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2.31  Dol Dúgol, Dol Dúghul

§ Dol Dúgol >> Dol Dúghul (TI:234,296) < dôl ’head’ (NDOL-) or dol ’head, hill’ (RC:433), ’head; often applied to hills and mountains’ (Silm.index), S. dol (doll) (PE17:36) and N. ’nightfall, late evening’ or ’night, dread of night’ (DOƷ-, DÔ-) + gûl ’magic’ (ÑGOL-); lenited to -ghul in the latter case.

This is the name of Dol Guldur, a hill in Southern Mirkwood. The compound of and -gul or -gol results in ’dark magic, sorcery’. Tolkien was not sure about the vowel here, compare dûghol, morgol >> durgul, mor(n)gul ’sorcery’ (VT46:3). Long ō would result in long ū, shortened in the compound, while short o would remain.
Morgol also appears in Minas Morgol (TI:120).


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