Questions tagged [tolkiens-legendarium]
For questions about any works in J.R.R. Tolkien's Legendarium - The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, The Silmarillion, and other works set in the same universe - or about that universe as a whole. Questions about movies, games, or other media set in the same universe should also use this tag. Questions about Tolkien himself or works by him which are not part of the Middle-earth universe should NOT use this tag use [j-r-r-tolkien] instead.
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What's the big deal about the Nazgûl losing their horses?
I have only watched the movies and I am currently reading The Fellowship of the Ring (haven't finished it yet, I am at "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm").
A number of times we see characters such ...
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Why did Gollum ever take off the ring in the first place?
Bilbo was able to take the ring because Gollum had taken it off.
If you had the ring, and were accustomed to wearing it, why would you ever take it off anyway?
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Why did all the Ringbearers leave Middle-earth in the end?
At the end of The Return of the King, Frodo, Bilbo, Gandalf, Elrond, and Galadriel left Middle-earth on a ship, along with other elves. I named those five because they were all ringbearers and it ...
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Do the books ever say oliphaunts aren’t elephants?
In a comment here, Valorum states "Zero elephants. Several Oliphaunts". Which made me wonder: is there anything in Tolkien's writings to support the notion that Oliphaunts are not elephants?
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Why not encase the One Ring in solid metal?
In the Lord of the Rings, the One Ring corrupts the people near it, and it seems to have a stronger effect on anyone who sees it or touches it. Sauron and the Ring Wraiths also seem to be able to ...
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Where does Gandalf Live?
Does Gandalf have his own home or does he just live where he goes?
Is there a place that he prefers to live and calls home most of all?
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Are Tolkien's orcs immortal?
Orcs were the most commonplace villains serving the Dark Powers in all of Tolkien's Legendarium, a race of sentient beings bred by the evil Vala Melkor (Morgoth) during the time of the Great Darkness.
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How did J.R.R. Tolkien learn about the events of his books? (In-Universe)
So, according to Tolkien, all his Middle-earth novels take place in the real world, about 6,000 years before they were released.
So my question is, did he ever state how he learned of the history of ...
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Why didn't Elrond or Círdan take the ring from Isildur by force and destroy it?
'Alas! yes,’ said Elrond. 'Isildur took it, as should not have been. It should have been cast then into Orodruin’s fire nigh at hand where it was made. But few marked what Isildur did. He alone stood ...
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What was the tallest structure built in Middle-earth?
I started thinking to myself one day (scary, I know) as to which was taller of the two towers, Orthanc or Barad-dûr. And then I wondered if Minas Tirith might be even taller, which then led me to this ...
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Why didn't Sauron fight in the final battle?
As depicted in the trilogy:
Sauron did not lead his army to Minas Tirith
He did not defend the gates of Mordor from Aragon's army
In fact, he was never physically involved in (any) battle ever since ...
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Why did Sauron think that no one in possession of the One Ring would want to destroy it?
In The Two Towers Gandalf says to Aragorn
Indeed he is in great fear, not knowing what mighty one may suddenly appear, wielding the Ring, and assailing him with war, seeking to cast him down and take ...
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Why does Gollum calling the ring his own not alert Sauron?
This (and others eg: this ) answer states that Frodo claiming the ring alerted Sauron immediately of its position, which makes sense: How else would Sauron realize where the Ring and Frodo were at ...
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How did Éowyn slay the Witch-king of Angmar if he wasn't alive?
In The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Aragorn, as Strider, tells the four Hobbits about the Nazgûl, and describes them as "neither living nor dead." Gollum later tells Sam ...
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What lies in Mordor besides Mount Doom and Barad-dur?
Mordor is so big on the Middle-earth map, but the only significant structures in there are the Eye of Sauron and Mount Doom. Since Mordor is so heavily guarded, I would think that there would be more ...
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In Tolkien's opinion, does Tom Bombadil (and the concept of pacifism) actually hold any power?
