Quote:
Encyclopedia of Arda writes (as quoted in the thread): 'Carn Dûm is very difficult to translate. Indeed, not only is there no attested meaning of the name, but we can't even be sure of the language it comes from! There are at least four possibilities.
The most obvious relies on the Elvish word car(a)n, meaning 'red'. From this, many have assumed that the entire name is Elvish, and presumably Sindarin. In support of this, the name Angmar, for the land where Carn Dûm stood, seems to be definitely Sindarin. On the other hand, there is no known connection between Carn Dûm and the colour red, and - a serious difficulty - dûm is almost certainly not an Elvish word. Dûm isn't Elvish, but it is one of the very few words of Dwarvish vocabulary that we know for certain. (...) The possibility that Carn Dûm comes from the Black Speech (...) A final possibility is that Carn Dûm comes from a Mannish language.
|
I would go with Grey-elven, and 'Red Valley.'
Quote:
|
'The name of the vale was first Carndoom the Red Valley; above was written Carondûn and Doon-Caron, but these were struck out.' Note 13, The Ring Goes South, The Return of the Shadow.
|
That's from a draft -- 'Carndoom' was an earlier name for Dimrill Dale -- but still quite notable. Also, we have a
tum 'deep valley' in Sindarin (Tumladen).
Not for certain perhaps, but my first choice.