The Rivers and Beacon-hills of Gondor

John Ronald Ruel Tolkien

The Rivers and Beacon-hills of Gondor

Introduction

This historical and etymological essay titled only "Nomenclature" by its author, belongs with other, similar writings that Christopher Tolkien has dated to c. 1967-69 (XII.293-94), including Of Dwarves and Men, The Shibboleth of Feanor, and The History of Galadriel and Celeborn, and that were published, in whole or in part, in Unfinished Tales and The Peoples of Middle-earth. Indeed, Christopher Tolkien gave numerous excerpts from this essay in Unfinished Tales. He prepared a fuller presentation of the text for The Peoples of Middle-earth, but it was omitted from that volume on consideration of length.

Christopher Tolkien has kindly provided me with both the full text of the essay and of his own edited version intended for The Peoples of Middle-earth. That edition, being intended for a more general audience and made under constraints of space, naturally omits a number of more technical and/or discursive philological passages and notes. In editing the text for the more specialized audience of Vinyar Tengwar, I have of course restored all such philological matter. I have also retained, with his gracious consent, as much of Christopher Tolkien's own commentary on the essay as practicable (clearly identified as such throughout), while providing some additional commentary and notes of my own, primarily on linguistic matters. In addition to Christopher Tolkien, I would like to extend my gratitude to john Garth, Christopher Gilson, Wayne Hammond, Christina Scull, Arden Smith, and Patrick Wy

The essay consists of thirteen typescript pages, numbered i to 13 by Tolkien. A torn, u

Concerning the origin and date of this essay, Christopher Tolkien writes: "On 30 June 1969 my father wrote a letter to Mr Paul Bibire, who had written to him a week before, telling him that he had passed the Bachelor of Philosophy examination in Old English at Oxford; he referred a little disparagingly to his success, achieved despite neglect of certain parts of the course which he found less appealing, and notably the works of the Old English poet Cynewulf (see Sauron Defeated, p. 285 note 36). At the end of his letter Mr Bibire said: ‘Incidentally, there's something that I've been wondering about since I saw the relevant addition to the second edition [of The Lord of the Rings]: whether the River Glanduin is the same as the Swanfleet' (for the reference see Sauron Defeated, p. 70 and note 15)." Christopher Tolkien has provided the relevant portions of his father's reply (which was not included in the collection of letters edited with Humphrey Carpenter):{1}

It was kind of you to write to me again. I was very interested in your news of yourself, and very sympathetic. I found and find dear Cynewulf a lamentable bore—lamentable, because it is a matter for tears that a man (or men) with talent in word-spi

I am grateful to you for pointing out the use of Glanduin in the Appendix A, III, p. 319.{3} I have no index of the Appendices and must get one made. The Glanduin is the same river as the Swanfleet, but the names are not related. I find on the map with corrections that are to be made for the new edition to appear at the end of this year that this river is marked by me as both Glanduin and various compounds with alph ‘swan'.{4} The name Glanduin was meant to be ‘border-river', a name given as far back as the Second Age when it was the southern border of Eregion, beyond which were the unfriendly people of Dunland. In the earlier centuries of the Two Kingdoms Enedwaith (Middle-folk) was a region between the realm of Gondor and the slowly receding realm of Arnor (it originally included Minhiriath (Mesopotamia)). Both kingdoms shared an interest in the region, but were mainly concerned with the upkeep of the great road that was their main way of communication except by sea, and the bridge at Tharbad. People of Númenórean origin did not live there, except at Tharbad, where a large garrison of soldiers and river-wardens was once maintained. In those days there were drainage works, and the banks of the Hoarwell and Greyflood were strengthened. But in the days of The Lord of the Rings the region had long become ruinous and lapsed into its primitive state: a slow wide river ru

If the name Glanduin was still remembered it would apply only to the upper course where the river ran down swiftly, but was soon lost in the plains and disappeared into the fens. I think I may keep Glanduin on the map for the upper part, and mark the lower part as fenlands with the name Nîn-in-Eilph (water-lands of the Swans), which will adequately explain Swanfleet river, III.263.{5}

alph ‘swan' occurs as far as I remember only on III, p. 392.{6} It could not be Quenya, as ph is not used in my transcription of Quenya, and Quenya does not tolerate final consonants other than the dentals, t. n, l, r after a vowel.{7} Quenya for ‘swan' was alqua (alkwā). The "Celtic" branch of Eldarin (Telerin and Sindarin) turned kw > p, but did not, as Celtic did, alter original p.{8} The much changed Sindarin of Middle-earth turned the stops to spirants after l, r, as did Welsh: so *alkwā > alpa (Telerin) > S. alf (spelt alph in my transcription).

At the end of the letter Tolkien added a postscript:

I am myself much recovered—though it has taken a year, which I could ill afford.{9} I can walk about fairly normally now, up to two miles or so (occasionally), and have some energy. But not enough to cope with both continued composition and the endless "escalation" of my business.

At the head of the present essay. Tolkien wrote "Nomenclature", followed by: "Swanfleet river (L.R. rev. edition, III 263) and Glanduin, III App. A. 319"; and then by: "Queried by P. Bibire (letter June 23,1969; ans. June 30). As more briefly stated in my reply: Glanduin means ‘border-river'." The essay is thus seen to have arisen as an expansion and elaboration of the remarks in his reply.

1

My thanks to Mr. Bibire for providing me with a photocopy of this letter.

2

That it was two lines from a ‘poem attributed to Cynewulf, the Crist, that inspired Tolkien to create his mythology (cf. L:385, and Carpenter's Biography, pp. 72, 79), is an irony that no doubt keenly sharpened Tolkien's lament.

3

I.e., LR:1015.

4

No such corrected edition appeared in 1969, or during the remainder of Tolkien's life. For the corrected map that Tolkien refers to, and its fate, cf. UT:261-62 footnote, and 265.

5

I.e.,LR:962.

6

I.e.,LR:1088,entry for PH.

7

Cf. L:425: "Q. permitted, indeed favoured, the ‘dentals' n, l, r, s, t as final consonants: no other final consonants appear in the Q. lists" Tolkien's list here omits s, no doubt unintentionally.

8

Original p in most environments disappeared in Celtic.

9

Tolkien fell down stairs and injured his leg on June 17,1968, while he and Edith were preparing to move house from Oxford to Bournemouth. Cf. L:391ff., and Humphrey Carpenter's Biography, p. 251.