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Names in Middle-Earth

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Original content created by community member: SiSL

So imagining there might be some people who are interested in knowing some basics of names of places they visit like "WTH is Nan Warthen? Ost guruth?" etc. So I compiled some of most used naming references from various sources like Silmarillion and Lord of the Rings dictionaries. Those are used in Quenya & Sindarin names... Note: Some names in game and this list can be fictional beyond the books but only ingame.

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[edit] Pronounciation Guide

In Sindarin, you should not pronounce words as you read them in English. While Hobbit culture names are more pronounced like in Old English, Elven and Man languages are quite different in pronounciation. Pronouncing these is more like "read-as-its-written" or "letter-by-letter" which has been seen in Planet Earth in various languages such as Turkish. I have to warn though: Hobbit names are pronounced as today's English mostly. So following pronounciation guide is for Elven and Man languages which is mainly used in game and lore, except Shire. Here is some basic guide with examples of how to read letters and letter combinations with English Examples...

  • E: Always given sound at end of words. Also always read as "e" in "get" word.
  • C: Always gives the sound "k". Celeborn always is read as "Keleborn".
  • CH: Read as "loch" in Welsh or "buch" in German. Not as ch in "church" in English. Rochan later turned into how it is read to "Rohan" as an example.
  • DH: Always read as "th" in word "Then" in English, not "th" in "Thin"
  • G: Always sounds like "g" in "Get" in English. Basically "Eregion" or "Region" is not pronounced as "Region" in English. "Ginlith"'s first "gin" is read as "gin" in "Begin" word in English, not as "gin" word.
  • AI: Pronounced as "eye" word in English. Edain or Dunedain's last parts are read as "dine" in English, not as "dane"
  • AU: Has sound of "ow" in "Town" word in English. Sauron's first sound is "sour" rother than "sore"
  • EI: Has sound of grey. Eiglin..
  • IE : Sounds as "piece" in English. Both i and e is vocaled.
  • UI: Has sound of "ruin" in English
  • AE - OE: Similiar to OE in "toy" and AE as in "eye"
  • EA and EO: Both e and a or o is vocalled like two seperate words.
  • Ú: Sounds like double o "oo" for example. Túrin can be said as "Toorin", not "Tyoorin"
  • ER, IR, UR: Sounds like er in "fern", ir in "fir", UR in "fur" in English.

[edit] Forochel Special

Names in Forochel, due to nature of geography has been named from Finnish.

  • Talvi-Mûri: Winter Wall
  • Länsi-Mâ: West lands
  • Itä-Mâ : East Lands
  • Jä-Kuru: Ice-Canyon
  • Jä-Rannit: Ice-Shores


[edit] Names, Suffixes and Prefixes in Sindarin and Quenya

Words you will see below may not be complete words. They may be suffixes, prefixes in Sindarin. But they are yet to cover Points of Interest names in-game.

Example:

  • Word or Prefix/Suffix: English meaning (Examples)

[edit] A

  • Adan: Man (plural, Edain eg. Dúnedain)
  • aduial: evening, twilight (Parth Aduial)
  • Aelin: Lake, Pool (eg. Aelin-uial)
  • agar: blood (Garth Agarwen)
  • Amon: Hill (Amon Sûl ‘Weathertop’) plural. Emyn
  • Amlug: dragon (Nan Amlug West/East)
  • An(d) : Long (Anduin, Anfalas)
  • Ang: iron (Angmar)
  • Annon: Gate or passage (Sirannon)
  • Annûn: sunset, west (Tyl Annun)
  • Ar(a) : Royal, noble, Pristine (Argonath, Arnor)
  • Ascar: rushing, violent (Tol Ascarnen)

[edit] B

  • Balch: cruel (Imlad Balchorth)
  • Bar: Home, settlement (Dimbar, Eldemar)
  • Barad : Tower (Barad-dûr)
  • Beleg: Powerful, Strong (eg. Belegost, Beleg)
  • Brui: loud, noisy (Bruinen)

[edit] C

  • Calen/galen: green
  • Car : Red (Carnen, Carchost)
  • Celeb: Silver (Celeborn, Celebrant)
  • Celon: River (Celondim)
  • Cirith: Mountain Pass (Cirith Ungol, Cirith Imladris)

[edit] D

  • Dae: Shadow (Dor Deadeloth)
  • Dagor: War
  • Dîn: Silent (Amon Din, Dor-Dinen)
  • Dol: Top of the Hill, Headland (Dol Guldur)
  • Dor: Land, Country (Eriador, Gondor)
  • Draug: Wolf (Drauglin, Drauglad)
  • Duin: (long) river (Anduin)
  • Dú: Night
  • Dûr: Dark (Barad-dûr)
  • Dún: West (Dúnedain)

