silima

silima

silima noun the substance the Silmarils were made of, invented by Fëanor (SA:sil)

silef

silima

(Quenya: the crystal substance of the Silmarils) silef (i hilef), pl. silif (i silif) if there is any pl. form. The derived adj. silivren ”glittering white” (q.v.) may perhaps also imply ”made of silima”.

silef

silima

(i hilef), pl. silif (i silif) if there is any pl. form. The derived adj. silivren ”glittering white” (q.v.) may perhaps also imply ”made of silima”.

silif

noun. light of Silpion, †silver, light of Silpion, †silver, *moonlight

A word in The Etymologies of the 1930s derived from primitive ᴹ✶silimē glossed “light of Silpion, †silver” (Ety/SIL). Since Silpion was the silver tree of Valinor whose flower was used to create the moon, perhaps this can also mean “✱moonlight”; its Quenya cognate ᴹQ. silme was glossed “moonlight” in the 1930s and 40s as a tengwar name (PE22/22, 51), though in The Lord of the Rings Appendix E, Q. silmë was “starlight” (LotR/1123). The Noldorin form silif was marked with a “✱” and so perhaps may be archaic; Tolkien said “For ✱silif N has silith, by assimilation to or from influence of †Ithil” (Ety/SIL).

Cognates

• ᴹQ. silme “moonlight, light of Silpion, †silver” ✧ Ety/SIL

Derivations

• ᴹ✶silimē “light of Silpion, †silver” ✧ Ety/SIL
  • ᴹ√SIL “shine silver” ✧ Ety/SIL

Derivatives

• N. silith “light of Silpion, †silver, light of Silpion, *moonlight” ✧ Ety/SIL

Element in

• S. Silivros “Sparkling Rain”
• N. Silivros “Glimmering Rain” ✧ Ety/SIL

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
ᴹ✶silimē > silif	[silimē] > [silime] > [silim] > [siliv]	✧ Ety/SIL

silith

noun. light of Silpion, †silver, light of Silpion, *moonlight

A word in The Etymologies of the 1930s, for which Tolkien said “For ✱silif N has silith, by assimilation to or from influence of †Ithil” (Ety/SIL). Since N. silif was derived from primitive ᴹ✶silimē for the “light of Silpion” (Ety/SIL), it seems silith was a more modern replacement of it, probably with the same meaning. As it was influenced by Ithil “Moon”, it probably had the sense “✱moonlight” after Silpion was lost.

Cognates

• ᴹQ. silme “moonlight, light of Silpion, †silver” ✧ Ety/SIL

Derivations

• N. silif “light of Silpion, †silver, light of Silpion, †silver, *moonlight” ✧ Ety/SIL
  • ᴹ✶silimē “light of Silpion, †silver” ✧ Ety/SIL
  • ᴹ√SIL “shine silver” ✧ Ety/SIL

Phonetic Developments

Development	Stages	Sources
N. silif > silith	[siliv] > [siliθ]	✧ Ety/SIL