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[[Image:John Howe - Treebeard.jpg|thumb|''Treebeard'' by [[John Howe]].]]
{{race
'''Ents''' were created at the request of [[Yavanna]] to guard the trees, and thus were called "Shepherds of the Trees".
|image=[[File:John Howe - Ents.jpg|250px]]
|name=Ents
|dominions=[[Treegarth of Orthanc]], [[Fangorn Forest]], [[Eriador]], [[East Beleriand]]
|languages=[[Entish]], [[Elvish]], [[Westron]]
|height=Varies; usually very tall
|length= 
|skincolor=Earthy colors
|haircolor=
|distinctions=Tree-like appearance
|lifespan=Immortal
|members= [[Treebeard]], [[Quickbeam]]
}}
The '''Ents''' were sentient, humanoid beings created at the request of [[Yavanna]] to protect the trees from other creatures, particularly Dwarves,<ref>{{S|1}}</ref> and thus were called "Shepherds of the Trees".  
==History==
===Creation===
After the Dwarves, the Ents are the most ancient people and living creatures surviving in the [[Third Age]]<ref name=lp/><ref>{{L|131}}</ref> but were not a part of the [[Music of the Ainur]].<ref name=L247>{{L|247}}</ref> [[Yavanna]] saw that [[Eru]] gave life to [[Aulë]]'s children, the [[Dwarves]], whom he made from stone; but they were wont to fell trees. She then asked also herself (through [[Manwe]]) for His mercy, and to give life to growing things as He did with the Dwarves.<ref name=aule>{{S|Aule}}</ref> At her behest, Ents came into being, trees inhabited by souls<ref name=guide>{{HM|Guide}}, entry "Ents"</ref> created/sent by Eru; or [[Spirit (disambiguation)|spirits]] who took the likeness of trees because of their devotion to them.<ref name=L247/>


As with ''[[Hobbit]]'', '''Ent''' is a term that in modern times is almost exclusively connected with [[J.R.R. Tolkien]], and the usage of the term seldom evokes in people its earlier meanings.
Ents were envisioned as Shepherds of the Trees and their duty was to protect the forests from [[Orcs]], Dwarves and other perils.<ref name=aule/> The males were devoted to [[Orome]] while the [[Entwives]] to Yavanna.<ref name=L247/>


==Concerning Ents==
The Ents perhaps were created around the same time [[Awakening of the Elves|as the Elves]].<ref name=guide/> The [[Eldar]]<ref group="note">Possibly Eldar of the [[Great March]].</ref> loved to talk to everything and had tales of teaching the trees to talk. They gave them the desire to speak and taught them [[Elvish]].<ref name=lp>{{App|Other}}</ref> [[Treebeard]] said the Elves "curing the Ents of their dumbness" was a great gift that could not be forgotten.<ref name=treebeard>{{TT|III4}}</ref>


Ents are a very old race that appeared in [[Middle-earth]] when the [[Elves]] did. They were apparently created by [[Ilúvatar|Eru Ilúvatar]] at the behest of Yavanna, after she learned that [[Aulë]]'s children, the [[Dwarves]], were wont to fell trees. Ents were envisioned as Shepherds of the Trees, to protect the forests from [[Orcs]], Dwarves and other perils. The Elves have tales of teaching the trees to talk, and they also taught the Ents to talk: although the Ents were sentient beings at the time, they did not know how to speak until the Elves taught them. [[Treebeard]] said of the Elves "curing the Ents of their dumbness" that it was a great gift that could not be forgotten ("Always wanted to talk to everything, the old Elves did").
Before even [[Morgoth]] returned to the North the first Ents were not as wise or strong as in later times. They developed a language, [[Entish]], which was much simpler back then, and had very small knowledge of other [[languages]].<ref name=L247/>


