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	                     TOLKIEN LESS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS LIST


	  	     Questions numbered thusly:  1)  are in their final form.
	  	     Questions numbered thusly:  1]  remain unrevised.
	  	     Sections/questions marked:  *   have been revised since the last
	  	                                     release.
	  	                                 **  are new since the last release.


	  	                          Table of Contents


	  	     I. Changes Since the Last Release (*)

	  	    II. Acknowledgements

	  	   III. Note on References and Conversion Table

	  	    IV. Commonly Used Abbreviations


	  	     V. Less Frequently Asked Questions

	  	      A) Tolkien And His Work
	  	        1] Was there a change of tone between Book I and the rest of _The
	  	          Lord of the Rings_ ?
	  	        2] Why did Tolkien fail to publish _The Silmarillion_ during the
	  	          eighteen years which followed the publication of _The Lord of
	  	          the Rings_ ?

	  	      B) General History Of Middle-earth
	  	        1] What exactly happened at the end of the First Age?
	  	        2] In terms of the larger worldview, what exactly took place at
	  	          the Fall of Numenor?

	  	      C) Hobbits
	  	        1] Did Frodo and the others (Bilbo, Sam, and Gimli) who passed
	  	          over the Sea eventually die, or had they become immortal?
	  	        2) In _The Hobbit_, Bilbo called the spiders Attercop, Lazy Lob,
	  	          Crazy Cob, and Old Tomnoddy.  What do the words mean?

	  	      D) Elves
	  	        1] Were Elves reincarnated after they were slain?
	  	        2) Was Glorfindel of Rivendell (whom Frodo met) the same as
	  	          Glorfindel of Gondolin, who was slain fighting a Balrog?
	  	        3) How were Eldar in Valinor named?

	  	      E) Humans
	  	        1] What brought on the sinking of Numenor?
	  	        2] How could Ar-Pharazon of Numenor defeat Sauron while Sauron
	  	          wielded the One Ring?
	  	        3] What happened to the Ring when Numenor was destroyed?
	  	        4] Where did the Southrons come from?  Were they part of the Atani?

	  	      F) Dwarves
	  	        1] What were the origins of the Dwarves?
	  	        2] If, as has been told, only Seven Fathers of the Dwarves were
	  	          created, how did the race procreate?

	  	      G) Enemies
	  	        1] What was the origin of the Orcs?
	  	        2] What was the origin of Trolls?

	  	      H) Miscellaneous
	  	        1] Who was Queen Beruthiel (who was mentioned by Aragorn during
	  	          the journey through Moria)?


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	  	                     CHANGES SINCE THE LAST RELEASE

	  	        There have been no changes since the release of 1996/07/08.


	  	  ========================================================================
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	  	                            ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

	  	  The following individuals made suggestions and contributions to these
	  	  FAQ lists:


	  	  Wayne.G.Hammond@williams.edu  (Wayne Hammond Jr)
	  	  Aelfwine@erols.com  (Carl F. Hostetter)
	  	  paul@ERC.MsState.Edu  (Paul Adams)
	  	  wft@math.canterbury.ac.nz   (Bill Taylor)
	  	  cpresson@jido.b30.ingr.com (Craig Presson)

	  	  simen.gaure@usit.uio.no     (Simen Gaure)
	  	  abalje47@uther.Calvin.EDU (Alan Baljeu)
	  	  sahdra@ecf.toronto.edu (SAHDRA KULDIP)
	  	  sherman@sol1.lrsm.upenn.edu (Bill Sherman)
	  	  markg@mistral.rice.edu   (Mark Gordon)
	  	  hunt@oils.ozy.dec.com  (Peter Hunt)
	  	  rrosen@cesl.rutgers.edu (Robert Rosenbaum)


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	  	                          NOTE ON REFERENCES

	  	        There is a certain amount of cross-referencing among the questions
	  	  on both the FAQ and the LessFAQ lists.  Any questions so referred to are
	  	  specified by the list, section, and question number.  Thus, the first
	  	  question in the Hobbit section of the FAQ, "Were Hobbits a sub-group of
	  	  Humans?" would be referenced as (FAQ, Hobbits, 1).  Note that the
	  	  section "Tolkien And His Work" is referred to merely as "Tolkien" and
	  	  the section "General History of Middle-earth" is referred to merely as
	  	  "General".  E.g. the question "Who was J.R.R. Tolkien anyway?" is (FAQ,
	  	  Tolkien, 1) and the question "What exactly happened at the end of the
	  	  First Age?" is (LessFAQ, General, 1).

