prop. n. Tolkien added the note "Don't like Felagund".
Sindarin
Felagund
noun. lord of the caves
Felagund
noun. Tolkien added the note "Don't like Felagund"
felagund
masculine name. Lord of Caves; Hewer of Caves; Den Dweller
This name was adopted by Finrod as the founder and ruler of Nargothrond. The name was derived from a title given to Finrod by the Dwarves: Kh. Felakgundu “Cave-hewer”, Sindarized as Felagund (PM/352). Some Elves re-interpreted this name as Felagon “✱Fair-minded Lord” (PM/352).
Conceptual Development: The ruler of Nargothrond in the Lost Tales was G. Orodreth (LTA2/82, 123). Felagund emerged as the founder of Nargothrond in The Lays of Beleriand, at which point Orodreth became his younger brother (LB/80). In the drafts of these poems, this new character was named ᴱN. Felagoth, but this was soon revised to ᴱN. Felagund (LB/169).
Thereafter, the character’s name remained Felagund in Tolkien’s writings, and it always referred to the grandson of Finwë who ruled Nargothrond. The purpose and meaning of the name changed over time, however, as Tolkien adjusted the names of other characters in the legendarium. When the Felagund first appeared, Finrod was the name of his father rather than Felagund himself (LB/138, 222).
In Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s, his true name was changed to N. Inglor. Felagund became his surname or title, translated “Lord of Caverns” or “Lord of Caves”, referring to his lordship over Nargothrond (LR/116, 254). In this version, the name N. Felagund was a compound of fela “cave” and †cunn “prince” (Ety/KUNDŪ, Ety/PHÉLEG). There is evidence that the name Felagund retained this etymology during the writing of the 1st edition of The Lord of the Rings (PE17/118).
Sometime between the publication of the 1st and 2nd editions of The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien revised the genealogy of the house of Finwë (MR/181 note §41-2). In the revised genealogy, Finarfin became the name of the youngest son of Finwë, while Finrod became the name of the eldest son of Finarfin and therefore Finwë’s grandson (PE17/118, MR/128 note §135). Sometime thereafter, Tolkien also revised the name’s etymology to its Khuzdul derivation, as noted above (S/114, PM/352, WJ/179).
The following table outlines the relationships of Felagund and his ancestors in early, middle and later iterations of the stories, as they appeared in the Lays of Beleriand (LB), Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s published in The Lost Road (LR) and the published version of The Silmarillion (S):
| |Early (LB)|Middle (LR)|Late (S)| |Grandfather|ᴱQ. Finwe|ᴹQ. Finwe|Q. Finwë| |Father|ᴱN. Finrod|N. Finrod|S. Finarfin| |Eldest Son|ᴱN. Felagund|N. Inglor Felagund|S. Finrod Felagund|
Even in its derivation from Kh. Felakgundu, the final element of Felagund’s name might still have been interpreted as †cund “prince, lord” by the Elves, as reflected in the translation “Lord of Caves” (S/61). The best evidence for this is that Tolkien said the name was sometimes Eldarized as Felagon, using the element -gon “lord” seen in the names of his cousins, Fingon and Turgon (PM/352). However, it is uncertain whether S. cunn/cund remained valid in Tolkien’s later conception of the language (see S. cund for discussion).
Finally, in notes from 1969, Tolkien consider yet another etymology for the name Felagund, giving it the meaning “den-dweller” (also a name for badgers) as a name given to him somewhat derisively by the sons of Fëanor referring to his tendency to hide away in Nargothrond (NM/304). In this scenario, the initial element was again S. fela “minor excavation”, though the meaning of the second element was unclear even to Elvish loremasters. However, in The Sillmarillion as published, Christopher Tolkien used the explanation that the name was given to Finrod by the Dwarves, based on notes on the name from 1959 and included in marginal notes in Tolkien’s copy of The Silmarillion itself (PM/352).
