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{{location
{{location infobox
| image=
| name=The White Mountains
| name=White Mountains
| image=[[File:Raine Kuusi - Dusk.jpg|250px]]
| othernames=
| caption="Dusk" by Raine Kuusi
| etymology=
| pronun=
| othernames=Ered Nimrais
| location=Between [[Gondor]] and [[Rohan]]
| type=Mountain range
| type=Mountain range
| location=Between [[Gondor (region)|Gondor]] and [[Rohan (region)|Rohan]]
| inhabitants=
| realms=[[Kingdom of Gondor|Gondor]] and [[Kingdom of Rohan|Rohan]]
| description=Tall, snow-capped mountains
| description=Tall, snow-capped mountains
| regions=
| towns=
| inhabitants=[[Men]], [[Dwarves]], [[Orcs]]
| created=
| destroyed=
| events=
| events=
| references=
| gallery=the White Mountains
|}}
}}
The '''White Mountains''', a loose translation of the [[Sindarin]] '''Ered Nimrais''' "Whitehorn Mountains". The mountains are named after the glaciers of their highest peaks. The range lies mostly East-West, but also has a northern section, which is separated from the main line of the ''Hithaeglir'' "[[Misty Mountains]]" by the [[Gap of Rohan]]. Even at the southern latitude of Gondor and Rohan, the White Mountains bear snow in summer, suggesting they are extremely high. The range has no passes. The [[Paths of the Dead]] pass under it, but only the most courageous (or foolhardy) ever venture that route. The White Mountains form the northern boundary of [[Gondor]] and the southern boundary of [[Rohan]] except in their easternmost provinces.
<center>{{Quote|A black darkness loomed beyond, and in it glinted, here and there, cold, sharp, remote, white as the teeth of ghosts, the peaks of Ered Nimrais, the White Mountains of the realm of Gondor, tipped with everlasting snow.|''[[The Two Towers]]'', "[[The Forbidden Pool]]"}}</center>


Its notable peaks include ''Irensaga'' "Iron Saw" and ''Starkhorn''. Between these two lies the ''Dwimorberg'', entrance to the Paths of the Dead.
The '''White Mountains''', or '''''[[White Mountains#Etymology|Ered Nimrais]]''''' was a great mountain range that lay between [[Calenardhon]]/[[Rohan]] in the North and [[Gondor]] in the South. They ran 600 miles (965 kilometers) from [[Thrihyrne]] in the north-west to [[Mindolluin]] and [[Hill of Guard|Amon Tirith]] in the east. A low spur sprung off south-west, and ended at [[Ras Morthil]].
At the eastern end, the city of [[Minas Tirith]] is carved into ''Mindolluin'' mountain. The [[Warning beacons of Gondor]] are placed on top of seven peaks in the range: ''[[Amon Dîn]]'', ''[[Eilenach]]'', ''[[Nardol]]'', ''[[Erelas]]'', ''[[Min-Rimmon]]'', ''[[Calenhad]]'' and ''[[Halifirien]]''. The northernmost point is the [[Thrihyrne]].


Several [[Rivers]] rise in the White Mountains, among them the [[Adorn]] (a tributary of [[Isen]]), the [[Snowbourn]] and [[Mering Stream]] (tributaries of the [[Entwash]]), and, on the south side, the [[Erui]], a tributary of [[Anduin]], the [[Ringló]] and its tributary [[Ciril]], which together with the [[Morthond]] all enter the [[Bay of Belfalas]] at [[Edhellond]] near [[Dol Amroth]]; the [[Lefnui]] of the [[Anfalas]], and the [[Five Rivers of Lebennin]].
==Geographic features==
===Important peaks===
The mountain range’s notable peaks were, from west to east, [[Thrihyrne]], [[Starkhorn]], [[Dwimorberg]], [[Írensaga]], [[Amon Anwar|Halifirien]], [[Calenhad]], [[Min-Rimmon]], [[Erelas]], [[Nardol]], [[Eilenach]], [[Amon Dîn]], [[Mindolluin]] and [[Amon Tirith]].


In the [[Second Age]], the White Mountains were populated by a people related to the [[Dunlendings]] who had been servants of [[Sauron]]. They swore allegiance to [[Isildur]], but betrayed him and were cursed: they became known as the [[Army of the Dead]], of the paths [[Aragorn]], [[Gimli]], [[Legolas]], and the rangers later took. Before the [[Dunlendings]], the White Mountains had been home to the ''Púkel-Men'' or [[Drúedain]].
At the foot of Thrihyrne was the valley known as [[Helm's Deep]], and the [[Glittering Caves]] of Aglarond were underneath its spurs.


[[Category:Mountains]]
The three mountains Starkhorn, Dwimorberg and Irensaga enclosed the valley of [[Dunharrow]], and the Dwimorberg was also the home of the [[Paths of the Dead]].
 