[[Image:John Howe - Ents.jpg|thumb|200pxlleft|''Ents'' by [[John Howe]].]]  
=== Rise and Decline ===
Ents are tree-like creatures, having become like the trees that they shepherd. They vary in traits, from everything to height and size, colouring, and the number of fingers and toes. An individual Ent more or less resembles the specific species of tree that they typically guard.  For example, [[Quickbeam]] guarded Rowan trees and thus looked very much like a Rowan (tall and slender, etc.).  In the [[Third Age]] of Middle-earth, the [[Fangorn Forest|Forest of Fangorn]] was apparently the only place Ents still inhabited, although the Ent-like [[Huorns]] may still have survived elsewhere, as in the Old Forest.
As [[Elrond]] said "Time was once when a squirrel could carry a nut from tree to tree from Rivendell to the Great Sea...".<ref>{{FR|Council}}</ref> Nearly all of [[Eriador]] was one huge forest and part of Entish domain. Some Ents passed into [[East Beleriand]] and perhaps [[Tasarinan]].<ref name=treebeard/> An Ent-host showed up near [[Dolmed]] and helped [[Beren]] against the [[Dwarves of Nogrod]] who [[Battle of the Thousand Caves|sacked Doriath]] and slew King [[Thingol]]; the Dwarves were driven to the shadow woods of [[Blue Mountains|Ered Lindon]] and no-one managed to exit.<ref>{{L|248}}</ref><ref>{{S|Doriath}}</ref>


=== History ===
[[File:Luca Bonatti - Farewell to Fangorn.jpg|left|thumb|[[Luca Bonatti]] - ''Farewell to Fangorn'']]
Almost nothing is known of the early history of the Ents &#8212; they apparently lived in and protected the large forests of Middle-earth in previous ages, and they briefly appear near the end of the [[First Age]], attacking a band of Dwarves, apparently summoned by [[Beren Erchamion|Beren]] and [[Lúthien Tinúviel|Lúthien]]. Treebeard told of a time when apparently all of [[Eriador]] was one huge forest and part of his domain, but these immense forests were cut by the [[Númenóreans]] of the Second Age, or destroyed in the calamitous War of the Elves and Sauron of the 17th century of the Second Age.  Treebeard's statement is also supported by remarks [[Elrond]] Half-elven made at the Council of Elrond.  Elrond said that "Time was once when a squirrel could carry a nut from tree to tree from Rivendell to the Great Sea...", further indicating that all of Eriador was once a single vast primeval forest, of which Fangorn Forest was just "the Eastern End of it" according to Treebeard.
There used to be ''[[Entwives]]'', but during the [[First Age|First]] or the [[Second Age]] they started to move farther away from the Ents because they liked to plant and control small things like vegetables, grass and flowers while the male Ents tended the larger trees of the great forest.<ref name=guide/> The Entwives passed the [[Anduin]] and went to the region that would later become the [[Brown Lands]]. After Morgoth was overthrown, their gardens blossomed and they taught [[Men]] agriculture who honored them.<ref name=treebeard/>


[[Image:Luka Luka - Farewell to Fangorn.jpg|thumb|[[Entwives]] in ''Farewell to Fangorn'' by [[Luka Luka]].]]
But a time came in the [[Second Age]] when these immense forests were cut by the [[Númenóreans]]<ref>{{UT|Aldarion}}</ref> or destroyed in the calamitous [[War of the Elves and Sauron]] during the 17th century of that Age. The shrinking of the forest solidified their separation from the Entwives. The Fangorn Forest was just the Eastern End of that immense forest, and one of its small remnants. The gardens of the Entwives were destroyed by [[Sauron]], and they disappeared. The Ents looked for them in vain and it is sung by the Ents that one day they will find each other but there is very scarce hope that they survived.<ref>{{L|144}}</ref>
There used to be ''[[Entwives]]'' (literally "Ent-women"), but they started to move farther away from the Ents because they liked to plant and control things, so they moved away to the region that would later become the [[Brown Lands]] across the Great River [[Anduin]]. This area was destroyed by [[Sauron]], and the Entwives disappeared. The Ents looked for them, but have never found them. It is sung by the Ents that one day they will find each other. In the Fellowship of the Ring, Sam Gamgee says his cousin Hal saw treelike giant in the north of the Shire. When Pippin and Merry tell Treebeard about the Shire, Treebread says the entwives would like that land.  


