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PARMA ENDORION:

Essays On Middle-earth

The Hunting Party I

Electronic Book Edition

by Michael Martinez

Edited by Matt Tinaglia

Michael Martinez begins a comprehensive study of Tolkien’s imaginary history by “Browsing the Compleat Middle-earth Library”. His trademark conversational tone and style introduce Tolkien’s readers to new perspectives on Elves, Hobbits, Númenoreans, and other fantastic inhabitants of Middle-earth.

Advising that “if you really want to see where it all came from…you first need to see what it all is”, Martinez explores Tolkien’s pseudo-history in detail, analyzing the motivations and values of Middle-earth’s civilizations as described by Tolkien himself. Extensive research on Tolkien’s Second Age, a mysterious era spanning thousands of years, illuminates the second “Fall” of Tolkien’s Elves, who made the dreadful Rings of Power, withheld vital knowledge from their allies, and exposed all of Middle-earth to Sauron’s evil.

Finally, Martinez provides a wealth of insightful commentary, quoting Tolkien’s letters and his son Christopher’s extensive documentation, on those of Tolkien’s sources which are often missed by other researchers. You will never look at Middle-earth the same way again after reading Understanding Middle-earth.

ISBN: 1-58776-145-9

Available through most booksellers Fall 2003

PUBLISHED BY VIVISPHERE

www.vivishpere.com

TABLE OF CONTENTS

i. Copyright ................................................................................................................................ i ii. Introduction to the First Edition (1996) ................................................................................ iii Note on accuracy..........................................................................................................................................iii Stern Warning..............................................................................................................................................iii iii. Introduction to the Second Edition (1998).............................................................................v iv. Introduction to the Third Edition (2001).............................................................................. vii Chapter 1: The Geography of Arda.............................................................................................1

The Continents Of Arda ...................................................................................................................... 1

Aman (The Undying Lands) .......................................................................................................................... 2

Valinor ..................................................................................................................................................... 2

Eldamar.................................................................................................................................................... 3

Araman .................................................................................................................................................... 4

Avathar .................................................................................................................................................... 5

Elenna (Numenor)......................................................................................................................................... 5

The Mittalmar (Inlands)............................................................................................................................ 6

The Orrostar (Northeast lands) .................................................................................................................. 6

The Forostar (North lands)........................................................................................................................ 6

The Andustar (West lands)........................................................................................................................ 6

The Hyarnustar (Southwest lands)............................................................................................................. 7

The Hyarrostar (Southeast lands) .............................................................................................................. 7

Endor (The Middle Lands) ............................................................................................................................ 7

Beleriand (Land of the Valar).................................................................................................................... 7

Eriador (Land Between the Mountains) ..................................................................................................... 8

Rhovanion (Wilderland)............................................................................................................................ 9

Gondor (Land of Stone) .......................................................................................................................... 10

Near Harad (Near South) ........................................................................................................................ 10

Far Harad (Far South) ............................................................................................................................. 10

Mordor (Black Land).............................................................................................................................. 11

Rhun (the East)....................................................................................................................................... 11

Hyarmenor (The Dark Lands)...................................................................................................................... 12

Romenor (The Eastern Lands) ..................................................................................................................... 12

Chapter 2: A Brief History of Arda ..........................................................................................13

The Ainur.................................................................................................................................................... 13

The Quendi (Speakers, or Elves).................................................................................................................. 16

The Naugrim (Dwarves) .............................................................................................................................. 22

The Atani (Men).......................................................................................................................................... 23

Chapter 3: The Elven Peoples of Arda......................................................................................25

The Avari.................................................................................................................................................... 25

The Silvan Elves ......................................................................................................................................... 26

The Sindar .................................................................................................................................................. 27

The Noldor.................................................................................................................................................. 28

The Falmari................................................................................................................................................. 30

The Vanyar ................................................................................................................................................. 31

Chapter 4: The Men of Arda.....................................................................................................33

The Edainic Peoples .......................................................................................................................... 33

The Edain of Beleriand................................................................................................................................ 33

The Edain of Numenor ................................................................................................................................ 35

The Edain of Eriador ................................................................................................................................... 35

The Edain of Rhovanion.............................................................................................................................. 36

The Gwathuirim.......................................................................................................................................... 38

The Dunlendings .................................................................................................................................... 38

The Men of Bree..................................................................................................................................... 39

The Men of Dunharrow........................................................................................................................... 39

The Men of Gondor..................................................................................................................................... 40

The Swarthy Men........................................................................................................................................ 40

The Folk of Bor ...................................................................................................................................... 41

The Folk of Ulfang ................................................................................................................................. 41

Lorgan's Tribe ........................................................................................................................................ 41

The Forodwaith........................................................................................................................................... 42

The Easterlings............................................................................................................................................ 42

The First Easterlings Of The Third Age ....................................................................................................... 43

