Morwinyon, the equivalent to Arcturus, is a star of Eä, mentioned only in the Tolkien's earliest tales of the First Age as compiled in The Book of Lost Tales Part One.[1][2][3]
In that book, Christopher Tolkien identifies this star as Arcturus, the third brightest individual star visible in our Northern Hemisphere.[1][2][3]
History
The Vala Manwë suddenly became of the awakening of the Elves. Their arrival prompted Varda to create new stars to add to the celestial glory of Arda. At the end of this task, Varda was returning in great haste to Valinor, and she dropped Morwinyon in the west where it blazes high above Arda's edge.[1][2][3]
Later, it was said that jewel-makers caught their inspiration from the stars and "...not least did they love Morwinyon of the west, whose name meaneth the glint at dusk". In the commentary in this chapter, Christopher Tolkien notes that Morwinyon was identified in both the Quenya and Gnomish word-lists as Arcturus. Strangely, it is represented as always being in the western sky. Apparently in the ancient mythology of the Elves, not all heavenly bodies moved from East to West.[1][2][3]
Etymology
Morwinyon is a word in Quenya derived from the roots moro ("glint in the dark") and wintil ("a glint"), a derivative of gwini. Its Gnomish cognate is Morwinthi, which probably is connected to gwim/gwinc ("spark, flash") or gwimla ("wink, twinkle").[3]
| Stars in the Heavens |
|---|
|
Alcarinquë | Borgil | Carnil | Elemmírë | Gil-Orestel | Helluin | Luinil | Lumbar | Morwinyon | Néner |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The History of Middle-earth, Vol. I: The Book of Lost Tales Part One, V: "The Coming of the Elves and the Making of Kôr"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 The History of Middle-earth, Vol. I: The Book of Lost Tales Part One, VIII: "The Tale of the Sun and Moon"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 The History of Middle-earth, Vol. I: The Book of Lost Tales Part One, Appendix: Names in the Lost Tales - Part 1, entry "Morwinyon"