[Galin]

gondowe wrote: I want to insist in the Gil-galad surname, perhaps I'm mistaken but, is not later the note about that was his mother who gave the name for the helm and mail, and that it means Star of Radiance, not Starlight? So perhaps it would be better to place his 'surnaming' by his mother in a later time, when he is High King, in the later chapter?

From the August 1965 note: 'She called her son Gil-galad' -- so here Rodnor appears to get a 'Mother-name' Gil-galad, although the name is not interpreted.

However in the Shibboleth of Feanor proper (written on publication notes dated 1968) Gil-galad is stated to be an epesse rather, meaning 'Star of Radiance', and was given to him because his helm and mail shone from afar (and etc. p. 347-348). I don't recall any reason within the Shibboleth to think that Gil-galad was a nickname and a Mother-name. It appears to be just an epesse there.

Aran e-Godhellim (also in response to gondowe's post): This is an interesting point. Linguistically, of course,we must make distinction between the two names "Gilgalad" and "Gil-galad." The name Gilgalad (incidentally the form used in the note) is a compound of gil "star" and calad "light," (with the c lenited to a g) and does in fact mean "starlight."

The name Gil-galad, however, is not a compound, but rather a juxtaposition of gil with a completely separate word galad meaning "shining radiance; reflection." Thus we translate this name (following regular Sindarin conventions) "Star-of-Radiance."

Tolkien had published in The Lord of the Rings that Gil-galad, the hyphenated form, meant 'Starlight'. And according to letter 211 (1958), he appears to have thought of Gil-galad 'star-light' with galad showing a mutation from a word in initial c- (footnote with respect to kal).

To try to post all the mentions of this name from Words, Phrases, and Passages might be interesting, but arguably would not be very helpful, as Tolkien can change his mind from one note to the next. Although at one point JRRT translates Gil-galad 'radiant star' from a kalat- 'radiance, radiate' and a root KAL- shine. So we have the word 'radiance' here, but still this is variant enough from the idea of a root ÑAL- 'shine by reflection' and a word *ñalatâ 'radiance, glittering reflection (from jewels, glass or polished metals, or water)' -- both the root ÑAL- and *ñalatâ are found in the later Shibboleth papers, and which meanings go hand in hand with the reason for his epesse given there.

Since Gil-galad was the form finally chosen by Tolkien, we must accept "Star of Radiance" as the accurate translation. Perhaps we could simply omit the two lines about his epessë?

For myself I would rather publication, meaning published by JRRT himself, be given the highest rank to follow; and if so we have Gil-galad 'Starlight' from The Lord of the Rings, or from The Road Goes Ever On, 'Star of bright light'

My opinion on these points anyway.