	  	        Sources for quotations have been provided in the form of volume
	  	  and page numbers; the specific editions utilized are listed in the next
	  	  paragraph.  For those occasions when the proper edition is not available
	  	  (and the conversion table below is not applicable) the page numbers have
	  	  been roughly located according to chapter, sub-section, or appendix,
	  	  whichever is appropriate.  For example,  RK, 57-59 (V, 2) refers to
	  	  pages 57-59 of Return of the King and further locates the pages in
	  	  chapter 2 of Book V.  PLEASE NOTE the distinction in the case of _Lord
	  	  of the Rings_ between *Volumes* and *Books*.  LotR is comprised of three
	  	  Volumes (FR, TT, and RK) and of six Books (I - VI), which are the more
	  	  natural divisions of the story into six roughly equal parts.  There are
	  	  two Books in each of the Volumes.  Other sample references are below.

	  	        References to _The Hobbit_ are from the Ballantine paperback (the
	  	  pagination has been the same since the 60's.  All other references are
	  	  to the HM hardcovers.  Sample references follow:

	  	        Hobbit, 83 (Ch V)  ==   Hobbit, chapter V

	  	        RK, 408 (App F, I, "Of Men", "Of Hobbits")  ==
	  	                               p 408 in Part I of Appendix F, the sections
	  	                                        entitled "Of Men" and "Of Hobbits"

	  	        Silm, 57 (Ch V)  ==  Silmarillion, chapter V  (BoLT and _The
	  	                                Annotated Hobbit_ treated similarly)

	  	        UT, 351 (Three, IV, iii)  ==  Unfinished Tales, Part Three,
	  	                                        Chapter IV, sub-section iii
	  	                                      (the Biography treated similarly)

	  	        Letters, 230 (#178)  ==  letter number 178.

	  	        RtMe, 53-54 (3, "Creative anachronisms")  ==
	  	                                   The Road to Middle-earth, in Chapter 3,
	  	                                       sub-section "Creative anachronisms"


	  	  CONVERSION TABLE

	  	        In _The Atlas of Middle-earth_, Karen Wynn Fonstad provided a
	  	  Houghton-Mifflin-to-Ballantine conversion table, which is reproduced
	  	  below.  The "table" is actually a set of formulae by which HM page
	  	  numbers may be converted to Ballantine page numbers via arithmetic
	  	  involving some empirically determined constants.  Since these are
	  	  discrete rather than continuous functions the results may be off by
	  	  a page or so.

	  	  [NOTE: in the Fall of 1993, Ballantine issued a new edition of the mass
	  	  market paperback of LotR in which the text has been re-set, thereby
	  	  changing the page on which any given quote is located.  Thus, the
	  	  following table will no longer work with the latest printings, which may
	  	  be identified by the change in the color of the covers (the pictures are
	  	  unaltered): in the previous set of printings all the covers were black;
	  	  in the new set FR is green, TT is purple, and RK is red.]

	  	        HM Page            Subtract            Divide By            Add
	  	     -------------         --------            ---------          -------
	  	     FR 10 to 423             9                  .818                18
	  	     TT 15 to 352            14                  .778                16
	  	     RK 19 to 311            18                  .797                18
	  	     RK 313 to 416          312                  .781               386
	  	      H 9 to 317              8                 1.140                14
	  	     Silm 15 to 365          14                  .773                 2

	  	  Reference:  Atlas, p. 191 (first edtion), p. 192 (revised edtion)


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	  	                         COMMONLY USED ABBREVIATIONS

	  	  General:

	  	        JRRT          J.R.R. Tolkien, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien
	  	        CT, CJRT      Christopher Tolkien (son; editor of most posthumous
	  	                      works)

	  	        A&U, AU       George Allen & Unwin (original British publisher)
	  	        UH            Unwin Hyman (new name for A&U c. 1987(?))
	  	        HC            HarperCollins (purchased UH c. 1992; current British
	  	                                     publisher)
	  	        HM            Houghton Mifflin (American publisher)

	  	        M-e           Middle-earth
	  	        SA            Second Age
	  	        TA            Third Age
	  	        SR            Shire Reckoning

	  	  Middle-earth Works:

	  	        H             The Hobbit
	  	        LR, LotR      The Lord of the Rings
	  	        FR, FotR      The Fellowship of the Ring
	  	        TT, TTT       The Two Towers
	  	        RK, RotK      The Return of the King

	  	        TB, ATB       The Adventures of Tom Bombadil
	  	        RGEO          The Road Goes Ever On
	  	        Silm          The Silmarillion
	  	        UT            Unfinished Tales
	  	        Letters       The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
	  	        HoMe          History of Middle-earth
	  	        BLT,BoLT      Book of Lost Tales
	  	        Lays          The Lays of Beleriand
	  	        Treason       The Treason of Isengard
	  	        Guide         The Guide to the Names in the Lord of the Rings
	  	                                        (published in _A Tolkien Compass_)

	  	  Other Works:

	  	        FGH           Farmer Giles of Ham
	  	        TL            Tree and Leaf
	  	        OFS           On Fairy-Stories
	  	        LbN           Leaf by Niggle
	  	        HBBS          The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, Beorhthelm's Son
	  	        SWM           Smith of Wootton Major
	  	        SGPO          Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, Sir Orfeo
	  	        FCL           The Father Christmas Letters