=== Language ===
In the [[Third Age]], the [[Fangorn Forest]] was apparently the only place Ents still inhabited, although the Ent-like [[Huorns]] may still have survived elsewhere, as in the [[Old Forest]]. The Ents grew old without hope of having [[Enting]]s without the Entwives. Some grew 'treeish' and ceased moving or speaking.<ref name=guide/>
Ents are not hasty creatures, they take their time; even their language is "unhasty". In fact, their language appears to be based on an ancient form of [[Common Eldarin]], later enriched by [[Quenya]] and [[Sindarin]], although it includes many unique 'tree-ish' additions. There are actually two different languages:


{{quote|It takes a long time to say anything in Old [[Entish]]...|[[Treebeard]]}}
[[Halfast Gamgee]] reportedly encountered a "Tree-man" near [[the Shire]].<ref>{{FR|Shadow}}</ref>


* Old Entish. Originally, the Ents had a language of their own, described as long and sonorous; it was a tonal language (like Chinese). It is unknown if a non-Ent could even pronounce Old Entish correctly: it was filled with many subtle vowel shades, and was very longwinded. Only Ents spoke Old Entish; not because they kept their language a secret, as the Dwarves did with Khuzdul, but because no others could master it. It was quite an alien language to all others. The Huorns and trees of Fangorn forest could understand Old Entish and converse with the Ents and each other with it. The only extant sample, ''a-lalla-lalla-rumba-kamanda-lindor-burúme'', the word for ''hill'' (or possibly even just part of the name of a specific hill), was described as a very inaccurate sampling. Even the Elves, master linguists, could not learn Old Entish, nor did they attempt to record it due to its complex sound structure. The grammar structure of Old Entish was also quite bizarre, often described as a lengthy, long-winded discussion of a topic. There may not even have been a word for ''yes'' and ''no'': such questions would be answered by a long monologue on why the Ent in question did or did not agree with the Ent who asked the question. The Ent Quickbeam was regarded as a very "hasty" Ent for answering a question before another Ent had finished: the end may only have been another hour away. Ents as a rule would say nothing in Old Entish unless it was worth taking a long time to say. For everyday language function, they usually resorted to "New" Entish.
=== The March of the Ents ===
*"New" Entish (Never named as such in the text). Due to contact with the Elves, the Ents learned much from them. The Ents found the Elvish language Quenya to be a lovely language, and adapted it after their fashion to everyday use. However, they basically adapted Quenya vocabulary to Old Entish grammatical structure. Thus, unlike Old Entish, the individual words of "New Entish" that characters such as Treebeard spoke were easily translatable. However, in context they formed lengthy run-on sentences of redundant adjectives that could still stretch well over an hour in length. For example, when Treebeard essentially wanted to tell Merry and Pippin, "There is a shadow of the Great Darkness in the deep dales of the forest", he literally said in New Entish "Forest-golden-leaves, deep-dales-winter, forest-many-shadowed, deep-valley-black". Unlike Old Entish, a non-Ent conceivably could speak "New" Entish. Even when speaking the Common Speech, Westron, Ents fell into the habit of adapting it into their grammatical structure of repeating compound adjectives used to express fine shades of meaning.
{{quote|The Ents are going to war!|[[Treebeard]]}}
About {{TA|2950}} [[Saruman]]'s armies began harassing the few remaining Ents and cutting down large numbers of their trees. During the [[War of the Ring]] the Ents&mdash;usually a very patient, deliberate people&mdash;were spurred by [[Meriadoc Brandybuck]] and [[Peregrin Took]]. They convened an ''[[Entmoot]]'', a meeting of the Ents at [[Derndingle]].  


[[Image:Treebeard.jpeg|thumb|[[Treebeard]] from [[Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings]].]]
[[File:Ted Nasmith - The Tree Shepherds.jpg|right|thumb|[[Ted Nasmith]] - ''The Tree Shepherds'']]
Treebeard boasted to Merry and Pippin about the strength of the Ents. He said that they were much more powerful than [[Trolls]], which [[Morgoth]] (in the Elder Days or First Age) supposedly made as imitations of the Ents, but did not come near to their power. He compares this with how [[Orcs]] were Morgoth's imitation of [[Elves]].
After lengthy deliberation (though from the perspective of the Ents, this was very quick action), they marched on Saruman's fortress at [[Isengard]]: the last march of the Ents.  They were led by Treebeard, the oldest Ent, and accompanied by the [[Hobbits]] Merry and Pippin. They destroyed Isengard in an all-out assault and trapped Saruman in the tower of [[Orthanc]].