Cognates
- Kh. Felakgundu “Cave-hewer” ✧ SI/Felagund
Derivations
- Kh. Felakgundu “Cave-hewer” ✧ PM/352
Elements
Word Gloss fela “mine, boring, tunnel, underground dwelling; minor excavations, den, mine, boring, tunnel, underground dwelling; minor excavations, den; [N.] cave” cund “*prince” Phonetic Developments
Development Stages Sources Kh. felakgundu > felaggundu > Felagund [felakgundu] > [felakgundu] > [felaggundu] > [felaggund] > [felagund] ✧ PM/352 Variations
- Felegond ✧ PE17/118
felagund
noun. den-dweller; brock, badger
A word for “brock, badger”, more literally “den-dweller”, appearing in 1969 notes as a late etymology for the name Felagund (NM/304). In this scenario, the name “den-dweller” was given to Felagund somewhat derisively by the sons of Fëanor referring to his tendency to hide away in Nargothrond (NM/304). However, in The Sillmarillion as published, Christopher Tolkien used the explanation that the name was given to Finrod by the Dwarves and meant “cave-hewer”, based on marginal notes from 1959 in Tolkien’s copy of The Silmarillion itself (PM/352).
Neo-Sindarin: Since I prefer the Silmarillion origin for the name Felagund, I would not use this word for “badger”. I would instead suggest a neologism ᴺS. eriab based on ᴱQ. oryat (oryap-).
Variations
- Felagund ✧ NM/304
feleg
noun. cave
n. cave, mine, underground dwelling. Q. felco. Q.
rond
noun. cave roof
rond
noun. vaulted or arched roof, as seen from below (and usually not visible from outside), or a (large) hall of chamber so roofed
groth
noun. delving, underground dwelling
roth
noun. cave
n. cave. Q. rondo.
groth
noun. cave, tunnel, large excavation
Felagund
Felagund
From Khuzdul Felakgundu, "Hewer of Caves"
fela
cave
(pl. fili). In the Etymologies (LR:381 s.v. PHÉLEG) the name Felagund is said to include this word, but since Tolkien later re-explained this name as a borrowing from Dwarvish, some would consider fela as a word for ”cave” conceptually obsolete.
rond
cave
(construct ron) (cavern, vault, vaulted ceiling, hall with vaulted roof), pl. rynd (idh rynd), coll. pl. ronnath
grôd
cave
1) grôd (i **rôd, construct grod) (delving, excavation, underground dwelling), pl. grŷd (in grŷd) (WJ:414), 2) groth (i **roth) (delving, large excavation), pl. gryth (in gryth) (VT46:12), 3) rond (construct ron) (cavern, vault, vaulted ceiling, hall with vaulted roof), pl. rynd (idh rynd), coll. pl. ronnath, 4) roth (delving, large excavation), pl. ryth, 4) gathrod (i **athrod), pl. gethryd (i ngethryd = i ñethryd), 5) fela (pl. fili). In the Etymologies (LR:381 s.v. PHÉLEG) the name Felagund is said to include this word, but since Tolkien later re-explained this name as a borrowing from Dwarvish, some would consider fela** as a word for ”cave” conceptually obsolete.
grôd
cave
(i ’rôd, construct grod) (delving, excavation, underground dwelling), pl. grŷd (in grŷd) (WJ:414)
rhûd
artificial cave
(construct rhud, with article ?i thrûd or ?i rûd – *the lenition product of rh- is uncertain) (dwelling underground, rockhewn hall, mine), pl. rhuid (?idh ruid). (PM:365)*
othronn
fortress in a cave/caves
(pl. ethrynn for archaic öthrynn) (underground stronghold). Cited in archaic form othrond in the source (WJ:414).
groth
cave
(i ’roth) (delving, large excavation), pl. gryth (in gryth) (VT46:12)
roth
cave
(delving, large excavation), pl. ryth, 4) gathrod (i ’athrod), pl. gethryd (i ngethryd = i ñethryd)
fela (“cave”) + cund (“prince”) [Etym. KUNDŪ-, PHÉLEG-] In PM:352 said to be of Dwarvish origin, deriving from felakgundu, felaggundu “cave-hewer”, Eldarized into Felagon; this explanation entered the Silmarillion Index.