Ilma

starlight

Ilma noun "starlight" (GIL)

ilmarë

feminine name. Ilmarë

A Maia who was the handmaiden of Varda (S/30). The meaning of her name is unclear, but it is probably derived from Ilma “Starlight” (SA/ilm).

Conceptual Development: In the earliest Lost Tales, she was called ᴱQ. Erinti and was the daughter of Varda and Manwë (LT1/58). This name also appeared in the Qenya Lexicon from the 1910s, but without any clear etymology (QL/36).

The later form of her name Ilmar(ë) first appeared in the Ainulindalë drafts from the 1930s, still as Varda’s daughter (LR/162, 165). In The Etymologies, the name ᴹQ. Ilmare was a derivative of ᴹ√GIL alongside ᴹQ. Ilma “Starlight” (Ety/GIL); this entry is the source for the etymology given above. In Silmarillion revisions from the 1950s-60s, she became Varda’s handmaiden rather than daughter (MR/147).

ilmarin

place name. Mansion of the High Airs

The mansion of Manwë and Varda on Taniquetil, translated as “mansion of the high airs” (LotR/235, RC/217). The etymology of this name is unclear, but it is probably derived from Ilma “Starlight”, and related to Ilmen “Place of (Star)light” (SA/ilm).

Conceptual Development: The name ᴹQ. Ilmarin first appeared in Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s (TI/92). It did not appear in The Silmarillion proper, though it was discussed by Christopher Tolkien in The Silmarillion index and appendix (SI/Taniquetil, SA/ilm).

Ilmarin

mansion of the high airs

Ilmarin noun "mansion of the high airs", the dwelling of Manwë and Varda upon Oiolossë (SA:ilm-)

Ilmarë

starlight

Ilmarë noun "starlight", also fem. name, referring to a Maia (GIL, SA:ilm-)

ilm-

mansion of the high airs

ilm- stem appearing in Ilmen, the region above the air where the stars are, in Ilmarë, name of a Maia, and in Ilmarin "mansion of the high airs", the dwelling of Manwë and Varda upon Oiolossë (SA)

wilma

air, lower air

wilma noun "air, lower air" (distinct from the 'upper' air of the stars, or the 'outer') (WIL)

ilma Reconstructed

proper name. Starlight

An (archaic?) name for “Starlight”, it is not directly attested in Tolkien’s later writing, but appears as an element in several names (SA/ilm). It is a derivative of the root √(Ñ)GIL “shine (white)”. Elsewhere, the usual Quenya word for “starlight” is given as silmë (LotR/1123).

Conceptual Development: ᴱQ. ilma “air” appeared in Early Qenya Word-lists of the 1920s (PE16/142). The name ᴹQ. Ilma “Starlight” is directly attested in Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s (LR/205), where it first appeared as Silma (SM/240). Ilma also appeared in The Etymologies as a derivative of ᴹ√GIL (Ety/GIL), which is the source of the etymology noted above.

Ilmarë

Ilmarë

Her name may be related to one of the Quenya words for "Starlight". Christopher Tolkien has noted that Ilmarë is related to such words as Ilmen and Ilmarin.

lindë

air, tune, singing, song

lindë noun "air, tune, singing, song" (SA:gond, (LIN2, [GLIN]); lindelorendor "music-dream-land"; see laurelindórenan lindelorendor... _(LotR2:III ch. 4, cf. Letters:308). _Also compare lindi- in lindimaitar, q.v. (but the other compounds here cited do not give a lindë a stem-form lindi-).

millo

oil

millo noun "oil" (PE13:139)

silmë

starlight

silmë noun "starlight", also name of tengwa #29 (Appendix E), though in the pre-classical Tengwar system presupposed in the Etymologies, the name silmë instead applied to tengwa #3 (VT46:13). Silmë nuquerna "_s reversed", name of tengwa #30, similar to normal silmë but turned upside down (Appendix E)_. In the Etymologies, stem SIL, silmë is defined as the "light of Silpion" (Telperion), and also a poetic word for "silver".

silmë

noun. starlight, starlight; [ᴹQ.] silver [light], moonlight, light of Silpion

A word for “starlight” and also the name of tengwa #29 [i] (LotR/1123), clearly derived from the root √SIL.