The Elvish name for Ents is ''Onodrim'', singular ''Onod''.
They flooded [[Nan Curunír]] and transformed it into a forested area which they called [[Treegarth of Orthanc]]. Following the reunification of [[Arnor]] and [[Gondor]], Treegarth became a part of the [[Reunited Kingdom]] and [[Aragorn|King Elessar]] declared it an Entish realm, granting the Ents complete self-governance.<ref name=partings>{{RK|Partings}}</ref>


=== The March of the Ents ===
The Ents remained in Fangorn where they probably dwindled in the following [[Ages]],<ref name=guide/> but [[Galadriel]] wished to Treebeard that they would meet again in Tasarinan, when Beleriand is lifted again from the waves, in [[Arda Unmarred|Spring]].<ref name=partings/>
{{quote|The Ents are going to war!|[[Treebeard]]}}
 
In ''[[The Two Towers]]'', the second volume of Tolkien's ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', the Ents&mdash;usually a very patient, deliberate people&mdash;do become angry at [[Saruman]], whose armies are cutting down large numbers of their trees. They convene an ''Entmoot'', a meeting of the Ents of [[Fangorn Forest]] at Derndingle.  
==Appearance and traits==
Ents were 14-foot tall creatures like humanoid trees with very thick skin resembling tree bark. They resembled the trees that they shepherded. An individual Ent more or less resembled the specific species of tree that they typically guarded or honored, to the point of the personality one might expect from that tree.<ref name=guide/> Thus they varied in height and size, colouring, and n number of fingers and toes. For example, [[Quickbeam]] guarded [[Rowans|rowan]] trees and thus looked very much like a rowan.
 
There were trees that were awake or half-awake, and some were ''entish'' and Ents could awake or talk with some of them. Treebeard aroused some [[Huorns]] to destroy Isengard.<ref>{{TT|Flotsam}}</ref>
 
Ents were dwelling in [[Ent-houses]] and were nourished by [[Ent-draughts]]. They were [[immortality|immortal]] (although they could be burned) and along with it, they were deliberate and slow in thought, decision and action. Their slow, long-winded language reflected this; of other languages they preferred [[Quenya]], which they also spoke in an agglutinating, long-winded way like Entish.
 
However, once aroused, they possessed great strength, which resembled the age-long action of trees accelerated, crushing rocks and moving earth in seconds.<ref name=guide/>  Treebeard boasted that they were much more powerful than [[Trolls]], which [[Morgoth]] supposedly made as imitations of the Ents (he compares this with how [[Orcs]] were an imitation of [[Elves]]).
 
The length of an ent-stride was about 4 feet. With about 2.2 strides per second, an Ent could cover a speed of about 6 miles per hour<ref>Tolkien's calculations in [[Marquette]] paper MSS 4/2/19{{fact}}</ref>
 
==Etymology and names==
''Ent'' is supposed to represent the language of the [[Vales of Anduin]]<ref name="Nomen"/> and is perhaps a name given to them by the [[Rohirrim]].<ref name=guide/>
 
The [[Sindarin]] name for Ents, as a race, is ''[[Onodrim]]'', and as individuals ''[[Onod]]'' (pl. ''Enyd'').<ref name="Nomen">{{HM|N}}, pp. 756-7</ref> The [[Quenya]] name of the Ents is possibly ''[[Onyalie]]'' with the individual being *''Onya''.<ref>[http://www.pa2rick.com/langlab/anaxartaron.html Analysis] of the phrase ''[[Anaxartaron Onyalie]]'' by [[Patrick H. Wynne]].</ref>
 
The word ''Ent'' is derived from [[Old English]] ''ent'', meaning "giant" (from ''eoten'', [[Norse]] ''jotun''), although the Ents were unrelated to the [[giants]] or the [[Wikipedia:Jötunn|jotuns]].<ref name="Nomen"/><ref>{{HM|SG}}, "Appendix C: Old English Poem of Attila", p. 376 (note 17)</ref> It has been noted that ''ent'' "probably means some kind of giant", but that the exact usage or meaning of the word in Old English is unknown.<ref>[[Michael D.C. Drout]], "[http://oenewsletter.org/OEN/archive.php/essays/drout37_3/ An Anglo-Saxonist Gets his Fifteen Minutes: or, what happens when the media briefly pay attention]" at [http://www.oenewsletter.org/OEN/index.php ''Old English Newsletter'' Online] (accessed 10 March 2011)</ref>
==Inspiration==
At several points, Tolkien specifically stated that the Ents were a spontaneous invention while writing [[Treebeard (chapter)]], without any recollection of previous thought or premeditation.<ref>{{L|162}}</ref><ref>{{L|180}}</ref><ref name=L247>{{L|247}}</ref>
 
