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    • Lessons 1-10 >
      • 1 - Pronunciation >
        • Sindarin IPA
      • 2 - Greetings
      • 3 - Origins >
        • Sindarin place names
      • 4 - Questions
      • 5 - Eating & drinking
      • 6 - Plurals (1)
      • 7 - Plurals (2)
      • 8 - Pronouns (nominative)
      • 9 - Pronouns (object & dative)
      • 10 - Colours & Soft mutation introduction
    • Lessons 11-20 >
      • 11 - Soft mutation
      • 12 - Using adjectives & adverbs
      • 13 - Prepositions (1)
      • 14 - Prepositions (2)
      • 15 - 'in' & Nasal mutation
      • 16 - Pronouns (possessive)
      • 17 - Verbs (Present Tense)
      • 18 - Verbs (Past Tense)
      • 19 - Verbs (Intransitive endings and irregulars)
      • 20 - Verbs (Future Tense)
    • Lessons 21-30 >
      • 21 - Verbs (Conditional)
      • 22 - Irregular verbs
      • 23 - Verbs (Dual)
      • 24 - Sentence structure
      • 25 - Negation
      • 26 - 'To be'
      • 27 - Relative pronouns and uncertainty
      • 28 - Timekeeping
      • 29 - Numbers & Mathematics
      • 30 - Mixed mutation and 'En'
    • Lessons 31-40 >
      • 31 - Plurals (3): Class plurals
      • 32 - Possessive, singular and diminutive suffixes
      • 33 - Comparatives & Superlatives
      • 34 - Abstract Suffix
      • 35 - Further suffixes
      • 36 - How to make names (1)
      • 37 - How to make names (2)
      • 38 - Gondorian & Mirkwood Sindarin
      • 39 - Doriathrin Sindarin
      • 40 - Liquid and Stop mutations
    • Lessons 41 onwards >
      • 41 - Elision
  • Resources
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Lesson 37 - How to make names

Part Two: People Places and Weapons
Lesson 36 taught you the rules that allow you to properly compound two or more words together into one name.
In many names (of both people and places) the final element is a suffix. These can indicate gender, familial relationship, or something more physical such as 'land' or 'field'.

None of these suffixes require you to change the name you are attaching them to in any way, however sometimes the suffixes themselves change.

Naming people

Female name suffixes

Suffix
Meaning
-il
Female
-el
Female
-eth
Female
-wen
Maiden
-iel/-iell
Daughter of
-ien
Daughter of
Some attested examples:
Ar-feiniel = Noble white lady
Arien = Sun/Fire maiden (a Maia)
Eärwen = Sea maiden
Morwen = Dark maiden

Male name suffixes

Suffix
Meaning
-dir
Man
-ion
Son of
-on
Male
Some attested examples:
Brandir = Noble/high/exalted man
Curunir = Wizard (man of skill)
Daeron/Dairon = Shadow of trees
Ecthelion = Spearpoint son
Eldarion = Son of the Elves

Try not to mistake the -ion suffix meaning 'son of' for the place name suffix found in places like Eregion.

The suffix -dir can change to -nir. From attested names, we know it does this after U and G, in Curunir (Curu + -dir) and Dagnir (Dag + -dir). We also know that following D, L, N and R it remains -dir, in Brandir (Brand + -dir), Hatholdir (Hathol + -dir), Thorondir (Thoron + -dir) and Herdir (Hîr + -dir).

Gender neutral suffixes

Suffix
Meaning
-ben
Someone (note this takes the mutated form ben not pen)
-(n)dil
Friend (of x), Lover (of x)
-or
Doer (of x)
-wi
Person of
Gender neutral suffixes often turn a noun into a profession.
Some attested examples:
Orodben = Mountaineer (Orod + -ben)
Gaerdil = Sea-lover (Gaear + -(n)dil)
Bachor = Pedlar, trader (Bach + -or)
Badhor = Judge (Badh + -or)

Naming places

Suffix
Meaning
-bel
-ham (homestead, village, settlement)
-dor
Land
-ian(d) pl. -ien
Land, country, wide region
-ion
Region, land (from iaun meaning 'roomy, vast, wide')
Some attested examples:
Calembel = Greenham
Gondor = Stone land
Mordor = Black land
Rohan = Horse country
Eregion = Holly region (Hollin)
Rhovanion = Wilderland

The suffix -ham is found in many place names in England, e.g. Birmingham Rotherham and Nottingham and etymologically is an ancestor of the modern word 'home'.

-ian or -iand?

