The Complete Tolkien Companion

Nahald – In the original (as opposed to translated) Mannish tongues of Northern Wilderland, the personal name Nahald meant ‘secret’. In translations from the Red Book this name is rendered Déagol.

Nahar – The (onomatopoeically derived) name given in Eldarin tradition to the Horse of the Huntsman of the Valar Oromë.

Náin I – From 1980–81 Third Age, the last King of Khazâd-dûm (Moria), the great Dwarf-city under the Misty Mountains. His father was Durin VI. In this time the Dwarves were again delving deep in their northern mines, seeking the mother-lode of the mithril-vein which had been the foundation of their wealth. Thus they released (or awakened) an evil spirit of the First Age, still slumbering far beneath the earth. This was the Balrog, who slew Durin, and drove many of the Dwarves far away from Moria.

Nonetheless, under Náin I, their new King, the Dwarves held on to the upper levels of their ancient mansions – but only a year later Náin himself was slain by the Terror that emerged from the Deeps. Following his death the Dwarves abandoned Moria and fled into the North.

Náin II – From 2488–2585 Third Age, King of the Dwarf-realm which had been established in the Grey Mountains (Ered Mithrin) shortly after the founding of Erebor. Náin was the last King of this once-thriving colony to die peacefully.

Náin (of the Iron Hills) – The son of Grór, first Lord of the Dwarves of the Iron Hills. In the year 2799 Third Age Náin led an army of his father’s people to aid their kinfolk at the Battle of Azanulbizar, the final battle in the six-year War of the Dwarves and Orcs. The host of the Iron Hills did not arrive at the field of conflict until comparatively late in the day, when the Dwarves had already begun to give way in the face of great odds. But the grim warriors of the Iron Hills turned the tide, and soon reached the very gates of Moria, where Náin challenged Azog, the orc-leader, to single combat. Azog, who had avoided all battle up to this point, was much the fresher and stronger and killed the Dwarf, although he was himself slain by Dáin Ironfoot, son of Náin.

Naith – That part of Lothlórien lying between the rivers Silverlode (Celebrant) and Anduin. The Elves of that land saw the Naith in the shape of a broad spearhead (or gore) whose tip was at Egladil, where they themselves dwelt, near the confluence of the rivers.

Náli – A Dwarf from the Lonely Mountain and a member of the gallant but ill-fated expedition to Moria led by Balin son of Fundin in 2989 Third Age. The colony failed five years later when overwhelmed by Orcs attacking from the east; together with his comrades Frár and Lóni, Náli fell while holding Durin’s Bridge and the Second Hall.

Namárië ‘Farewell’ (Q.) – A word of parting used among the High-elves; more specifically, a name for the Lament of Galadriel in Lórien (called Altariello nainië Lóriendesse in the Quenya tongue). The verse (or hymn) was recorded and set down in the Red Book of Westmarch by Frodo Baggins, to whom it was originally sung, as a valedictory and parting benison. It is in fact the longest single passage of High-elven speech to be recorded in surviving Annals of the Third Age.

Galadriel, exiled from her ancient home in Eldamar long Ages before the War of the Ring, addresses her song to Frodo the Ring-bearer, bidding him a fair journey and peace at the end of it. Simultaneously, she includes a plea to Elbereth – who hears all words spoken in Middle-earth – asking her blessing on Frodo’s Quest and the acceptance of Frodo himself in the Undying Lands after its completion. For Galadriel was the wisest of Elven women then living in Mortal Lands, and her foresight told her that if the Quest succeeded it would be at great personal cost to the Ring-bearer. The verse also speaks indirectly of Galadriel’s sorrow at her own long exile from the Undying Lands.

In the event, Galadriel’s prayer (for such it was) was heard and answered, and the Ring-bearer was granted the grace she sought for him; and for her own great acts of wisdom and unselfishness – and not least for her rejection of the Ring when it came within her power – Galadriel was herself finally forgiven by the Valar and permitted to return to the West.

Nameless Land – An epithet used in Gondor for Mordor. During the latter years of the Third Age, after Sauron once again declared himself openly in Mordor, Men of Gondor and the Westlands frequently spoke of ‘the Unnamed’ and ‘the Nameless Land’, in order to avoid giving substance to what was a very real horror and ever-present threat on the borders of their lives.

Nameless Pass – Because of the heavy omens associated with it, the Pass of CIRITH UNGOL, which lay above Minas Morgul, was spoken of with dread in Gondor – and therefore circumlocution was often employed to avoid naming it (see previous entry). ‘If Cirith Ungol is named, old men and masters of lore will blanch and fall silent,’ reported Faramir when warning the Ring-bearer to avoid the place.1

The inhibiting horror attached to this Pass was based on old tales dating from the days when Gondor kept a foothold in Mordor, when the Tower of Cirith Ungol, which guarded the Pass, was garrisoned by the Dúnedain. Their stories spoke of a living ghastliness which had long made its den in the highest peak of the Pass.

Námo ‘The Judge’ (Q.) – See MANDOS.

Nan Curunír ‘Valley of the Man of Skill’ (Sind.) – Situated between the south-westerly and south-easterly spurs of Methedras, the ‘Last peak’ of the Misty Mountains, the ‘Wizard’s Vale’ was a large, well-guarded valley, in the centre of which rose the mighty Ring of Isengard, originally called Angrenost when the natural fortifications there were smoothed and strengthened by Men of Gondor late in the Second Age.

The Vale of Angrenost (as it was known before Saruman came to dwell there, late in the Third Age) overlooked the plain of Isen and the Gap of Rohan, thus commanding an important strategic position.

Nandor ‘Those-who-turn-back’ (Q.) – The name given in the lore of the Eldar to those of the Telerin kindred, hindmost on the Great Journey, who quitted the march while still east of the Misty Mountains, being overawed by the size of the range and moreover enamoured of the woods and falling waters of Wilderland. They were led by Lenwë. This was the first sundering of the Eldar. Lenwë led his people southward, out of the knowledge of the other Teleri, and little is known of what befell the Nandor afterwards. For they did not remain a united people, but scattered this way and that, wandering freely where the mood took them; and though they were of nobler origin than the wild and rustic Avari, in after years their lives were passed in similar fashion. Many remained in Greenwood; some passed south, to the Golden Wood, and so became the ancestors of the Galadhrim. More still followed the Great River into the southlands, and came to its delta. And after many centuries and millennia, an adventurous vanguard circumvented the Misty Mountains, by way of the Ered Nimrais and Fangorn, and so came into the vast woods of Eriador. (In all probability these were those archaic Elves spoken of by Treebeard, for the Nandor were the first of the Eldar to encounter the Onodrim; at all events they seem to have left a lasting – and favourable – impression on the old Ent.)

This vanguard of the Nandor was led, not by Lenwë (whose fate is not recorded), but by his son Denethor; and it chanced that their arrival in Eriador coincided with the release of Melkor from prison – and of the quickening of evil once more in northern Middle-earth. Eriador was fast becoming perilous. Therefore Denethor, hearing tales of Beleriand (possibly from Dwarves) and of its mighty King and Queen, decided to renounce the choice of his father Lenwë, and so, gathering his people together, he crossed the Blue Mountains into Beleriand, last of all the Eldar to do so, and was reunited with a Telerin people – the Sindar – after more than two ages of separation.