==Portrayal in adaptations==
<center><gallery perrow=4>
File:The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers - Treebeard.jpeg|<center>[[Treebeard]] from [[The Lord of the Rings (film series)|''The Lord of the Rings'' (film series)]]
File:Jeff Murchie - Ent.png|<center>''[[The Lord of the Rings Online]]''
</gallery></center>
 
'''2001-03: [[The Lord of the Rings (film series)|''The Lord of the Rings'' (film series)]]:'''
:Ents in [[The Lord of the Rings (film series)|''The Lord of the Rings'' (film series)]] were portrayed as, perhaps, more tree-ish than in the books. For example, the books describe them as having smooth skin; the movie has them with skin like thick and rough bark. In the movie adaption, the Ents at the Entmoot decide that this is "not our war", despite strong protest from Merry.  The scene is also shorter, cutting out [[Bregalad]] completely; Treebeard is the only Ent who is named and speaks on screen.


[[Image:Ted Nasmith - The Tree Shepherds.jpg|thumb|''The Tree Shepherds'' by [[Ted Nasmith]].]]
:Treebeard is about to take them north to the border, when Pippin insists that they go South instead, because "''the closer we are to danger, the farther we are from harm''". This "does not make sense" to Treebeard, but he does as they ask, and sees the ruin and destruction that Saruman has wrought on southern Fangorn.  Treebeard then calls the Ents to battle with his booming Ent-call, and they appear out of the forest as if they had been standing there waiting for it. That they do not know the borders of their own forest is another possible logical gap. But others have accepted Jackson's technique as valid, because of the seemingly minor actions of Merry and Pippin throughout The Two Towers.
After lengthy deliberation (though from the perspective of the Ents, this is very quick action), they march on Saruman's fortress at [[Isengard]]: the last march of the EntsThey are led by Treebeard, the oldest Ent, and accompanied by the [[Hobbits]] [[Meriadoc Brandybuck]] and [[Peregrin Took]]. They destroy Isengard in an all-out assault and trap Saruman in the tower of [[Orthanc]]. Tolkien later noted that the destruction of Isengard by the Ents was based off of personal disappointment in MacBeth, when "Birnham Wood is come to castle Dunsinane", Tolkien was less than thrilled that it amounted to men walking on stage with leaves in their hats; he decided that when he did that scene for himself, he'd do it right.


==Portrayal in Adaptions==
'''2003: [[The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (video game)|''The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' (video game)]]:'''
:Multiple Ents make appearance during the Fangorn Forest mission, destroying Saruman's Uruks fleeing from [[Helm's Deep]].


Ents in [[Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings]] were portrayed as, perhaps, more tree-ish than in the books (the books describe them as having smooth skin; the movie has them with skin like thick and rough bark.  They have been accused of being "stupidified", though the explanation that [[Peter Jackson]] gives is that he wanted to give Merry and Pippin a more important role in the action. In the movie adaption, the Ents at the Entmoot decide that this is "not our war", despite strong protest from Merry.  The scene is also shorter, cutting out [[Bregalad]] completely.
'''2003: ''[[The Lord of the Rings: War of the Ring|Sierra's War of the Ring]]'':'''
:A Summoned Ent is the strongest magic power available to the Free Peoples, an Ent's strength is equal only to the [[Balrogs|Balrog]] on the Evil site.


Treebeard is about to take them north to the border, when Pippin insists that they go South instead, because "''the closer we are to danger, the farther we are from harm''".  This "does not make sense" to Treebeard, but he does as they ask, and sees the ruin and destruction that Saruman has wrought on southern Fangorn.  Treebeard then calls the Ents to battle with his booming Ent-call, and they appear out of the forest as if they had been standing there waiting for it.  That they do not know the borders of their own forest is another critizism. But others have accepted Jackson's reasoning as valid, because of the seemingly minor actions of Merry and Pippin throughout The Two Towers.
'''2004: ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth]]'':'''
:In the storyline missions, Ents are assisting Merry and Pippin in the escape from the Uruks as well as destroying Isengard concurrent with the Battle of Helm's Deep. In the skirmish mode, Ents can be summoned both as a "Magic" power by all free peoples and as permanent units by the Rohan faction.