	  	  Reference Works:

	  	        Biography     J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography; by Humphrey Carpenter
	  	                      (published in the US as Tolkien: A Biography)
	  	        Inklings      The Inklings: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Charles
	  	                      Williams, and Their Friends;  by Humphrey Carpenter
	  	        RtMe          The Road to Middle-earth;  by T.A. Shippey
	  	        Scholar       J.R.R. Tolkien, Scholar and Storyteller: Essays in
	  	                      Memoriam; edited by Mary Salu and Robert T. Farrell
	  	        Atlas         The Atlas of Middle-earth;  by Karen Wynn Fonstad


	  	  ========================================================================
	  	  ========================================================================


	  	  TOLKIEN AND HIS WORK

	  	  1) Was there a change of tone between Book I and the rest of _The Lord of
	  	    the Rings_ ?

	  	        Yes.  Originally, the world of the Hobbit was not the same as the world
	  	    of the Silmarillion (Tolkien threw in a few names from it, like Gondolin and
	  	    Elrond, for effect, but there was no explicit connection).  Thus, when he
	  	    began LotR, he thought he was writing a sequel to _The Hobbit, and the tone
	  	    of the early chapters, especially Ch 1, reflect this (it has the same
	  	    "children's story" ambience as _The Hobbit_).  With the coming of the Black
	  	    Riders and Gandalf's discussion of Middle-earth history and the Ring a change
	  	    began towards a loftier tone and a darker mood, though much less serious
	  	    elements remained (e.g. Tom Bombadil).  After the Council of Elrond LotR
	  	    was overtly a sequel to the Silmarillion.

	  	        Oddly, Tolkien added new details but never changed the overall tone of
	  	    Book I.  He later claimed that the change in tone was intentional, that it
	  	    was meant to reflect the changing perceptions of the hobbits as they became
	  	    educated about the Wide World.  This was certainly not his intention as he
	  	    was writing.  On the other hand, the tone of "The Scouring of the Shire" is
	  	    very different from that of "A Long-expected Party", possibly indicating the
	  	    altered perspective of the observers.

	  	  ----------


	  	  2) Why did Tolkien fail to publish _The Silmarillion_ during the eighteen
	  	    years which followed the publication of _The Lord of the Rings_ ?

	  	        No definitive answer is possible, but a several serious obstacles can be
	  	    listed.  They included:

	  	        a) Technical difficulties.  Tolkien's unmethodical habits of revision had
	  	          made the manuscripts chaotic; it seemed impossible to make everything
	  	          consistent.  Characters introduced in LotR had to be worked in.  Beyond
	  	          these detailed questions, he contemplated many alterations, even to
	  	          fundamental features of his mythology.

	  	        b) The problem of depth.  In LotR, his references to the older legends
	  	          of the First Age helped produce the strong sense of historical reality.
	  	          In the Silmarillion, which told the legends themselves, this method
	  	          wouldn't be available.

	  	        c) The problem of presentation.  LotR had been basically novelistic,
	  	          presenting the story sequentially from one character or another's
	  	          point of view.  But the Silmarillion was and was meant to be a bundle
	  	          of tales which had more in common with the ancient legends he studied
	  	          than with LotR.  He feared that if he presented it as an annotated
	  	          study of ancient manuscripts that probably many readers would have
	  	          difficulty enjoying the tales as stories.

	  	        d) No Hobbits.  He feared (correctly) that many people expected another
	  	          _Lord of the Rings_, which the Silmarillion could never be.

	  	  ----------


	  	  GENERAL HISTORY OF MIDDLE-EARTH

	  	  1) What exactly happened at the end of the First Age?

	  	        The Noldorin Elves had made war on Morgoth (referred to as "the Great
	  	    Enemy" by Aragorn in "A Knife in the Dark") to recover the three Silmarils,
	  	    which he had stolen, and had been totally defeated.  The Valar then used
	  	    their full power against Morgoth.  In the resulting cataclysm Beleriand,
	  	    the land in which the tales of the Silmarillion took place, was destroyed
	  	    and sank under the Sea.  There are thus various references to "lands under
	  	    the waves".

	  	        On the LotR map, Beleriand would have been far to the west, beyond the
	  	    Blue Mountains (Ered Luin), which also appear at the far right of the Silm
	  	    map.  It is difficult to make an exact correlation because the mountain
	  	    range was much altered, having been split when the Gulf of Lune created.
	  	    Nogrod and Belegost, the ancient dwarf-cities, are located on the Silm map,
	  	    and existed as ruins in the Third Age, but where they fall on the LotR map
	  	    is not known (they were said to be "near Nenuail", which is only slightly
	  	    helpful).  Lindon was definitely the same land as Ossiriand, where Beren
	  	    and Luthien once dwelt.  [_The Atlas of Middle-earth_ includes a map showing
	  	    how Eriador and Beleriand lay relative to each other.]

