Quote:
Originally Posted by The Sixth Wizard
Tolkien says that the dwarves didn't even inscribe their true names on their tombs. It's at the end of section 1 in Appendix F of LOTR.
|
Ah, that was not my intended meaning when I wrote that (over a year ago, mind you!); I wasn't talking about his true name. "Balin" was his outer name in Northern Mannish; the sarcophagus should, I thought, have borne the Khuzdul translation of "Balin" (which, I believe, would still have been his outer name). I believe Professor Tolkien was aware of this but decided to leave it as-is, as noted in "Of Dwarves and Men".
But having looked into it, now I have my doubts. Am I being too clever for myself, and Professor Tolkien actually meant he should have rendered the Northern Mannish in its actual form rather than in Old Norse, and the Khuzdul form was the true name?
e.g. As I understand it "Balin" might mean something like "Burning" in Old Norse (i.e. Mannish) — was his true name the Khuzdul for "Burning", or was it something entirely different? I keep re-editing this post because I'm worried I'm not making my point...
Anyway it's not on topic for this thread.
The success or failure of the Amazon series will derive, I suspect, on how well they are able to market it (whether or not it's true to the source material in tone and language, which it almost certainly won't be).