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| Arwen Undomiel or Arwen Evenstar http://arwen-undomiel.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=209 |
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| Author: | Elthir [ December 23rd, 2016, 9:09 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: |
Quote: So if Greenleaf is not legolas's last name? what does it mean? i know it means his first name as well, but why do they call him greenleaf? My guess is that folks do not normally call Legolas by the Westron (Common Speech) translation of his name [some unknown name translated into Modern English as "Greenleaf"], and what we have with Galadriel's verse and Gandalf's usage are perhaps out of the ordinary examples. While not exactly the same, I used to call someone at work not by her name, but by the meaning of her last name [which sounded nothing like her actual last name] -- only once in a while however (and only because I knew it of course), and also she had a first name, so I could couple it with that too. So it appears that Gandalf actually used the Common Speech version of Legolas' name, along with the Elvish version, in at least one instance: "Stay, Legolas Greeleaf!" said Gandalf. "Do not go back into the wood, not yet! Now is not your time." Is there another instance? Can't recall at the moment. Anyway, perhaps here Gandalf "doubled up", so to speak, to lend gravity to his command; after all Legolas had just looked at the forest with regret, and actually started to ride back after seeing the eyes... as I read this it's almost as if he is losing himself to the wood and eyes within, forgetting the importance of the here and now (The Road To Isengard), and Gandalf wants to snap him out of it for the moment. External Answer In general I think Tolkien, with a fine tuned ear for the sound and flow of names, sometimes simply liked the flow of a given Elvish name coupled with its English translation. In another instance in the Appendices, we read of Thingol Greycloak, which like Legolas Greenleaf (to my ear anyway), sounds nice together as a "name". Of course the Thingol reference is in narration, not in character speech, and could be explained away differently from an internal perspective anyway. Technically Legolas means "green leaves, foliage", as las(s) means "leaf" but go-lass means "foliage, collection of leaves". But that noted, obviously "Greenleaf" is not wrong, as it's even simplified in this way by Tolkien himself. The purer Sindarin form (without the Silvan dialect) is Laegolas [Sindarin laeg + golas(s), Silvan leg + golas(s)]. My two pennies anyway. |
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| Author: | Jax Nova [ December 25th, 2016, 12:13 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Arwen Undomiel or Arwen Evenstar |
This is an interesting conversation to read up on. Read theough some of the previous comments. I used to think it was his name, but because my siblings were well versed in Tolkien works they informed me otherwise. (Back when i atill lived at hime) Sadly indon't have that casual LOTR conversation anymore in my real life now that all of us are out on our own. It's nice to get a little of that here on the forum still, even at it's lowly state. 
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