Elvish Word for Sun — Anar in Quenya, Anor in Sindarin

Quick Answer: The Elvish word for sun is Anar in Quenya and Anor in Sindarin. Anar is the Sun's name in The Silmarillion; Anor appears in The Lord of the Rings in names like Minas Anor (Tower of the Sun) and in Gandalf's phrase "the flame of Anor".

The Sun is one of the easiest Elvish words to get right, because Tolkien used it constantly and in famous places. This guide goes deeper on that one word: the two dialect forms, the names that contain it, the related words for sunlight, how it looks in Tengwar, and what to watch for if you want it as a tattoo or a name. For the wider picture, see our broader guides to Elvish words for nature and Elvish words for light and darkness.

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The Core Words

The two headline words are cognates: the same ancient word, shaped differently by the sound changes of each language. Quenya keeps Anar; Sindarin shifted the second vowel and gives Anor. That correspondence — Quenya a where Sindarin has o in the same word — turns up in other pairs as well, which is why so many Quenya and Sindarin words look like cousins.

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Quenya: Anar

Pronunciation: AH-nar, stress on the first syllable, with a lightly tapped r.

Anar is the Sun's name in the Quenya of The Silmarillion. It is the form you meet in the older mythology, in the story of how the Sun first rose. In that story the Sun is guided by a Maia, Arien; we mention her name here only as part of the myth, not as a word to split into pieces.

Quenya also built the Sun into its calendar. In The Lord of the Rings, Appendix D, the Elvish week includes Anarya, the day named for the Sun. The same appendix gives Narquelië, the month name glossed "Sun-fading" (roughly October).

Anárion — child of the Sun

The best-known name carrying Anar is Anárion, the younger son of Elendil and co-founder of Gondor. Our vocabulary database glosses the name as "Child of the Sun." His brother was Isildur, whose name carries Isil, the Quenya Moon. The two brothers are a sun-and-moon pair by design: each founded a city named for his heavenly body.

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Sindarin: Anor

Pronunciation: AH-nor, stress on the first syllable.

Anor is the Sindarin Sun, and it appears all over The Lord of the Rings:

• Minas Anor — "Tower of the Sun," Anárion's city, the original name of Minas Tirith.
• Minas Ithil — its twin, "Tower of the Moon," later Minas Morgul. The pairing Anor / Ithil mirrors Anar / Isil in Quenya.
• Anórien — the region of Gondor known in English as Sunlending. The literal reading "Sun-lands" is inferred by the Eldamo lexicon, not glossed by Tolkien, so treat that part as interpretation.
• Oranor — the Sindarin name of the Sun's day in the Elvish week (LOTR Appendix D), the parallel of Quenya Anarya.
• Narbeleth — the Sindarin month name glossed "Sun-fading" or "Sun-waning," parallel to Quenya Narquelië.

"The flame of Anor"

On the bridge of Khazad-dûm, Gandalf calls himself a servant of the Secret Fire and a wielder of the flame of Anor. He speaks in English in the book — only the name Anor is Elvish. Because Anor is the Sun, the line is usually read as Gandalf setting the Sun's pure light against the Balrog's fire and shadow. Our guide to the Elvish word for fire explains how fire and sunlight are tied together in Elvish vocabulary.

Elanor — the sun-star flower

Elanor is the small golden, star-shaped flower that grows on Cerin Amroth in Lothlórien; Sam later gives the name to his daughter. Eldamo glosses it literally as "sun-star," and the flower is attested in The Lord of the Rings and Unfinished Tales. If you want a name that carries the Sun without saying "Sun" outright, Elanor is the canonical choice.

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Words for Sunlight

Tolkien gave Quenya several words for the Sun's light, each with its own shade of meaning:

• árë — sunlight, the warmth of the sun, and by extension day (LOTR, Etymologies).
• arma — a single ray of sunlight (Parma Eldalamberon 17).
• ceuranar — the "new sun" after the winter solstice (Vinyar Tengwar 48).
• coranar — a year, explained in Appendix D as a "sun-round."

Sindarin gives fael, "gleam of the sun" (The Silmarillion). Eldamo adds a second sense, "gleaming," marked as inferred: that extra meaning is its editors' deduction, not a gloss Tolkien wrote down.

Don't confuse these with aurë, Quenya "day, daylight, morning," the word in Fingon's battle cry Utúlie'n aurë! — "The day has come!" It is about daylight and morning rather than the Sun itself.

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Sun vs Moon vs Star

Because the Sun and Moon are a pair in Tolkien's world, learners often mix up the four words:

Stars are a separate family — elen in Quenya, êl and gîl in Sindarin — covered in our guide to Elvish words for star, night and sky.

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Writing Anar and Anor in Tengwar

In the usual Tengwar modes for Quenya and Sindarin, vowels are written as small marks (tehtar) placed over the consonants, and the Sun's name is short, so it fits neatly in a single line. Quenya and Sindarin use slightly different conventions for where the vowel mark sits, so Anar and Anor will not look like simple copies of each other.

The safest way to see either word in Tengwar is to type it into our Tengwar name tool, which renders the spelling for you and lets you compare both forms side by side. If you plan a tattoo, check the output against a second source before you book.

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Tattoo and Naming Notes

• Use the bare word. Anor or Anar alone is the cleanest choice. Avoid invented English-style endings like "Anora" or "Anorian" presented as "Elvish."
• Pick a dialect deliberately. Anor carries Gondor and The Lord of the Rings; Anar carries the older mythology. Both are fine; mixing them in one phrase is not.
• For a name, Anárion (male, attested) and Elanor (female, attested) are the two canonical sun-names. Building new compounds with Anar is possible, but it is Neo-Elvish and should be labelled that way.
• Phrases are a different matter. "The sun shines on you" and similar sentences are not attested in Tolkien. If you want a sentence, assemble it carefully and label it (Neo); our translator shows which parts are attested.

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People Also Ask

What is the Elvish word for sun? The Sun is Anar in Quenya and Anor in Sindarin. Both appear in Tolkien's published works: Anar in The Silmarillion, Anor in The Lord of the Rings, most famously in Minas Anor, the Tower of the Sun.

What does the flame of Anor mean? When Gandalf faces the Balrog he calls himself a wielder of the flame of Anor. Anor is the Sindarin name of the Sun, so the phrase is usually read as a claim to the light of the Sun against the Balrog's fire and shadow.

What is the Elvish word for sunlight? Quenya árë means sunlight, warmth of the sun, or day. Quenya arma is a single ray of sunlight. Sindarin fael is a gleam of the sun; its second sense, gleaming, is inferred by the Eldamo lexicon rather than written by Tolkien.

Does Anárion mean son of the sun? Yes. Anárion, younger son of Elendil, carries the Quenya Anar. Our vocabulary database glosses the name as Child of the Sun, and his city was Minas Anor, the Tower of the Sun.

Related Reading

• Elvish Words for Star, Night, and Sky — Sindarin & Quenya
• Light and Darkness in Elvish: Quenya & Sindarin Vocabulary for Light, Shadow and Stars
• Elvish Words for Nature: 30+ Quenya & Sindarin Vocabulary
• Elvish Word for Fire — Sindarin & Quenya
• Elvish Words for Time: Days, Months and the Elvish Calendar
• Elvish Word for Sea — Ëar in Quenya, Gaear in Sindarin
• Elvish Tattoo Ideas — 35 Phrases with Translations & Tengwar Script
• Elvish Word for Mountain — Oron in Quenya, Orod in Sindarin

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