Halifirien, Calenhad, Min-Rimmon, Erelas, Nardol, Eilenach, and Amon Dîn were strategically chosen hilltops on the northern side of the range. They were the [[Warning beacons of Gondor]]. There was probably a beacon-row on the south side too.
 
===Passes===
There were passes over the White Mountains, and many of the kin of [[Nimrodel]] are said to have been lost there.<ref name=Amroth>{{UT|Amroth}}</ref>
 
===Rivers===
There are multiple rivers which have their sources issuing forth from the White Mountains.
 
On the Western facing (from North to South);
* [[Adorn]]
* [[Lefnui]]
On the Northern facing (from West to East);
* [[Deeping-stream]]
* [[Snowbourn]]
* [[Mering Stream]]
On the Southern facing (from West to East);
* [[Morthond]]
* [[Ciril]]
* [[Ringló]]
* [[Gilrain]]
* [[Serni]]
* [[Celos]]
* [[Erui]]
 
==History==
===Origins===
A local legend among the [[Pre-Númenóreans|indigenous people]] of [[Gondor]] told of [[giants]] making the mountains to keep [[Men]] out of their lands by the [[Belegaer|Sea]]. One of them, [[Stiffneck]] or [[Tarlang]] died there and some peaks are his [[Tarlang's Neck|neck]] and [[Dol Tarlang|head]]; the stones he was carrying were known as [[Cûl Veleg]] and [[Cûl Bîn]].<ref>[[J.R.R. Tolkien]], ''[[Guide to the Names in The Lord of the Rings|Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings]]'', omitted entry quoted in [[Wayne G. Hammond]], [[Christina Scull]], ''[[The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion]]'', pp. 536-7</ref>
 
===Inhabitants===
Throughout history the White Mountains were inhabited primarily by Men, including the [[Drúedain]], [[Dunlendings]], [[Rohirrim]], and [[Gondor|Gondorians]]; but also at times by [[Orcs]] and in the Fourth Age by [[Dwarves]].
 
The Drúedain lived along its northern edges, leaving [[Púkel-men]] at [[Starkhorn]] and [[Drúwaith Iaur]]. They resettled to a forest that would later be named after them: [[Drúadan Forest|Tawar in-Drúedain]].
 
In the [[Second Age]], the White Mountains were populated by a people related to the Dunlendings who had been servants of [[Sauron]]. They swore allegiance to [[Isildur]], but betrayed him and were cursed: they became known as the [[Oathbreakers]].
 
The valley on the southern side were under the rule of the [[Kings of Gondor|King of Gondor]], and the lords of [[Blackroot Vale]], [[Ringló Vale]], [[Tumladen (Gondor)|Tumladen]] and [[Lossarnach]] were loyal fiefs.<ref name=rkmap/>
 
From {{TA|2510}}, the northern vales and hills became under the rule of the Rohirrim, mighty horse-lords from the North. They settled in [[Helm's Deep]], [[Dunharrow]] and [[Grimslade]], and built their capital [[Edoras]] on an outlying hill.<ref name=rkmap>{{RK|Map}}</ref>
 
After the [[Battle of Azanulbizar]] in {{TA|2799}}, thousands of [[orcs]] fled south and troubled Rohan for two generations. Although the [[Rohirrim]] fought them off, some Orcs managed to reach the Mountains; King [[Walda]] was killed by an Orc at [[Dunharrow]].<ref>{{App|Eorl}}</ref>
 
In the early [[Fourth Age]], [[Gimli]], son of [[Glóin]] led a colony of [[Dwarves]] and settled in the [[Glittering Caves]], of which he had discovered the value during the [[Battle of the Hornburg]].<ref>{{App|Durin}}</ref>
 
==Etymology==
The [[Sindarin]] name of the White Mountains, '''''Ered Nimrais''''', consists of ''[[ered]]'' ("mountains") and ''nimrais'' ("white-peaks; pale-horns").<ref>{{PE|17}}, p. 33</ref>
 
==Portrayal in adaptations==
'''2003: ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King]]'':'''
:In the scene [[The Lighting of the Beacons]] Gondor calls to Rohan for aid, the film then depicts the beacons being lit one by one along various peaks on the northern side of the White Mountains until the final beacon is sighted by [[Aragorn]] in [[Edoras]].
 