They were welcomed by Thingol, who gave them the Land of the Seven Rivers (Ossiriand) to dwell in. They still called themselves (and were called by the Sindar) Nandor, but the returning Noldor called them ‘Green-elves’ (Laiquendi). Denethor was afterwards slain in the First Battle of Beleriand; and the green-clad Nandor came never again across Gelion, nor took any part in the affairs of the time, save when compelled to do so. Of the separate fates of the Nandor who remained in the east nothing more can be said.

Note: in the nomenclature of the Eldar, the Nandor are accounted Moriquendi and Úmanyar, together with the ‘Western Nandor’ (the Green-elves of Ossiriand) and the Avari.

Nanduhirion ‘Vale-of-dim-streams’ (Sind.) – A name for that ancient place in the Misty Mountains known to Dwarves as AZAN-ULBIZAR and to Northern Men as the Dimrill Dale.

Nan Dungortheb ‘Valley of Dreadful Death’ (Sind.) – The sinister vale which lay between Doriath and Dorthonion, bordered in the east by the river Esgalduin and in the west by the Mindeb.

Nan Elmoth – A wood of East Beleriand, an outlier of the greater forest of Region, though separated from it by the valley of the Celon. It was shaped like the sickle moon, being three leagues broad and seven long. Its trees were the loftiest in East Beleriand. Here the Maia Melian came and sang alone under the stars; and was found by Elwë Thingol, Lord of the Telerin Elves. Here they plighted their troth. They afterwards made a realm in nearby Doriath; but Nan Elmoth was then taken as a dwelling-place by the great smith of the Grey-elves, Eöl. In this wood he met Aredhel Ar-feiniel of the Noldor (in a strange echo of the earlier and less ill-starred meeting).

Nan-tasarion ‘Vale of Willows’ (Q.) – The more formal of the two High-elven names for the valley which lay about the confluence of the Narog with the Sirion, in East Beleriand (the other was Tasarinan). The name most in use was the Sindarin Nan-tathren, which carries the same meaning.

Nan-tathren – See preceding entry.

Nár – An aged but faithful companion of the Dwarf-king Thrór, who faithfully accompanied the exiled King on his last wanderings – which ended at Azanulbizar in 2790 Third Age. Against Nár’s entreaties, Thrór proudly entered Moria alone; several days later, while waiting for him near the Great Gates, Nár heard a horn-blast and the beheaded corpse of the King was cast out on to the steps. Nár was mockingly called near by the Orcs inside Moria, who threw him a bag of worthless coins as weregild for Thrór’s death and told him to take the tidings to his kin. He did so, and the news precipitated the War of the Dwarves and Orcs.

Narbeleth ‘Sun-waning’ (Sind.) – Both an alternative name for the fourth of the six Elvish ‘seasons’ (see QUELLË), and the word used by the Dúnedain for the month more widely known as Narquelië.

Narchost ‘Fire-fort’ (Sind.) – One of the two Towers of the Teeth, which flanked the Black Gate into Mordor. Both towers (the other was Carchost, ‘Fang-fort’) were originally built by Men of Gondor at the end of the Second Age, in order to watch over the borders of the Black Land and prevent the re-entry of evil there after Sauron the Great was first overthrown.

Nardol ‘Fire-head’ (Sind.) – One of the BEACON-HILLS of Gondor; the third in the chain of seven such hills which ran from Druadan Forest to the Firienwood, enabling urgent tidings to be sent between Gondor and Rohan.

Nargothrond ‘Fortress-halls-of-Narog’, an abbreviation of Narogost-rond (Sind.) – The name given by the Noldorin king Finrod Felagund to the great city he founded in the Caves of Narog, during the first century of his exile in Middle-earth. These were a honeycomb of delvings shaped originally by Dwarves (of the race of Noegyth Nibin), and called, by them, Nulukkizdin. Finrod learned of their existence from his kinsman Thingol of Doriath and, desiring to found a kingdom which would also be a hidden redoubt for the Eldar, he chose this ancient place as the site of his new realm in Middle-earth (hitherto he had dwelled at Tol Sirion in the north). The burrowings of the Dwarves were extended by Elf-masons and miners, helped by more Dwarves, and although Nargothrond was never to be as fair as Gondolin or Menegroth, it was larger and more powerful than either of those cities, and the treasure which Finrod had brought out of Valinor and now stored in the vaults of his underground city made it the wealthiest by far. It had three great portals opening on the brink of the swift-flowing Narog, and above on both sides of the river reared the sheer precipices of Tauren-Faroth, which long ago the Narog had cloven in two with the force of its passage. Nargothrond as it was founded was therefore virtually impregnable, though its whereabouts were not long to be kept secret.

During the Long Peace its people extended the influence of their city in all directions, and Finrod was accounted ruler of all the Elves of West Beleriand, save the Falathrim of the Havens, who were of the Sindar and acknowledged only Círdan (and above him Thingol). But Finrod of Nargothrond they respected more than all the other Noldor, and the Havens became allied to Nargothrond, and profited: for in these days of his power Finrod did all in his power to assist all other Elves, and especially those who dwelt in the coast-lands and so guarded the sea-ways. Thus he and his city acted as a bridge between the Noldor and the Sindar.

But war again broke out in the North, with frightening suddenness, and events were thereby set in motion which were to lead inexorably to the doom of Finrod – and ultimately to the fall of his city. Finrod himself barely escaped with his life from the Dagor Bragollach; but afterwards there came to Nargothrond a single warrior of the Edain, Beren son of Barahir – to whom Finrod owed the debt of life – who bore with him the Ring of the House of Finarfin, and claimed the aid of Finarfin’s son on the Quest he had undertaken. Finrod could not and did not refuse this aid, but his people were angry and confused at that time, and, stirred up by the sons of Fëanor, then dwelling as Finrod’s guests, they deposed him. Finrod passed away into the North as Beren’s companion and was never seen again in the Halls of Narog. But the lordship of the city was given to his younger brother Orodreth.

By this time war had at last penetrated into East Beleriand, and the Elves of Nargothrond now found themselves in constant contact with the forces of Morgoth. Perhaps for military reasons – and perhaps for reasons connected with their shame at the casting-out of Felagund – they now precipitately abandoned much of the greater realm of Nargothrond and began to wage war in secret ways: by ambush and swift escape. The bow became their chief weapon. It was at this time that the Fifth Battle of Beleriand was fought in the North, and the Eldarin cause ruined for ever. Even more did the people of Nargothrond now eschew open combat with Morgoth; the perimeter of their realm tightened further, and of the small host they had sent to the Nirnaeth, only one came back.