	  	  ----------


	  	  2) In terms of the larger worldview, what exactly took place at the Fall
	  	    of Numenor?

	  	        The world was changed from a flat medieval world to the round world of
	  	    today.  Middle-earth was meant to be our own world (see FAQ, Tolkien, 6),
	  	    and Tolkien's overall conception was of a progression, with "Mythological
	  	    Time" changing into "Historical Time".  The events accompanying the Fall of
	  	    Numenor were a major step in the process.

	  	        Originally, the "fashion" of Middle-earth was the flat world of the
	  	    medieval universe.  Valinor (the equivalent of Heaven in that the "gods"
	  	    dwelt there) was physically connected to the rest of the world and could be
	  	    reached by ship.  When Numenor sank (see LFAQ, Humans, 1) "the fashion of
	  	    the world was changed": the flat world was bent into a round one, with new
	  	    lands also being created; and Valinor was removed "from the circles of the
	  	    World", and could no longer be reached by ordinary physical means.  The
	  	    Elves alone were still allowed to make a one-way journey to Valinor along
	  	    "the Straight Road".  (An elven ship on such a journey would grow smaller
	  	    and smaller with distance until if vanished rather than sinking over the
	  	    horizon as a human ships do.)

	  	        References to "bent seas", "bent skies", "the straight road", "straight
	  	    sight", "the World Made Round", and the like all refer to the change in the
	  	    world's "fashion".  (The palantir at Emyn Beriad "looked only to the Sea.
	  	    Elendil set it there so that he could look back with 'straight sight' and
	  	    see Eressea in the vanished West; but the bent seas below covered Numenor
	  	    for ever." (RK, p. 322)

	  	  ----------


	  	  HOBBITS

	  	  1) Did Frodo and the others (Bilbo, Sam, and Gimli) who passed over the
	  	    Sea eventually die, or had they become immortal?

	  	        They remained mortal.  Tolkien's conception was that a creature's natural
	  	    lifespan was intrinsic to its spiritual and biological nature, and that this
	  	    could not be altered save by a direct intervention of the Creator.  There
	  	    were three occasions when this did happen (Luthien, Tuor, Arwen), but it did
	  	    not in the cases of Frodo & Co.  Tolkien stated explicitly in more than one
	  	    letter that Frodo's journey over the Sea was only a *temporary* healing, and
	  	    that when the time came he and the others would die of their own free will.

	  	  ----------


	  	  2) In _The Hobbit_, Bilbo called the spiders Attercop, Lazy Lob, Crazy
	  	    Cob, and Old Tomnoddy.  What do the words mean?

	  	        Notes in _The Annotated Hobbit_ identify Attercop, Lob, and Cob as
	  	    being taken from similar words in Old and Middle English for "spider"
	  	    (indeed, the word for "spider" in modern Norwegian is "edderkopp").
	  	    The Oxford English Dictionary definition of Tomnoddy is given as "a
	  	    foolish or stupid person." (Annotated Hobbit, 170-171)

	  	        As is well known, Tolkien used "Lob" again later.  During the
	  	    writing of Book IV he wrote to Christopher: "Do you think Shelob is
	  	    a good name for a monstrous spider creature?  It is of course only
	  	    'she + lob' ( == 'spider' ), but written as one, it seems to be quite
	  	     noisome...                                          Letters, 81 (#70)


	  	  References: Hobbit, Ch VIII;
	  	              Annotated Hobbit, 170-171 (Ch VIII, notes 8,9,10);
	  	              Letters, 81 (#70).

	  	  Contributors: WDBL, Paul Adams, Simen Gaure

	  	  ----------


	  	  ELVES

	  	  1) Were Elves reincarnated after they were slain?

	  	        Yes.  In addition to a number of general statements to this effect at
	  	    least two Elves are specifically said to have been "re-embodied" after being
	  	    slain: Finrod Felagund and Glorfindel (see LFAQ, Elves, 2).  ("Re-embodied"
	  	    is used rather than "reincarnated" because in the case of Elves (unlike
	  	    what's usually meant in a human context) the spirit was reborn in a body
	  	    resembling the original and furthermore all its former memories would be
	  	    substantially intact).

	  	  ----------


	  	  2) Was Glorfindel of Rivendell (whom Frodo met) the same as Glorfindel
	  	    of Gondolin, who was slain fighting a Balrog?