{{References}}
[[Category:Gondor]]
[[Category:Gondor]]
[[Category:Mountain ranges]]
[[Category:Rohan]]
[[Category:Rohan]]
[[Category:White Mountains]]
[[Category:White Mountains]]
[[de:Weißes Gebirge]]
[[fi:Valkoiset Vuoret]]
[[fr:encyclo/geographie/reliefs/montagnes_blanches]]

Latest revision as of 15:41, 15 February 2022

The White Mountains
Mountain range
Raine Kuusi - Dusk.jpg
"Dusk" by Raine Kuusi
General Information
Other namesEred Nimrais
LocationBetween Gondor and Rohan
TypeMountain range
DescriptionTall, snow-capped mountains
InhabitantsMen, Dwarves, Orcs
GalleryImages of the White Mountains
"A black darkness loomed beyond, and in it glinted, here and there, cold, sharp, remote, white as the teeth of ghosts, the peaks of Ered Nimrais, the White Mountains of the realm of Gondor, tipped with everlasting snow."
― The Two Towers, "The Forbidden Pool"

The White Mountains, or Ered Nimrais was a great mountain range that lay between Calenardhon/Rohan in the North and Gondor in the South. They ran 600 miles (965 kilometers) from Thrihyrne in the north-west to Mindolluin and Amon Tirith in the east. A low spur sprung off south-west, and ended at Ras Morthil.

Geographic features[edit | edit source]

Important peaks[edit | edit source]

The mountain range’s notable peaks were, from west to east, Thrihyrne, Starkhorn, Dwimorberg, Írensaga, Halifirien, Calenhad, Min-Rimmon, Erelas, Nardol, Eilenach, Amon Dîn, Mindolluin and Amon Tirith.

At the foot of Thrihyrne was the valley known as Helm's Deep, and the Glittering Caves of Aglarond were underneath its spurs.

The three mountains Starkhorn, Dwimorberg and Irensaga enclosed the valley of Dunharrow, and the Dwimorberg was also the home of the Paths of the Dead.

Halifirien, Calenhad, Min-Rimmon, Erelas, Nardol, Eilenach, and Amon Dîn were strategically chosen hilltops on the northern side of the range. They were the Warning beacons of Gondor. There was probably a beacon-row on the south side too.

Passes[edit | edit source]

There were passes over the White Mountains, and many of the kin of Nimrodel are said to have been lost there.[1]

Rivers[edit | edit source]

There are multiple rivers which have their sources issuing forth from the White Mountains.

On the Western facing (from North to South);

On the Northern facing (from West to East);

On the Southern facing (from West to East);

History[edit | edit source]

Origins[edit | edit source]

A local legend among the indigenous people of Gondor told of giants making the mountains to keep Men out of their lands by the Sea. One of them, Stiffneck or Tarlang died there and some peaks are his neck and head; the stones he was carrying were known as Cûl Veleg and Cûl Bîn.[2]

Inhabitants[edit | edit source]

Throughout history the White Mountains were inhabited primarily by Men, including the Drúedain, Dunlendings, Rohirrim, and Gondorians; but also at times by Orcs and in the Fourth Age by Dwarves.

The Drúedain lived along its northern edges, leaving Púkel-men at Starkhorn and Drúwaith Iaur. They resettled to a forest that would later be named after them: Tawar in-Drúedain.

In the Second Age, the White Mountains were populated by a people related to the Dunlendings who had been servants of Sauron. They swore allegiance to Isildur, but betrayed him and were cursed: they became known as the Oathbreakers.

The valley on the southern side were under the rule of the King of Gondor, and the lords of Blackroot Vale, Ringló Vale, Tumladen and Lossarnach were loyal fiefs.[3]

From T.A. 2510, the northern vales and hills became under the rule of the Rohirrim, mighty horse-lords from the North. They settled in Helm's Deep, Dunharrow and Grimslade, and built their capital Edoras on an outlying hill.[3]

After the Battle of Azanulbizar in T.A. 2799, thousands of orcs fled south and troubled Rohan for two generations. Although the Rohirrim fought them off, some Orcs managed to reach the Mountains; King Walda was killed by an Orc at Dunharrow.[4]

In the early Fourth Age, Gimli, son of Glóin led a colony of Dwarves and settled in the Glittering Caves, of which he had discovered the value during the Battle of the Hornburg.[5]

Etymology[edit | edit source]

The Sindarin name of the White Mountains, Ered Nimrais, consists of ered ("mountains") and nimrais ("white-peaks; pale-horns").[6]

Portrayal in adaptations[edit | edit source]

2003: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King:

In the scene The Lighting of the Beacons Gondor calls to Rohan for aid, the film then depicts the beacons being lit one by one along various peaks on the northern side of the White Mountains until the final beacon is sighted by Aragorn in Edoras.

References

  1. ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn", "Amroth and Nimrodel"
  2. ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings, omitted entry quoted in Wayne G. Hammond, Christina Scull, The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, pp. 536-7
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, "Map of Rohan, Gondor, and Mordor"
  4. ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The House of Eorl"
  5. ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "Durin's Folk"
  6. ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Words, Phrases and Passages in Various Tongues in The Lord of the Rings", in Parma Eldalamberon XVII (edited by Christopher Gilson), p. 33
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