Elves
This article is under construction
| Elves | |
|---|---|
| Race | |
| File:WAR-ICONS elves.jpg | |
| General Information | |
| Members | Ingwë, Thingol, Finwë, Fëanor, Galadriel |
| Physical Description | |
| Distinctions | Nearly immortal, inventors of writing and other arts |
| Gallery | Images of Elves |
- "[The Elves] were a race high and beautiful, the older Children of the World, and among them the Eldar were as kings.... They were tall, fair of skin and grey-eyed, though their locks were dark... and their voices had more melodies than any mortal voice that now is heard."
- ― J.R.R. Tolkien, from The Lord of the Rings: Appendix F
The Elves (singular Elf) were one of the kindreds of the Children of Ilúvatar, and bore the title the Firstborn because they came into being before all the other incarnate races. Soon after their awakening, the Elves named themselves Quendi ("the Speakers"), because they were the only beings they knew of who had the ablility to use language. The Elves were divided into several primary groups, including the Vanyar, the Noldor, the Teleri, the Sindar, and the Avari.
History
Awakening
- Main article: Awakening of the Elves
The Elves awoke in the northeast of Middle-earth during the Years of the Trees in the First Age on the shores of Lake Cuiviénen under the starlit sky, as Middle-earth lay in darkness at that time. Some time after their awakening, they were discovered by the Vala Oromë, who then returned to Valinor and brought the other Valar tidings of their arrival. Before Oromë found them, however, Melkor, the first Dark Lord of Middle-earth, had already captured some wandering Elves, and twisted them into Orcs. But the Valar were emboldened by the news of Oromë, and they made war upon Melkor, captured him, and imprisoned him in the Halls of Mandos in Valinor in order to protect the Elves.
Sundering
- Main article: Sundering of the Elves
The Valar decided to summon the Elves to Valinor rather than leave them in the more dangerous lands of Middle-earth. They sent Oromë to the Elves again, and he took Ingwë, Finwë and Elwë as ambassadors to Valinor.
After returning to Middle-earth and telling the Elves of the beauty of the Blessed Realm, Ingwë, Finwë, and Elwë convinced a great host to make the journey to Valinor. Not all Elves accepted the summons, though, and those who remained in Middle-earth became known as the Avari, or the "Unwilling".
The others were called the Eldar, or "Starpeople", by Oromë, and they took Ingwë, Finwë, and Elwë as their leaders, and became respectively the Vanyar, Noldor and Teleri. On their journey, some of the Teleri feared the Misty Mountains and dared not cross them. They stayed in the vales of the Anduin, and became the Nandor.
Oromë led the others over the Misty Mountains and Ered Lindon into Beleriand. There Elwë was lost, and the Teleri stayed behind looking him. The Vanyar and the Noldor traveled to a floating island that was moved by Ulmo to Valinor.
After several years, Ulmo returned to Beleriand to retrieve the remaining Teleri. As Elwë had not yet been found, the Teleri took his brother Olwë as their leader. Some (called the Eglath or "Forsaken") stayed behind, however, since they were still looking for Elwë. Others remained on the shores, for they were devoted to Ossë. These Elves took Círdan as their leader and became the Falathrim. All the Teleri who stayed in Beleriand became known as the Sindar, or Grey-elves.
These complex divisions are shown in the diagram below:
Exile
- Main article: Exile of the Noldor
In Valinor, Fëanor, son of Finwë and the greatest of the Noldor, created the Silmarils in which he stored the light of the Two Trees. After three ages in the Halls of Mandos, Melkor was released. He spread his evil through the hearts of the Noldor, and eventually killed Finwë and stole the Silmarils. Fëanor then named him Morgoth. Fëanor and his seven sons then swore to take the Silmarils back, and led a large army of the Noldor to Beleriand to war against Morgoth.
