Enyalië (pronounced [enˈjalie] /en-yar-ly-eh/) is an annual activity held as the concluding part of The Tolkien Society's Oxonmoot celebration.[1]
On the Sunday morning of the Oxonmoot convention, attendees of the event take a coach trip to Wolvercote Cemetery where J.R.R. Tolkien and his wife Edith are buried. Enyalië is a "sombre" wreath-laying ceremony which involves a "short act of remembrance" at Tolkien's graveside.[2] The Chairman of the Society reads a passage from Tolkien's works whilst the song Namárië is sung by one of the Society's long-standing members.[3]
Former Chair of The Tolkien Society, Shaun Gunner, described the event as "poignant and touching" whilst noting that "many regard it as the single most important activity of Oxonmoot".[3]
Etymology
Enyalië is a Quenya noun meaning "memory"[4] or "remembrance".[5] It features in the Oath of Eorl - in the form enyalien - published in Unfinished Tales.[6]
References
- ↑ Jeff Gordinier, "'The Lord of the Rings': Elvish Lives!" 14 December 2001, Entertainment Weekly
- ↑ "Oxonmoot 2010", Festival Art and Books, accessed 11 August 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Shaun Gunner, "10 reasons why you should attend Oxonmoot" 11 August 2015, The Tolkien Society, accessed 11 August 2015
- ↑ "[1]", Parf Edhellen, accessed 11 August 2015
- ↑ "Celebrate Tolkien at Oxonmoot 2006 at Oxford" 23 August 2006, The One Ring, accessed 11 August 2015
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "Cirion and Eorl and the Friendship of Gondor and Rohan"