The Wainriders............................................................................................................................................ 43

The Balchoth............................................................................................................................................... 44

Later Easterlings ......................................................................................................................................... 44

The Haradrim.............................................................................................................................................. 45

Chapter 5: Orcs and Other Foul Things ....................................................................................47

Orcs ............................................................................................................................................................ 47

What did Orcs look like? ............................................................................................................................. 47

Chapter 6: A Little Bit Of Hobbit Lore.....................................................................................55

Where did Hobbits come from? ................................................................................................................... 55

What happened To Smeagol's people? ......................................................................................................... 57

How did Hobbits go to sea?......................................................................................................................... 58

Chapter 7: Things You Might Not Have Known About The Northmen.....................................59

The Anglo-Saxon Myth ............................................................................................................................... 59

Why did Tolkien use Old English to represent the language of Rohan?......................................................... 59

But what about "Beowulf?" Didn't Tolkien use material from the classic Anglo-Saxon poem?..................... 61

Okay, but were The Rohirrim unlike the Anglo-Saxons in any Significant way?........................................... 62

What About The Burial Mounds outside Edoras?......................................................................................... 65

The Kingdom of Dale.................................................................................................................................. 71

The Great King Bladorthin .......................................................................................................................... 73

Chapter 8: What Does An Elf Do In Aman? .............................................................................75

Chapter 9: What Does A Woodman Do All Day? .....................................................................77

Chapter 10: Planning The Middle-earth Wedding.....................................................................79

Rehearsals and Receptions........................................................................................................................... 81

Chapter 11: The Wonders of Middle-earth ...............................................................................83

Wonders of the First Age................................................................................................................... 83

Menegroth................................................................................................................................................... 83

Gondolin..................................................................................................................................................... 85

Khazad-dum................................................................................................................................................ 86

Wonders of the Second Age .............................................................................................................. 90

The Statues of Dunharrow ........................................................................................................................... 90

Wonders of the Third Age ................................................................................................................. 92

The Argonath .............................................................................................................................................. 92

The Bridge of Osgiliath ............................................................................................................................... 95

The Twin Fortresses of Aglarond and Angrenost.......................................................................................... 96

Chapter 12: A Chronology For Tolkien's Four Ages.................................................................99

Chapter 13: Sources Used For Research .................................................................................107

Appendix A: New Information ...............................................................................................109

Orcs .......................................................................................................................................................... 109

i. Copyright

Michael Martinez.

The Hunting Party I

Beren Recovers a Silmaril

The Quest Fulfilled

The Host of Nargothrond

The Riders of Rohan

Balin's Tomb

Orc

Luthien prepares her escape from Hirilorn

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this work, send an e-mail

message to Michael Martinez at Michael@xenite.org. Please indicate which passages you wish

to use and for what purpose.

-i-

-ii-

ii. Introduction to the First Edition (1996)

There are several web sites that offer fairly standard information about J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. The essays you'll find here are intended to provide some insight into the histories and

cultures of Middle-earth. Each "page" is a chapter in the "Book of the Middle Lands". The essays are written for your reading enjoyment. They contain some speculative remarks intended to point the reader toward some possible conclusions. It is not my aim to "finish the creation" for Professor Tolkien.

In working on a larger project I've come across a great deal of material that I'd like to share with people. I decided to put it up on this web site rather than try and publish it in a traditional manner because I have little hope of seeing it published (by me, at least).

Also, I've decided to have a little fun with this material. So be sure to take it with a grain of salt.

Note on accuracy

Christopher Tolkien has now published volume XII of THE HISTORY OF MIDDLE-EARTH.

I've read it and am in the process of updating my essays based on information in that book.

Wherever possible, to preserve Gwidon's sanity, I have tried to add new material rather than

revise the old. But some of the essays are indeed changed and the Polish version of PARMA

ENDORION may not match this one for some time.

There is indeed a historical analysis of the source materials for THE HOBBIT in preparation. I'm looking forward to reading it with high hopes.

Stern Warning

I'm not here to do your homework for you. Anyone who's looking for a quick, cheap essay on

Tolkien should keep in mind that I write in a style that won't be mistaken for a student's 500-

word theme. If you are stupid and lazy enough to cheat, you'll probably get what you deserve

when you try to hand in this stuff.

Enjoy.

-iii-

-iv-

iii. Introduction to the Second Edition (1998)

Since I first created Parma Endorion: Essays On Middle-earth, the web site has received

thousands of visits from interested Tolkien fans. It has "worn out" a few hit counters along the way and I've lost track of how many people have actually dropped in on the main page of the

original site. That really no longer matters to me, to be honest. I've received so much e-mail from well-wishers that I know Parma Endorion is a success, and that it serves a purpose in helping to explain a few of the mysteries of J.R.R. Tolkien's world.