==Trivia==
'''2006: ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II]]'':'''
J.R.R. Tolkien most likely had not heard of the phenomenon, but there are actually rare trees which can "walk" by growing roots on the side in which they intend to move and killing the roots on the opposite side. [http://boonedocks.net/pa/pa.php?p:339:15]
:Ents are the now the units of the Elven faction.  


==External links==
'''2007-: ''[[The Lord of the Rings Online]]'':'''
* [http://icbirmingham.icnetwork.co.uk/birminghampost/news/tm_objectid=15530734&method=full&siteid=50002&headline=tolkien-statue-plan-splits-community-name_page.html  Plan to construct a 25' Ent in Birmingham]
:Prior to the release of ''[[The Lord of the Rings Online: Rise of Isengard|Rise of Isengard]]'') expansion, the only Ent appearing in the game was the one called Longbough, who could found in the Eavespires in [[Evendim]].<ref>[http://lotro-wiki.com/index.php/Longbough Longbough] at [http://lotro-wiki.com/index.php/Main_Page Lotro-wiki.com] (accessed 23 September 2011)</ref> ''Rise of Isengard'' expansion and subsequent updates introduced more Ent characters, among them [[Quickbeam]], Gnarlstump, Thickbark, Greylimb and Twistroot. A creature similar to Ents is called ''Bog-lurker'', said to have assisted the Ents in the shepherding of the trees.<ref>[http://lorebook.lotro.com/wiki/Monster:Bog-lurker Monster: Bog-lurker] at [http://lorebook.lotro.com/wiki/Lorebook_home Lorebook.Lotro.com] (accessed 23 September 2011)</ref>


{{ents}}
{{ents}}
{{references|notes}}


==External links==
*[http://lalaith.vpsurf.de/Tolkien/The_History_of_Ents.html Origin and History of the Ents] by [[Andreas Moehn]]
[[Category:Races]]
[[Category:Races]]
[[de:Ents]]
[[de:Ents]]
[[fa:انت]]
[[fr:encyclo/peuples/ents/ents]]
[[fi:Entit]]

Revision as of 07:28, 7 July 2015

Ents
Race
John Howe - Ents.jpg
General Information
MembersTreebeard, Quickbeam
Physical Description
LifespanImmortal
DistinctionsTree-like appearance
Average heightVaries; usually very tall
GalleryImages of Ents

The Ents were sentient, humanoid beings created at the request of Yavanna to protect the trees from other creatures, particularly Dwarves,[1] and thus were called "Shepherds of the Trees".

History

Creation

After the Dwarves, the Ents are the most ancient people and living creatures surviving in the Third Age[2][3] but were not a part of the Music of the Ainur.[4] Yavanna saw that Eru gave life to Aulë's children, the Dwarves, whom he made from stone; but they were wont to fell trees. She then asked also herself (through Manwe) for His mercy, and to give life to growing things as He did with the Dwarves.[5] At her behest, Ents came into being, trees inhabited by souls[6] created/sent by Eru; or spirits who took the likeness of trees because of their devotion to them.[4]

Ents were envisioned as Shepherds of the Trees and their duty was to protect the forests from Orcs, Dwarves and other perils.[5] The males were devoted to Orome while the Entwives to Yavanna.[4]

The Ents perhaps were created around the same time as the Elves.[6] The Eldar[note 1] loved to talk to everything and had tales of teaching the trees to talk. They gave them the desire to speak and taught them Elvish.[2] Treebeard said the Elves "curing the Ents of their dumbness" was a great gift that could not be forgotten.[7]

Before even Morgoth returned to the North the first Ents were not as wise or strong as in later times. They developed a language, Entish, which was much simpler back then, and had very small knowledge of other languages.[4]

Rise and Decline

As Elrond said "Time was once when a squirrel could carry a nut from tree to tree from Rivendell to the Great Sea...".[8] Nearly all of Eriador was one huge forest and part of Entish domain. Some Ents passed into East Beleriand and perhaps Tasarinan.[7] An Ent-host showed up near Dolmed and helped Beren against the Dwarves of Nogrod who sacked Doriath and slew King Thingol; the Dwarves were driven to the shadow woods of Ered Lindon and no-one managed to exit.[9][10]

