cilthorondor

place name. *Eagle Cleft Land

Variant name of Cristhorn, also appearing as Cilthor(o)n (Ety/KIL, THOR; LR/405). It is a combination of cîl “cleft”, thoron “eagle” and (sometimes) dôr “land. Alternately, the longer form may contain the name Thorondor, the King of the Eagles who lived in the pass during the time of Gondolin; hat-tip to Vyacheslav Stepanov for this suggestion. In one place it appeared as Cristorondor (PE22/41).

cilgalad

place name. Pass of Light

Noldorin equivalent of ᴹQ. Kalakilya appearing in The Etymologies from the 1930s glossed “Pass of Light”, a combination of cîl “pass” and the lenited form of calad “light” (Ety/KIL).

cîl

noun. cleft, pass between hills, gorge

A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s, the equivalent of ᴹQ. kilya “cleft, pass between hills, gorge” and a derivative of ᴹ√KIL “divide” (Ety/KIL). Its most notable use was in the transient name N. Cilthoron(dor); this name eventually became S. Cirith Thoronath “Eagles’ Cleft”, so likely N. cîl became S. cirith.

cenedril

noun. looking-glass, mirror

hele

noun. glass

heltha-

verb. to strip

The form helta- in the Etymologies is a misreading according to VT/46:14

mel-

verb. to love

meleth

noun. love

meleth

noun. love

mîl

noun. love, affection

rhitha-

verb. to jerk, twitch, snatch

riben

masculine name. Merry

cilintilla

noun. looking-glass, looking-glass, *mirror

A word for “looking-glass” in notes written in the late 1950s or early 1960s, the equivalent of but not a direct cognate to S. cenedril (PE17/37). Its initial element was Q. cilin “glass” and its final element was based on an ancient adjective ✶tirlā “looking” from √TIR “look at”.

Neo-Quenya: In notes written in the late 1960s Tolkien gave calca for “glass”, possibly rendering cilintilla obsolete. I feel that cilin and calca can coexist as words for different kinds of glass and so I retain cilintilla as “looking-glass, ✱mirror”, but if you are concerned about it you can use Q. angal for “mirror”, another word from the late 1960s.

cilinyul

noun. drinking-vessel (made of glass)

A drinking vessel made of glass, a combination of Q. cilin “glass” (PE17/37). Its second element is probably a reduced form of Q. yulma “cup”. If so, its stem form would be ✱cilinyulm-.

cildo

one saw

cildo _("k")_vb. "one saw" (MC:220; this is "Qenya"; cf. cildë, ciluva)

cildë

saw

cildë _("k")_pa.t. vb.? "saw" (???) The phrase úri kilde hísen níe nienaite is translated "the Sun with wet eyes dropped tears of mist", literally perhaps something like "the Sun saw (through) misty tears tearfully"??? (MC:221; this is "Qenya"; cf. cildo)

cilin

glass

cilin noun "glass" ("often used as in English ("often used as in English for any thing or implement made of glass") (PE17:37). Compare calca, hyellë.

cilintilla

looking-glass

cilintilla or cilintír noun "looking-glass" (i.e. mirror?) (PE17:37)

cilinyul

drinking-vessel

cilinyul noun "drinking-vessel" (made of glass) (PE17:37)

cilmë

choosing

#cilmë noun "choosing" (isolated from Essecilmë "name-choosing", q.v.) (MR:214); also in #cilmessë pl. cilmessi ("k") "self-names", literally names of personal choice (PM:339) (cilmë + essi, hence *"choice-names").

ciluva

shall see

ciluva _("k")_vb. "shall see" (MC:213, 214; this is "Qenya")

cilya

chasm

cilya noun "chasm", allative cilyanna ("k") "in-Chasm" (sc. "into [the] chasm") _(LR:47, 56). _In MR:471, cilya is defined as "cleft, gorge". Spelt kilya in Etym, there defined as "cleft, pass between hills, gorge" (KIL)

cilin

noun. glass, glass [transluscent or reflective]

cilmessë

noun. self-name

cilmë

noun. choice, choosing, choice, choosing, *selection

cilintír

noun. looking-glass

#cilme

noun. choice

cilya

cilya

cilya derives from the root KIL-.

