Elvish Life

Elves are born about one year from their conception. The day of their conception is celebrated, not the actual birthday itself - since for them, life begins at conception (Tolkien was a Catholic). Their minds develop quicker than their bodies; by their first year, they can speak, walk and even dance, and their quicker onset of mental maturity makes young Elves seem older than they really are. Physical puberty comes in around their fiftieth to one hundredth year (by age fifty they reach their adult height), and by their first hundred years of life outside the womb all Elves are fully grown.

Tolkien was divided on how fast Elves actually grew. in Laws and Customs, he states that Elves' bodies develop slower than Men from the start. By the age of twenty, they might still appear physically seven years old, whereas Men at the same age are physically mature. However, he later wrote that Elves and Men develop physically at the same rate until maturity, but then Elven bodies slow down and stop aging physically, while human bodies don't.

Elves marry freely and for love early in life. Monogamy is practised and adultery is unthinkable; they only marry once (Finwë, first High King of the Noldor, was an exception; he remarried after his first wife died).

Spouses can choose each other even long before they are married. They would be betrothed to one another. The betrothal is subject to parental approval unless the parties are of age and intend to marry soon, at which point the betrothal is announced at a meeting of the two houses. They exchange rings and the betrothal lasts at least a year, and is revokable by the return of the rings (but rarely is it actually broken). After their formal betrothal, the couple appoints a time for the wedding when at least a year passes.

Marriage is celebrated at a feast of the two houses. They give back their betrothal rings and receive others worn on their index fingers. The bride’s mother gives the groom a jewel to be worn, but the marriage is achieved with its consummation. Technically, only the words exchanged by the bride and groom (including the speaking of the name of Eru) and the consummation are required for marriage.

The Elves view the sexual act as extremely special and intimate, for it leads to the conception and birth of children. Extra-marital and premarital sex are unthinkable -- indeed, the Elves would regard them as contradictions in terms. Because adultery is also unheard of and fidelity between spouses is absolute, spouses can sometimes live separately for extended periods of time, and no one would get worried over it. In the case of their being raped, Elves lose the will to live.

Elves have few children though, as a rule (Fëanor and Nerdanel were an exception, though; they had seven sons), and there are relatively sizable intervals between each child; for they are soon preoccupied with other pleasures; their libido wanes and they focus their interests elsewhere, like the arts. Nonetheless, they take great delight in the union of love, and they cherish the days of bearing and raising children as the happiest days of their lives.

The Elves, particulary the Noldor, preoccupy themselves with various things, such as smithwork, sculpture, music and other arts. Males and females can do almost everything equally; however, the females often specialise in the arts of healing while the men go to war. This is because they believe that taking life interferes with the ability to preserve life. However, Elves are not stuck in rigid roles; females can defend themselves at need as well as males, and many males are skilled healers as well (like Elrond, though he was technically Half-elven).

Eventually, if they do not die in battle or from some other cause, Elves grow weary of Middle-earth, and desire to go to Valinor, where the Valar originally sheltered their kind. Those who wish to leave for the Undying Lands go by boats provided at the Grey Havens, where Círdan the Shipwright dwells with his folk.

Incidentally, Círdan is quite old when he is shown at the end of The Lord of the Rings. Despite Tolkien's statements in The Hobbit that Elves (and Hobbits) have no beards, Círdan in fact has a beard, which appears to be an anomaly. However, Tolkien later devised at least three "cycles of life" for Elves; Círdan had a beard because he was in his third cycle of life. (Mahtan, Nerdanel's father, had a beard in his second cycle of life, a rare phenomenon.) It is unclear what these cycles exactly are; however, Tolkien left no notes further explaining this. Apparently, beards were the only sign of further natural physical aging beyond maturity.

However, Elves sometimes appear to age under great stress. Círdan appeared to be aged himself; this may be due to all the sorrows he had seen and lived through since the First Age. Also, the people of Gwindor of Nargothrond had trouble recognizing him after his time as a prisoner of Morgoth.

As told above, Elves who die or are killed spend some time in the Purgatory-like Halls of Mandos in Valinor, and after that time they are re-embodied. They almost never go back to Middle-earth, however.

Eventually, their immortal spirits (fëar) will overwhelm and consume their bodies (hröar), rendering them "bodiless", whether they opt to go to Valinor or remain in Middle-earth. At the end of the world, all Elves will have become invisible to mortal eyes, except to those to whom they wish to manifest themselves. (Another perhaps more likely possibility is that the younger Elves will still be visible, but not older Elves, since for them all to become invisible would require that all Elves stop reproducing at some point.) Tolkien called this process "Lingering", and it may be thought of as a fourth and final cycle of Elven life.