Before you read and reply to my musings, please bear in mind as I want to make clear, I am not trying to debate whether pacifism is good or bad in the real world, I am just putting out my ...
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Why does Smaug have 4 legs in the 1st movie but only 2 legs in the 2nd?
In the movie, The Hobbit: The Unexpected Journey, Smaug has 4 legs. If you look closely in this scene where he crawls into the mountain, he has 2 fore legs and 2 back legs.
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Why did the Nazgûl start on horseback?
If the Nazgûl had access to the fell beasts - why did they ride on horseback to hunt the ring bearer?
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Why did the One Ring betray Isildur?
First of all, let me point out that I know of this question, about how the Ring betrayed Isildur. I believe it is undisputed that the Ring caused itself to fall off Isildur's finger and into the river....
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Are the mountains surrounding Mordor natural?
Seeing a map of Middle-earth (see below), it strikes me that the mountains surrounding Mordor are "perfect" to create a fortress or stronghold. As a mountain range they also look somewhat unnatural, ...
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Does Sauron have any dialogue in any of the books?
In The Lord of the Rings film adaptions, you can hear Sauron's voice at some points but it's often hard to hear it very well. You can also hear him quite clearly in The Lego Batman Movie, although I ...
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What was Gandalf's plan for getting the Ring to Mount Doom?
I'm currently re-reading The Lord of the Rings for the umpteenth time, and a question occurred to me.
When Gandalf hears from Faramir that Frodo and Sam were heading for Cirith Ungol, he is shocked. ...
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Is Tolkien's Middle-earth in our Universe?
I started reading The Hobbit to my daughter last night having read most of Tolkien's books in my youth, but haven't read them again for some years.
In the first few pages of The Hobbit, Tolkien talks ...
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Would Smaug have actually followed and allied with Sauron had he lived on?
I know Gandalf was worried Smaug would have joined Sauron, but was that just him being cautious? Would Smaug actually join up with Sauron? How does he benefit from that? All it does is bring more ...
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When will copyright restrictions expire on Tolkien's works?
I don't know what the correct vocabulary in English is to talk about royalties, copyright, license of a book, right to exploit, etc.
I would like to know what the legal status is around the books in ...
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Why do Tolkien's wizards look Human, and not Elven?
The two primary races of Middle-earth, those created by Ilúvatar, are Elves and Men. And until quite late in the history of Middle-earth, the Elves were BY FAR the more significant of the two. They ...
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Why didn't Gandalf and Elrond equip the Fellowship (especially hobbits) better?
Frodo had Sting. Which he only did because Bilbo gave it to him. And which was desperately needed to defeat Shelob when Sam was fighting her, so he needed to take the sword where Frodo dropped it.
It ...
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What was the "Watcher in the water"?
In the Fellowship of the Ring, our heroes encounter a creature called "The Watcher in the water" which was guarding the Doors of Durin, the ancient and abandoned entrance to the Mines of Moria. What ...
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Why was a hobbit "the most unlikely creature imaginable" to pick up "The One Ring"?
(The One Ring) abandoned Gollum. But then something happened that the
Ring did not intend. It was picked up by the most unlikely creature
imaginable. A hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, of the Shire.
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Were there ever any "good" Orcs?
I never made it through Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien, but it may have the answer. We know there were good men and bad men in Middle-earth and there were good Wizards and bad Wizards there too...
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Would Gollum qualify, as a Ringbearer, to go to the Undying Lands?
If Gollum had not died in Mount Doom, would he have been allowed to join the elves, Bilbo, and Frodo in the Undying Lands?
He was, after all, by far the longest-lasting bearer of the One Ring (not ...
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During the War of the Ring did Sauron or Saruman actually win any major battles?
I've recently re-read The Lord of the Rings and one thing that simply bugs me, and makes Tolkien's books seem lesser, is the fact Sauron and Saruman seem to lose every battle. I sincerely hope that I'...
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Why was the riddle on the way to Moria written in Elvish?
I just caught my housemates watching The Lord of The Rings. At the scene where the Fellowship enters the Mines of Moria, the writing on the entrance is in Elvish, despite this being a Dwarvish city.