ciltië

noun. division, separation

A neologism for coined by Helge Fauskanger for his NQNT (NQNT) based on [ᴺQ.] cilta- “divide, separate”.

cil-

verb. to choose, select

cilta-

verb. to divide, separate

A neologism appearing in ABNW (ABNW) from the early 2000s based on ᴹ√KIL “divide”.

ciloltar

noun. breeder, (lit.) choice-raiser

A neologism for “breeder” coined by Luinyelle posted on 2025-06-03 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), a combination of KIL “choose” and a noun form of olta- “to raise (an animal)”.

cilometer

noun. kilometer

-më

suffix. abstract noun

-më (2) abstract suffix, as in melmë "love" (cf. the verb mel-), #cilmë "choice" (possibly implying a verb *cil- "to choose"). According to PE17:68, primitive -mē (and -wē) were endings used to derive nouns denoting "a single action", which may fit the meaning of cilmë (but melmë "love" would normally be something lasting rather than "a single action").

-nna

to, at, upon

-nna "to, at, upon", allative ending, originating from -na "to" with fortified n, VT49:14. Attested in cilyanna, coraryanna, Endorenna, Elendilenna, númenórenna, parma-restalyanna, rénna, senna, tielyanna, q.v. If a noun ends in -n already, the ending -nna merges with it, as in Amanna, formenna, Elenna, númenna, rómenna as the allative forms of Aman, formen, elen, númen, rómen (q.v.). Plural -nnar in mannar, valannar, q.v.

calca

glass

calca noun "glass" (VT47:35); compare hyellë, cilin.

calca

noun. glass

A word for “glass” appearing in notes from around 1968 as a derivative of √KALAK (VT47/35).

Conceptual Development: There was a similar form ᴱQ. talqe (talqi-) “glass” in the Qenya Lexicon and Poetic and Mythological Words of Eldarissa of the 1910s (PME/88; QL/88). It also appeared in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon with a Gnomish cognate G. celc, both words being based on variant early roots ᴱ√kail(i)k and ᴱ√tail(i)k (GL/25).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s, the word for “glass” was ᴹQ. hyelle from the root ᴹ√KHYEL(ES) “glass” with Noldorin cognate N. hele (Ety/KHYEL(ES)). In notes on Words, Phrases and Passages in the Lord of the Rings from the late 1950s or early 1960s, Tolkien instead said that “there was no common Eldarin word for glass”, and that the Sindarin word for “glass” was borrowed from Khuzdul while the Quenya word was cilin (PE17/37). Tolkien’s last published word for “glass” was calca as noted above (VT47/35), which seems to be a restoration of the early root ᴱ√kail(i)k.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would use calca as the main Quenya for “[clear] glass”, but would retain cilin as another word for transluscent or reflective glass.

hyellë

glass

hyellë noun "glass" (KHYEL(ES), VT45:23; the later source also provides the unglossed form hyelma, which may be a synonym of hyellë; alternatively hyellë could be "glass" as a substance, whereas hyelma_ rather refers to "a glass" as a drinking vessel). _In later sources, cilin or calca is given as the word for "glass".

nienaitë

bleared

nienaitë adj."bleared" (MC:214), *"tearfully"??? (see cildë) (MC:221; this is "Qenya")

-nna

to

-n (1) dative ending, originating as a reduced form of -nă "to", related to the allative ending -nna (VT49:14). Attested in nin, men, ten, enyalien, Erun, airefëan, tárin, yondon (q.v.) and also added to the English name Elaine (Elainen) in a book dedication to Elaine Griffiths (VT49:40). The longer dative ending -na is also attested in connection with some pronouns, such as sena, téna, véna (q.v.), also in the noun mariéna from márië "goodness" (PE17:59). Pl. -in (as in hínin, see hína), partitive pl. -lin, dual -nt (Plotz). The preposition ana (#1) is said to be used "when purely dative formula is required" (PE17:147), perhaps meaning that it can replace the dative ending, e.g. *ana Eru instead of Erun for "to God". In some of Tolkiens earlier material, the ending -n (or -en) expressed genitive rather than dative, but he later decided that the genitive ending was to be -o (cf. such a revision as Yénië Valinóren becoming Yénië Valinórëo, MR:200).

ana

to

ana (1) prep. "to" (VT49:35), "as preposition _ana _is used when purely _dative formula is required" (PE17:147), perhaps meaning that the preposition ana can be used instead of the dative ending -n (#1, q.v.) Also as prefix: ana- "to, towards" (NĀ1); an (q.v.) is used with this meaning in one source (PE17:127)_

calacirya

place name. Pass of Light

The “Pass of Light” through the Pelóri mountains into the heart of Valinor (S/59). It is a compound of cala “light” and cirya “cleft, pass” (RGEO/62).

