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Ithil

Ithil is a term from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium that denotes the Moon in Sindarin, one of the Elvish languages he devised. In contrast to Anor, the Sindarin word for the Sun, Ithil is used in literary and toponymic contexts to evoke the Moon’s light and cycles. The word reflects Tolkien's philological approach to naming in Middle-earth.

One of the best known uses is Minas Ithil, the Tower of the Moon, a fortress-city of

Ithil also appears in the name Ithilien, the land south of Ithil's line in Gondor. The Moon

Gondor
built
on
the
eastern
border
near
Mordor.
It
stood
in
what
would
later
be
called
Ithilien,
a
region
named
for
the
Moon
that
lies
between
Gondor
and
Mordor.
In
the
course
of
the
War
of
the
Ring,
Minas
Ithil
fell
to
Sauron's
forces
and
was
renamed
Minas
Morgul,
often
translated
as
the
Tower
of
Sorcery,
a
stronghold
for
the
Nazgûl.
motif
recurs
in
Elvish
poetry
and
lore,
underscoring
the
cultural
significance
of
celestial
bodies
in
the
languages
and
stories
Tolkien
developed
for
Middle-earth.
The
association
of
Ithil
with
places
and
regions
helped
shape
the
geopolitical
and
symbolic
geography
of
the
southern
lands
beyond
Minas
Morgul.