mûl

noun. slave, thrall

A noun meaning “slave” or “thrall”, from primitive ᴹ✶mōl derived from the root ᴹ√MŌ having to do with “labour” (Ety/MŌ). In Noldorin, a [[on|primitive long [ō] became [ū]]] (PE18/96; PE19/91).

Conceptual Development: In the Gnomish Lexicon from the 1910s, one word for “slave” was G. guinir, apparently an agental form of the adjective guin “possessed”. The suffix -(n)ir was usually limited to feminine word, so perhaps this word was exclusively female.

Another word for “slave” or “servant” was G. drog (GL/31), and the word ᴱN. drog “slave” reappeared in the Early Noldorin word lists of the 1920s (PE13/142, 155). This word was derived from primitive ᴱ✶norokā́ > ✱nrokā after which the [[g|initial [nr] becoming [dr]]] (GL/31), though at this stage its relationship to other roots is unclear.

Neo-Sindarin: This form did not appear in Tolkien’s later writings as Sindarin, but its Quenya cognate mól did, along with its primitive form and its root (VT43/31).

mûl

noun. slave, thrall