Now the doom of Nargothrond approached – in the person of the warrior Túrin Turambar of the Edain, who bore with him the Curse upon the Children of Húrin, a curse which never failed to ensnare and destroy those with whom Túrin shared his days. In the wild he had encountered the only survivor of those Elves of Nargothrond who had fought at the Nirnaeth: Gwindor son of Guilin escaped from the mines of Angband. And it was Gwindor who now brought Túrin to his former city. Túrin was a great warrior, more war-crafty than any Elf of Nargothrond (save Gwindor) and, moreover, apparently invincible in battle. He therefore assumed, by degrees, the military leadership of the hosts of the city; and by degrees his pride grew with this new station – and his new name Mormegil – so that he began to reject the methods of war his forces had hitherto been accustomed to use. Against the advice of Gwindor, Túrin caused a great bridge to be built across the Narog, thus gaining the limited tactical advantage of being able to make swift sorties, in exchange for obligingly neutralising the city’s best single defence: for bridges may be crossed in two directions.

And so it proved. There came a day when an army came out of the North, whose object was the destruction of Nargothrond – and Túrin caused the host of the city to meet this force in open battle, fifteen leagues north of the city, on the field of Tumhalad. There the Elven army was annihilated, and Orodreth the king was slain; for the host of Angband was accompanied by the Dragon Glaurung. And even before the fighting had finished, Glaurung and a force of Orcs which accompanied him had hastened south to the gorge of the Narog, crossed Túrin’s bridge (Glaurung was wingless and could not otherwise have entered) and laid waste the city of Finrod. Nargothrond was destroyed, and never arose again.

Narië (Q.) – The equivalent of June, being the sixth month of the year in Kings’ and Stewards’ Reckoning and the third in New Reckoning. The Sindarin name for this month (used only by the Dúnedain) was Norui.

Narmacil I – From 1226–94 Third Age, the seventeenth King of Gondor. He was the son of Atanatar Alcarin ‘the Glorious’, the fainéant heir of the great Hyarmendacil I; and although Gondor still seemed all-powerful by the time he came to the Throne, most of his family did little to preserve this power, being for the most part hedonists who surrounded themselves with luxury and ignored their first duty: to govern. Such a man was Narmacil, who died childless, and so was his younger brother, Calmacil, who succeeded him. However, in 1240, Narmacil appointed a Regent to take over his duties; and in this at least he showed good judgement. The man he chose was Calmacil’s son Minalcar, who ruled on behalf of both his uncle and his father for over sixty years. After Calmacil’s death, the patient, capable and honourable Minalcar was himself crowned King (as Rómendacil II), and then ruled for another sixty years.

Narmacil II – From 1850–56 Third Age, the twenty-ninth King of Gondor. His was a brief and unfortunate reign, for in his time a new enemy appeared on the eastern frontiers of the realm, which then extended as far as the Inland Sea. This was a tribe of Easter-lings known as the Wainriders: a numerous, warlike people who travelled in huge wains or wagons while their khans or chiefs fought from chariots. Inflamed by emissaries of Sauron, these Easterlings made a sudden, massive attack on the eastern pasture-lands of Gondor in the year 1856. Narmacil led an army across the Great River to meet them in Rhovanion but suffered defeat and was slain. The Wainriders swept on as far as the Anduin, which became the new frontier in the east; and Rhovanion, traditionally friendly to Gondor, was enslaved. Narmacil’s son Calimehtar took a delayed revenge in 1899, when he defeated the Wainriders, who were already in difficulty over a rebellion in Rhovanion.

‘Narn i Hin Húrin’ Tale of the Children of Húrin’ (Sind.) – The title given by a poet of the Edain, Dirhavel, to the long ballad or poem composed by him in the late First Age; it deals with the sad subject of Húrin of the Third House, and his children: Túrin and Nienor, accursed by Morgoth. Dirhavel himself was slain in battle, shortly after the making of the Tale.

The sombre story of the curse laid by Morgoth on the family of Húrin Thálion of the Edain forms one of the longest and most sorrowful closing themes of the Elder Days. There are several versions, revealing not only the story of the sufferings and deeds of Nienor and Túrin, but of the sad fate of Morwen their mother, and of Húrin himself, afterwards released in malice by Morgoth – as a kind of cruel epilogue – to wander through the westlands in a destructive odyssey of recrimination and despair, bringing ruin in his wake.

Narog – The longest river west of the Sirion; it had its source at Ivrin, in the southern vales of the Ered Wethrin, and flowed almost due south for ninety leagues, becoming swifter and fuller as it grew in size, until it reached the Sirion at Nan-tathren. It had one tributary: the Ginglith, which flowed into the Narog some twelve leagues north of the highland of Taur-en-Faroth. Where the larger river flowed through this upland, its passage had carved a deep gorge through the rock, and the action of the waters had also hollowed out caves on the western side. These caves were later extended by Dwarves, and still later by Elves of the House of Finarfin; and here was founded the great city of Nargothrond, whose moat and chief defence was the Narog.

Narquelië (Q.) – The tenth month of the year in Kings’ Reckoning, the system developed by the Dúnedain of Númenor in the early Second Age and introduced to the Westlands of Middle-earth by their descendants in the Third Age. This month was unaffected when the slightly modified system of Stewards’ Reckoning superseded the old calendar in the last third of the age; however, when the New Reckoning was introduced at the very end of the Age, Narquelië became the third month of the new year (calculated to begin in spring). In all three systems this month had 30 days and was roughly equivalent to October. It was used by the Dúnedain in the (Grey-elven) form Narbeleth.

Narrow Ice – Poetically, the great icefields of the far North, the HELCARAXË, where bergs and floes and pack-ice grind everlastingly together. The Hobbit Bilbo Baggins, who used this term in his poem ‘Eärendil Was A Mariner’, obviously employed it to indicate the northernmost latitudes that were navigable by Eärendil.

Narrows – The ‘waist’ of the great forest of Greenwood (known in much of the Third Age as Mirkwood). After the conclusion of the War of the Ring, the Narrows came to mark the boundary between the domain of Thranduil in the north and Celeborn’s realm of East Lorien, established in the south.

Narsil ‘Red-and-White-Flame’ (Q.) – The Sword of Elendil, and one of the most renowned weapons in the history of Middle-earth. It was wrought by the Dwarf-smith Telchar of Nogrod during the First Age, and in due time passed to the Lords of Andúnië; at the Drowning of Númenor (3319 Second Age), Elendil the Tall, son of the last Lord of Andúnië, bore it back to Middle-earth.

In fashion Narsil was a long-sword, with a cutting edge that was extraordinarily keen. In the hands of Elendil it was an irresistible weapon. During the War of the Last Alliance it glittered on the field of battle alongside Aiglos, the Spear of Gil-galad (another famous and deadly weapon of the Age); and in the Battle of Dagor-lad (3434) it proved too much for Sauron’s soldiers to withstand. Yet in the final hand-to-hand combat with Sauron upon the slopes of the volcano Orodruin, in the last year of the Age, Elendil fell in the act of slaying Sauron, and his sword broke beneath him. Elendil’s son Isildur then took the hilt-shard of Narsil and used it to cut the Ruling Ring from the hand of the Dark Lord. The Sword-that-was-broken was taken by the Dúnedain of the North back to Annúminas, where it became one of the chief heirlooms of the North-kingdom.

