kibil

noun. silver

kibil-nâla

place name. Silverlode, Silver-course

zigil-nâd

place name. Silverlode

celebrant

place name. Silverlode, Silver-course

A stream flowing through Dimrill Dale translated “Silverlode” (LotR/341) or “Silver-course” (RC/262). It is itself a translation of Kh. Kibil-nâla of the same meaning (PE17/35, TI/174). This name is a combination of celeb “silver” and rant “course” (RC/775).

Conceptual Development: In Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s, this river was first named “Red Way”: N. Crandir along with other variations (RS/432-3). Tolkien changed the name to N. Celebrin “✱Silver” (RS/434) and later N. Celeb(rind)rath “Silverlode” (TI/241) before settling on N. Celebrant (TI/235). The final name also appeared in The Etymologies as a river-name, without translation (Ety/RAT).

celeb

noun. silver

The word celeb was the word for “silver” in Sindarin and its conceptual precursors throughout Tolkien’s life.

Conceptual Development: G. celeb “silver” appeared all the way back to the Gnomish Lexicon of the 1910s, where it was related to the early root ᴱ√TELEPE of the same meaning (GL/25; QL/91). In Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s ᴱN. celeb was derived instead from ᴱ✶kelekwé with the sound change of primitive kw to p and later to b (PE13/140), though in that same document he considered (but rejected) ᴱ✶t’lépe > ᴱN. tlub “silver” (PE13/154). In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien introduced a new root ᴹ√KYELEP “silver” to be the basis of N. celeb, with the sound change whereby intial ky became k (c) (Ety/KYELEP). This sound change continued to be a feature of Sindarin of the 1950s and 60s, and Tolkien retained this derivation going forward.

celeb

noun. silver

celeb

silver

_n. _silver. >> Celebdil, Celebrant, celebrin

ithildin

noun. a silver-colored substance, which mirrors only starlight and moonlight

mithril

noun. true-silver, a silver-like metal

celeb

silver

1) (noun) celeb (i geleb, o cheleb), pl. celib (i chelib) if there is a pl. form. 2) (adj., "of/like silver") celebren (lenited gelebren, pl. celebrin; also celebrin- as first element of compounds, as in Celebrindal). Also celefn (lenited gelefn, pl. celifn). As for ”silver” as adjective, see also SHINING WHITE. Adj.

celeb(rind)rath

place name. Silverlode

An earlier name of Celebrant in Lord of the Rings drafts from the 1940s (TI/241), apparently celeb “silver” or celebren “of silver”, combined with rath “course, river-bed”.

celeb

noun. silver

celeb

noun. silver

celebrant

place name. Silverlode

celebren

adjective. like silver (in hue or worth)

celefn

adjective. of silver

celevon

adjective. of silver

kyelep

root. silver

This root and ones like it were used for Elvish words for “silver” throughout Tolkien’s life. The earliest iteration of the root began with T-, however, appearing as unglossed ᴱ√TELEPE in the Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s with derivatives like ᴱQ. telpe “silver” (QL/91). Even at this early stage, however, the Gnomish equivalent was G. celeb (GL/25), but the reason for the t/c variation isn’t clear. The closest explanation is that palatal consonants like [c] became [tʲ] in Qenya vs. [k] in Gnomish (compare ᴱQ. tyava- vs. caf- “taste” from ᴱ√TYAVA) but this doesn’t explain why the Qenya form has initial t- rather than ty-.

Elsewhere in the Elvish languages of the 1910s there seem to be etymological variations of [k] vs. [t], such as ᴱQ. kitya- vs. G. tisca- “tickle” (QL/47; GL/70) and ᴱQ. talqe vs. G. celc “glass” (QL/88; GL/25), so perhaps ᴱQ. telpe vs. G. celeb “silver” is another example of this. Another explanation appeared in Early Noldorin word lists from the 1920s, where the primitive form was ᴱ✶kelekwé which produced ᴱN. celeb as usual but the Qenya form was ᴱQ. telqe with “k = t by dissimilation” (PE13/140), presumably away from q.

In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien had the root ᴹ√KYELEP with variant ᴹ√TELEP, producing N. celeb but ᴹQ. tyelpe or ᴹQ. telpe (Ety/KYELEP). But Tolkien revised this entry, marking ᴹ√TELEP as questionable and introducing the Telerin form ᴹT. telpe < ᴹ√KYELEP, concluding that ᴹQ. telpe must be a loan from Telerin. This finally put N. celeb vs. ᴹQ. telpe (borrowed from Telerin) on a solid phonological foundation. Tolkien seems to have stuck with this explanation, mentioning this borrowing from Telerin to Quenya several times in his later writings, with the proper but now archaic Quenya form being Q. †tyelpë (Let/426; PM/356; UT/266).

