attested in the phrase Arwen vanimalda "Arwen your beauty", sc. "O beautiful Arwen", and in meletyalda "your majesty" (WJ:369) Arwen vanimalda was however changed to Arwen vanimelda in the second edition of LotR, Tolkien reinterpreting the last word (see vanimalda). The ending for singular "your" appears as -lya elsewhere. (LotR1:II ch. 6)

-lya

thy, your

-lya 2nd person sg. formal/polite pronominal suffix "thy, your" (VT49:16, 38, 48). In tielyanna "upon your path" (UT:22 cf. 51), caritalya(s) "your doing (it)" (VT41:17), esselya "thy name" (VT43:14), onnalya "your child" (VT49:41, 42), parma-restalyanna *"upon your book-fair" (VT49:38), and, in Tolkien's Quenya Lord's Prayer, in the various translations of "thy kingdom": aranielya in the final version, earlier turinastalya, túrinastalya, turindielya, túrindielya (VT43:15). Also in indómelya (changed from mendelya) "thy will" (VT43:15-16)

lómë

dusk, twilight

lómë noun "dusk, twilight", also "night"; according to SD:415, the stem is lómi- (contrast the "Qenya" genitive lómen rather than **lómin in VT45:28). According to PE17:152, lómë refers to night "when viewed favourably, as a rule, but it became the general rule" (cf. SD:414-415 regarding lōmi as an Adûnaic loan-word based on lómë, meaning "fair night, a night of stars" with "no connotations of gloom or fear"). In the battle-cry auta i lómë "the night is passing" (Silm. ch. 20), the "night" would however seem to refer metaphorically to the reign of Morgoth. As for the gloss, cf. Lómion masc. name "Child of Twilight [dusk]", the Quenya name Aredhel secretly gave to Maeglin _(SA). Otherwise lómë is usually defined as "night" (Letters:308, LR:41, SD:302 cf.414-15, SA:dú)_; the _Etymologies defines lómë as "Night [as phenomenon], night-time, shades of night, Dark" (DO3/DŌ, LUM, DOMO, VT45:28), or "night-light" (VT45:28, reading of _lómë uncertain). In early "Qenya" the gloss was "dusk, gloom, darkness" (LT1:255). Cf. lómelindëpl. lómelindi "nightingale" _(SA:dú, LR:41; SD:302, MR:172, DO3/DŌ, LIN2, TIN). _Derived adjective #lómëa "gloomy" in Lómëanor "Gloomyland"; see Taurelilómëa-tumbalemorna...

nai

be it that

nai (1) imperative verb "be it that", used with a verb (usually in the future tense) to express a wish. The translation "maybe" in Tolkien's rendering of Namárië is somewhat misleading; he used "be it that" in the interlinear translation in RGEO:67. Apparently this is na as the imperative "be!" with a suffix -i "that", cf. i #3. It can be used with the future tense as an "expression of wish" (VT49:39). Nai hiruvalyë Valimar! Nai elyë hiruva! "May thou find Valimar. May even thou find it!" (Nam, VT49:39). Nai tiruvantes "be it that they will guard it" > "may they guard it" (CO). Nai elen siluva parma-restalyanna "may a star shine upon your book-fair" (VT49:38), nai elen siluva lyenna "may a star shine upon you" (VT49:40), nai elen atta siluvat aurenna veryanwesto "may two stars shine upon the day of your wedding" (VT49:42-45), nai laurë lantuva parmastanna lúmissen tengwiesto "may (a) golden light fall on your book at the times of your reading" (VT49:47). Nai may also be used with a present continuative verb if an ongoing situation is wished for: Nai Eru lye mánata "God bless you" (VT49:39) or literally "be it that God is (already) blessing you". The phrase nai amanyaonnalya "be it that your child [will be] blessed" omits any copula; Tolkien noted that "imper[ative] of wishes precedes adj." (VT49:41). VT49:28 has the form nái for "let it be that"; Patrick Wynne theorizes that nái is actually an etymological form underlying nai (VT49:36)

onna

creature

onna noun "creature" (ONO), "child" (PE17:170), also translated "child" in the plural compound Aulëonnar "Children of Aulë", a name of the Dwarves (PM:391), and apparently also used = "child" in the untranslated sentence nai amanya onnalya ter coivierya ("k") "be it that your child [will be] blessed thoughout his/her life" (VT49:41). The form onya (q.v.), used as a vocative "my child", is perhaps shortened from *onnanya.