By the end of the Third Age that followed the Bearer of the Sword-that-was-broken was the sixteenth Chieftain of the Dúnedain of the North, the Heir of Isildur, Aragorn II. After the Council of Elrond (3018 Third Age), in which it was decided to attempt the destruction of the Ring, Aragorn had the Sword reforged by the smiths of Elrond’s House; and gave it a new name: Andúril, ‘Flame-of-the-West’. Aragorn bore the Sword Reforged throughout the War of the Ring and to final victory before the Black Gate.

Narsilion ‘Song-of-the-Sun-and-Moon’ (Q.) – The name given by the Eldar to an ancient poem or rhyme (made most probably in Eldamar) which deals with the creation of the Moon and Sun.

Narvi – The Dwarf stonewright who made the Doors of Durin: the West-gate of Moria which opened into the vast underground city from the neighbouring Elvish land of Eregion. His name was recorded upon the Doors by the Elven-smith Celebrimbor, his friend.

Narvinyë (Q.) – The first month of the Kings’ Reckoning, originated in Númenor in the early Second Age and eventually used in one form or another by most of the Westron-speaking folk of Middle-earth. After the year 2060 Third Age, the system was modified and the name was changed to Stewards’ Reckoning, although Narvinyë itself was unaffected. Following the conclusion of the War of the Ring, the calendar was adjusted again and the year was calculated to begin in spring rather than mid-winter. Narvinyë thus became the tenth month of the New Reckoning; however, it still had 30 days and was roughly the equivalent of our January.

Although most of the peoples of Middle-earth who used the Dúnedain calendars preserved the original (High-elven) names for the months and days of the week, the Dúnedain themselves used the Sindarin (or Grey-elven) forms of these names. They therefore spoke of Narvinyë as Narwain.

Narwain – See previous entry.

Narya The Great – The Ring of Fire, one of the Three Rings of the Elven-kings made by Celebrimbor in Eregion in the late sixteenth century of the Second Age. This Ring, adorned with its single red stone, was originally given to Círdan the Shipwright, who kept it until the arrival of the Istari (Wizards) from the West (c. 1000 Third Age). Then, welcoming Mithrandir (Gandalf) at the Grey Havens, he gave Narya to the Wizard, to assist him in the long labours that lay ahead.

Nauglamir ‘Jewel of the Dwarves’ (Sind.) – A rich and beautiful necklace of fine gold-work, set with many-coloured jewels, made for King Finrod Felagund by Dwarves of the Blue Mountains at the time of the founding of Nargothrond. It was left behind by Finrod when he journeyed north with Beren of the Edain, never to return, and afterwards formed a part of the immense pillage of Nargothrond, gathered together in one vast heap by the Dragon Glaurung – the destroyer of the city. From this grim fate it was rescued by Húrin of the Edain, who took the Necklace with him to Doriath and gave it to Thingol Greycloak. He then had the Silmaril which he possessed mounted in the Nauglamir – and so brought his own doom upon his head. For the Dwarves who undertook this work also desired the Silmaril. When Thingol rebuked them, they murdered him. The Necklace and Silmaril were afterwards recovered from them, and eventually passed west over Sea, with Eärendil.

Naugrim ‘Stunted People’ (Sind.) – The DWARVES.

Nazgûl ‘Ring-wraith’ (Black Speech) – See RINGWRAITHS.

Near Harad – The northernmost region of the (undisputed) lands of Harad. It was bounded on the west by the Harad Road and on the east by the lands of Khand; to the north it stretched as far as the Mountains of Shadow, the southern boundary of Mordor.

Necklace of the Dwarves – The NAUGLAMIR.

Necromancer – Shortly after the passing of the first millennium of the Third Age, the Wise became aware that an evil force was coalescing in Southern Mirkwood, at a stronghold later called Dol Guldur. For many years this Power was known to the inhabitants of the Anduin Vale simply as ‘The Necromancer’. Undisturbed for centuries, the sorcerer of Dol Guldur quietly hatched his plots and worked his evil, well content that his enemies remained unaware of his true identity.

Needlehole – A village of the Westfarthing of the Shire. It straddled The Water, to the north of Rushock Bog.

Neithan ‘The Wronged’ (Sind.) – The first of the noms-de-guerre assumed by Túrin Turambar, shortly after he fled from Doriath with the death of Saeros on his hands.

Neldoreth ‘Beech-forest’ (Sind.; Q. Taur-na-Neldor) – The name given by the Grey-elves of Doriath to the smaller and more northerly of the two forests which comprised the kingdom of Doriath, in central Beleriand. (The name Neldoreth is derived from neldeorn, ‘three-trunked-tree’, a word which refers to the greatest of all the beeches of Neldoreth, Hírilorn, which of course had three stems or trunks.) Neldoreth was bordered on the south and east by the river Esgalduin, on the west by the Mindeb and the Sirion, and in the north by the dreadful valley of Nan Dungortheb. It was twenty-five leagues wide at its widest point. As the name suggests, it was comprised almost entirely of beech-trees of great height, though hemlock and niphredil also grew there.

Nellas – An Elf of Doriath and friend of Túrin; she spoke for Túrin’s part in the enquiry into the death of Saeros.

Nénar – One of the stars kindled by Varda (Elbereth) to bring light to Middle-earth at the Awakening, in Cuiviénen, of the Elves.

Nen Girith ‘Shuddering Water’ (Sind.) – A later name for Dimrost, the ‘Rainy Stair’: the place where the Celebros stream joined the river Teiglin, to the west of the Forest of Brethil. It was so renamed because of the shaking fit which overtook Nienor, the sister of Túrin, when she first came near that place.

Nen Hithoel – This ‘Lake-of-Many-Mists’ (Sind.) was formed by the river Anduin after it rushed through the narrow Gates of Argonath. It was a long, pale, oval lake surrounded by the hills of the Emyn Muil, and at its southern end rose three hills which held especial associations for Men of Gondor: Amon Hen (‘the Hill of the Eye’) on the west bank, Amon Lhâw (‘the Hill of the Ear’) on the east, and in between, the tall island of Tol Brandir. After sweeping past these landmarks, the Great River poured in a mighty torrent over the falls of Rauros.

Nenimë (Q.) – When the Númenoreans first divided the year into twelve months, early in the Second Age, Nenimë was the (Quenya) name that they gave to the second month, which had 30 days and was roughly equivalent to February. Their calendar system, called Kings’ Reckoning, was later preserved by the Dúnedain of Middle-earth and eventually adopted by most of the other peoples who used the Common Speech; but it retained the original names of the months and days of the week. The Dúnedain themselves used the Sindarin forms of these names, which in the case of Nenimë was Ninui.

Nen Lalaith ‘Laughing Brook’ (Sind.) – The name given by Húrin and his family to the small stream which ran past their home in Dor-lómin; Húrin’s daughter Urwen (Lalaith) was named after this stream.

Nenning – A river of West Beleriand. It rose south of Nevrast, and flowed due south for forty leagues before finding the Sea at the Haven of Eglarest.

Nenuial – The name of this northern lake was derived from two separate Sindarin elements: nen, meaning ‘lake’ or ‘large-water’, and aduial, the Grey-elven equivalent of the High-elven word for twilight, Undomë (‘Star-opening’). Nenuial therefore means ‘Lake Twilight’ or ‘Lake Evendim’.

