Staff
 

Hi all. I accomplished one of my goals yesterday, and bought a staff - a real, proper Gandalf staff. It's over 50 years old, Norwegian, and magical (apparently).

I'd love to hear some suggestions for what to name it. I looked through a few threads on Gandalf's staff and I noticed a couple of references to the linguistic roots of Tolkien's names. Any related to staffs or wandering? I was also thinking about using a Norwegian word so I'd like to hear from any Norwegian Barrowdowners for their opinion on good words: Cailín thought that any Norwegian word I discovered for the staff would be considered twee if I went hiking in Norway.

Ideas are very welcome. :smokin:

Virðuligr ulfr

A virtuous wolf? :)

Something like that, I belive it can also mean "honorable"

Or maybe it should named after a Norwegain, maybe the name "Hardråde" would be fitting? Meaning something like Hard/Stern Counsil/Ruler

Hi Eomer,

sounds great!

What would the Norwegian be for 'Telcontar'?

Also remember Frodo and Sam's staffs, given by Faramir, made from Lebethron.

I believe the Norwegian translation for Strider is Vidvandre.

In Swedish it's Vidstige.

Perhaps you would consider a name more straight to the point: Norwegian Wood?

Isn't it good?

:o

I wanted to rep you for that, but I was not allowed to. . .funny stuff.

All immature jokes have already been made, by me. :D

Thanks for the suggestions, folks. Also, do any other Downers utilise a staff in day-to-day life? Got many stares in town today, and people at work seem to think it's very amusing.

I think they fear the magic.

What about Gungnir, after Odin's spear? True, it's not a staff, exactly: but Gungnir with its runes also embodied Odin's mastery of magic and law.

Best of all, it was made by the dwarf Dvalin.

Noting Silmarllion, we have 'ran- 'wander, stray' Rána (a name of the Moon), or in Mithrandir with -randir meaning 'wander-man, pilgrim' (incidentally note Tolkien on the name Gandalf: '... to contain gandr, a staff, especially one used in magic' from UT, the Istari).

For 'staff' early Qenya has vandl, if you wanted to accept such a word anyway. It is Tolkien-made Qenya at least (some have simply taken this word and 'updated' it, so to speak, as *vandil, but this is not attested as far as I know).

I haven't checked PE17 as to whether or not there is something attested for 'staff' in any Quenya stage dating from the 1950s or later.

So once again Tolkien gets caught borrowing words! Vandl is pretty clearly English wand, cognate with Norse gandr (by g > w mutation).

One also wonders about Ger. wenden (to proceed, go), OE wandan (to turn, meander), still found in English wend, wander, and the borrowed past-tense went. Both words apparently descend from the Pr. Germ. root *wend- (the old sense was bending, suppleness, thus a supple stick- hence the use of such in wattlework gave rise to Mod. Ger. Wand "wall.")

I checked the Gnomish Lexicon, and there is a Gnomish form (and a Qenya there too):

Gnomish 'bang staff (Q. vanga)'

With respect to Tolkien's sources, generally speaking at least, Carl Hostetter's and Pat Wynne's column Words and Devices (in Vinyar Tengwar) is basically an endeavor to highlight the intended historical connections between the Eldarin languages and those of the Primary World, especially Indo-European.

Of course the question of Tolkien's sources is a complex matter! and (in any case) I am not sure that any of these words meaning 'staff' were retained in the later context of the 50s and 60s versions of Quenya and Sindarin.

No, of course not. But in his youth he was apparently less "pure" than he would admit he had been in the 50s and 60s!

Is there anybody who knows anyting about old norse? any icelandic people around?

How does one say walking staff?

Is it something like this:

Ganga-félagi