Elvish Naming Traditions

The first name an Elf receives in his/her life is the "Father-Name." We don't know the Quenya term for this name, but we can guess that it is "Ataressë." It is one of the "Anessi" or "Given-Names" that the Elf will receive in their life. It is as close as the Elves get to a surname.

• It is given soon after birth.

• It's announced by the father in a ceremony called "Essecarmë" or "Name-Making".

• The name itself is usually made from one of the parent's names. If the child is a boy, it will be fashioned after one of his father's names; if it's a girl, it will be fashioned after one of her mother's names. It is not unheard of for girls also to have names fashioned after their fathers' or boys to have names fashioned after their mothers', or to have a name fashioned after a grandparent's name.

• This name is sometimes based off of who is more well known in the family.

• The name can be modified later to better fit the personality of its bearer, though it will still be modeled after the parent's name.

• There are three ways that this name is formed.

*Simply using a parent's name. This sort of father name didn't last long, and would be changed to better match the child's personality.

*A patronymic suffix (-iel/-ien "daughter of" or -ion "son of") added to the parent's name. This also often ended up changed.

*The most common way is to use a different name suffix or only part of the parent's name.

• It is the first name listed when telling someone his/her full name.

• This name was considered a public name. Anyone could address the Elf by it.

The next name an Elf has could either be his/her "Mother-Name" or the "Chosen-Name." It's more likely that the Mother-Name would come first, as often they are given before the elf is old enought to name themself. The Mother-Name is called "Amilessë" in Quenya, and it is one of the Anessi. There are two types of Mother-Name.

This sort of name may come from a vision the mother receives in the hour of birth. This sort of vision isn't all that common, so these names are rare and important gifts.

The most common is the "Amilessë Tercenyë," a "name of insight." "Insight" refers to insight into the child's personality. This sort of name may be given while the child's personality is starting to develop, a few years after the child's birth.

The second type is the "Amilessë Apacenyë," or "name of foresight." She names her child from a vision of the future.

The last type comes from getting to know the child as his/her personality develops, which means it could come after the Chosen-Name. It is also called an Amilessë Tercenyë.

This name is also considered a public name, and it is listed after the Father-Name when giving one's full title.

The Chosen-Name, or "Cilmessë," is a name that a child chooses for him/herself, once he/she is capable of "Lámatyávië." This basically means that the child is fluent in their mother tongue and knows how to make beautiful sounding names. It also means that the child's personality has developed to the point that the child knows and can name his/herself. The age that the child reaches this fluency and understanding is somewhere between 7 and 10 years of age. Since gaining individuality is an important achievement in the child's life, there is a ceremony to go with announcing it, called "Essecilmë," or "Name Choosing."

The name has something to do with the child's personality or talent(s).

It can be changed as time passes, as the person's personality and interests change over time, but this is very rare.

This name is a private name. The only ones allowed to address someone by their Cilmessë are close family members, one's closest friends, and one's spouse. To address someone you aren't in an intimate relationship with by this name is extremely rude.

It also is one of the names listed when telling someone his/her full name. It can come before or after the Mother-Name.

Adopting the Mother-Name as the Chosen-Name is a common practice. In fact, if there was a Mother-Name, it most likely would be the Elf's Chosen-Name as well.

Cilmessi are supposed to be unique to the Elf.

There is another type of Cilmessë, and it doesn't get the fanfare that the above Cilmessë. It was a alias, if you will, and used to conceal one's identity. This sort of Chosen-name will be made to look like another type of name, but other than that, doesn't have any special characteristics.

The last type of name, called the "After-Name," or "Epessë," is one of the Anessi. Most of the time, it is little more than a nickname, though its making differs quite a bit from our own version of nicknames. It is a name that can be given by anyone; and sometimes the person being referred to is unaware of this name.

It has meaning, and it isn't based off of any of the Elf's other names. It can be a title of admiration or honor, referencing an accomplishment or deed done by the Elf. It also can be descriptive of an odd or out-standing physical or mental trait.

Because this sort of name isn't considered one of an Elf's true names, these names could be repeated, and more than one elf could be called by the same Epessë. That being said, they likely wouldn't take another elf's name to use as a nickname for a friend, because the Epessë would have a clear meaning connected to who they were naming.

This name can be adopted into the Elf's full title, and therefore is listed last.

Due to the nature of the creation of this name, it is public, but not considered one of the Elf's actual names until he or she adopts it.

One type of Epessë is the name given by lovers to each other. It is the most often adopted Epessë. It should be noted that these names tend to be the most flattering.

