$49. Personal names.
Bilbo. The actual H. name was Bilba, as explained above.(32)
Frodo. On the other hand the H. name was Maura.(33) This was not a common name in the Shire, but I think it probably once had a meaning, even if that had long been forgotten. No word maur- can be found in the contemporary C.S., but again recourse to comparison with the language of Rohan is enlightening. In that language there was an adjective maur-, no longer current at this time, but familiar in verse or higher styles of speech; it meant 'wise, experienced'. I have, therefore, rendered Maura by Frodo, an old Germanic name, that appears to contain the word frod which in ancient English corresponded closely in meaning to Rohan maur.
Meriadoc (Merry). The real name was Chilimanzar [> Cilimanzar], a high-sounding and legendary name. I have chosen Meriadoc for the following reasons. Buckland in many ways occupied a position with regard to the Shire such as Wales does to England; and it is not wholly inappropriate, therefore, to represent its many very peculiar names by names of a Celtic or specifically Welsh character. Among such names I chose Meriadoc, mainly because it gives naturally a shortening 'Merry'; for the abbreviation of Chilimanzar [> Cilimanzar] by which this character was usually known was Chilic [> Cilic], a C.S. word meaning exactly 'gay or merry'.(34)
Peregrin (Pippin). The H. name was Razanul [> Razanur]. This was the name of a legendary traveller, and probably contains the C.S. elements raza 'stranger', razan 'foreign'. I therefore chose Peregrin to represent it, though it does not fit quite so well. Of Peregrin, Pippin is I suppose a not impossible 'pet-form'; but it is not so close to its original, as is Razal [> Razar] (a kind of small red apple) by which abbreviation Razanul Tuca [> Razanur Tuc] was almost inevitably known to his contemporaries.(35)
Sam. His real name was Ban, short for Banzir. In C.S. ba-, ban- occurred in many words with the meaning 'half-, almost', while zir(a) meant 'wise'. I have therefore translated his name by ancient English samwis of similar sense. This was convenient, since Samwise will yield an abbreviation Sam. Now Ban was a common short name in the Shire, but was usually then derived from the more elevated name Bannatha, as Sam is with us usually shortened from Samuel.(36)
Uma pena. Tolkien devia ter escrito o SdA em westron!
