The form helta- in the Etymologies is a misreading according to VT/46:14
Noldorin
eru
noun. waste, desert
Eru
noun. waste, desert
heltha-
verb. to strip
min
fraction. one (first of a series)
min
cardinal. one
eru
noun. waste, desert
Eru
noun. waste, desert
heltha-
verb. to strip
The form helta- in the Etymologies is a misreading according to VT/46:14
min
fraction. one (first of a series)
min
cardinal. one
A noun in The Etymologies of the 1930s glossed “waste, desert”, the cognate of ᴹQ. erume and a derivative of the root ᴹ√ERE “be alone, deprived” (Ety/ERE).
Conceptual Development: N. eru is probably a later iteration of G. ermin “desert, waste” from Gnomish Lexicon Slips of the 1910s (PE13/113), itself replacing G. armin with the same gloss from the Gnomish Lexicon (GL/20). These 1910s forms are probably derived from the early root ᴱ√ARA “be dry” (QL/32), with G. ermin the result of i-affection.