Some Epessi are names based on the names of places where the events occurred from which an Elf could earn a new name. Take the case of Elrond and Elros. They were abandoned in the woods and found in a cave with a waterfall over its entrance. "Elrond - Starcave" was found inside the cave, and "Elros - Starrain" was found playing in the water.

• The first names of the parentless elves - the ones who woke up on the shores of Cuiviénen - generally didn't mean anything. Most of them put wë at the end of their names, but the first element would be a random syllable that sounded cool and fit the phonology of their language. Sometimes their name would become a word for something they were well-known for later on.

• Elves don't share their Father-Names when they marry. They just gain new Epessi from their spouses.

• Elves never use or reference the names of Eru, the Valar, or Maiar in their own. It's considered trying to become or impersonate a god.

• Elves' names change as the language around them changes. This is why Galadriel is known as Galadriel in the Third Age. Her name was originally Alatáriel. Though the language changed, the name's meaning is still important, so it was translated into Sindarin.

• The names are listed like this: "Ataressë Amilessë/Cilmessë, also known as Epessë."

If you haven't read the Elven naming traditions of Valinor, go back and read it, then read this. The conclusions and terminology used in this will make more sense if you do so.

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Of the naming traditions of the Eldar who lived in Valinor, we know much. However, the naming traditions of the Úmanyar (those who didn't go to Valinor and stayed in Middle-earth) are largely undocumented. Though Tolkien never explicitly described them, we can guess by looking at their names.

The Elves of Beleriand are the ones most likely to have naming traditions echoing the traditions in Valinor, seeing as they were the closest to Valinor and they had trade and communication going between them. Therefore, when Doriath was conquered and the Sindar fled deeper into Middle-earth to live in the lands of other Telerin Elves, they brought these strong traditions and their language with them. Since the language was adopted, it doesn't seem too strange that the naming traditions would come along too.

But would there be any naming traditions that they didn't already have?

From a linguistic point of view, there is a striking similarity to the Sindarin word "eneth" and the Quenya word "anessë", suggesting that the Úmanyar also have Given-names.

Denethor (which originally was a Common Eldarin name, "Denitháró - Lithe and Lank") is obviously an Epessë, given to the hero who saved the Nandor. Another example of an Epessë given before the languages had truly split is Elwê's name, "Thindikollo - Grey Cloak." It refers to his silver hair.

The Parentless Elves (the Elves who first awoke on the shores of Cuiviénen and who therefore have neither parents nor a birth at all) all have Chosen-Names. While the Noldor glorified and enshrined this quite a bit, we don't know to what extent the other cultures developed this; we can guess that they also could choose their own names, like their fore-fathers did. Also, there may be the odd occassion whereinn an Elf decides to leave their old names behind, and go by an Alias, so that type of Chosen-name we can't rule out either.

There is little in the way of evidence of Mother-Names, but it seems unlikely that they wouldn't also exist, as any Elven woman is capable of having insight in the hour of birth into her child's future life and personality. Therefore, I contend that Mother-names are also possible.

Finally, the Father-Name. We know that in an earlier verion, of his Elven language history, Tolkien made a way to have Father-names for the Ilkorin Elves (uncivilaized Elves outside the Elven cities) from a note in the Etymologies. They have a different sort of Fathername, which is completely unlike the Quenya or Sindarin Fathernames, wherein "go-" is prefixed onto a parent's name. Also, this sort of name is just convenient.

The first name is a Father name, with some portion of the father or mother's name in it, and probably ending in -ien, -iel, or -ion. There probably would be some sort of ceremony or celebration for the parents to show off their new child, and let everyone know of its existence, wherein they would also tell everyone their new baby's name. This name probably had very little personal significance, and could be used by outsiders.

The second name describes the Elf's personality. It is chosen later in life, when the Elf's personality has taken form. For the Úmanyar, gaining linguistic ability and intelligence isn't as highly prized as it is for the Noldor, so there probably isn't a Name-Choosing ceremony amongst the Úmanyar. I do think that there can be more than one of these names, possibly one given by the mother, using her unique insight into her child's personality and future. This name probably was much more intimate and personal for the Elf who had it, so using it would require a personal relationship. It would be rude for outsiders to use this name.

The third name is an Epessë of some sort, or a professional's title. It can be descriptive of some event the Elf is well known for, the place that such an event took place, or some outstanding physical or mental feature that the Elf is well known for. Other than titles of nobility, Tolkien wrote about two professional titles: Celebrimbor for silver smiths and Tegilbor for scribes. So we can infer that people were sometimes referred to by their occupation instead of their name.