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How did Faramir know that Aragorn was the King in the Houses of Healing?
When Faramir wakes, he says this:
Suddenly Faramir stirred, and he opened his eyes, and he looked on Aragorn who bent over him; and a light of knowledge and love was kindled in his eyes, and he spoke ...
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How did they have time to build Balin a tomb?
Who built the tomb for Balin, buried him in it, and inscribed "Here lies Balin, son of Fundin..." on it? Wasn't he, and every other dwarf with him, killed by orcs?
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What happened to the Hobbits and the Dwarves after the Elves left?
From what I understand, The Lord of the Rings is written as the mythic past of our own world. We are constantly reminded that the race of man is becoming more and more prominent. At the end of The ...
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Why did Sméagol turn into a 'creature' when addicted to the ring, but not Bilbo Baggins?
Why did Sméagol turn into a 'creature', but not Bilbo Baggins?
Déagol found the ring in a river, Sméagol stole it and then turned into a weird creature.
Bilbo did not turn into a creature when he ...
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Did Tolkien create any characters based on people he knew?
Tolkien had a lot of influence from religion, mythology and geography as mentioned here to create what seems like an entire literary universe. It's also not uncommon for authors to be influenced by ...
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What does Sauron need with mithril?
In The Fellowship of the Ring, Book Two, IV A Journey in the Dark, Gandalf explains:
The wealth of Moria was not in gold and jewels, the toys of the Dwarves; nor in iron, their servant. Such things ...
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Were wizards initially intended to be much more common?
There are several things in the text of The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring that, to me, indicate that wizards were originally intended to not only number five altogether - Saruman, Gandalf, ...
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Were there any jokes in the Lord of the Rings?
I saw this Q&A from J.K. Rowling interview:
Q: Hello, I was wondering how much Tolkien inspired and influenced your writing?
J.K. Rowling responds: Hard to say. I didn't read The Hobbit until ...
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Why didn't Gandalf just fight Smaug directly?
So if memory serves right, the premise of the Hobbit is that Gandalf gets this rag-tag team together to retrieve the Arkenstone, so that the Dwarves can reunite, so that they can take back their ...
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Who was the fifth army in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies movie?
Elves
Dwarves
Men
Orcs
Who was the 5th army in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies?
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Did Tolkien popularize the generic description of a wizard?
Nowadays when we think of a wizard, the most common image we conjure up is:
A wise old man with a long white beard
Dressed in a long cloak and pointy hat (usually same colour as even old men have ...
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Elvish tattoo - can it be translated into English?
A cousin of mine recently died in a disastrous accident. Her family discovered a tattoo on her arm, which was completed shortly before. It appears to be written in Elvish (from Lord of the Rings) and ...
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Why didn't Sauron find Bilbo when he put on the ring like Frodo?
When Frodo put on the One Ring, both the Nazgûl and Sauron himself found Frodo. However when Bilbo had the ring and possibly used it many times, Sauron sought Gollum to get a hint on where to look for ...
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Why are the names Sauron and Saruman so similar?
The names Sauron and Saruman are very similar in writing and pronunciation.
Is it an accident? or having an a forethought reason?
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Was Gandalf "meant" to confront the Balrog?
We know Frodo was meant to have the Ring, but did Tolkien ever discuss Gandalf traveling through Moria and having his confrontation with the Balrog?
We know he initially pushed the Fellowship to go ...
user46509
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After Gandalf kills the Balrog of Moria, do any more Balrogs remain in Middle-earth?
Is any reference made anywhere in Tolkien's novels about the number of Balrogs in existence after the demise of the Balrog of Moria? Since Balrogs are described as powerful magical entities that even ...
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What would have happened if the Balrog of Moria had taken possession of The One Ring?
As we saw here, the Balrog of Moria was a fallen Maia, as was Sauron, a being on the same level as Gandalf and Saruman.
If he ever had captured the One Ring when he encountered the Fellowship in ...
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