Luca Bonatti - Farewell to Fangorn

There used to be Entwives, but during the First or the Second Age they started to move farther away from the Ents because they liked to plant and control small things like vegetables, grass and flowers while the male Ents tended the larger trees of the great forest.[6] The Entwives passed the Anduin and went to the region that would later become the Brown Lands. After Morgoth was overthrown, their gardens blossomed and they taught Men agriculture who honored them.[7]

But a time came in the Second Age when these immense forests were cut by the Númenóreans[11] or destroyed in the calamitous War of the Elves and Sauron during the 17th century of that Age. The shrinking of the forest solidified their separation from the Entwives. The Fangorn Forest was just the Eastern End of that immense forest, and one of its small remnants. The gardens of the Entwives were destroyed by Sauron, and they disappeared. The Ents looked for them in vain and it is sung by the Ents that one day they will find each other but there is very scarce hope that they survived.[12]

In the Third Age, the Fangorn Forest was apparently the only place Ents still inhabited, although the Ent-like Huorns may still have survived elsewhere, as in the Old Forest. The Ents grew old without hope of having Entings without the Entwives. Some grew 'treeish' and ceased moving or speaking.[6]

Halfast Gamgee reportedly encountered a "Tree-man" near the Shire.[13]

The March of the Ents

"The Ents are going to war!"
Treebeard

About T.A. 2950 Saruman's armies began harassing the few remaining Ents and cutting down large numbers of their trees. During the War of the Ring the Ents—usually a very patient, deliberate people—were spurred by Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took. They convened an Entmoot, a meeting of the Ents at Derndingle.

Ted Nasmith - The Tree Shepherds

After lengthy deliberation (though from the perspective of the Ents, this was very quick action), they marched on Saruman's fortress at Isengard: the last march of the Ents. They were led by Treebeard, the oldest Ent, and accompanied by the Hobbits Merry and Pippin. They destroyed Isengard in an all-out assault and trapped Saruman in the tower of Orthanc.

They flooded Nan Curunír and transformed it into a forested area which they called Treegarth of Orthanc. Following the reunification of Arnor and Gondor, Treegarth became a part of the Reunited Kingdom and King Elessar declared it an Entish realm, granting the Ents complete self-governance.[14]

The Ents remained in Fangorn where they probably dwindled in the following Ages,[6] but Galadriel wished to Treebeard that they would meet again in Tasarinan, when Beleriand is lifted again from the waves, in Spring.[14]

Appearance and traits

Ents were 14-foot tall creatures like humanoid trees with very thick skin resembling tree bark. They resembled the trees that they shepherded. An individual Ent more or less resembled the specific species of tree that they typically guarded or honored, to the point of the personality one might expect from that tree.[6] Thus they varied in height and size, colouring, and n number of fingers and toes. For example, Quickbeam guarded rowan trees and thus looked very much like a rowan.

There were trees that were awake or half-awake, and some were entish and Ents could awake or talk with some of them. Treebeard aroused some Huorns to destroy Isengard.[15]

Ents were dwelling in Ent-houses and were nourished by Ent-draughts. They were immortal (although they could be burned) and along with it, they were deliberate and slow in thought, decision and action. Their slow, long-winded language reflected this; of other languages they preferred Quenya, which they also spoke in an agglutinating, long-winded way like Entish.

However, once aroused, they possessed great strength, which resembled the age-long action of trees accelerated, crushing rocks and moving earth in seconds.[6] Treebeard boasted that they were much more powerful than Trolls, which Morgoth supposedly made as imitations of the Ents (he compares this with how Orcs were an imitation of Elves).

The length of an ent-stride was about 4 feet. With about 2.2 strides per second, an Ent could cover a speed of about 6 miles per hour[16]

Etymology and names

Ent is supposed to represent the language of the Vales of Anduin[17] and is perhaps a name given to them by the Rohirrim.[6]

The Sindarin name for Ents, as a race, is Onodrim, and as individuals Onod (pl. Enyd).[17] The Quenya name of the Ents is possibly Onyalie with the individual being *Onya.[18]

The word Ent is derived from Old English ent, meaning "giant" (from eoten, Norse jotun), although the Ents were unrelated to the giants or the jotuns.[17][19] It has been noted that ent "probably means some kind of giant", but that the exact usage or meaning of the word in Old English is unknown.[20]