Conceptual Development: In Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s, it was called ᴹQ. Kalakilya (LR/173), using an earlier word for “pass”: ᴹQ. kilya (Ety/KIL).

maril

glass, crystal

maril noun "glass, crystal" (VT46:13; if this is to be the same word as the second element of Silmaril, the stem-form would be marill-, cf. pl. Silmarilli)

meles

love

meles, melessë noun "love" (LT1:262; rather melmë in Tolkien's later Quenya)

melmë

love

melmë noun "love" (MEL)

na

to, towards

na (2) prep. "to, towards", possibly obsoleted by #1 above; for clarity writers may use the synonym ana instead (NĀ1). Originally, Tolkien glossed na as "at, by, near"; the new meaning entered together with the synonyms an, ana (VT45:36).

nor-

verb. run

rihta-

jerk, give quick twist or move, twitch

rihta- vb. "jerk, give quick twist or move, twitch" (RIK(H) )

sirea

adjective. flowing, liquid

sirilla

flowing

sirilla participle *"flowing", "Qenya" participle of siri- "flow" (Narqelion, cf. QL:xiv)

sungwa

drinking-vessel

sungwa noun "drinking-vessel" (SUK)

telemna

of silver

telemna adj. "of silver" (KYELEP/TELEP). Possibly this (like telpina and perhaps telepsa) describes something actually made of the metal silver, whereas telepta (q.v.) only refers to silver colour.%

telepsa

of silver

telepsa adj. "of silver" (KYELEP/TELEP).

telpina

of silver

telpina adj. "of silver" (KYELEP/TELEP). Compare telemna, telepta.

yur-

run

yur- vb. "run" (quoted in form yurin, translated "runs", but within Tolkien's later framework it looks like a 1st person aorist "I run")-QL:106 (cf. entry YUR in Etym)

calcata-

verb. to glaze

russambos

noun. robin

A neologism for “robin” coined by Tamas Ferencz in the VQP (VQP), a combination of russa “red-haired” and [ᴱQ.] ambos “breast”. I prefer adapting ᴱQ. karneambar “robin” as ᴺQ. carniambos.

sarma

noun. saw

cil-

verb. to choose, select

cilith

noun. choice, choosing, *selection

cil-

verb. choose

cell

flowing

(adj., used of water) cell (running), lenited gell, pl. cill

cell

flowing

(running), lenited gell, pl. cill

cell

running

(of water: flowing), lenited gell; pl. cill

an

preposition. to, towards, for

With suffixed article and elision in aglar'ni Pheriannath

an

to

_ prep. _to, for. naur an edraith ammen! 'fire [be] for rescue/saving for us'. aglar an|i Pheriannath  'glory to all the Halflings'.

gelir

noun. merry, happy, gay person

gelir

masculine name. Merry

Sindarin translation of the name of Sam’s son Merry, appearing in Tolkien’s unpublished epilogue to The Lord of the Rings and in the King’s Letter (SD/126, 129). Most likely this name is an elaboration of [N.] gell “joy”.

Conceptual Development: In drafts of the epilogue, this name was initially (rejected) Riben (SD/117).

gelir

adjective. merry

Sindarin translation of the name of Sam’s son Merry, appearing in Tolkien’s unpublished epilogue to The Lord of the Rings and in the King’s Letter from the early 1950s (SD/126, 129). This word is apparently an adjective, most likely an elaboration of [N.] gell “joy”. In Didier Willis’s Sindarin Dictionary, it is suggested this word might instead be a noun, an agental formation meaning “✱merry person” (HSD/gelir).

