View Single Post
Old 04-16-2009, 12:07 PM   #49
Aiwendil
Late Istar
 
Join Date: Mar 2001
Posts: 2,224
Aiwendil is a guest at the Prancing Pony.Aiwendil is a guest at the Prancing Pony.
I must admit to some confusion over Rodnor vs. Ereinion. I thought I recalled a discussion at some point where we decided on 'Ereinion'. But I cannot now find it. Moreover, looking at my old posts in several threads, I realize that I have been inconsistent myself, in one place saying that 'Rodnor' should be emended to 'Ereinion' and in one place the exact opposite.

So it's probably best to make a fresh start in considering the matter. I just re-read the note on Gil-Galad's parentage from XII and, while it's still far from clear, I think the evolution of his name goes something like this:

Late 1930s: In FN II, Gil-Galad (in his first appearance) is the son of Felagund.
Early 1950s: In LQ, Gil-Galad is the son of Felagund.
Early 1950s: In GA, Felagund has no children; a note states that Findor Gil-Galad is the son of Fingon.
c. 1960: In 'A Description of the Island of Numenor' and 'Aldarion and Erendis', Finellach Gil-Galad is a descendant of Finarfin (though the exact relationship is unspecified).
August 1965: In a note on the genealogy of the House of Finwe, Gil-Galad becomes 'Artanaro = Rodnor', the son of Orodreth. The genealogical table itself was then altered to show this.
1968: In 'The Shibboleth of Feanor', he is called 'Ereinion Gil-Galad'.

Somewhat confusingly, CT notes that work on the genealogical table of the House of Finwe continued while the 'Shibboleth' was being written. However, he makes no mention of the name 'Ereinion' in this discussion.

Nonetheless, I think the conclusion to be drawn is more or less clear: at some point between 1965 and 1968, 'Ereinion' replaced 'Artanaro/Rodnor' as Gil-Galad's name. So I think we are correct to adopt 'Ereinion'.

Last edited by Aiwendil; 04-16-2009 at 02:09 PM.
Aiwendil is offline   Reply With Quote