tindómerel

daughter of twilight

tindómerel (also capitalized Tindómerel) fem. name "daughter of twilight", a kenning (poetic name) of the nightingale; = Sindarin Tinúviel. (TIN, SEL-D, SA:tin; "Tindómrl" in mirrored Tengwar in VT47:37 would seem to be an incomplete annotation of the same word). The form Tindómiel (UT:210) could well be an alternative Quenya equivalent of Tinúviel, and it is possibly to be preferred because the status of the ending -rel "daughter" is uncertain (it was to represent older -zel, -sel corresponding to the independent word seldë, but Tolkien changed the meaning of this word from "daughter" to "child", and since the word for "child" appears as hína in later texts, it may be that seldë and the corresponding ending -rel were dropped altogether).

selyë

daughter

[selyë noun "daughter", used in children's play for "fourth finger" or "fourth toe" _(VT47:10, 15, VT48:4) _It is unclear whether it was the word selyë "daughter" itself that was rejected, or just its use as a play-name of a digit. Compare yeldë, yendë.]

winicë

baby

winicë (also wincë), noun "baby", also used in children's play for "little finger" or "little toe" (VT48:6). Synonyms winë, winimo. In Exilic Quenya, this word would appear as *vinicë*, vincë; compare the related word winya > vinya "young, new". Since the diminutive ending -icë descends from -iki(VT48:16), winicë may have the stem-form winici**-.

winimo

baby

winimo noun "baby", "little-one", used in children's play for "little finger" or "little toe" (VT47:10, VT48:6, 16). Synonyms winë, win(i)cë. In Exilic Quenya, this word would appear as *vinimo; compare the related word winya > vinya "young, new".

tindómerel

feminine name. Daughter of Twilight

The Quenya name of Tinúviel (SA/tin, PE19/73). Since she was a Sindarin elf, this name is largely theoretical, as a development from the same primitive form: ✶Tindōmiselde. This name is a compound of tindómë and a suffixal form -rel of seldë “daughter”. In a couple places, Tolkien used this name to illustrated the development of primitive intervocalic ✶[s] into Quenya [r] (PE19/33, 73).

Conceptual Development: The earliest “Qenya” name for Tinúviel was ᴹQ. Tinúviel in linguistic notes from the early 1930s; it was declined in various noun cases, and was clearly intended to be a purely Qenya name rather than an adaptation of the Noldorin Tinúviel (PE21/35). The name ᴹQ. Tindómerel appeared in The Etymologies from the mid-1930s, where it already had the derivation described above (Ety/SEL-D, TIN). In some notes on Quenya phonology from the 1930s, this name appeared as Tindómirel with a medial i (PE19/33), but in a revision of those notes from the 1950s it was reverted back to Tindómerel (PE19/73). It appeared as (Tindómrl) in some examples of left-handed tengwar writing from the 1960s (VT47/37); Tolkien probably neglected to add the vowel diacritics in this case.

-cca

your

[-cca ("k") ?"your", apparently an abandoned 2nd person plural or dual possessive (VT49:49). Compare -lca.]

-iel

daughter

-iel patronymic/matronymic ending -"daughter" (YEL, VT46:22-23) In the Etymologies, Tolkien struck out this ending and the corresponding independent word yeldë "daughter", changing them to -ien, yendë. However, the ending -iel later turns up in later forms: Uinéniel "Daughter of Uinen" in UT:182 and Elerondiel "daughter of Elrond" (Elerondo) in PE17:56. Hence it would seem that Tolkien changed his mind again and restored this ending, and perhaps the noun yeldë along with it. The form Elerondiel (from Elerondo) demonstrates that a final vowel is omitted before -iel.

-ien

daughter

-ien fem. ending in certain names like Yávien, Silmarien (q.v.) At one point -ien implied "daughter", see -iel above.

-lca

your

[-lca ("k") ?"your", apparently an abandoned 2nd person plural possessive (VT49:49). Cf. -cca.]

-sta

your

-sta (1) "your", dual 2nd person possessive pronominal ending: "of you two" (VT49:45, 16), cf. -stë (q.v.) Genitive -sto in veryanwesto "of your wedding" (VT49:45) and tengwiesto "of your reading" (VT49:47), allative -stanna in parmastanna "on your book" (VT49:47). An archaic ending of similar form could also be the third person dual "of the two of them" (but according to VT49:51, the corresponding subject ending was changed to -ttë, and then the ending for "their" would presumably become -tta)

-tya,

your, thy

-tya, pronominal ending, 2nd person sg. intimate/familiar "your, thy" (VT49:16, 38, 48); compare -tyë

Tindómiel

daughter of twilight

Tindómiel, fem. name (UT:210), probably *"daughter of twilight" (tindómë + -iel) and thus the equivalent of Sindarin Tinúviel. Compare tindómerel.

anel

daughter

anel noun "daughter" (PE17:170), possibly intended by Tolkien as a replacement for seldë (q.v.). Compare anon.

anel

noun. daughter

A transient word for “daughter” in Notes on Names (NN) from 1957, written of above the more common sel-de (PE17/170).

