Q. Aulendil m. “Servant of Aulë”

Q. Aulendil, m. “Servant of Aulë”

Third child of Vardamir, known only from a genealogy chart on UT/210. His name is a compound of Aulë and the suffix -(n)dil (usually “-friend”). In an isolated note, J.R.R. Tolkien said this name was also used by Sauron while he deceived the Elves of Eregion into crafting the rings of power, and that the name meant “one devoted to the service of Aulë” (UT/254). Christopher Tolkien glossed the name as “Servant of Aulë” in The Unfinished Tales index. Ordinarily, with the suffix -ndil, we might expect the meaning to be “Friend of Aulë”.

Conceptual Development: At one point Aulendil was used for Noldorin servants of Aulë, but that name was changed to Aulendur (PM/365-6).

References ✧ UT/210, 254; UTI

Glosses

Elements

Aulë “The Maker, The Smith”
-(n)dil “-friend, -lover; devotion, disinterested love”