In the earlier phases of Tolkien's writing, he commonly referred to the Noldor as 'Gnomes', alluding to Greek gnōmē meaning 'thought, idea, opinion'. He later chose to abandon this usage, fearing confusion with the popular associations of the word 'gnome', but Finrod's Mannish name of Nóm represents a last survival of this otherwise abandoned concept.

In the original form of the passage describing the meeting of Finrod and Bëor (given in volume IV of The History of Middle-earth, Bëor and his Men named Finrod 'Gnome or Wisdom', implying that 'Gnome' was a Mannish name for Elves, or at least of the Noldor. Tolkien later removed all references to the word 'Gnome', with the sole exception of this passage. Here the word 'Gnome' was retained, but transliterated as Nóm and represented as a word for 'Wisdom' in the Bëorian tongue.