60
votes
What is the earliest instance of "Dark Elves" in modern Fantasy?
The origin of the dark elf / light elf trope can be traced back as far as the 13th century, where Dökkálfar (dark elves)and Ljósálfar (light elves) are mentioned in the Prose (or Young) Edda by Snorri ...
- 20.9k
53
votes
Accepted
What is the earliest instance of "Dark Elves" in modern Fantasy?
The first example of the "dark elves" as a distinct dark-skinned, subterranean, evil sub-race of elves may actually be their appearance in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. Prior to that, "dark elf" ...
- 98.6k
52
votes
Orc calls elves "filth?"
In the appendices, Tolkien actually addresses this himself:
“But Orcs and Trolls spoke as they would, without love of words or things; and their language was actually more degraded and filthy than I ...
- 9,039
51
votes
Accepted
Books about dragons and war from a cat-loving author
It sounds like Eragon by Christopher Paolini. Published in 2003 but it looks like the German translation wasn't published until 2009. The film was 2006.
Eragon finds a dragon egg and it hatches. ...
- 2,165
48
votes
Accepted
Is Elven immortality in Middle-earth tied to the Elven Rings of Power?
No, it wasn't like that at all. This was a special choice Elrond and his children had to make, dating all the way back to the end of the First Age, before the Rings were made. The Rings didn't even ...
- 16k
44
votes
Accepted
How did Círdan have a beard?
Tolkien once wrote that Legolas recognized Imrahil as part elven because no elves or part elves have beards.
So why did he write that Círdan had a beard?
Most of the ordinary elves mentioned in LOTR ...
- 346
43
votes
Accepted
Where did Thranduil buy his wine from?
From "far away" vineyards, evidently.
There stood barrels, and barrels, and barrels; for the Wood-elves, and
especially their king, were very fond of wine, though no vines grew in
those ...
- 702k
34
votes
Accepted
Height of the LoTR Races
Men
Númenóreans (2nd age) - 7'
Halflings was derived from the Numenorean name for them (in Sindarin Periannath). ... The name thus evidently referred to their height as compared with Numenorean men, ...
- 95.3k
33
votes
Can the Elves and Hobbits in Tolkien's Legendarium grow facial hair?
Yes
Elves
One example of an elf growing facial hair is Círdan the Shiprwight, who is said to have a "long beard"
As they came to the gates Círdan the Shipwright came forth to greet them. ...
- 77.5k
31
votes
Which Elves are the men of Bree familiar with?
Elves were frequently travelling from Rivendell to the Gray Havens - a journey that has Bree pretty much as the halfway point in a straight line.
In Chapter 3 of Lord of the Rings, Frodo and company ...
- 2,042
29
votes
Accepted
Where did the Noldor learn to fight?
Tolkien’s battles were not won merely by strength or skill in fighting.
A key thing to note before discussing where the Noldor may have learnt to fight is discussing what it meant to be powerful in ...
- 77.5k
29
votes
Accepted
Why are some elves royalty?
Elf royalty comes from the order in which they woke, proximity and exposure to the Valar, and through descent from other elves who were already established as rulers.
The elves did not all wake up at ...
- 95.3k
28
votes
Orc calls elves "filth?"
It may just be translated by tone
One of our only examples of actual black speech is Grishnákh's curse "Uglúk u bagronk sha pushdug Saruman-glob búbhosh skai"
He stooped over Pippin, ...
- 95.3k
26
votes
How did Círdan have a beard?
Tolkien, having spent his entire life writing his Legendarium, changed his mind several times on certain things or simply forgot. I can't give you a 100% concrete answer, but I recall from "The ...
- 77.5k
25
votes
Accepted
Who was the last elf in Middle-earth?
There is no last Elf in Middle-earth - there's still Elves here!
Elves cannot live in Middle-earth indefinitely, embodied. Though the Three Rings helped keep them around and embodied, all Elves in ...