The lake was situated in the north of Eriador, near the seat of the ancient Kingdom of Arnor, founded by Elendil the Tall before the ending of the Second Age. It lay open only to the east, being sheltered by the Hills of Evendim from the winds which blew from the north and west; and in shape it was like the Mirrormere in faraway Dimrill Dale, being a spearhead thrust south-west into the hills. On its southern shore stood Elendil’s fair city of Annúminas, capital of Arnor until the heirs of Elendil abandoned the Hills of Evendim and fortified themselves further east. In the Fourth Age Annúminas was rebuilt and the Kings of Gondor and Arnor again dwelt there beside Nenuial’s deep blue waters.

Nenya – The Ring of Waters, sometimes called the Ring of Adamant after the stone set in it; one of the Three Rings of the Elven-kings made by Celebrimbor in Eregion during the late sixteenth century of the Second Age. Nenya was the only one of the Three to remain with its original owner, for Celebrimbor himself gave it to the Lady Galadriel; and though it was necessarily kept hidden throughout the Second Age, Nenya was later used by her to heal those parts of Middle-earth where her writ still ran. Nenya was made from mithril and set in it was a diamond; it shone like a star.

Nerdanel – A princess of the Noldor of Eldamar; she was the daughter of the great smith Mahtan of Tirion, and the wife of Fëanor. Her sons were Maedhros, Maglor, Celegorm, Curufin, Caranthir, Amrod and Amras. Nerdanel was wiser than her husband, but gradually they drew apart as jealousy and fear grew within him; and she had no part in his rebellion, being among those of the Noldor who remained in Tirion under the rule of Finarfin.

Nerwen ‘Man-maiden’ (Q.) – The secondary name (epessë) given to Galadriel in Eldamar by her mother Eärwen.

Nessa – One of the Queens of the Valar (the Valier); she was the sister of Oromë the Hunter, the patroness of deer, and the wife of Tulkas the Strong, youngest and mightiest of the Valar, whom she wedded at the Feast of the Spring of Arda, in Almaren, where the Valar then dwelt.

Nessamelda ‘Beloved of Nessa’ (Q.) – One of the FRAGRANT TREES of Númenor.

Nevrast ‘Hither Shores’ (Sind.) – In ancient days, the name given by the Grey elves of Beleriand to the entire coastline of north-western Middle-earth; the coast of Aman, across the Western Seas, was termed, by them, Haerast, ‘Further Shores’. However, in later days with the expanding of the nomenclature of the Elves, the word Nevrast came to be applied more specifically to the enclosed seaward lands south of the Firth of Drengist, with the mere of Linaewen amidmost. This region became the first dwelling of Turgon of the Noldor, who after the Second Battle of Beleriand made a home for himself and his kin on the slopes of Mount Taras, in the halls of Vinyamar.

Nevrast was never thickly populated, and after Turgon removed to Gondolin it became once more an empty land. It fell under the domination of Morgoth after the Nirnaeth Arnoediad and the collapse of the kingdoms of Dor-lómin and Mithrim, which had formerly protected Nevrast and the Falas from the danger to north and east.

New Age – Each Age of Middle-earth was naturally called the New Age by those during whose lives it began. As the Red Book of West-march – from which all of the presently available records of Middle-earth have been translated – was mostly set down during the years immediately before, during and after the passing of the Third Age, the New Age referred to in these writings is the Fourth Age. The Hobbits, who are credited with setting down most of the information in the Red Book, had their own calendar, which was unaffected by the change of Age; therefore, in their own accounts, Fourth Age 1 remained 1422 Shire Reckoning.

Newbury – A village in the Buckland, not far from Crickhollow.

New Reckoning – Early in the Second Age the Edain of Númenor – who were accomplished mariners and therefore dependent on stellar and solar observation – devised a calendar system called KINGS’ RECKONING, which was brought to Middle-earth at the end of the Age. There, in the Númenorean realms-in-exile, Arnor and Gondor, this system survived unchanged until the latter part of the Third Age when, following the death of the last King of Gondor, a series of minor modifications were made by the first Ruling Steward. This revised system became known as Stewards’ Reckoning, and like its forerunner, the basic features of this calendar were gradually adopted by other folk of Middle-earth who used the Common Speech (or Westron).

At the very end of the Third Age, after the restoration of the Kingship, this system was changed again – to the New Reckoning, and in this form it presumably endured during the Fourth Age. In many ways the new system was a return to Kings’ Reckoning, the major difference being that whereas Kings’ Reckoning had followed the Mannish custom of commencing the year in mid-winter, the New Reckoning returned to the Elvish practice of beginning it in spring. Thus, while the names and order of the months remained the same, they now began with Viressë (the equivalent of April), rather than with Narvinyë (January).

As in Stewards’ Reckoning, each month had 30 days and there were five extra days not belonging to any month: three enderi (‘middle-days’) plus yestarë (the first day of the year) and mettarë (the last day). In leap years the feast-day known as Cormarë (‘Ringday’) was doubled. Cormarë was the birthday of Frodo Baggins, the Ring-bearer. Further to honour the success of the Ring-bearers and celebrate the final Downfall of Sauron, the first day of the new year, yestarë, was made to fall on the old equivalent of March 25th, the date when the Ruling Ring was finally destroyed. (Thus each month now began some five days later than in the old system.)

The New Reckoning was adopted in all the lands of the Reunited Kingdom of Gondor and Arnor save in the Shire; and, like Kings’ and Stewards’ Reckoning, it may well have been picked up by the other Westron-speaking peoples of Middle-earth. It was inaugurated in the middle of the year 3019 Third Age; the Fourth Age began two years later, on the anniversary of Sauron’s fall.

New Row – The name given to the former Bagshot Row after it was rebuilt by the Hobbits following the events at the end of the War of the Ring. This quiet residential lane, which led to the Hill of Hobbiton near the centre of the Shire, and housed among others Hamfast ‘the Gaffer’ Gamgee, was razed by agents of Saruman during the War. After their victories over these ruffians, the Hobbits rebuilt the neat row of cottages and called it simply New Row, although it was sometimes drily referred to as ‘Sharkey’s End’ – a reference to the death of Saruman, which had taken place near this very spot.

Nibin Noeg – The PETTY-DWARVES.

Nienna ‘Lady of Mourning’ (Q.) – A Queen of the Valar, the sister of the Fëanturi Mandos and Lórien. In the traditions of the Eldar she is the Lady of Grief and Compassion, who dwells in the Gardens of Lórien but sleeps by day on the island in the middle of the lake Lorellin. Nienna is one of the three Valar Queens (the Valier) to be numbered among the seven Aratar (High Ones) of Arda. Her task is to bring peace of mind to the grief-stricken. She does this through the medium of dreams. Olórin the Maia was of her following.

Nienor ‘Mourning’ (Sind.) – The birth-name of the maiden of the Edain afterwards known as Niniel, ‘Tear-maiden’; for although she bore the earlier name for the first twenty years of her life, the Doom of the Children of Húrin overtook her, and the memory of her life before that moment was taken from her, by bewitchment. Those who found her thus wandering named her Niniel and so she was called for the remainder of her short and tragic life.

