Eldamo : Quenya : Silmaril

Q. Silmaril (Silmarill-) pn. “Great Jewel”

Q. Silmaril (Silmarill-), pn. “Great Jewel”

The name of the great jewels crafted by Fëanor from which The Silmarillion legends gets their name (S/33). It sometimes appeared in the longer form Silmarillë (PE17/47, PM/363). Tolkien translated this name as “radiance of pure light” (Let/148) and said that it was a combination of silima, the crystaline substance from which the jewels were made (RGEO/65), and a derivative of the root √RIL “brilliant, brilliance” (PM/363), perhaps in the form [ᴹQ.] rille “brilliance”.

Conceptual Development: The name ᴱQ. Silmaril dates back to the earliest Lost Tales (LT1/128). Christopher Tolkien suggested that at this early stage it was a compound of ᴱQ. Sil “Moon” and ᴱQ. marilla “pearl” (LT1A/Silmaril), which is consistent with its Gnomish cognate G. Silubrilt. In The Etymologies, the name ᴹQ. Silmaril appears as a combination of silma “silver, shining white” and the root ᴹ√RIL (Ety/RIL, SIL), similar to its later etymology.

References ✧ Let/148, 425; LotR/1033-1034; LotRI; MRI; PE17/19, 47, 112; PM/30, 363; PMI; RGEO/65; S/33; SA/ril, sil

Glosses

“Great Jewel” ✧ LotRI/Silmaril

Variations

silmaril ✧ LotR/1034; LotRI/Silmaril; MRI/Silmaril; PE17/19; PE17/112; PMI/Silmaril; SA/ril
silmaril(le) ✧ PE17/47; PM/363
Silmarillë ✧ PMI/Silmaril
silma-ril ✧ RGEO/65

Inflections

Silmarillion	genitive plural	“of the Silmarils”	✧ S/33
Silmarilli	plural	“radiance of pure light”	✧ Let/148
Silmarilli	plural		✧ Let/425; LotR/1033; MRI/Silmaril; PM/30; PMI/Silmaril; SA/sil

Elements

silima	“crystal substance devised by Fëanor”	✧ RGEO/65; SA/sil
√RIL	“brilliant (light), brilliance”	✧ PE17/47; PE17/112 (RIL); PM/363; SA/ril

√SIL	“shine (white or silver)”	✧ Let/425