Amilessë

Amilessë, Quenya for "mother-name", was the name given to an elf at, or some years after, birth by his or her mother, and it was one of the Elf's true names. It is one of the anessi, or given names, of High Elves, along with the father-name and epessë ("after-name" or honorific).

The mother-name is a public name to an Elf and is quite significant because Elven mothers had insight into the characters and abilities of their children, and many also had the gift of prophetic foresight.

The most common type of mother-name is the amilessë tercenyë ("mother-name of insight"), given to the child as his or her personality began to develop, some years after birth. The amilessë apacenyë ("mother-name of foresight") was a more rare occurrence, given to the child from a vision of his or her special fate that the mother received in the hour of birth.

For example Fëanáro ("Spirit of Fire") was the amilessë of Fëanor. Other examples of amilessi include: Aracáno ("high chieftain"), Atarincë ("little father"), Tyelcormo ("hasty-riser").