Wars of Beleriand
- Main article: Wars of Beleriand
In Beleriand, Elwë was eventually found, and married Melian the Maia. He was then known as Elu Thingol and became the overlord of Beleriand. After the First Battle of Beleriand, during the first rising of the Moon, the Noldor arrived in Beleriand. They laid a siege around Angband, but were eventually defeated.
Then Eärendil the Mariner, a Half-elf, sailed to Valinor to ask the Valar for help. Upon hearing Eärendil's request, the Curse of the Noldor was lifted, and the Valar began the War of Wrath, in which Morgoth was finally overcome.
Second and Third Age
After the War of Wrath, the Valar summoned the Eldar back to the West. Many complied, but some stayed. During the Second Age, they founded the Realms of Lindon, Eregion and Mirkwood. Sauron, Morgoth’s former servant, made war upon them, but with the aid of the Númenóreans they stayed his attacks.
During the Second and Third Age the High Elves held some protected realms with the aid of the Rings of Power, but after the War of the Ring their influence waned further, and most of the Eldar left Middle-earth for Valinor.
Fourth Age and beyond
With the destruction of the One Ring, the power of the Three Rings of the Elves ended and the Dominion of Men began. Those Elves that remained in Middle-earth were doomed to a slow decline until, in the words of Galadriel, they faded and became a "rustic folk of dell and cave," and were greatly diminished from their ancient power and nobility.
However, immediately after the end of the Third Age, there were still many Elven communities in Middle-earth. Elladan and Elrohir, the sons of Elrond, did not accompany their father when the White Ship bearing the Ringbearer and the chief Noldorin leaders sailed from the Grey Havens to Valinor; they were said to have remained in Rivendell for a time. Celeborn was said to have added most of southern Mirkwood to the realm of Lórien at the end of the Third Age, and Thranduil continued to rule the northern part of that forest.
Also, many Elves moved to Ithilien during King Elessar's reign, and assisted in the rebuilding of Gondor. Legolas remained in Middle-earth until after the King's death. Some Elves continued to dwell at the Grey Havens as well. Círdan did not sail with Elrond and Galadriel, as he would only leave on the last ship to ever leave the Havens.
It is assumed those of the Quendi who never travelled to Aman, such as the Avari, succumbed to the change and mortality of the Middle-earth. Their bodies were consumed by their souls, and simply faded away and, not unlike the Ringwraiths, turned into purely spiritual creatures invisible to the eye.
Life cycle
(Main Article: Elven Life cycle)
The Elves had a very different life cycle than Men.
Characteristics
(Main Article: Elven Characteristics)
The Elves were a far more beautiful race than Men, and generally taller. Among them, those who had gone to Valinor were the fairest and had the greatest skill of body.
Customs
(Main Article: Elven Customs)
Elvish languages
- Main article: Elvish
The Elves had at least as many languages as they had divisions. The tongue originally common to them all, that they spoke at Cuiviénen, was referred to as Primitive Quendian. All other Elvish languages were derived from it, as shown below:
- Primitive Quendian
- Avarin
- Various Avarin languages (some later merged with Nandorin)
- Common Eldarin (the early language of all the Eldar)
- Quenya (the language of the Noldor and the Vanyar)
- Quendya (also Vanyarin Quenya) (daily tongue of the Vanyar: closest to archaic Quenya)
- Noldorin Quenya (also Exilic Quenya) (the "Elven Latin" of Middle-earth)
- Common Telerin (the early language of all the Lindar)
- Telerin (the language of the Teleri who reached the Undying Lands)
- Nandorin (languages of the Nandor — some were influenced by Avarin)
- Original language of Greenwood the Great
- Original language of Lórinand
- Sindarin (language of the Sindar)
- Doriathrin (dialect of Doriath)
- Falathrin (dialect of the Falas and Nargothrond)
- North Sindarin (dialects of Dorthonion and Hithlum)
- Quenya (the language of the Noldor and the Vanyar)
- Avarin
Those languages that were written down were done so using the Tengwar and Cirth scripts.