Nienor was the third child of Húrin of the Third House of the Edain and his wife Morwen Eledhwen of the First House; the other two were Túrin Turambar and Lalaith (who had died in infancy before Nienor’s birth). She passed her girlhood together with her mother in Dor-lómin (which had been occupied by Easterlings in the years following the Nirnaeth Arnoediad), but when Nienor was barely twenty Morwen took her and together they slipped secretly out of that country, intending to seek refuge in Doriath, whither Nienor’s elder brother Túrin had been sent some years before.

In the event Morwen was fated never again to see her son; but Nienor’s fate was different. Rebelling against her mother’s commands, she wilfully left the safety of Thingol’s kingdom and fled west: to be overtaken by recurring misfortune – and at length encountered by the arch-foe of her House and Kin: Glaurung the Dragon. This evil creature hypnotised her into forgetfulness, and so, wandering, she was found by some woodmen, Edain of the Forest of Brethil, who took her with them back their arboreal sanctuary of Ephel Brandir. Among these woodmen was her own brother Túrin, though neither of them knew it; for he had not seen her for many years, and she did not remember him.

The tragedy unfolded itself with increasing speed. ‘Niniel’ wed Túrin, and became pregnant by him; and though Túrin slew the Dragon which had worked such evil, and thus partly avenged them both, Nienor, filled with horror – as she was when Glaurung withdrew his bewitchment and the memory of the days of her life came flooding back to her – slew herself in the river Teiglin. Her brother also slew himself soon afterwards; and the following year their mother Morwen died in the same place.

See CABED NAERAMARTH.

Night-fearers – A contemptuous term for Men, in use among some Elves (to whom the night was of course the holiest part of the day).

Night of Naught – A poetic reference (in Bilbo Baggins’ poem ‘Eärendil Was A Mariner’) to the veiling cloak of Shadow which Elbereth wove about the Undying Lands following the rebellion and flight of the High-elves in the First Age.

Nimbrethil ‘Silver-Birch’ (Sind.) – The name given by the Elves of the Havens of Sirion and Arvernien to the birchwoods of that latter region of West Beleriand; these stood not far from the sea, and though not overly extensive, provided excellent wood for shipbuilding. Eärendil’s ship Vingilot was built of this wood.

Nimloth ‘White-flower’ (Sind.) – The name given by the Númenoreans to their White Tree, a descendant of Celeborn of Eressëa (and ultimately of Telperion, Eldest of Trees) which grew in the court of the King in Númenor. (Nimloth is etymologically identifiable with Q. Ninquelótë; a name for Telperion.) A fruit of this tree survived the Downfall and was borne back to Middle-earth to become the chief heraldic emblem and holiest symbol of the Realms in Exile.

In an earlier age of the world, Nimloth had also been the name of the wife of Dior Eluchíl, a princess of the Sindar of Doriath; she was the mother of Eluréd, Elurin and Elwing. All save the last-named were slain by the sons of Fëanor, as was Dior himself.

Nimphelos ‘Whitefrost’ (Sind.) – The name of the great pearl from the Bay of Balar given by Thingol of Doriath as fee to the Dwarves of Belegost who had helped him in the building of his underground palace, Menegroth.

Nimrodel ‘Lady of the White Cave’ (Sind.) – An Elf-princess, probably of the Galadhrim; she dwelt in Lothlórien but, with her lover AMROTH chose to pass over Sea at the end of the second millennium of the Third Age. It was at this time that the Dwarves of nearby Moria accidentally released the Balrog; the evil thus unchained, added to that which already emanated from Dol Guldur, oppressed the lands between. Nimrodel and Amroth therefore prepared to flee from Lórien and pass to the sea-coast. But she, journeying separately from him, perished in the passes of the White Mountains in the South.

Also the name of the cascading stream which flowed from the Misty Mountains eastward to join the Silverlode (Celebrant) inside the borders of Lórien. The Galadhrim believed that its waters carried the voice of the maiden who had once dwelt beside it.

Nindalf ‘Swan-water’ (Sind.) – Known to Men as the Wetwang Marshes; a huge expanse of fen-country which lay on the eastern borders of the Anduin between the Emyn Muil and North Ithilien, whose own southern region was the Mere of Dead Faces.

Nindamos – The chief settlement of the fisher-folk of Númenor, in the south of the island.

Nine, The – The RINGWRAITHS of Sauron, often called the Nine Riders or the Uláiri (Nazgûl in the Black Speech).

Nine Walkers – The members of the Fellowship of the Ring: four Hobbits, two Men, one Elf, one Dwarf, and a Wizard.

Niniel ‘Tear-maiden’ (Sind.) – See NIENOR.

Nin-in-Eilph – See GLANDUIN.

Ninquelótë ‘White-blossom’ (Q.) – See NIMLOTH.

Ninui – See NENIMË.

Niphredil ‘Pale-point’ (Sind.) – The name given by Elves to a small white flower of western Middle-earth, said to have come into existence in Doriath, at the moment of birth of Lúthien Tinúviel (it is depicted on her heraldry). In later ages it also grew in Lothlórien.

Nirnaeth Arnoediad ‘Tears Unnumbered’ (Sind.) – The name given in the lore and traditions of the Eldar to the Fifth Battle of Beleriand, or more properly the fourth day of that great conflict upon the desert of Anfauglith, when with great slaughter and terror the armies of the Eldar and their allies, the Edain, were overthrown for ever by Morgoth Bauglir of Angband, their ancient foe. It also forms the first words of the Curse pronounced by the Valar upon the rebelling Sons of Fëanor, and on those who followed them into exile.

A supreme irony lies in the fact that this battle, with all its appalling consequences, actually came about as a result of a renewed (and admirable) determination on the part of the Eldar to lure Morgoth into a conflict from which his forces could never escape. This new confidence and boldness was in turn the product of a string of military successes which the Eldar and the Edain – loosely grouped under the leadership of Maedhros, eldest son of Fëanor – had been winning as the second decade since the Dagor Bragollach wore away and the shock of that defeat likewise diminished.

Yet in the winning of these victories they had alerted Morgoth to their renascent strength, and so he was not unprepared (as seems to have been hoped by the Elf-captains Fingon and Maedhros). Moreover, by the adroit uses of treachery their Enemy learned of all their plans, and so was able to forestall them by a grand design of his own, which proved utterly victorious.

The conflict itself is described in a most vivid fashion in existing works, and few will wish for more than a summary. Though there was great heroism, and deeds were done whose consequences outlasted the more grievous results of the Nirnaeth, the Eldar and Edain, themselves lured into a gigantic trap, were virtually destroyed. But there was no rout, and Elves and Men – and Dwarves – fought as long as they were able. And because of this some survived: notably the Elf-host of Gondolin, led by Turgon, whose retreat was made only possible by the self-sacrifice of the Men of Dor-lómin, led by Húrin and Huor.