Conceptual Development: The earliest hint of this word was in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s where ᴱQ. silmea seems to be an adjective meaning “✱lunar” (QL/56). ᴱQ. silme also seems to be an adjectival element “gleaming, silver” in ᴱQ. silmerána “gleaming moon, silver moon” from the Oilima Markirya poem and its drafts from around 1930 (MC/220; PE16/75). In The Etymologies of the 1930s ᴹQ. silme was derived from primitive ᴹ✶silimē “light of Silpion, †silver” under the root ᴹ√SIL “shine silver” (Ety/SIL) and thus seems to mean “moonlight”. Indeed, silme had the gloss “moonlight” in notes on The Feanorian Alphabet from the 1930s and 40s (PE22/22, 51), where it was already the name of tengwa #29. It became “starlight” in Appendix E of The Lord of the Rings, however (LotR/1123), and elsewhere “moonlight” was isilmë (MC/223).

vilwa

air, lower air

[vilwa < wilwa] noun "air, lower air" (distinct from the 'upper' air of the stars, or the 'outer') (WIL; in one place vilwa was not struck out, VT46:21) According to VT46:21, Tolkien considered vilda < wilda as a replacement form, but rejected it.

vilya

air, sky

vilya noun "air, sky", also name of tengwa #24. Older wilya. (Appendix E). Early "Qenya" has Vilya (changed from Vilna) "lower air" (LT1:273); also vilya "air" (MC:215)

millo

noun. oil

gil-galad

masculine name. Starlight

gilgalad

noun. starlight

gwelw

noun. air (as substance)

gwelwen

noun. air, lower air (distinct from the upper air of the stars, or the outer)

gwilith

noun. air (as a region)

lhind

noun. air, tune

lhinn

noun. air, tune

lip

root. oil

This root has a long history in Tolkien’s development of the Elvish languages, but its exact meaning is hard to determine because Tolkien rarely translated the root itself. The earliest appearance of the root was as unglossed ᴱ√LIPI from the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s where Tolkien indicated it might be a dialectical variant of ᴱ√LIQI “flow, water; clear, transparent”; it had derivatives like ᴱQ. lipte- “to drip”, ᴱQ. litl “a tiny drop”, and ᴱQ. limpe “elfwine” (QL/54). It also had derivatives in the contemporaneous Gnomish Lexicon such as G. lib “drop, gout”, G. lib- “to drip”, G. limp(elis) “the drink of the fairies” (GL/54). I think the most likely meaning of this early root was “✱drip, drop”.

In The Etymologies of the 1930s, the root for “drip” was ᴹ√LIB. ᴹ√LIP appeared, but it was unglossed and its only derivative was ᴹQ. limpe “wine” (Ety/LIB¹, LIP). Thus it seems Tolkien split up the root from the 1910s, though exactly how isn’t clear. The last known mention of this root is as √LIP “oil” (without any derivatives) in a currently unpublished set of notes from 1968 (VT44/15). Wynne, Smith, and Hostetter suggested this might be connect to a (rejected) name for Christ: Q. Elpino, perhaps meaning “✱anointed” (VT44/15). It is unclear whether this √LIP “oil” was connect to its earlier iterations from which limpe “wine” was derived, or if it is was a reemergence of a different root such as ᴱ√ILI “shine oily” as suggested by Wynne, Smith, and Hostetter (VT44/20 note #7).

gwelu

noun. air (as substance)

lind

noun. air, tune

blîw

noun. oil

gilgalad

starlight

1) gilgalad (i ngilgalad = i ñilgalad, o n**gilgalad, pl. gilgelaid (in gilgelaid = i ñgilgelaid) if there is a plural form. 2) gilith (also used = Quenya Ilmen, the region of stars) (i ngilith = i ñilith, o n**gilith) _These mutations presupposed that the root is Ñ, as in MR:388, rather than _ as in the Etymologies (LR:358).

gilgalad

starlight

(i ngilgalad = i ñilgalad, o n’gilgalad, pl. gilgelaid (in gilgelaid = i ñgilgelaid) if there is a plural form.

gilith

starlight

(also used = Quenya Ilmen, the region of stars) (i ngilith = i ñilith, o n’gilith) These mutations presupposed that the root is

gwelu

air

2) (as substance) gwelu (i **welu), analogical pl. gwely (in gwely) if there is a pl. The attested form is archaic gwelw** (LR:398 s.v. WIL). Hence the coll. pl. is likely *gwelwath, if there is a coll. pl..

gwelu

air

(i ’welu), analogical pl. gwely (in gwely) if there is a pl. The attested form is archaic gwelw (LR:398 s.v. WIL). Hence the coll. pl. is likely ✱gwelwath, if there is a coll. pl..

gwelwen

air

1) (as a region) gwelwen (i **welwen), pl. gwelwin (in gwelwin), also gwilith (i **wilith), no distinct pl. form except with article (in gwilith)

gwelwen

air

(i ’welwen), pl. gwelwin (in gwelwin), also gwilith (i ’wilith), no distinct pl. form except with article (in gwilith)

lind

air

3) (of music) lind (song, tune; singer, in the latter sense also used of rivers), no distinct pl. form, but coll. pl. linnath (WJ.309)

lind

air

(song, tune; singer, in the latter sense also used of rivers), no distinct pl. form, but coll. pl. linnath (WJ.309)