hek

root. aside, apart, separate

This root appeared in the Quendi and Eldar essay from 1959-60 glossed “aside, apart, separate” (WJ/361) with derivatives having mostly to do with exclusion, abandonment and outcasts, such as: Q. hequa/T. heco “excluding, except”; Q. heca/S. ego “be gone!”; Q. hehta-/T. hecta- “abandon”; Q. hecil/S. eglan “outcast, (one) forsaken” (WJ/364-5). The last of these is especially notable, in that it is the basis for S. †Eglan “Forsaken (Elf)”, one of the names the Sindar used for themselves, especially among the people of Círdan.

Although there are no obvious precursors to √HEK itself in the sense “apart, separate”, Egla was long among the words Tolkien used for the Elves, along with related names like Eglamar, originally “Elfhome” and later “Home of the Eglain”. It appeared as G. Egla “being from outside” in the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, based on G. eg “far away” < ᴱ√EIKA (GL/32). In the 1930s this became Ilk. Egla “Star-folk, Elf” < ᴹ√ed(e)la with the Ilkorin sound change whereby [[ilk|[dl] became [gl]]] (Ety/ELED). Thus it seems √HEK was Tolkien’s latest attempt to preserve Elga(n) as a word for Elves, though with a different meaning than its earlier incarnations.

hek-wā

preposition and adverb. leaving aside, not counting, excluding, except

heke

adverb. apart, not including

hekelā

noun. a waif or outcast

hekla

proper name. any thing (or person) put aside from or left out from its normal company

heklō

noun. a waif or outcast

hektā

verb. set aside, cast out, forsake

hekla-mbar

place name. Eglamar

hekla-rista

place name. Eglarest

heklanā

adjective. forsaken

satya-

verb. set aside