Conceptual Development: In the Gnomish Lexicon from the 1910s, the word for “merry” was G. dairog (GL/29), likely derived from ᴱ√TYALA “play”. This was revised to G. dairion in the “Gnomish Lexicon Slips” (PE13/112) and again to ᴱN. gair in Early Noldorin word lists from the 1920s (PE13/141, 143). This last change probably also reflects a new root, though exactly what this root might be is unclear. There isn’t a clear connection between these early forms and later gelir beyond a superficial resemblance of form.

heledh

noun. glass

heledh

noun. glass

The basic Sindarin word for “glass”, a loan word from Khuzdul kheled (PE17/37; RS/466). The Eldar of Valinor invented glass independently, so the Quenya “glass” words were distinct.

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. celc “glass” along with (archaic) variants G. celeg and caileg, all derived from the early root ᴱ√kail(i)k (GL/25). These apparently replaced rejected forms {talp}, {calp}, and {telc} of the same meaning (GL/69). The “glass” word became ᴱN. celch or caileg “glass” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/140).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s the “glass” word became N. hele derived from the root ᴹ√KHYEL(ES) “glass” like its Quenya cognate ᴹQ. hyelle (Ety/KHYEL(ES)). In the 1930s Noldorin and Quenya were direct contact for most of their history, but this was no longer the case for Sindarin and Quenya of the 1950s and 60s. As a result, Tolkien decided that glass was an independent invention in both Valinor and Middle Earth, so that the Quenya and Sindarin words were no longer related as described above.

iâ

chasm

_ n. _chasm, pit. >> Moria

na

to

e _ prep. _to, towards (of spacetime). n' before vowels. >> nan 2

na

preposition. to

prep. to Na-chaered palan-díriel lit. "To-distance (remote) after-gazing" >> na-chaered, nan 2

nor-

verb. to run

nor-

verb. to ride

ritha-

verb. to jerk, twitch, snatch

sirith

noun. flowing

sirith

place name. Flowing

A river in Gondor appearing on the maps of The Lord of the Rings (LotR/1186), it is simply the gerund sirith “flowing” used as a name (SA/sîr, VT42/11).

Conceptual Development: In Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s, N. Sirith appeared the list of rivers of Gondor (TI/312).

sirith

noun. flowing

A word for “a flowing” used as the river-name Sirith, an abstract noun form of the root √SIR “flow” analogous to the noun tirith “watching” from √TIR “watch” (VT42/11).

an

to

(prep.) an (+ nasal mutation), with article ni "to the" (+ nasal mutation in plural).

an

to

(adverbial prefix) an-. 3)

gelir

merry

(attested as the S equivalent of the name Merry) gelir (lenited elir; no distinct pl. form).

gelir

merry

(lenited ’elir; no distinct pl. form).

heledh

glass

heledh (i cheledh, o cheledh), pl. helidh (i chelidh) if there is a pl.

heledh

glass

(i cheledh, o cheledh), pl. helidh (i chelidh) if there is a pl.

ior

i

in ”Noldorin”, but apparently ✱yr- in Sindarin. Compare

iâ

chasm

iâ (gulf, void, abyss), pl. iai (LR:400, RS:437, Letters:383)

iâ

chasm

(gulf, void, abyss), pl. iai (LR:400, RS:437, Letters:383)

mela

love

(vb.) mela- (i vela, i melar), pa.t. melant (VT45:34)

mela

love

(i vela, i melar), pa.t. melant (VT45:34)

meleth

love

(noun) meleth (i veleth), pl. melith (i melith)

meleth

love

(i veleth), pl. melith (i melith)

mîl

love

mîl (i vîl) (affection, kindness), no distinct form in pl. except with article (i mîl), coll. pl. míliath

mîl

love

(i vîl) (affection, kindness), no distinct form in pl. except with article (i mîl), coll. pl. míliath

nor

run

(verb) 1) nor- (i nôr, in nerir). Only attested as imperative noro! 2) *yr-. Only the ”Old Noldorin” form yurine* ”I run” is given in the source; the verbal stem would become ior**- in ”Noldorin”, but apparently *yr- in Sindarin. Compare COURSE, q.v., where the words come from the same root __-.

nor

run

(i nôr, in nerir). Only attested as imperative noro! 2) ✱yr-. Only the ”Old Noldorin” form yurine ”

rinc

jerk

(noun) rinc (twitch, trick, sudden move), no distinct pl. form except with article (idh rinc); coll. pl. ringath.

rinc

jerk

(twitch, trick, sudden move), no distinct pl. form except with article (idh rinc); coll. pl. ringath.