aryon

heir

aryon noun "heir" (GAR under 3AR). In a deleted entry in the Etymologies, the word was given as aryo, aryon and defined as "son of property = heir" (VT45:14), whereas in VT45:16 (reproducing deleted material from the Etymologies), the word is defined as "heir, prince". Alternative form haryon.

histë

dusk

histë noun "dusk" (LT1:255)

hísë

dusk

hísë (2) noun "dusk" (LT1:255). A "Qenya" form possibly obsoleted by #1 above.

usque

noun. dusk

dusk

usque

noun. dusk, twilight

yeldë

daughter

yeldë noun "daughter" (YEL) This word was struck out in Etym, but it may have been restored together with the ending -iel, q.v.

yeldë

noun. daughter

A less common Quenya word for “daughter”, an analog of Q. yondo “son”.

Conceptual Development: In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien had ᴹQ. yelde “daughter” under the root ᴹ√YEL of the same meaning, but the meaning of the root was first changed to “friend”, and then the root was then deleted (Ety/YEL). Meanwhile, under the root ᴹ√YŌ or YON, Tolkien introduced a feminine variant ᴹQ. yende “daughter” along with (suffixal?) yen, derived from primitive ᴹ√yēn or yend (Ety/YŌ). Previously this yende/yendi form was a feminine agent, but Tolkien rejected that meaning (EtyAC/ƷAN).

In between yelde >> yende for “daughter” in The Etymologies, Tolkien considered using the form ᴹQ. selde, and in later writings this seems to be his preferred Quenya word for “daughter”. However, yeldë “daughter” was mentioned again briefly in rough notes from around 1959 (PE17/190), and -iel remained Tolkien’s preferred suffix for “daughter of”.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I recommend seldë as the more common word for “daughter”, but assume yeldë also exists as variant due to the influence of yondo “son”; see the entries on seldë and the root √YE(L) for further discussion.

yen

daughter

yen, yendë noun "daughter" (YŌ/YON). This word replaced another form, but this form may have been restored; see yeldë. In VT45:16, yendë is said to refer to a female "agent", a word changed by Tolkien from yendi, but Tolkien deleted all of this.

khin

root. child

A root appearing in Notes on Names (NN) from 1957 with the gloss “child” (PE17/157), and again in the Quendi and Eldar essay of 1959-60 with the same gloss (WJ/403). It was the basis for the words Q. hína and S. hên “child”, which were probably inspired by the Adûnaic patronymic suffix -hin that Tolkien introduced in the 1940s as part of Êruhin “Child of God” (SD/358), originally an Adûnaic word but later on used in Sindarin (Let/345; MR/330). This root might be a later iteration of the early root ᴱ√HILI from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s whose derivatives had to do with children (QL/40). As evidence of this, the Adûnaic word was first given as Eruhil (SD/341).

khīnā

noun. child

wini

noun. child not yet full grown

ye(l)

root. daughter

The root √YEL was one of several competing Elvish roots for “daughter”. In The Etymologies of the 1930s ᴹ√YEL “daughter” was first used as the basis for ᴹQ. yelde/N. iell “daughter”, but it was deleted (Ety/YEL). N. iell was given a new derivation from ᴹ√SEL-D “child”, by analogy with N. ionn “son” (Ety/SEL-D), while a new Quenya word for “daughter” was introduced: ᴹQ. yende from a feminine variant ᴹ√yēn of ᴹ√YO(N) (Ety/YŌ). Note that ᴹ√SEL-D itself was initially glossed “daughter”, but was changed to “child” and given derivatives for all genders in Quenya: ᴹQ. selda [n.], ᴹQ. selde [f.], and ᴹQ. seldo [m.].

The picture in later writings is also rather muddled. In Notes on Names (NN) from 1957 Tolkien gave sel-de “daughter” (PE17/170), while S. sel(l) = “daughter” appeared in both the King’s Letter from the late 1940s (SD/129) as well as the Túrin Wrapper from the 1950s (VT50/5). The diminutive form for “daughter” appeared as Q. selyë in notes from the late 1960s (VT47/10). In several places Tolkien gave Q. Tindómerel “Daughter of Twilight” as the Quenya equivalent of S. Tinúviel, with the final element being derived from primitive ✶-sel(dĕ) > -rel (Ety/SEL-D; PE19/33, 73; VT47/37).

In this period, however, the more common suffix for “daughter” was Q. -iel as in Q. Elerondiel (S. Elrenniel) “✱Daughter of Elrond” as applied to Arwen (PE17/56) and Q. Uinéniel “Daughter of Uinen” (UT/182). Furthermore, in a list of masculine and feminine suffixes written around 1959, Tolkien gave (primitive?) yē, yel and (Quenya?) yelde for “daughter”, though in that note the feminine patronymic suffixes were revised from {-yel, iel, -yelde >>} -well-, -uell-, -wend-, -wel, and yen was given as another variant (PE17/190). In other notes from the late 1950s associated with “Changes affecting Silmarillion nomenclature”, Tolkien had feminine patronymic suffixes -en, -ien, but said that Quenya used -ielde, -iel (PE17/170).