[edit] E

  • Ëar: Sea
  • Echad: Camp (Echad Garthadir)
  • Ëdain: Race of Man
  • Edhel: Elf
  • El: Star
  • Ered: Mountain Range (Ered Luin)
  • Ereg: Thorn (Eregion, Region)
  • Estel: Hope (Esteldin)

[edit] F

  • Falas: Lands by the Sea (Anfalas, Belfalas)
  • Fin: Hair (Glorfindel)
  • For: North (Fornost, Forochel)

[edit] G

  • Garth: Fortress (Urugarth)
  • Gul: Magic, Sorcery (Dol Guldur, Minas Morgul)
  • Girith: Shuddering, Horror (Nen Girith)
  • Glan: border (Glan Vraig)
  • Glir: Sing / Song (Glirost)
  • Gond: Stone, Rock (Gondolin, Gondor)
  • Gurth: Death (Gurthang)
  • gwind: (pale) blue (Gwindeth)

[edit] H

  • Har: South (Haradwaith, Harad)
  • Haudh: Mound (Haudh-en-Arwen)
  • Heleg: Ice (Helegrod)
  • Hith: Mist
  • Hoth: Herd, Hord (Almost always for evil) (eg. Loss(ho)oth – Forochel’s Snowmen)

[edit] I

  • iath: Fence (Doriath, Osgiliath)
  • imlad: valley (Imlad Balchorth, Imladris)

[edit] K

  • Kal (Gal-): Shining (Gil Galad, Galadriel)

[edit] L

  • Lad: Plain, valley (Drauglad)
  • Laer: song or summer
  • Lin: pool (Lin Giliath)
  • Lith: Ash (Fauglith, Ered Lithui)
  • Loeg: pools of a marsh (Harloeg)
  • Lond: Harbour
  • Loth: Flower (Lothlorien)
  • Luin/Lun: blue (Ered Luin)

[edit] M

  • Maur: Gloom (Agamaur)
  • Men: Road, way (Men Erain)
  • Menel: heaven(s) (Menelband)
  • Minas: Tower (Minas Tirith, Minas Morgul, Annuminas)
  • Mith: Gray (Mithrandir, Mithril)
  • Mor: Black (Mordor, Minas Morgul, Morgoth)

[edit] N

  • Nan: Valley (Nan Warthren, Nan Curunir)
  • Nár: Fire (Narsil, Narchost)
  • Naug: Dwarf
  • Nen: Water (Lake Nenuial, Nen Girith)
  • Nor: Land , Country (Arnor)

[edit] O

  • Orod: Mountain (plural Ered) (Orodruin, Ered Luin)
  • Orn: Tree (Fangorn, Celeborn)
  • Ost (Os-): Fortress, (Os(t)gilliath, Ost Guruth)

[edit] P

  • Per: Half (Peredhil)

[edit] R

  • Ram: Wall (Andram, Rammas Echor)
  • Ras: Horn (landscape) (Barad Nimras, Caradhras – Crimson Horn
  • Rant: (on rivers) direction (Celebrant)
  • Rath: course/pass (Rath Teraig)
  • Rhûn: east (Sea of Rhûn)
  • Ril: Shining, Glooming (Mithril, Anduril)
  • Rim: Horde, Army in large number (Golodhrim, Rohirrim)
  • Roch: Horse (Rochan – Rohan, land of Horses)
  • Rond: Arched Roof (Domed Cave)

[edit] S

  • Sarn: (small) Stone (Sarnur, Sarn Ford)
  • Sûl: Wind (Amon Sûl – Weathertop)

[edit] T

  • Talath: Flat surface, plane, (wide) valley (Talath Gaun, Talath Dirnen)
  • Taur: forest (Taur Gonwaith)
  • Tham: hall, chamber
  • -thang: Compulsion, duress, oppression (Durthang – A Fortress in mordor)
  • Thoron: Eagle (Thorongil)
  • Tol: Island (Tol Galen) (plural Tyl / Tyll)
  • Tûm: Deep Valley (Tûm Fuin)
  • Tyrn: Downs (Tyrn Gorthad - The Barrow Downs)
  • Tyl: Islands

[edit] U

  • Uial: Twilight (Emyn Uial)

[edit] W

  • -wen: Maiden (Arwen, Eärwen, Morwen)

[edit] External Links

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