aerandir

masculine name. Sea-wanderer

A companion of Eärendil (S/248).

Conceptual Development: In Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s, his name was given as N. Airandir (LR/324), changed to Aerandir in revisions from the 1950s-60s (WJ/246).

Possible Etymology: The second element of this name is very likely S. randir “wanderer” (SA/ran), but the meaning of the initial element is unclear. Christopher Tolkien translated this name as “Sea-wanderer” in The Silmarillion index (SI/Aerandir). If correct, the initial element is probably some form of S. gaear “sea”. This is problematic, since in J.R.R. Tolkien’s late writings this word often (but not always) began with a g, which would have no reason to vanish in the initial position.

The Noldorin form of this name was Airandir. In The Etymologies, the Noldorin word for “sea” was N. oer (Ety/AY). Noldorin [oe] sometimes appeared as [ai] in names from earlier narratives. For example, compare (ᴱN.) Aiglir Angrin “Iron Mountains” from the 1920s and early 1930s (SM/220) to [N.] oeglir “range of mountain peaks” in The Etymologies (Ety/AYAK), and later still (S.) aeglir “line of peaks” (RC/11). Perhaps Tolkien originally intended this element to mean “sea”, updating it phonetically ([[n|[ai] revised to [ae]]]) in later Silmarillion revisions without considering a change in meaning.

Absent any further evidence, “Sea-wanderer” remains the best available translation.

mithrandir

masculine name. Grey Pilgrim, Grey Wanderer

Sindarin name of Gandalf, translated “Grey Pilgrim” (LotR/670) or “Grey Wanderer” (LotR/827). This name is a combination of mith “grey” and randir “wanderer, pilgrim” (SA/mith, PE17/60, VT42/13).

Conceptual Development: When this name first appeared in Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s, it was already N. Mithrandir with the translations given above (TI/251).

randir

noun. wanderer, wandering man, pilgrim

The Sindarin word for “wanderer”, also translated “wandering man, pilgrim”, a combination of √RAN “wander” and dîr “man” (PE17/60; VT42/13). It was most notably used in Gandalf’s name Mithrandir “Grey Pilgrim, Grey Wanderer” (LotR/670, 827). In one place the final syllable had a long í: randír (VT42/13); this is peculiar since long vowels usually shorten in final syllables.

Conceptual Development: The Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s had G. amrog “nomand, wanderer”, with feminine variant G. amraith or amrad, based on G. amra- “go up and down = wander” (GL/19). A possible Gnomish plural form amruith appears in amruith-torni “✱gipsies”; see that entry for details. The Etymologies of the 1930s had N. rhandir “wanderer, pilgrim” under the ᴹ√RAN “wander, stray” (Ety/RAN), the same as its later form except with the Noldorin-only sound change of initial r becoming voiceless rh.

Aerandir

noun. sea-wanderer

aer, aear (“sea”) + randír (“wanderer, pilgrim”)

Mithrandir

noun. grey wanderer

mith (“grey”) + ran (“wander, stray”) + dîr (“man, adult male”)

randír

noun. wanderer, pilgrim

randir

wanderer

randir (pilgrim), no distinct pl. form except with article: idh randir. ”” as name of the Moon, see MOON.

randir

wanderer

(pilgrim), no distinct pl. form except with article: idh randir. ”

randis

noun. wanderer (f.)

A feminine equivalent of randir “wanderer” coined by Fiona Jallings using the feminine agental suffix [N.] -dis.

ithil

noun. Moon

The usual name for the Moon in Sindarin, from an augmented form of the root √THIL (Let/425; Ety/THIL). This word is most likely the proper name of the Moon, analogous to English “Luna”: in The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien indicated Ithil was a “poetic name”. Compare this to S. Raun “Wanderer”, which is more descriptive of the nature of the body and hence closer to “Moon” (and “moon”).

Conceptual Development: The first precursor to this name seems to be G. Thilim “Moon” in an early list of names (PE14/13). This became G. {Thil >>} Sil “Rose of Silpion, Moon” (GL/67, 72) and G. {Thilmos >>} Silma in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s (GL/33, 67), both derivatives of the early root ᴱ√SILI as suggested by Christopher Tolkien (LT1A/Sil). The name Ithil first appeared in early versions of the tales of Númenor from the 1930s (LR/41).

raun

noun. Moon

A word for “moon”, equivalent of Q. Rána, attested in later writings only as the element -rawn in the archaic form S. †cýrawn “new-moon”, in modern speech cýron (VT48/7). Based on its use in this word, as well as in N. cúran “crescent moon” [ᴺS. cúron], it seems this is the ordinary word for “Moon” (or “moon”) as a celestial body, as opposed to S. Ithil which is the proper name of the moon, equivalent to English “Luna”. Raun is derived from primitive ✶rānā from the root √RAN “wander”, and hence originally meant something like “Wanderer”, though its Quenya equivalent is usually translated “Wayward”.