ritha

jerk

(verb) ritha- (twitch, snatch) (i ritha, idh rithar)

ritha

jerk

(twitch, snatch) (i ritha, idh rithar)

sirith

flowing

(noun) sirith (i hirith, o sirith) (stream), no distinct pl. except with article (i sirith)

sirith

flowing

(i hirith, o sirith) (stream), no distinct pl. except with article (i sirith)

tharf

noun. saw

uiveleth

hJrな$3F noun. eternal love, love that will last for ever

The prefix ‘ui-’ that means eternal plus lenited form of meleth (love) ‘veleth’.

kalak

root. glass

A root appearing in etymological notes from 1968 glossed “glass” with Quenya and Telerin derivatives Q./T. calca of the same meaning (VT47/35). It seems to be a late restoration of the much earlier root ᴱ√kail(i)k or ᴱ√tail(i)k that was the basis of “glass” words in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s; in this early period the Qenya derivatives began with t- and the Gnomish derivatives with c- [k-] (GL/25). It may also have replaced Q. cilin (< ✱√KILIN?) from the late 1950s or early 1960s (PE17/37). Given its Quenya/Telerin derivatives, √KALAK was probably coined in Aman as was also the case with earlier Q. cilin, since the Sindarin word for “glass” is the unrelated word S. heledh borrowed from Khuzdul (PE17/37).

an

preposition. to

mel

root. love, love, [ᴹ√] love (as friend)

This root was the basis for Elvish “love” words for all of Tolkien’s life. The root first appeared as ᴱ√MELE “love” in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like ᴱQ. mel- “to love”, ᴱQ. meles(se) “love”, and ᴱQ. melin “dear, beloved” (QL/60). In the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon it had similar derivatives like G. mel- “love” and G. melon “dear, beloved” (GL/57).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien specified that ᴹ√MEL meant “love (as friend)”, and for the first time it included the derivative N. mellon “friend” (Ety/MEL); Gnomish “friend” words from the 1910s were mostly based on G. ged (GL/38). However, the same entry included ᴹQ. melindo/ᴹQ. melisse “lover” (male and female), so it seems even in the 1930s it could refer to romantic love (Ety/MEL). The root continued to appear in Tolkien’s later writings associated with “love” (PE18/46, 96; PE17/41; VT39/10).

In notes from 1959, Tolkien elaborated on the precise sense of √MEL and its role in romantic and non-romantic love:

> Love, which Men might call “friendship” (but for the greater strength and warmth and permanency with which it was felt by the Quendi) was represented by √mel. This was primarily a motion or inclination of the fëa [“spirit”], and therefore could occur between persons of the same sex or different sexes. It included no sexual or procreative desire, though naturally in Incarnates the difference of sex altered the emotion, since “sex” is held by the Eldar to belong also to the fëa and not solely to the hröa [“body”], and is therefore not wholly included in procreation ... The “desire” for marriage and bodily union was represented by √yer; but this never in the uncorrupted occurred without “love” √mel, nor without the desire for children. This element was therefore seldom used except to describe occasions of its dominance in the process of courting and marriage. The feelings of lovers desiring marriage, and of husband and wife, were usually described by √mel. This “love” remained, of course, permanent after the satisfaction of √yer in the “Time of the Children”; but was strengthened by this satisfaction and the memory of it to a normally unbreakable bond (NM/20).

Thus √MEL was close in sense to Greek “philia”, used of friendship, whereas √YER was used of “eros” or sexual desire. But in Elvish thinking, √MEL was essential for romantic love, and √YER only arose from that. Furthermore, √YER was not the most important element in the love between romantic partners, as the period of procreation and child-rearing took up a relatively small portion of Elvish lives. It was the more enduring feeling of friendship between lovers that really mattered, and thus √MEL was used of both non-romantic and romantic love, though it had not particular sexual connotation.

melā

verb. love

ndilā

verb. love, be devoted to

yulmā

noun. drinking-vessel

u

preposition. to

akhâs

noun. chasm

A noun for “chasm” attested only in the prepositional phrase akhāsada “into chasm” (SD/247) and akhās-ada “chasm-into” (SD/311), the latter example making it clear which element means what.

kheled

noun. glass

calca

noun. glass