_ n. _twilight. Q. úyale, yúyal.
Sindarin
muil
noun. drear
muil
noun/adjective. drear[iness]
Derivations
- ᴹ√MUY “*secret”
Element in
- S. Emyn Muil “Drear Hills” ✧ RC/334
Variations
- Muil ✧ RC/334
uial
noun. twilight
uial
noun. twilight
guruthos
noun. the shadow of death, death-horror
morchant
noun. shadow (of objects, cast by light), dark shape
dae
noun. shadow, shadow (cast by an object or form), [N.] shade
Element in
- S. Daeron ✧ SA/dae
- S. Dor Daedeloth “Land of Great Dread; Land of Shadow of Horror” ✧ SA/dae
dae
noun. shadow
dae
shadow
(i dhae) (shade), no distinct pl. form except with article (i nae).
daew
shadow
(i dhaew), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ndaew) (VT45:8).
gwâth
shadow
(i ’wâth; construct gwath) (shade, dim light), pl. gwaith (in gwaith) (UT:261)
muil
shadow
(i vuil) (twilight, dreariness, vagueness), no distinct pl. except with article (i muil)
muil
twilight
(i vuil) (dreariness, shadow, vagueness), no distinct pl. except with article (i muil)
muil
dreariness
muil (i vuil) (twilight, shadow, vagueness), no distinct pl. except with article (i muil)
muil
dreariness
(i vuil) (twilight, shadow, vagueness), no distinct pl. except with article (i muil)
muil
vagueness
muil (i vuil) (twilight, dreariness, shadow), no distinct pl. except with article (i muil)
muil
vagueness
(i vuil) (twilight, dreariness, shadow), no distinct pl. except with article (i muil)
uial
twilight
1) uial (pl. uiail if there is a pl.). This can be specified as: 1) (morning twilight) minuial (i vinuial) (dawn, morrowdim), pl. minuiail (i minuiail). 2) (second twilight, before nightfall) aduial (evendim, the time of evening when the stars come out), pl. aduiail. Other terms for twilight: 1) tinnu (i dinnu, o thinnu) (dusk, starlit evening, early night without a moon, starry twilight), pl. tinny (i thynny) if there is a pl. 2) muil (i vuil) (dreariness, shadow, vagueness), no distinct pl. except with article (i muil)
minuial
twilight
(i vinuial) (dawn, morrowdim), pl. minuiail (i minuiail).
mûl
slave
mûl (i vûl, construct mul) (thrall), pl. muil (i muil)
mûl
slave
(i vûl, construct mul) (thrall), pl. muil (i muil)
mûl
thrall
mûl (i vûl, construct mul) (slave), pl. muil (i muil)
mûl
thrall
(i vûl, construct mul) (slave), pl. muil (i muil)
tinnu
twilight
(i** dinnu, o thinnu) (dusk, starlit evening, early night without a moon, starry twilight), pl. tinny (i** thynny) if there is a pl.
dúath
dark shadow
(i dhúath) (nightshade), pl. dúaith (i núaith). Compare the Ephel Dúath or ”Mountains of Shadow” forming th outer fence of Mordor, perhaps suggesting that Dúath is also the word used of Sauron as ”the Shadow”.
morchant
shadow
1) morchant (i vorchant), pl. morchaint (i morchaint). The literal meaning is ”dark shape”, referring to shadows with a recognizable form. 2) dae (i dhae) (shade), no distinct pl. form except with article (i nae). 3) daew (i dhaew), no distinct pl. form except with article (i ndaew) (VT45:8). 4) gwâth (i **wâth; construct gwath) (shade, dim light), pl. gwaith (in gwaith) (UT:261) 5) muil (i vuil) (twilight, dreariness, vagueness), no distinct pl. except with article (i muil**),
morchant
shadow
(i vorchant), pl. morchaint (i morchaint). The literal meaning is ”dark shape”, referring to shadows with a recognizable form.
A word for “drear” or perhaps “✱dreariness” (see below), attested only as an element in S. Emyn Muil “Drear Hills”.
Conceptual Development: The earliest iteration of this word was G. muil “tarn” [mountain lake] in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s (GL/58), an element in the name G. Umboth-muilin where the first element was “twilight” and the second “pools” (LT2/225). In The Etymologies of the 1930s, Tolkien gave the Doriathrin/Ilkorin word muil “twilight, shadow, vagueness” from the root ᴹ√MUY (Ety/MUL), still an element in Umboth Muilin “Twilight Meres”, but now with the meaning of the elements reversed. In later writings, Tolkien changed this name to Aelin-uial, but muil in Emyn Muil might be a remnant of the Ilkorin word.
Possible Etymology: From our only late example, the word muil seems to be a (plural) adjective meaning “drear”. However, an adjective in this position beginning with m- would ordinarily undergo lenition to ✱vuil. If it is an adjective, its primitive form must have begun with mb-, which would have produced m- after mutation. If so, its unmutated singular form would have been either ✱bûl or ✱buil.
It seems likelier to me that muil is a noun, a remnant of earlier Ilk. muil “twilight, shadow, vagueness”, derived from the same root ᴹ√MUY. If so, the literal meaning of S. Emyn Muil would be “✱Hills of Twilight” or perhaps “✱Hills of Dreariness”.