Like THE LORD OF THE RINGS, Parma Endorion has grown in the telling. It was an ongoing

project in late 1996 and early 1997, until I finished the last of the essays I had envisioned for it.

And like LOTR the work has consistently received one complaint: it is too short.

I cannot promise to add any more essays to the collection. I have other projects, some related to Middle-earth and some not. My time is fleeting and my energies are sometimes depleted. But

with this new edition I hope to take care of the one other complaint I have often received: Parma Endorion is too hard to read. To be honest, I intentionally made it difficult to copy, but that had the unfortunate effect of making it nearly illegible. So I've decided to stop playing with my

readers and just present the book as a book, with simple black on white text. I hope this decision meets with general approval.

Many people have written to me asking for permission to copy the essays. I have reluctantly

agreed to this process on numerous occasions. After all, I can hardly prevent people from doing so, and it's quite thoughtful of those who ask me to do so. So, if you do print out these pages, please remember that this is my work, Copyrighted, owned by me. Unlike the authors of a

printed books, I get no compensation for my labors. This project has been a labor of love.

To the many students, teachers, and librarians who have written to me, I want to thank you for

your interest in my researches. Students, please check with your instructors before using this or any other Web site as a source for your reports and term papers. I've found that a lot of educators are encouraging students to use the Web, but you really owe it to yourselves to make sure it's

okay. It sounds trite, but if you cheat on a term paper, you're only cheating yourself.

For those of you who have asked, time and again: no, Parma Endorion is not my last word on

Tolkien research. I hope to one day find a publisher for a very detailed book that explores the pseudo-histories and cultures of Tolkien's Middle-earth unlike any book previously published.

The world J.R.R. Tolkien created is so rich and diverse it simply never ceases to amaze me. I

have not finished the book but work on it progresses as I wend my way through life and debate.

Admittedly if Xenite.org didn't contain so many Web sites I'd probably have finished the book

by now, but I do intend to finish the task and hope to have it done by the end of 1998.

-v-

Finally, I should point out that I've added some new material and have corrected many typos.

None of the graphics from the First Edition are being carried over to this new edition. One of my goals is to speed up the download time for each page. So the book metaphor is useful in that the pages are all considerably shorter.

As ever, I hope you enjoy Parma Endorion. If you send me e-mail and don't hear back, please

don't be offended. At this writing Xenite.org receives more than 1500 visitors a day and I

sometimes get a lot of e-mail.

-vi-

iv. Introduction to the Third Edition (2001)

How does one introduce a third edition? In early 1998, I revised Parma Endorion and I never

expected to do so again, but I've since found many typographical errors in the essays, and some of the information is now outdated. I've also received many requests for new essays.

The past few years have brought me into contact with several Tolkien projects. I have written

essays under contract for Toy Vault's Middle-earth Toys. Since August 1999, I have also written essays for Suite101.com's Tolkien and Middle-earth topic. Some of the earliest Suite101 essays were included in VISUALIZING MIDDLE-EARTH, a book I published in October 2000. I had

intended to include some Suite101 essays in Parma Endorion, but time slipped away from me

and that is no longer possible for this edition. I hope to publish a sequel to VISUALIZING

MIDDLE-EARTH sometime in 2002. And, I don't mind saying, I've had the privilege of

performing research for several media companies. At this writing (December 2001), I am

participating in an extraordinary Tolkien research project with several other people. I don't

believe these opportunities would have opened up for me had I not written Parma Endorion.

Since I first undertook writing these essays, the world of Tolkien fandom has been turned upside down by the Peter Jackson film adaptation of THE LORD OF THE RINGS. Another film

project, "Ancanar", has been inspired by THE SILMARILLION. And there have been numerous Hobbit plays staged throughout the world. At the same time, I have found myself consulted by

any number of companies on Tolkien and Middle-earth. The attention directed upon J.R.R.

Tolkien and his fans over the past few years has been overwhelming. It has also been

distracting. This third edition was originally supposed to be published in 2000. It was to be translated into several languages. Regrettably, I had to defer the whole project for over a year, and in the process lost several of the translation teams.

Had it not been for the interest expressed in the project by Matt Tinaglia, the third edition might still be waiting for me to get back to it. But once he set the wheels into motion, taking on

responsibility for the whole project, from editing to designing the book, I realized that this

edition required something special. And since we had decided to publish it as a downloadable

eBook, I thought, why not include some fan artwork?

Two artists, Anke Eissmann and Rich Sullivan, responded to my inquiries. I had hoped to

feature works by a few other artists whose talents I had come to appreciate, but I was unable to locate them. So, I hope you enjoy the selections I've made, and the updated essays as well. And a Spanish-language translation team, organized by Leandro of Elfenomeno, has worked

steadfastly on two translations of the book. I'm still hopeful of seeing the Spanish edition

completed.

Thank you for your support and interest through the years. We have corrected as many errors as

possible, and some of the information has been updated, to