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.

heledh

noun. glass

heledh

'looking-cristal'

{ð} n. 'looking-cristal', looking-glass. >> Nen Cenedril

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.

heledhren

adjective. glassy, like glass, of glass

cenedril

'looking-cristal'

n. 'looking-cristal', looking-glass. >> Nen Cenedril

kheled

noun. glass

hele

noun. glass

cenedril

noun. looking-glass, mirror

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).

calca

noun. glass

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.

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.

cilin

noun. glass, glass [transluscent or reflective]

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".

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)