Conceptual Development: A very similar form G. Rân “the moon” appeared in Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s (GL/64), as well as ᴱN. rán “moon” in Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s (PE13/152), though in this period its etymology is unclear. It appeared as N. Rhân “Moon” in The Etymologies of the 1930s, derived from the root ᴹ√RAN “wander, stray” (Ety/RAN), but in this period its Quenya equivalent was ᴹQ. Rana with short a. In later writings the Quenya form became Q. Rána, requiring a change to S. Raun since ancient ā became au in Sindarin.

Aerandir

Aerandir

Aerandir is Sindarin, meaning "Sea-wanderer" (aer + randir). The name for the character appearing in an early manuscript was Airandir, a form later rejected by Tolkien.

ithil

moon

1. Ithil (= ”the sheen”); 2) (apparently also used = ”month”) raun (pl. roen, idh roen), coll. pl. ronath. Cf. the ending -ron at the end of month-names. Raun is basically the adj. ”straying, wandering” used as a noun, hence identifying the Moon as ”the Wanderer”. The ”Noldorin” form rhân presupposes a different primitive form and may not correspond to S *rân as would normally be supposed.

raun

moon

(pl. roen, idh roen), coll. pl. ronath. Cf. the ending -ron at the end of month-names. Raun is basically the adj. ”straying, wandering” used as a noun, hence identifying the Moon as ”the Wanderer”. – The ”Noldorin” form rhân presupposes a different primitive form and may not correspond to S ✱rân as would normally be supposed.

cýrawn

noun. new moon

cýron

noun. new moon

ithil

noun. the (full) Moon, lit. 'The Sheen'

ithil

noun. Moon

_n. Astron._Moon. Q. Isil. >> Anor, ithildin

ithil

moon

(= ”the sheen”)

Palarran

far-wanderer

Palarran ship-name "Far-wanderer"; see palan

Rána

the wayward, the wanderer

Rána place-name "the Wayward, the Wanderer", a name of the moon (MR:198, MC:221, Silm); genitive Ráno in the phrase Ráno tië "the path of the Moon" (VT47:11). See also ceuran-, ránasta. According to one late source, Rána is not properly the Moon itself but is rather the "name of the spirit (Máya) that was said to abide in the Moon as its guardian" (VT42:13). The Etymologies gives Rana with a short vowel (RAN). In the pre-classical Tengwar system there presupposed, Rana was also the name of tengwa #25 (VT45:10), which letter Tolkien would later call Rómen instead.

palarran

proper name. Far Wanderer

Name of one of the ships of Aldarion translated “Far Wanderer” (UT/178). This name is likely a compound of palan “far” and some form of the root RAN “wander”, with the final -n of palan assimilated to the r- of ran (as with Elerrína).

ranyar

noun. wanderer

A neologism for “wanderer” coined by David Salo in PPQ (PPQ) from the early 2000s, an agental form of [ᴹQ.] ranya- “stray, ✱wander”.

Isil

noun. moon

moon

Isil

moon

Isil (þ) place-name "Moon" (FS; SA:sil, Appendix E, SD:302, SIL; also defined as "the Sheen" under THIL); Isildur masc. name., *"Moon-servant" (SA:sil, Appendix A, NDŪ)

mithrandir

masculine name. Grey Wanderer/Pilgrim

rhandir

noun. wanderer, pilgrim

airandir

masculine name. Sea-wanderer

rhandir

noun. wanderer, pilgrim

ithil

noun. the (full) Moon, lit. 'The Sheen'

ithil

noun. Moon

rhân

noun. Moon

nîlu

noun. moon

A noun translated as “moon” and fully declined as an example of a Strong II noun (SD/431). It appears with both a short and long final -u, but Tolkien indicated that the form with long û is actually the personified form Nîlû “Man in the Moon” (SD/426), perhaps the Adûnaic name of Tilion. Tolkien also listed the “later forms Nil, Njūl” (SD/306), one of which may be the Westron word for “moon”, most likely Wes. nil. Andreas Moehn suggested (EotAL/NUL) that this noun may be related to nûlo/nûlu/nâlu, but given the evil connotations of these words (SD/306) and the different stem vowels, this seems unlikely to me.

rānā

noun. moon