	  	        This has been a matter of great controversy.  It was unplanned by
	  	    Tolkien, and therefore was something he had to decide after the fact.
	  	    The only direct information in any of the books is a comment by
	  	    Christopher in _The Return of the Shadow_ (HoMe VI):

	  	          Some notes that were scribbled down at Sidmouth in Devon in the
	  	      late summer of 1938 (see Carpenter, _Biography_, p. 187) on a page
	  	      of doodles evidently represent my father's thoughts for the next
	  	      stages of the story at this time:

	  	              Consultation.  Over M[isty] M[ountains].  Down Great River
	  	          to Mordor.  Dark Tower.  Beyond(?) which is the Fiery Hill.
	  	              Story of Gilgalald told by Elrond?  Who is Trotter?
	  	          Glorfindel tells of his ancestry in Gondolin.

	  	      ... Very notable is "Glorfindel tells of his ancestry in Gondolin".
	  	      Years later, long after the publication of _The Lord of the Rings_,
	  	      my father gave a great deal of thought to the matter of Glorfindel,
	  	      and at that time he wrote: "[The use of Glorfindel] in LotR is one
	  	      of the cases of the somewhat random use of the names found in the
	  	      older legends, now referred to as The Silmarillion, which escaped
	  	      reconsideration in the final published form of _The Lord of the
	  	      Rings_."  He came to the conclusion that Glorfindel of Gondolin, who
	  	      fell to his death in combat with a Balrog after the sack of the city
	  	      (II. 192-4, IV.145), and Glorfindel of Rivendell were one and the
	  	      same: he was released from Mandos and returned to Middle-earth in
	  	      the Second Age.
	  	                                         The Return of the Shadow, 214-215

	  	      ["Trotter" was the original name of the mysterious stranger later
	  	       called "Strider" (who at this stage of the composition was a
	  	       hobbit); II and IV refer to other volumes in the HoMe series.]


	  	        A number of reasons have been advanced for not taking this at face
	  	    value.  Since Christopher's report of Tolkien's conclusion was not
	  	    part of the rough drafts, the question of whether rough drafts can be
	  	    canonical does not arise in this case.  The suggestion that lack of
	  	    premeditation is grounds for rejection also seems inadequate, since
	  	    many elements were introduced with little thought of future conse-
	  	    quences yet later became important parts of the mythos.

	  	        It is true that we have no examples of any other elf journeying
	  	    eastwards *to* Middle-earth during the Second Age (though some did
	  	    visit Numenor), but this is not enough to disprove the possibility of
	  	    Glorfindel's having done so.  There were in fact no direct statements
	  	    either way, which means that Tolkien could have established whatever
	  	    background he wanted to any story he might have written.  The previous
	  	    lack of specific information on this matter was no constraint.

	  	        The strongest objection is that the way Christopher presents this
	  	    insprires less confidence than it might because he doesn't provide any
	  	    direct quotes -- rather, he merely describes a "conclusion" that his
	  	    father eventually "came to".  Evidently, Tolkien never actually wrote
	  	    his conclusion down.  The matter therefore reduces to a question of
	  	    how much one trusts Christopher, and whether one supposes that he
	  	    might attach too much importance to a casual statement.  The majority
	  	    of readers appear to accept that this was indeed a thoughtful
	  	    conclusion that Tolkien reached only after long deliberation (we do
	  	    know that he and Christopher discussed the matter of Middle-earth
	  	    often).  A significant minority continue to reject it.

	  	        In the last analysis, of course, certainty either way is impos-
	  	    sible, since no evidence beyond the above exists.  On the one hand, we
	  	    can at least say that Tolkien apparently saw no objection to the idea
	  	    that a re-embodied Glorfindel could have returned.  On the other hand,
	  	    the usual caveats concerning unpublished material are even stronger
	  	    than usual in this case, since he not only might have changed his mind
	  	    before publishing but also might have done so before he wrote the
	  	    story, or while he wrote it (not an unusual occurrence).  Still, there
	  	    seems a good chance that he would have stuck to the one Glorfindel
	  	    idea, since he seems not to have come to the decision lightly.


	  	  References: Return of the Shadow (HoMe VI), 214-215 (First Phase, XII).

	  	  Contributors: WDBL, Robert Rosenbaum

	  	  ----------


	  	  3) How were Eldar in Valinor named?

	  	        They had two given names ('essi'), one bestowed at birth by the
	  	    father, the other later by the mother:

	  	      ... and these mother-names had great significance, for the mothers
	  	      of the Eldar had insight into the characters and abilities of their
	  	      children, and many also had the gift of prophetic foresight.  In
	  	      addition, any of the Eldar might acquire  epesse  ('after-name'),
	  	      not necessarily given by their own kin, a nickname -- mostly given
	  	      as a title of admiration or honour; and an epesse might become the
	  	      name generally used and recognised in later song and history (as was
	  	      the case, for instance, with Ereinion, always known by his epesse
	  	      Gil-galad).
	  	                                                                   UT, 266

	  	    On why 'Ereinion' ('Scion of Kings' (UT, 436)) was given this epesse:

	  	          It is recorded that Ereinion was given the name Gil-galad 'Star
	  	      of Radiance' 'because his helm and mail, and his shield overlaid
	  	      with silver and set with a device of white stars, shone from afar
	  	      like a star in sunlight or moonlight, and could be seen by Elvish
	  	      eyes at a great distance if he stood upon a height'.
	  	                                                                   UT, 217

	  	  [ Gil-galad's "device of white stars" is shown in entry 47 of Pictures.]