Neo-Eldarin: All of the above indicates considerable vacillation between √SEL, √YEL, and √YEN for “daughter” words and suffixes in the 1930s to 1960s: of the three Tolkien seem to favor sel- for “daughter” words but -iel for “daughter” suffixes. For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I would assume ᴹ√SEL(D) originally meant “child”, with √YEL an early variant meaning “daughter” under the influence of √YON “son”, especially used as a suffix. However, due to reverse influence Q. seldë and S. sell were early on used to mean “daughter”, with female child = “girl” words becoming Q. nettë and S. neth.

us(u)kwē

noun. dusk

indilzar azrabêlôhin

*Elros child of Earendil

A draft Adûnaic phrase referring to Indilzar (Elros) as the child of Azrabêl (Eärendil) which appears with and without the patronymic suffix -hin (SD/365, 382). This phrase used an earlier form Indilzar for the Adûnaic name of Elros (instead of later Gimilzôr) and an earlier form Azrabêl of the Adûnaic name of his father Eärendil (instead of later Azrubêl). It also seems to include the suffix -ô, although this could also be the draft-genitive inflection.

êruhin

proper name. Child of God

A title for the race of men as the children of Êru “God” (SD/247). It is only attested in the plural Êruhîn (SD/311, 358) and subjective plural Êruhînim (SD/247-8) forms “Children of God”.

Conceptual Development: This name first appeared as Eruhil(di) (SD/341, 399), probably incorporating ᴹQ. hilde “men”. In these early appearances Tolkien may have conceived of this as a Quenya word before introducing its Adûnaic form Êruhîn. In its early appearances the latter name sometimes had a short initial E: Eruhîn (SD/358), possibly another transitional form resembling later Sindarin Eruchîn. In still later writings, Tolkien coined a Quenya word Q. Eruhin of the similar meaning, encompassing both Men and Elves.

-hin Reconstructed

suffix. child, patronymic

A patronymic suffix appearing in Êruhîn “Children of God” (SD/247) and in the early phrase Indilzar Azrabêlôhin “✱Elros child of Earendil” (SD/382). It apparently means “child”. A possible feminine variant -hil appears in the early name Zimrahil (SD/373), later changed to Zimraphel.

Andreas Moehn suggested (LGtAG) that -hin might have been replaced by the suffix -thôr appearing in the later name Sakalthôr “?Shore-son”. However, the suffixes -hin and -thôr (along with -phel “daughter”) could have co-existed in the same way that Quenya suffixes Q. -ion “-son” and Q. -iel “-daughter” co-existed with the use of Q. hína “child” as a patronymic in names like Q. Eruhin.

As suggested by several authors (AAD/15, EotAL/KHÍN), -hin is almost certainly related to Q. hína, S. hên “child”, either a direct loan or derived from the same root √KHIN. Carl Hostetter and Patrick Wynne suggested (AAD/16) that the variant -hil in Zimrahil actually means “heir”, related to S. hîl, Q. hildë, and that this element also appears in Ad. Imrahil.

miya

noun. infant

A noun attested only in its dual form miyât “(infant) twins” (SD/427). Its masculine and feminine equivalents are mîk and mîth.

sell

noun. girl, maid (child)

iell

noun. daughter

edonna-

verb. to beget

A verb in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “beget”, a combination of ed- “out” and a verb form of the root ᴹ√ONO “beget” (Ety/ONO).

Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I’d use this verb to refer primarily to the actions of the father, and use S. onna- “✱to give birth to” to refer to actions of the mother.

iell

noun. daughter

Stated to be an alteration of sell , remodelled after ion "son" (OS *jondo). It was "a change assisted by the loss of s in compounds and patronymics", hence the ending -iel in several feminine words

iell

noun. girl, maid

Stated to be an alteration of sell , remodelled after ion "son" (OS *jondo). It was "a change assisted by the loss of s in compounds and patronymics", hence the ending -iel in several feminine words

rhaug

noun. a powerful, hostile and terrible creature, a demon

sell

noun. daughter

tindu

noun. dusk, twilight, early night (without Moon)

tindu

noun. starry twilight

tinnu

noun. dusk, twilight, early night (without Moon)

tinnu

noun. starry twilight

ûn

noun. creature

ûn

noun. creature

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “creature” derived from the root ᴹ√ONO “beget” (Ety/ONO), perhaps from a primitive form ✱ōno with ancient ō becoming ū.