kyelepē

noun. silver

telpe

noun. silver

silma

silver, shining white

silma adj. "silver, shining white" (SIL), "crystal (white)" (PE17:23)

telempë

silver

telempë noun "silver" (LT1:268; in Tolkien's later Quenya telpë, which is actually also found in early "Qenya")

telepta

silver

telepta adj. "silver" (as adj.: silvery) (LT2:347), used as noun in the phrase mi telepta of someone clad "in silver", where the context (involving other colour-words) shows that this adj. describes something of silver colour(PE17:71). Compare telemna, telepsa, telpina.

telepta

adjective. silver, silver, *silver-coloured

An adjective for “silver” appearing in the phrase Sanome tarne Olórin, Arakorno, Eomer, Imrahil, mi mīse, mi telepta yo morna, mi laiqua yo ninque, mi luini, ta Gimli mi losseä “There stood Gandalf, Aragorn, Eomer and Imrahil in grey, in silver and black, in green and white, and in blue, and also Gimli in white” in notes from the mid-1960s (PE17/71).

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had unglossed ᴱQ. telepta under the early root ᴱ√TELEPE whose derivatives had to do with silver (QL/91). A similar form ᴹQ. telepsa “of silver” appeared in The Etymologies of the 1930s under the root ᴹ√KYELEP “silver”, which Tolkien equated to ᴹQ. telpina (Ety/KYELEP). This form telepsa may reflect the 1930s sound change whereby pt became ps; compare ᴹQ. lepse “finger” from ᴹ√LEPET (Ety/LEPET). Tolkien revised the entry for ᴹ√KYELEP, replacing telepsa with (unglossed) ᴹQ. telemna (Ety/KYELEP). The adjective telepta “silver” was restored in the 1960s (see above) after Tolkien abandoned the ps > pt sound change.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya I would use this word primarily for silver as a color.

telpë

silver

telpë noun "silver" (in one example with generalized meaning "money", PE14:54), telep- in some compounds like Teleporno; assimilated telem- in Telemnar and the adj. telemna (KYELEP/TELEP, SA:celeb, LT1:255, 268; also tyelpë, telep-, UT:266). The true Quenya descendant of primitive ¤kyelepē is tyelpë, but the Telerin form telpë was more common, "for the Teleri prized silver above gold, and their skill as silversmiths was esteemed even by the Noldor" (UT:266). In various names: Telperion the White Tree of Valinor; Telperien ("Telperiën"), fem. name including telp- "silver" (Appendix A); Telperinquar "Silver-fist, Celebrimbor" (SA:celeb - also Tyelperinquar); Telporno, Teleporno "Silver-high" = Sindarin _Celeborn(Letters:347, UT:266). _It seems that Teleporno is properly Telerin, Quenyarized as Telporno. Compare adjectives telemna, telpina, telepsa, telepta (q.v.)

telpë

noun. silver, silver; [ᴱQ.] money

This was the Quenya word for “silver” throughout Tolkien’s life. The word was derived from the root √KYELEP, which became †tyelpë in Quenya and S. celeb in Sindarin. However, the Quenya form of the word was influenced by Telerin telpë “because the Teleri in their lands, to the north of the Noldor, found a great wealth of silver, and became the chief silversmiths among the Eldar” (Let/426). The archaic Quenya form †tyelpë was retained for the name of the palatal series of tengwar consonants, the tyelpetéma (LotR/1120), but in ordinary use (and most names) the forms telpë or telep- (in compounds) were used.

Conceptual Development: The Qenya Lexicon of the 1910s had ᴱQ. telpe based on the early root ᴱ√TELEPE, but its Gnomish cognate was G. celeb (QL/91). Tolkien did not explain this difference in these early documents from the 1910s. In Early Noldorin Word-lists of the 1920s he had ᴱQ. telqe and ᴱN. celeb “silver” derived from primitive ᴱ✶kelekwé, explaining initial t in the Qenya form as the result of dissimilation away the kw (PE13/140).

In The Etymologies of the 1930s Tolkien introduced a root ᴹ√KYELEP “silver” as an alternate to ᴹ√TELEP, with derivatives ᴹQ. telpe or tyelpe, N. celeb and ᴹT. telpe (Ety/KYELEP). He then said “Q telpe may be Telerin form (Teleri specially fond of silver, as Lindar of gold), in which case all forms may refer to KYELEP”. It seems that he stuck with this idea thereafter and abandoned ᴹ√TELEP.

Note that in the Early Qenya Grammar of the 1920s Tolkien used ᴱQ. telpe for “money” (PE14/54), and I would give telpë this meaning for purposes of Neo-Quenya as well, much like the French word argent means both “silver” and “money”.

tyelpë

silver

tyelpë noun "silver" (KYELEP/TELEP), etymology also in Letters:426 and UT:266. Tyelpë is the true Quenya descendant of primitive ¤kyelepē, but the Telerin form telpë was more common, "for the Teleri prized silver above gold, and their skill as silversmiths was esteemed even by the Noldor" (UT:266). In the Etymologies, tyelpë is also the name of Tengwa #1 with overposed dots, this symbol having the value ty (VT45:25). Cf. tyelpetéma as the name of the entire palatal series of the Tengwar system.

tyelpë

noun. silver