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#1 |
Elven Warrior
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Wherever I may roam
Posts: 207
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The TRUE meaning of Bilbo
While searching through the dictionary today, i happened to glance at two entries for bilbo. Here they are:
bilbo(1)- usu. bilboes. A long iron bar fastened at one end by a lock, with sliding shackles. Bilboes were formerly used to confine the ankles of prisoners. bilbo (2)- Archaic a slender sword or rapier noted for the temper of its blade. The dictionary also said the words probably came from Bilbao, a city in Spain famous for its steel. I thought this was interesting and wanted to share it with the online community. |
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#2 |
The Insufferable
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 3,333
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Wow! That's really neat!
Now do you want to tell us the meaning of the word Orc?
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#3 |
'Sober' Mullet Frosh
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Queen's
Posts: 1,245
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Of course what is Bibo's name in Westron?
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#4 |
Halfwitted
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Eryn Vorn
Posts: 1,659
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That is interesting. Neither of those definitions really makes me think of Bilbo though . . . I wonder if Tolkien knew?
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#5 |
'Sober' Mullet Frosh
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Queen's
Posts: 1,245
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Bilbo's name is meaningless check appendix F
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#6 |
The Insufferable
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 3,333
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Yes. Bilbo, Frodo, Peregrin,a nd most other hobbit names were all fairly meaningless.
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#7 |
Elf Lord
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: California
Posts: 60,865
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Sarcastic and mean as ever Shannon, I congratulate you.
The archaic sense of Bilbo seems to fit, it reminds me of Sting. Though Wayfarer may find your information obvious, it was new at least to me. "Bilbo"'s not exactly "meaningless", which I suppose is what Shannon (Wayfarer) the Insufferable was getting at. It is an anglicisation of a Westron word of forgotton meaning. Bilbo Baggins's genuine Hobbitish name was Bilba Labingi. In Westron "a" was masculine and "o" and "e" were feminine, so Tolkien took the name of forgotton meaning (Bilba), and merely changed the ending letter. That's Tolkien's explanation anyway. I bet originally he simply chose Bilbo for a name because of the meaning set out by Treebeard's apprentice above.
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#8 |
Halfwitted
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Eryn Vorn
Posts: 1,659
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That makes sense to me. And actually, Wayfarer, the hobbits' names weren't meaningless. They were all anglicized; in each case, the original Westron name had some meaning that Tolkien preserved when he translated the names into Old English equivalents. So if you spoke Old English, I guess the names would mean something to you.
These are what the names mean, as far as I can recall: Frodo = Maura = "wise from experience" Samwise = Banazir = "dim, halfwitted" Pippin = Razarnur (?) = something to do with apples Meriadoc = Kalimac = and Kali, his nickname, means "merry, happy" Peregrin actually means wanderer, I think (as in peregrine falcon).
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#9 |
'Sober' Mullet Frosh
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Queen's
Posts: 1,245
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Kalimac itself is meaningless just like Meriadoc is modern English, its derivative happens to mean Merry.
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#10 |
The Insufferable
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 3,333
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They don't mean much of anything in modern english.
And any homonym's are strictly coincidental. Tolkien took word-forms that appealed to him and joined them with relevant translations. So 'maura', etc. Then he took words with similar meanings in older languages and altered them.
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#11 |
Best Ex-Administrator ever
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Ireland
Posts: 60,547
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Orc is an actual word, it's a kind of Dolphin.
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#12 |
The Insufferable
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 3,333
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I know. I Know. That's why I used it.
The word Orc in english and Orcs in tolkien are completely unrelated. Tolkein commented on it himself.
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#13 | |||
Elf Lord
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: California
Posts: 60,865
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Here's a quote from Tolkien found in Morgoth's Ring, Myths Transformed:
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
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#14 |
Enting
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: The Last Homely House
Posts: 52
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I Like This Thread, its all about ME
I never realised the potential in my steelistic name. (no, I don't understand myself either). I also agree that my name is meaningless, but then again my creator never knew that I meant something in another language. By the way, won't it be weird when I become an elven warrior? I'll stop existing as a hobbit
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#15 |
The Insufferable
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 3,333
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So that's waht happened to bilbo in Aman!
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Disgraced he may be, yet is not dethroned, and keeps the rags of lordship once he owned |
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#16 |
Lurker
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: Lothlórien
Posts: 3,419
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A bilbo is a traditional Coloniel toy which has a little wooden cup or pedestal on the end of a stick, and a ball on a string attached to the stick, you try to land the ball in the cup by tossing it in the air. (the ball, not the toy)
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#17 | |
Elven Warrior
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Wherever I may roam
Posts: 207
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Quote:
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#18 | |
the Shrike
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: San Francisco, CA <3
Posts: 10,647
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Quote:
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#19 |
Enting
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Chithaeglir (Misty Mountains)
Posts: 86
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I once saw Bilbo on a web page for unusal baby names .
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#20 | |
Elf Lord
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Dorset
Posts: 608
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![]() In the glossary of my 'complete works of Shakespeare' book it give 'Bilbo' as:
Quote:
Okay, not the last two perhaps! ![]()
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