- 25k
25
votes
Dark-skinned elves in J. R. R. Tolkien's works
I'm not 100% sure about this, but I think the answer is that Tolkien's published writings give no clear indication either way. It's important to note that the books focus almost exclusively on the ...
- 10.9k
25
votes
Dark-skinned elves in J. R. R. Tolkien's works
Elves has been used to translate both Quendi, ‘the speakers', the High-elven name of all their kind, and Eldar, the name of the Three Kindreds that sought for the Undying Realm ... They were tall, ...
- 2,201
22
votes
Accepted
Did the Elves do mathematics?
Little
There's evidence for some elementary algebra in devising the Elvish calendar; in particular, they were aware that they couldn't quite fit the right number of days into a year, and devised leap ...
- 164k
21
votes
Tolkien's history of Elves singing and Ents walking and talking
Ents are likely older than Elves
On at least two occasions, Tolkien notes that the Ents are the oldest sentient race in Middle-earth (bold is my emphasis, italic is Tolkien's):
That is a long and yet ...
- 164k
21
votes
Accepted
What's the longest elven family tree we know of?
House of Finwë
We have the House of Finwë, which comprises 6 generations of Elves after him.
Finwë > Fingolfin > Turgon > Idril > Eärendil > Elrond > Elladan/Elrohir
Other than the ...
- 26.4k
18
votes
Where did the Noldor learn to fight?
Not explicitly mentioned, but presumably in Valinor
The Noldor were said to be "great in knowledge and of skill". While not explicitly saying that they were good at fighting, it does tell us ...
- 26.4k
18
votes
Accepted
Fantasy novel involving a mall security officer who prevents a man from blowing up the mall with a dead man's switch
Mall Purchase Night by Rick Cook.
When Andy Westin became a security guard at Black Oak Mall he had no idea what he was getting into. This particular mall is built on an elven power source—the ...
- 111k
17
votes
Accepted
Which Elves are the men of Bree familiar with?
The Elves who travel the East Road - particularly those from Rivendell.
The traditional business of Bree was catering to travellers. Bree is at the crossroads of two ancient highways; the East Road ...
- 21.2k
16
votes
Accepted
Can the Elves and Hobbits in Tolkien's Legendarium grow facial hair?
The prologue to The Fellowship of the Ring describes the Hobbits. Before The Shire was settled there were three races or types or ethnic groups or subdivisions of Hobbits: Harfoots, Stoors, and ...
- 176
15
votes
Accepted
What were Círdan's origins?
There's a short essay on Círdan, written late in Tolkien's life and published in The Peoples of Middle-earth, that addresses this somewhat.
His parentage is unknown (not surprising when you go this ...
- 164k
14
votes
Accepted
How long can elves go without sleeping?
We don't know
As far as I can tell, this is the only time Tolkien mentions this peculiar habit of Elves; it's not discussed in any of his drafts of the chapter, and I can find no other occurrences of ...
- 164k
14
votes
Who was the last elf in Middle-earth?
Cirdan certainly intended to be the last of the elves who did eventually sail into the west. From Appendix B of LOTR:
“Take this ring, Master… for your labours will be heavy; but it will
support ...
- 62.4k
14
votes
Books where gems fall from the sky and are used to focus magic
There is a book called The Demon Awakens, by R.A. Salvatore.
Gems periodically fall from the sky like rain, but only on a specific island. A human religious order sets out to collect the gems every ...
- 26.6k
13
votes
Why did Arwen have to become mortal to marry Aragorn if they were both half-elven?
I doubt she had to; rather she decided to.
There's precedent for a full-blooded (immortal) Elf marrying a mortal, where the Elf retains (or seems to retain) their immortality:
Idril (daughter of ...
- 164k
13
votes
How much Elven ancestry does Aragorn have?
All of the answers assume there was no inbreeding amongst Aragorn's ancestors, which is impossible considering the assumed size of the Númenórean population and the number of generations involved. ...
- 1,476
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