	  	    The other epesse most familiar to readers of LotR was 'Galadriel',
	  	    whose father-name was 'Artanis' ('noble woman') and mother-name
	  	    'Nerwen' ('man-maiden') (UT 229, 231).  As for 'Galadriel', which
	  	    was the Sindarin form of 'Altariel' (Quenya) and 'Alatariel' (Telerin)
	  	    (UT, 266):

	  	      In the High-elven speech her name was Al(a)tariel, derived from
	  	      _alata_ 'radience' (Sindarin _galad_) and _riel_ 'garlanded maiden'
	  	      (from a root  rig-  'twine, wreathe'): the whole meaning 'maiden
	  	      crowned with a radiant garland', referring to her hair.
	  	                                                                 Silm, 360


	  	  References: UT, 217, 229, 231, 266 (all Two, II), 436 (Index);
	  	              Silm, 360 (Appendix, root -kal);
	  	              Pictures, entry 47.

	  	  Contributors: WDBL, Paul Adams

	  	  ----------


	  	  HUMANS

	  	  1) What brought on the sinking of Numenor?

	  	        The Numenor story was Tolkien's re-telling of the Atlantis legend (the
	  	    tale publshed in _The Silmarillion_ was entitled "The Akalabeth", which may
	  	    be translated as "Downfallen").  Numenor was an island far to the West, a
	  	    "land apart" given to the heroic Edain (humans) of the First Age who had
	  	    aided the Noldor in the wars against Morgoth (see LFAQ, General, 1).  [The
	  	    Line of Kings of Numenor was descended from Elrond's brother Elros, who
	  	    chose to be mortal; it led indirectly to Elendil the Tall, first King of
	  	    Arnor and Gondor, and thus eventually to Aragorn son of Arathorn.]

	  	        The theological situation was the "standard" one of a Ban and a Fall.
	  	    The Numenoreans, despite having been granted a longer lifespan than other,
	  	    humans, nevertheless had to remain mortal.  They had also been ordered not to
	  	    sail West to the Undying Lands (Valinor).  After awhile (perhaps inevitably,
	  	    as their power and wealth grew) the Numenoreans began to envy the Elves and
	  	    to yearn for immortality themselves (so as to enjoy their situation longer).
	  	    They managed to convince themselves that physical control of the Undying
	  	    Lands would somehow produce this result (it would not have); however, they
	  	    also retained sufficient wisdom not to attempt any such foolish action.
	  	    Significantly, the more obsessed they became with death the more quickly it
	  	    came as their lifespans steadily waned.

	  	        Near the end of the Second Age King Ar-Pharazon the Golden pridefully
	  	    challenged Sauron for the mastery of Middle-earth.  The Numenoreans won the
	  	    confrontation (see LFAQ, Humans, 2) and took Sauron to Numenor as a prisoner.
	  	    Still wielding the One Ring, he swiftly gained control over most of the
	  	    Numenoreans (except for the Faithful and their leaders, Amandil and his son
	  	    Elendil).  As King Ar-Pharazon's death approached ("he felt the waning of
	  	    his days and was besotted by fear of death"; RK, p. 317) Sauron finally
	  	    convinced him by deception to attack Valinor.  This was a mistake.  A great
	  	    chasm opened in the Sea and Numenor toppled into the abyss.  (Tolkien had a
	  	    recurrent dream about this event; in LotR he gave it to Faramir, who
	  	    described it in "The Steward and the King".)  (See also LFAQ, General, 2).

	  	  ----------


	  	  2) How could Ar-Pharazon of Numenor defeat Sauron while Sauron wielded the
	  	    One Ring?

	  	        He did not actually defeat Sauron himself.  The invasion fleet of the
	  	    Numenoreans was so powerful that Sauron's *armies* deserted him.  Sauron
	  	    merely pretended to humble himself; to be carried back to Numenor as a
	  	    supposed hostage was exactly what he wanted.  His plan was to weaken Numenor
	  	    as a war power by maneuvering them into sending a fleet to attack Valinor,
	  	    where it would presumably be destroyed.

	  	        He succeeded up to a point, but the result was disastrously more violent
	  	    than he foresaw, and he was caught in the Fall of Numenor.  Only his physical
	  	    body perished since by nature he was of the spiritual order.  Tolkien: "That
	  	    Sauron was not himself destroyed in the anger of the One is not my fault: the
	  	    problem of evil, and its apparent toleration, is a permanent one for all who
	  	    concern themselves with our world.  The indestructibility of *spirits* with
	  	    free wills, even by the Creator of them, is also an inevitable feature, if
	  	    one either believes in their existence, or feigns it in a story."
	  	    (Letters, p. 280).