As you can see, the suffix -ian(d) has a plural form, meaning 'lands'.
Some attested examples:
Anorien = Sun lands
Lórien = Golden lands

In modern Third Age Sindarin, the suffix is -ian (pl. -ien). If you are creating a First Age Sindarin place name, you would use the older form of the suffix which is -iand.
Some attested examples:
Beleriand = Land of the Valar
Ossiriand = Land of seven rivers (an area of Beleriand).

Although -ian(d) and -ion look very similar they have different origins. The suffix -ian(d) is the original, purer Sindarin; -ion came later as a result of the language being influenced by the Noldor in the period known as Exilic Sindarin.

Naming weapons

With the exception of Grond and Aeglos, all weapon names are made of two elements and none have more than two.
I would suggest you do likewise and do not use more than two elements in your weapons' names.
Tolkien's names are quite simple and often incorporate a colour ('black' in Mormegil), material ('iron' in Angrist et al), a straightforward description of how they look e.g. Ringil “glittered like ice” or what they were designed for (Orcrist, Dagmor, Glamdring). Incorporation of a weapon noun is common, such as Megil (Sword) in Mormegil or Crist (Cleaver) in Angrist and Orcrist.
Attested weapon names:
Aeglos (Icicle)

Anglachel (Iron of the flaming star)
Angrist (Iron cleaver)
Anguirel (Iron of eternity)
Aranrúth (King’s Ire)
Dagmor (Slayer of darkness)
Glamdring (Foe hammer/Beater)
Grond (Club)
Gurthang (Iron of death)
Hadhafang (Throng cleaver)
Mormegil (Blacksword)
Orcrist (Goblin cleaver/Biter)
Ringil (Coldstar)

For help with how to put a weapon name together, please see the previous lesson, Lesson 37

Weapons

Sindarin
Meaning
Aith
Spearpoint
Crist
Cleaver, sword
Dring
Hammer
Ecthel
Spearpoint (thorn)
Grond
Club
Hathol
Axe-blade, broadsword-blade
Lang
Cutlass
Megil
Sword
Peng
Bow
Pilin
Arrow
Sigil
Dagger

Materials

Sindarin
Meaning
Ang
Iron
Celeb
Silver
Gaes
Steel
Galvorn
Black metal designed by Eöl
Malt
Gold
Mithril
True-silver
Raud
Metal
Rust
Copper
Thinc
Flint
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  • Home
    • Donations
    • Contact/About me
  • Words
  • Verbs
  • Phrases
  • Lessons
    • Lessons 1-10 >
      • 1 - Pronunciation >
        • Sindarin IPA
      • 2 - Greetings
      • 3 - Origins >
        • Sindarin place names
      • 4 - Questions
      • 5 - Eating & drinking
      • 6 - Plurals (1)
      • 7 - Plurals (2)
      • 8 - Pronouns (nominative)
      • 9 - Pronouns (object & dative)
      • 10 - Colours & Soft mutation introduction
    • Lessons 11-20 >
      • 11 - Soft mutation
      • 12 - Using adjectives & adverbs
      • 13 - Prepositions (1)
      • 14 - Prepositions (2)
      • 15 - 'in' & Nasal mutation
      • 16 - Pronouns (possessive)
      • 17 - Verbs (Present Tense)
      • 18 - Verbs (Past Tense)
      • 19 - Verbs (Intransitive endings and irregulars)
      • 20 - Verbs (Future Tense)
    • Lessons 21-30 >
      • 21 - Verbs (Conditional)
      • 22 - Irregular verbs
      • 23 - Verbs (Dual)
      • 24 - Sentence structure
      • 25 - Negation
      • 26 - 'To be'
      • 27 - Relative pronouns and uncertainty
      • 28 - Timekeeping
      • 29 - Numbers & Mathematics
      • 30 - Mixed mutation and 'En'
    • Lessons 31-40 >
      • 31 - Plurals (3): Class plurals
      • 32 - Possessive, singular and diminutive suffixes
      • 33 - Comparatives & Superlatives
      • 34 - Abstract Suffix
      • 35 - Further suffixes
      • 36 - How to make names (1)
      • 37 - How to make names (2)
      • 38 - Gondorian & Mirkwood Sindarin
      • 39 - Doriathrin Sindarin
      • 40 - Liquid and Stop mutations
    • Lessons 41 onwards >
      • 41 - Elision
  • Resources
    • Mutation chart
    • Pronoun chart
    • (m)b words
    • (n)d words
    • (n)g words
    • -ath
    • Jigsaws
    • Grammatical terms
    • Language of the hands