olob

root. branch

A root mentioned in The Shibboleth of Fëanor from the late 1960s serving as the basis for Q. olba of the same meaning (PM/341). Q. olvar “growing things with roots in the earth” from The Silmarillion was probably related (S/45, 345). In The Etymologies of the 1930s, “branch” words were derived from unglossed ᴹ√GOLOB: ᴹQ. olwa and N. golf “branch” (Ety/GÓLOB).

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I would assume √GOLOB is a Sindarin-only variant of √OLOB, perhaps influenced by √GAL “grow”. This would allow us to retain golf = “branch”, though the one name where it appeared, N. Gurtholf “Wand of Death” (Ety/ÑGUR; LR/147), became S. Gurthang “Iron of Death” in later versions of The Silmarillion (S/210).

Derivatives

• Q. olba “branch” ✧ PM/341
• ᴺQ. olopse “broom”
• Q. olva “plant, growing things with roots in the earth”