	  	  ----------


	  	  3) What happened to the Ring when Numenor was destroyed?

	  	        Nothing.  Sauron carried it back to Middle-earth, though there might be
	  	    some question as to how he managed it.  Tolkien said he did, and Tolkien
	  	    should know: "Though reduced to 'a spirit of hatred borne on a dark wind', I
	  	    do not think one need boggle at this spirit carrying off the One Ring, upon
	  	    which his power of dominating minds now largely depended." (Letters, p. 280).
	  	    In fact, as far as we know all the spiritual beings (Valar and Maiar) were
	  	    perfectly capable of manipulating physical objects.

	  	  ----------


	  	  4) Where did the Southrons come from?  Were they part of the Atani?

	  	        Yes.  All humans, East, West, North, or South, were.  Humans first
	  	    appeared in the east and spread westwards, with some eventually crossing
	  	    the Blue Mountains into Beleriand.  The entry for Atani in the Silmarillion
	  	    index reads:

	  	      Atani  'The Second People', Men (singular Atan).  Since in Beleriand for
	  	        a long time the only Men known to the Noldor and Sindar were those of
	  	        the Three Houses of the Elf-friends, this name (in the Sindarin form
	  	        Adan, plural Edain) became specially associated with them, so that it
	  	        was seldom applied to other Men who came later to Beleriand, or who
	  	        were reported to be dwelling beyond the Mountains.  But in the speech
	  	        of Iluvatar the meaning is 'Men (in general)'.

	  	    [Humans were 'the second people' because Elves were the Firstborn.]

	  	  ----------


	  	  DWARVES

	  	  1) What were the origins of the Dwarves?

	  	        They were made by Aule, the smith and craftmaster of the Valar.  This was
	  	    against Eru's Plan: Aule had neither the authority nor indeed the power to
	  	    create other souls (the result of his efforts was a group of what amounted to
	  	    puppets).  However, because he repented his folly at once and because his
	  	    motives had been good (he desired children to teach, not slaves to command)
	  	    Eru gave the Dwarves life and made them part of the Plan.  The Elves were
	  	    still to be the "Firstborn", though, so the Dwarves had to sleep until after
	  	    the Elves awoke.

	  	  ----------


	  	  2) If, as has been told, only Seven Fathers of the Dwarves were created,
	  	    how did the race procreate?

	  	        In the _Silmarillion_ account of the making of the Dwarves, only the
	  	    Seven Fathers are mentioned.  In Letter no. 212 (p 287), however, Tolkien
	  	    speaks of thirteen dwarves being initially created: "One, the eldest, alone,
	  	    and six more with six mates."  Thus, it seems that Durin really did "walk
	  	    alone" as Gimli's song said.

	  	  ----------


	  	  ENEMIES

	  	  1) What was the origin of the Orcs?

	  	        A fundamental concept for Tolkien (and the other Inklings) was that Evil
	  	    cannot create, only corrupt (the Boethian, as opposed to the Manichean,
	  	    concept of evil).  In Letter 153 he explained that to a first approximation,
	  	    Treebeard was wrong ("Trolls are only counterfeits, made by the Enemy in the
	  	    Great Darkness, in mockery of Ents, as Orcs were of Elves." TT, p. 89) and
	  	    Frodo was right ("The Shadow that bred them can only mock, it cannot make:
	  	    not real new things of its own.  I don't think it gave life to Orcs, it only
	  	    ruined them and twisted them ..." RK, p. 190).  (Tolkien: "Treebeard is a
	  	    *character* in my story, not me; and though he has a great memory and some
	  	    earthy wisdom, he is not one of the Wise, and there is quite a lot he does
	  	    not know or understand." Letters, p. 190;  "Suffering and experience (and
	  	    possibly the Ring itself) gave Frodo more insight ..." Letters, p. 191.)
	  	    ("To the first approximation" [above] because in that same letter Tolkien
	  	    made some subtle distinctions between "creating" and "making", which cannot
	  	    be gone into here.)

	  	        Tolkien stated explicitly in that letter (and several other places) that
	  	    the Orcs are indeed "a race of rational incarnate creatures, though horribly
	  	    corrupted".  Also that "In the legends of the Elder Days it is suggested that
	  	    the Diabolus subjugated and corrupted some of the earliest Elves, before they
	  	    had ever heard of the 'gods', let alone of God." (Letters, p. 191).  In fact,
	  	    _The Silmarillion_ does state that Orcs were Avari (Dark Elves) captured by
	  	    Morgoth (p. 50, 94), though strictly speaking, the idea is presented as the
	  	    best guess of the Eldar, no more.  Some have rejected the statements on those
	  	    grounds,  that the Elvish compilers of _The Silmarillion_ didn't actually
	  	    *know* the truth but were merely speculating.  But since Tolkien himself,
	  	    speaking as author and sub-creator, more-or-less verified this idea, it's
	  	    probably safe to accept it, as far as it goes.