Inspiration

At several points, Tolkien specifically stated that the Ents were a spontaneous invention while writing Treebeard (chapter), without any recollection of previous thought or premeditation.[21][22][4]

Portrayal in adaptations

2001-03: The Lord of the Rings (film series):

Ents in The Lord of the Rings (film series) were portrayed as, perhaps, more tree-ish than in the books. For example, the books describe them as having smooth skin; the movie has them with skin like thick and rough bark. In the movie adaption, the Ents at the Entmoot decide that this is "not our war", despite strong protest from Merry. The scene is also shorter, cutting out Bregalad completely; Treebeard is the only Ent who is named and speaks on screen.
Treebeard is about to take them north to the border, when Pippin insists that they go South instead, because "the closer we are to danger, the farther we are from harm". This "does not make sense" to Treebeard, but he does as they ask, and sees the ruin and destruction that Saruman has wrought on southern Fangorn. Treebeard then calls the Ents to battle with his booming Ent-call, and they appear out of the forest as if they had been standing there waiting for it. That they do not know the borders of their own forest is another possible logical gap. But others have accepted Jackson's technique as valid, because of the seemingly minor actions of Merry and Pippin throughout The Two Towers.

2003: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (video game):

Multiple Ents make appearance during the Fangorn Forest mission, destroying Saruman's Uruks fleeing from Helm's Deep.

2003: Sierra's War of the Ring:

A Summoned Ent is the strongest magic power available to the Free Peoples, an Ent's strength is equal only to the Balrog on the Evil site.

2004: The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth:

In the storyline missions, Ents are assisting Merry and Pippin in the escape from the Uruks as well as destroying Isengard concurrent with the Battle of Helm's Deep. In the skirmish mode, Ents can be summoned both as a "Magic" power by all free peoples and as permanent units by the Rohan faction.

2006: The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II:

Ents are the now the units of the Elven faction.

2007-: The Lord of the Rings Online:

Prior to the release of Rise of Isengard) expansion, the only Ent appearing in the game was the one called Longbough, who could found in the Eavespires in Evendim.[23] Rise of Isengard expansion and subsequent updates introduced more Ent characters, among them Quickbeam, Gnarlstump, Thickbark, Greylimb and Twistroot. A creature similar to Ents is called Bog-lurker, said to have assisted the Ents in the shepherding of the trees.[24]
Ents
Treebeard (Fangorn) · Leaflock (Finglas) · Skinbark (Fladrif) · Quickbeam (Bregalad) · Beechbone · Fimbrethil (Wandlimb)

Notes

  1. Possibly Eldar of the Great March.

References

  1. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Quenta Silmarillion: Of the Beginning of Days"
  2. 2.0 2.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix F, "The Languages and Peoples of the Third Age", "Of Other Races"
  3. J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 131, (undated, written late 1951)
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 247, (dated 20 September 1963)
  5. 5.0 5.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Quenta Silmarillion: Of Aulë and Yavanna"
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 Robert Foster, The Complete Guide to Middle-earth, entry "Ents"
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, "Treebeard"
  8. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Council of Elrond"
  9. J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 248, (dated 5 October 1963)
  10. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Quenta Silmarillion: Of the Ruin of Doriath"
  11. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "Aldarion and Erendis: The Mariner's Wife"
  12. J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 144, (dated 25 April 1954)
  13. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Shadow of the Past"
  14. 14.0 14.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, "Many Partings"
  15. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, "Flotsam and Jetsam"
  16. Tolkien's calculations in Marquette paper MSS 4/2/19[source?]
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, "Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings" in Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, pp. 756-7
  18. Analysis of the phrase Anaxartaron Onyalie by Patrick H. Wynne.
  19. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún, "Appendix C: Old English Poem of Attila", p. 376 (note 17)
  20. Michael D.C. Drout, "An Anglo-Saxonist Gets his Fifteen Minutes: or, what happens when the media briefly pay attention" at Old English Newsletter Online (accessed 10 March 2011)
  21. J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 162, (dated 18 April 1955)
  22. J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 180, (dated 14 January 1956)
  23. Longbough at Lotro-wiki.com (accessed 23 September 2011)
  24. Monster: Bog-lurker at Lorebook.Lotro.com (accessed 23 September 2011)

External links

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