S. Amon Gwareth loc.
The hill upon which Gondolin was built (S/126). The first word is clearly amon “hill”, but the meaning of the second word is unclear.
Conceptual Development: In the earliest Lost Tales, G. Amon Gwareth was translated “Hill of Watch” (LT2/158), and appeared in the Gnomish Lexicon as the lenited form Amon ’Wareth “Hill of Ward”. Similar translations of N. Amon Gwareth appeared early drafts of the Silmarillion from the beginning of the 1930s (SM/34, 137, 139), but the name was left untranslated in Tolkien’s later writings. It is unclear whether the name retained its original meaning. The closest forms in The Etymologies from the 1930s is N. gwarth “betrayer” < ᴹ√WAR “give way, betray” (Ety/WAR), but it seems unlikely this was connected.
According to Christopher Tolkien, this name was at one point revised to Amon Gwared (WJ/200) in the his father’s later writings, but this form did not appear in the published Silmarillion.
References ✧ SI/Amon Gwareth; WJ/200; WJI/Amon Gwareth
Variations
Changes
Elements
| amon | “hill, mountain with steep sides; lump, clump, mass” |
| G. gwareth? | “watch, guard, ward; vigilance” |
N. Amon Gwareth loc. “Hill of Watch”
References ✧ LR/56; LRI/Amon Gwareth; SM/137, 139; SMI/Amon Gwareth
Glosses
Changes
Elements
| amon | “hill” |
| G. gwareth | “watch, guard, ward; vigilance” |
G. Amon Gwareth loc. “Hill of Watch”
References ✧ GL/19; LT1A/Tinfang; LT2/158; LT2A/Amon Gwareth; LT2I/Amon Gwareth; PE15/20
Glosses
Variations
Changes
Elements
| amon¹ | “hill, mount, steep slope” | ✧ GL/19; LT2A/Amon Gwareth; PE15/20 |
| gwareth? | “watch, guard, ward; vigilance” | ✧ LT2A/Amon Gwareth; PE15/20 (’wareth) |