But Azaghâl of the Dwarves was slain, and Fingon High King of the Noldor, and Huor together with all the Men of Dor-lómin (save Húrin only), and the Men of Brethil died, and the Elves of Nargothrond led by Gwindor son of Guilin were all slain. The realms of the sons of Fëanor were swept away for ever, though the brothers themselves survived. Mithrim was overrun, and Dor-lómin also. The armies of Morgoth penetrated even to the Falas, where they sacked the Havens of Eglarest and Brithombar.

From here, as from other places now overtaken by disaster, Elves and Men fled to the Havens of Sirion, or here and there as they might. The black tide flowed around Doriath, Nargothrond, and Gondolin. But their days were doomed, and they also fell, in time, and those who survived joined the earlier survivors at the Havens. As the final stroke, they were then assaulted by others of their kin.

After this internecine attack few indeed remained of the proud hosts who once had crossed over the Sea to wreak their will upon Morgoth and regain the Silmarils. Before the Nirnaeth the Noldor of Middle-earth were a coherent and potent military force, occupying and ordering many fair realms in north-western Middle-earth; but after that day they were a fugitive people, dispossessed of all they had held dear and bereaved of many of their close kin. The only hope of Elves and Men now lay in the West.

Nisimaldar – See FRAGRANT TREES.

Nísinen – A small lake in the river Nunduinë in western Númenor; it was renowned for the abundance of fragrant shrubs and plants that grew around its circumference.

Nivrim – The westernmost portion of the Forest of Region, separated from the main wood by the waters of Sirion; it was accounted Doriath’s western march, and was protected by the Girdle of Melian. Nivrim was renowned for its oaks.

Noakes – A family of Shire-hobbits, settled in Bywater.

Nob – A Hobbit-servant of The Prancing Pony inn in Bree at the time of the War of the Ring.

Nobottle – A village of the Shire, located in the northern part of the Westfarthing, not far from Needlehole.

Noegyth Nibin ‘Lesser [petty]-Dwarves’ (Sind.) – A Grey-elven name (not altogether polite) for the strange, stunted race of ‘speaking-people’ who appeared in Beleriand early in the First Age, after the departure into the West of the Calaquendi but before the appearance of any other intelligent race. Their harsh speech was not understood, and their wizened appearance was misliked; regrettably they were persecuted by the Sindar and the Green-elves. This drove them into hiding, where they nurtured grievances against Elves.

It was this people who discovered and delved the first caves of Nulukkizdin (Nargothrond). They excavated other halls besides; one of these was on Amon Rûdh. Not until other Dwarves had appeared in East Beleriand did the Elves cease their persecution of the Petty-Dwarves – but by then there were only a few left. (Mîm, one of the last of all, was slain by a Man, Húrin of Dor-lómin.)

Nogothrim ‘Dwarf-folk’ (Sind.) – A Grey-elven name for the race of Dwarves, more polite than Naugrim (‘Stunted People’), though not as overtly complimentary as Hadhod or Gonnhirrim. Nogothrim is a collective plural. In the incantation first used by Gandalf the Grey when attempting to command the Doors of Durin to open into Moria, he chose the words Fennas Nogothrim, ‘Gateway of the Dwarf-folk’, which carried a distinct measure of respect: for no Dwarf-doors were likely to open to one using an impolite form of address.

(Nonetheless Gandalf hedged his bets: he also addressed the gateway as Annon Edhellen, ‘Door of the Elves’, no doubt taking into consideration that the Doors, though of Dwarf-make, were designed by, and for, Elves.)

Nogrod ‘Hollow Dwelling’ (Sind.) – The Elvish name for a city of Dwarves in the east of the Blue Mountains, known to its builders and occupiers as Tumunzahar, and to Men as The Hollowbold. Its sister city was Belegost, seven leagues to the north. Dwarves of both cities had much to do with the affairs of the Elves in Beleriand during the First Age; but the memory of Nogrod is clouded – for Elves – by the murder of Thingol Greycloak of Doriath, committed by Dwarves of this city out of desire for the Silmaril, which Thingol then possessed. For this reason the feud between the Sindar and the Dwarves of Nogrod was bitter.

But both Dwarf-cities were destroyed in the inundation of Beleriand, and the survivors, chiefly from Belegost, afterwards went to Moria, in eastern Eriador, and settled there. Moria afterwards became the greatest of all Dwarf-cities; but Nogrod and Belegost lay ever after under the waters of the Firth of Lune.

Noirinan ‘Valley of the Tombs’ (Q.) – The shallow valley to the south of the Meneltarma where the Kings and Queens of Númenor were entombed.

N[g]oldo ‘Wise’ – The older form of the Quenya title for one of the Second Kindred of the Eldar (the Noldor); also the name allotted to Tengwa number 19, which represented the sound ng (cf. Engl. King) in this older form. This tengwa (‘letter’) was later modified to the simpler n sound. In this later form Tengwa number 19 was inverted (right).

Noldolantë ‘Fall-of-the-Noldor’ (Q.) – The name given by Maglor son of Fëanor to the Lament he made at the end of the First Age, shortly before his own death, whose subject was the ruin of his House and people.

N[g]oldor ‘Those-that-know’ (Q.) – The name given in the High-elven tongue to the Second of their Three Kindreds, the People of Finwë, the artisans and loremasters of the Elves, who came, together with the Vanyar, to the West of Middle-earth far back in the Elder Days, and then across the Sea to Eldamar, where for many ages they dwelt in ever-increasing bliss. Finwë was their first King; his sons were Fëanor, Fingolfin and Finarfin. The Noldor helped in the building of Tirion upon the Hill of Túna, and journeyed often into Valinor, and learned many strange and wonderful things, and developed their skills to ever greater heights of accomplishment. The knowledge they gained enriched the lives of all dwellers in Aman, even the Valar. Yet before the Elder Days had passed, many of the Noldor, led by the sons of Finwë, rebelled against the Valar and exiled themselves from the Blessed Realm, returning to Middle-earth to wage war for repossession of their greatest treasure. In this War the Exiles suffered grievously; they never regained that which they sought, and in attempting to do so they unleashed ruin and desolation upon Middle-earth. And even when seeking to undo the evil they had brought about, their destiny in mortal lands worked against them, so that only by their final return, as penitents, into the Far West were they able at last to make amends.

The Noldor were the Craftsmen of the Eldar, and their skills were wondrous. The greatest of all this people in both crafts and lore was Fëanor, and the greatest of all his achievements were the three marvellous Jewels, the Silmarilli, which captured the blessed Light of the Two Trees within their depths and returned it. So bright were the Silmarils that their beauty tempted one of the great Valar, afterwards known as Morgoth the Enemy, who stole the jewels from the Noldor and fled with them to Middle-earth. This act filled Fëanor with such wrath that he proposed to follow Morgoth back to mortal lands, to wrest the Jewels from him by force; and although the Valar sternly prohibited this enterprise, the greater part of the Noldorin Kindred then rose in rebellion and sailed away. In this way was brought about the Exile of the Noldor, and the introduction of war and sorrow on an unparalleled scale into Middle-earth. As the white swan-ships passed out of the seas of the Undying Lands, great shadows, summoned by Elbereth herself, passed across the face of the waters behind them, barring their return. And among the first to peri ooooooooooooooooosh in Middle-earth was Fëanor himself.

