minlamad thent

proper name. mode of Elvish verse

Mode of Elvish verse (UT/146; WJ/311). Its final element is thent “short”, but the meaning of the first element minlamad is unclear. It may perhaps mean “first-echoing” and refer to alliteration, as suggested by Patrick Wynne and Carl Hostetter (Tolkien’s Legendarium, p. 121-2). Tolkien said “this verse was not wholly unlike the verse known to Aelfwine” (WJ/311) and this may refer to the Old Norse or Old English styles of alliterative poetry; hat tip to Ellanto for suggesting this to me. In the Unfinished Tales as originally published, Christopher Tolkien gave this phrase as Minlamed thent/estent (UT/146), but in The War of the Jewels he said this was a slip on his part, and that J.R.R. Tolkien actually wrote Minlamad (WJ/311 and p. 315 note #3).

Elements

Word	Gloss
minlamad	“?alliteration, (lit.) first-echoing”
thent	“short”

Variations

• Minlamad thent/estent ✧ UT/146; WJ/311
• Minlamed thent/estent ✧ WJ/315