	  	        It has been widely noted that this conception leaves several questions
	  	    unresolved.  1) Re: procreation, _The Silmarillion_ says that "the Orcs had
	  	    life and multiplied after the manner of the Children of Iluvatar" (p. 50),
	  	    but nevertheless people continue to raise questions.  For one thing, there
	  	    was never any hint that female Orcs exist (there were two apparent references
	  	    to Orc children, but both were from _The Hobbit_ , and therefore may be
	  	    considered suspect).  2) There is the question of why, if Orcs were corrupted
	  	    Elves, their offspring would also be Orcs (rather than Elves -- a somewhat
	  	    horrifying thought).  This question leads to discussions of brainwashing vs.
	  	    genetics, which are not altogether appropriate to the world of Middle-earth.
	  	    3) Finally there is the question of whether Orcs, being fundamentally Elves,
	  	    go to the Halls of Mandos when they are slain, and whether, like Elves, they
	  	    are reincarnated.  (This last would explain how they managed to replenish
	  	    their numbers so quickly all the time.)  There is also some reason to think
	  	    that Orcs, like Elves, are immortal.  (Gorbag and Shagrat, during the conver-
	  	    sation which Sam overheard, mention the "Great Seige", which presumably
	  	    refers to the Last Alliance; it is possible to interpret this reference to
	  	    mean that they were there and actually remembered it themselves.)

	  	  ----------


	  	  2) What was the origin of Trolls?

	  	        No one seems to know.  Apparently, though, they were "made" (as opposed
	  	    to "created" -- see LFAQ, Enemies, 1) by Melkor.  Said Tolkien: "I am not
	  	    sure about Trolls.  I think they are mere 'counterfeits', and hence ... they
	  	    return to mere stone images when not in the dark.  But there are other sorts
	  	    of Trolls, beside these rather ridiculous, if brutal, Stone-trolls, for which
	  	    other origins are suggested." (Letters, p. 191)  "Counterfeits" here means
	  	    more-or-less that the Trolls have no independant life of their own but are
	  	    puppets animated in some way by an external Evil Will.  As for the other kind
	  	    of Troll, the Olog-hai, no reference to their origin has been found, except
	  	    for Appendix F: "That Sauron bred them none doubted, though from what stock
	  	    was not known."  However, they were definitely true Trolls, not large Orcs.

	  	        The Troll adventure in _The Hobbit_ should probably not be taken too
	  	    literally as a source of Troll-lore -- it seems clear that it was much
	  	    modified by the translator's desire to create familiarity.  Thus, it seems
	  	    unlikely that Trolls in Middle-earth spoke with Cockney accents, just as
	  	    it seems unlikely that one of them would have been named "William".

	  	  ----------


	  	  MISCELLANEOUS

	  	  1) Who was Queen Beruthiel?  (Aragorn mentioned her during the journey
	  	    through Moria.)

	  	        The reference is to Book II, Ch 4 "A Journey in the Dark": " 'Do not be
	  	    afraid!' said Aragorn.  There was a pause longer than usual, and Gandalf and
	  	    Gimli were whispering together; ... 'Do not be afraid!  I have been with him
	  	    on many a journey, if never on one so dark; ... He is surer of finding the
	  	    way home in a blind night than the cats of Queen Beruthiel.' " (FR p. 325).

	  	        This is a striking case of Tolkien's creative process.  It seems that
	  	    the name meant nothing when it first appeared: it just "came" as he was
	  	    writing the first draft of the chapter.  Later, however, he "found out" whom
	  	    she "actually" was, his conclusions being reported in UT.

	  	        She was the wife of King Tarannon of Gondor (Third Age 830-913), and was
	  	    described as "nefarious, solitary, and loveless" (Tarannon's childlessness
	  	    was mentioned without explanation in the annals).  "She had nine black cats
	  	    and one white, her slaves, with whom she conversed, or read their memories,
	  	    setting them to discover all the dark secrets of Gondor,... setting the white
	  	    cat to spy upon the black, and tormenting them.  No man in Gondor dared touch
	  	    them; all were afraid of them, and cursed when they saw them pass."  Her
	  	    eventual fate was to be set adrift in a boat with her cats: "The ship was
	  	    last seen flying past Umbar under a sickle moon, with a cat at the masthead
	  	    and another as a figure-head on the prow."  It is also told that "her name
	  	    was erased from the Book of the Kings (`but the memory of men is not wholly
	  	    shut in books, and the cats of Queen Beruthiel never passed wholly out of
	  	    men's speech')." (UT, pp 401-402)

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