Now led by Fingolfin, the ‘High-elves’ (as they became known in Middle-earth) established their many fair and extensive realms in the North, and in Beleriand, and for a while pressed their Enemy severely. But in the end Morgoth triumphed, and Nargothrond fell, and Gondolin was overcome; and then the Noldor retreated to the coast, or hid themselves in far valleys, while outside their hidden sanctuaries the Great Darkness rolled over Middle-earth. Finally, at the very end of the First Age, the Valar relented and sent a great host to the succour of the Elves and Men. At the beginning of the Second Age the Valar allowed all but the surviving leaders of the rebellious Noldor to return to the Blessed Realm, although many of High Elves remained. Most of these dwelt in Lindon and were ruled by Gil-galad Ereinion, son of Fingon, last heir of the kings of the Noldor in exile. But in about 750 a sizeable proportion moved across the Blue Mountains, to Eriador, and there founded the city of Eregion under the walls of Moria.

Eregion was the only High-elven realm to be founded during the Second Age. And it is in the story of the Elven-smiths of that land that the recurring ill-fortune of the Exiles once again makes an appearance. The Elven-smiths were of Fëanor’s house, and possessed much of his ancient skill. Led by their lord, Celebrimbor – the grandson of Fëanor – they determined to make amends for the evil wrought by their forefather, and to this end began the forging of the Rings of Power, all of which were designed to heal the ills of a Middle-earth still suffering from the effects of the War of the Jewels. But the worthy plans of Celebrimbor were subverted by the treachery of Sauron of Mordor, servant of Morgoth in the First Age. By his agency the Rings of Power were turned against their owners, for the most part, and the knowledge obtained by Sauron from the Noldor of Eregion was put to evil uses: he forged the Ruling Ring to be the master of all other Great Rings and, in the middle of the Second Age, war broke out once more between the Elves and the servants of the Darkness.

In this war Eregion was destroyed, and the Elven-smiths routed. Celebrimbor himself was slain. The Three Elven-rings were saved, though while Sauron wore the One they could not be used or even worn. And with the power of the One Ring Sauron of Mordor remorselessly made himself unassailable in Middle-earth. As a result of this the end of the Second Age saw the outbreak of another desperate war which involved the Noldor. In alliance with the Dúnedain (descendants of the Edain of the First Age), Gil-galad led the Elves of Lindon once more to battle against Sauron; and in this war the last King of the Noldor in Middle-earth perished, together with many of the remaining Exiles. After that pyrrhic victory, the Noldor of Middle-earth remained for the most part quiescent, living in memory of the past; and throughout the Age that followed white ships set sail at intervals from the Grey Havens. For the time was approaching when the Dominion of Elves in Middle-earth would come to an end – and all the heroic labours of the Noldor had only hastened the onset of that day.

Those Exiles that nonetheless remained dwelt for the most part with Círdan the Shipwright at the Grey Havens, or with Elrond in Rivendell, or travelled the Westlands in wandering companies which made pilgrimages to the Tower Hills west of the Shire. They took little part in the War of the Ring, for they were by then few in number, and their power had for the most part departed. Most of these remaining Exiles duly returned across the Sea at the end of the Third Age, together with the Three Rings wrought by Celebrimbor; for the time was come for an end of the long and grievous history of that people in Middle-earth. The returning Exiles dwelt in Tol Eressëa within sight of Eldamar, but those few of the ‘Deep-elves’ who had never left Aman continued to dwell in their city of Tirion, on the Hill of Túna.

Note: in the extensively-systemised Eldarin nomenclature, the Noldor are accounted both Amanyar and Calaquendi. In Middle-earth they were known as Golodhrim (or Gelydh) by the Sindar, as ‘High-elves’ (Tareldar in their own tongue) by most other folk of Beleriand, and (especially by the First House of the Edain) as Nómin, ‘the Wise’ (by chance also the meaning of the word Noldor).

Nólë ‘Lore’ (Q.).

Nolimón – See VARDAMIR NOLIMÓN.

Nóm (pl. Nómin) ‘Wisdom’ (Adûn.) – The name given by the People of Bëor (the First House of the Edain) to Finrod Felagund of the Noldor; and (pl.) to the Noldor as a people, especially those of Finrod’s House. This kindred of the Edain was the first of all their race to encounter the High-elves.

Nori – One of the twelve Dwarves who accompanied Thorin Oakenshield on the Quest of the Lonely Mountain in 2941 Third Age. After the successful conclusion of the expedition, Nori remained in Erebor enjoying his rewards and much prestige.

North Downs – A line of smooth hills in northern Eriador, lying to the east of the Hills of Evendim. After the division of ARNOR (861 Third Age), the heirs of Isildur removed their capital from Annúminas, beside Lake Evendim, and built a great walled burg on the southern slopes of these Downs. This was Fornost Erain, the ‘Northern-fortress of the Kings’ of Arthedain; it was later abandoned, and the ruins there became known as Deadmen’s Dike, and were shunned by honest folk.

Northern Line – The Line of Isildur. The royal Line of Descent from Elendil the Tall, founder of the Númenorean realms-in-exile, Arnor and Gondor, through his elder son Isildur, who inherited the North-kingdom of Arnor. This Line passed unbroken from father to son through all the Kings of Arnor and Arthedain and Chieftains of the Dúnedain of the North. The Southern Line, which provided the royalty of Gondor, was descended from Elendil’s younger son Anárion. See also LINES OF DESCENT.

Northern Men – During the Second and Third Ages of Middle-earth most of the Men inhabiting ‘the northern region of the West-lands were descended from the Edain of the First Age, or from their close kin’.2 By the latter part of the Third Age these Northern Men included: the Rohirrim (formerly the Éothéod), the Men of Esgaroth and Dale (the Bardings), the Men of the Carrock (the Beornings) and the Woodmen of Western Mirkwood. All these Men spoke tongues which were part of a Northern language group related to the ancient Adûnaic speech of the Edain, although many of them also knew the Common Speech (itself also partly based on Adûnaic). See also NORTHMEN.

Northern Waste – See FORODWRAITH.

Northfarthing – One of the four quarters or ‘farthings’ of the Shire.

North Ithilien – See ITHILIEN.

North-kingdom – Arnor, later Arthedain.

Northmen – In surviving Annals of the Third Age this name was used originally to mean the inhabitants of the principality of Rhovanion, which stretched from the forest of Greenwood – later called Mirkwood – to the River Running. The Northmen were ‘the nearest in kin of lesser Men to the Dúnedain (being for the most part descendants of those peoples from whom the Edain of old had come)’.3 Consequently, after the first third of the Age, when Gondor began to decline in power, her rulers made alliances with the Northmen against recurring attacks of Easterlings; and in the middle of the Age, great numbers of Northmen migrated to the South-kingdom. The Northmen who remained in Rhovanion continued to face new waves of Easterlings throughout the remainder of the Age.

In the middle of the Third Age one notable branch of this proud people separated from the rest and migrated up and down the Anduin before eventually settling in the land later known as Rohan.