rî (crown) + an (from anna- “give”)
Sindarin
rían
feminine name. Crown-gift
Element in
- S. man agorech? “*and said Rían to Tuor: what have we done?” ✧ VT50/20
Elements
Word Gloss rî “wreath, garland, wreath, garland; [N.] crown” ann “gift”
rían
noun. queen, queen, *(lit.) crowned-lady
Element in
- S. Celebrían “Silver-queen” ✧ Let/423
Rían
noun. crown-gift
rían
queen
(”crown-gift”), pl. ríain (idh ríain)
ríen
queen
(crowned lady), pl. ?rîn (idh rîn). The adjective rîn ”crowned” may also be used as a noun ”crowned woman” = ”queen”, but with no distinct pl. form except when article precedes (idh rîn again); coll. pl. ríniath. Note: a homophone means ”remembrance”.
rîs
queen
1) rîs, no distinct pl. except with article preceding (idh rîs); coll. pl. ?rissath; 2) rían (”crown-gift”), pl. ríain (idh ríain); 3) bereth (i vereth) (spouse), pl. berith (i mberith), 4) ríen (crowned lady), pl. ?rîn (idh rîn). The adjective rîn ”crowned” may also be used as a noun ”crowned woman” = ”queen”, but with no distinct pl. form except when article precedes (idh rîn again); coll. pl. ríniath. Note: a homophone means ”remembrance”.
bereth
noun. queen, spouse
rîs
noun. queen
bereth
queen
(i vereth) (spouse), pl. berith (i mberith)
rîs
noun. queen
rîs
queen
no distinct pl. except with article preceding (idh rîs); coll. pl. ?rissath
Wife of Huor and mother of Tuor (S/148), her name seems to be a compound of rî “crown” and ann “gift”, though it could also be rían “queen” used as a name.
Conceptual Development: When it first appeared in Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s, this name was N. Rían (SM/35) but in later drafts it appeared as N. Rian with a short i (LR/131), which was its usual form in this period. In The Etymologies it appeared as N. Rhian glossed “Crown-gift”, which is the source of the gloss and derivation given above (Ety/RIG). In Silmarillion revisions from the 1950s-60s, the form S. Rían with a long í was restored (WJ/52).