S. †êl n. “star” (Category: Star)
A Sindarin word for “star” that is largely archaic and poetic, and is mainly used as element in names like Elrond (Let/281; WJ/363; Ety/EL); the more usual word for “star” in ordinary speech was gil (RGEO/65). However, the collective form elenath is still used in common speech to refer to the entire host of stars (WJ/363). The plural of êl is elin, as this word was derived from ancient ✶elen, and the final n that was lost in the singular was preserved in the plural. In some cases Tolkien posited a restored analogical singular elen from the plural form (PE17/24, 67, 139), but this isn’t in keeping with the notion that the word was archaic, so I would ignore this for purposes of Neo-Sindarin.
Conceptual Development: This word and its root first appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s, where N. el “star” was derived from the root ᴹ√EL of similar meaning, but was “only [used] in names” (Ety/EL). It seems Tolkien introduced the root to give a new etymology for names like N. Elrond and N. Elwing, which initially appeared under the root ᴹ√ƷEL “sky” (Ety/ƷEL).
References ✧ Let/281; LotR/238; MR/373; PE17/22, 24-25, 55, 67, 127, 139, 151; PE22/150; PM/369; RGEO/63-65, 67; SA/êl; WJ/363
Glosses
Variations
Related
Inflections
| elenath | class-plural | ✧ LotR/238; PE17/67; PE17/127; RGEO/65 | |
| elenath | class-plural | “the (host of all) stars” | ✧ PE17/24: general or collective plural, properly including all of a given kind or group named |
| elenath | class-plural | “the host of stars, (all) the (visible) stars of the firmament” | ✧ PE17/25 |
| elenath | class-plural | “all the host of stars” | ✧ PE17/151: pl. 2 |
| elenath | class-plural | “(of) the starry host” | ✧ RGEO/63 |
| elenath | class-plural | “(of) the star-host” | ✧ RGEO/64 |
| elenath | class-plural | “the host of the stars” | ✧ RGEO/67 |
| elenath | class-plural | “all the host of the stars of heaven” | ✧ WJ/363 |
| elenathon | class-plural old-genitive | ✧ PE17/25: full genitive | |
| elin | plural | ✧ Let/281; PE17/25; PE17/67; PE17/127; PE17/139; PE22/150; RGEO/65; RGEO/67 | |
| elin | plural | ✧ PE17/24: particular plural | |
| elin | plural | ✧ PE17/151: pl. 1 | |
| †elin | plural | ✧ WJ/363 |
Element In
Cognates
Derivations
Phonetic Developments
| √EL > êl | [elen] > [ele] > [el] > [ēl] | ✧ Let/281 |
| ✶elen > êl | [elen] > [ele] > [el] > [ēl] | ✧ PE17/67 |
| ✶ELEN > êl | [elen] > [ele] > [el] > [ēl] | ✧ PE17/139 |
| ✶elenī > elin | [elenī] > [eleni] > [elini] > [elin] | ✧ PE22/150 |
| √EL > êl | [elen] > [ele] > [el] > [ēl] | ✧ RGEO/65 |
| √ele > êl | [elen] > [ele] > [el] > [ēl] | ✧ SA/êl |
| ✶elen > †êl | [elen] > [ele] > [el] > [ēl] | ✧ WJ/363 |
N. el n. “star” (Category: Star)
References ✧ Ety/EL
Glosses
Element In
Cognates
Derivations
Phonetic Developments
| ᴹ√EL > el | [elen] > [ele] > [el] | ✧ Ety/EL |