Female Elf Names

How is a female elf name built?

In the Elvish languages, a name is often a short phrase. You start from a root that says what matters to the character (a star, the sea, a flower), then add an ending that says who she is:

• -iel: "daughter of…". Isiliel, daughter of the moon.
• -wen: "maiden". Elenwen, maiden of the stars.
• -eth: a feminine ending, "lady". Celebeth, lady of silver.
• -riel: "crowned maiden", hence "princess". Lothriel, princess of the flowers.
• -tári: "queen". Isiltári, queen of moonlight.
• -ril: "brilliance", the radiant one. Nimril, radiant one of the snows.

For a softer or more mysterious name, the neutral endings work too: -las (leaf), -mir (jewel), -dil (friend) or -hen (eye). Every one of these words is explained in the Elvish dictionary.

Choosing the right name for your elf

• Start from her story. A wood elf suits Taur-, Orn- or Loth-, a coastal elf Aer-, Eär- or Ros-, a sorceress Hîth- (mist), Ith- (moon) or Mith- (grey).
• Listen to the sound. Names in -wen and -iel are soft, names in -eth are crisper. Say it out loud: your friends will be saying it too.
• Think about your gamer tag. For an online game, pick a short name without accents: Sireth rather than Sîreth.
• Keep a few in reserve. If your first choice is taken, a name with the same root keeps the same meaning.