The lives of Elves technically only endure as the world endures; however, it is said that at the end of time the Elves will join the other Children of Ilúvatar in singing before His throne.

Elrond

He is Lord of Rivendell, one of the mighty rulers of old that still remain in Middle-earth in its Third Age. His name means "Vault of Stars", "Star-dome", or "Elf of the Cave" (the exact meaning is uncertain as Tolkien gave different derivations in different places).

He is the son of Eärendil and Elwing, and a great-grandson of Lúthien, born in Beleriand in the First Age, making him well over 6,000 years old by the time of the events described in The Lord of the Rings. Because of his mixed blood he is considered (approximately) half-elven. Elrond's twin brother was Elros, Tar-Minyatur, the first High King of Númenor. He is noble, wise, powerful, good, and beautiful Elvenkind. Elrond was the strongest, wisest and most powerful among the Elves, and he was also kind. In appearance, he seemed ageless and his face was fair and he had dark hair and grey eyes. Elrond was a master of wisdom, and at Rivendell he sought to preserve the lore and history of the Elves and of Middle-earth. Elrond is a fount of knowledge and wisdom.

Born at the refuge of the Mouths of Sirion soon before its destruction by the sons of Fëanor, Elrond and his brother, Elros, are captured alive. Their parents fear that they will be killed, but instead they are taken up by the brothers Maedhros and Maglor, who have pity and even cherish them.

Elrond goes to Lindon with the household of Gil-galad, the last High King of the Ñoldor, when Beleriand is destroyed at the end of the First Age, choosing (like his parents but unlike his brother) to be counted among the Elves when the choice of kindreds is given to him.

In the Second Age, he is sent to Eregion by Gil-galad, and after the destruction of Eregion, he flees into Eriador, where he founds Rivendell, one of the last remaining strongholds against Sauron, with the remaining Ñoldor of Eregion. Upon this occasion, Gil-galad entrusts Elrond with Vilya, one of the Three Rings of the Elves.

Near the end of the Second Age, he is Gil-galad's herald at the Battle of Dagorlad, where Sauron is defeated and "killed" by Gil-galad and Elendil (who were also killed) at the gates of his own citadel. In the year 109 of the Third Age, he weds Celebrían, daughter of Celeborn and Galadriel. In the year 130, the twins Elladan and Elrohir are born, and in 241 a daughter, Arwen Undómiel.

He leads the Council of Elrond on the 25th of October of the year 3018, at which it is decided that the One Ring must be destroyed.

Elrond remains in Rivendell until the destruction of the Ring, and of Sauron, when he travels to Minas Tirith to see Arwen wed Aragorn, King of the Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor. On September 29, 3021 of the Third Age, aged approximately 6,520 years, Elrond leaves Middle-earth to go over the Sea with the other Ring-bearers, never to return.

Galadriel

She was an elven noble of Middle-earth. She was the co-ruler of Lothlórien along with Lord Celeborn. She was referred to as The Lady of Lórien, The Lady of the Galadhrim, or The Lady of the Wood interchangeably. Within the realm of Lothlórien, she was referred to as simply Lady Galadriel or The Lady. When she and Celeborn were being referred to collectively, they were known as The Lord and Lady. She was never a queen, however, though she was of royal blood.

She was originally named Artanis ("noble woman") and Nerwen ("man-maiden", referring to her height and strength). Galadriel is the Sindarinized version of Telerin Quenya Alatáriel, the name given her by her lover Celeborn, meaning "maiden crowned with a garland of bright radiance", which referred to her hair. The Elves of Tirion said it captured the radiance of the Two Trees Laurelin and Telperion themselves. It was greatly admired by Fëanor and may have inspired him to create the Silmarils.

The name Galadhriel ("tree-garland") was used outside Lórien by the people who did not know the ancient days and Galadriel's history, confusing with the Elvish word galadh ("tree") and the name of the Galadhrim, the people of Lórien.

Galadriel was the only daughter and youngest child of Finarfin, prince of the Ñoldor and of Eärwen, who was remotely related to Lúthien. Her elder brothers were Finrod Felagund, Angrod and Aegnor. She was born in Valinor during the Years of the Trees.

Much of Galadriel's story is confusing, and there are several distinct tales told about her, collected in the Unfinished Tales. According to the older account, used in the published Silmarillion, Galadriel is an eager participant and leader in the rebellion of the Ñoldor and their flight from Valinor, however completely separate from Fëanor and his kin. Once in Beleriand, she lived nominally with one of her brothers, but spent much time at the court of Thingol and Melian in Menegroth, where she was welcomed because of her family relationship to Thingol's brother Olwë (Galadriel's maternal grandfather). She met Celeborn, a kinsman of Thingol, in Doriath.

According to later accounts, Galadriel was living with her mother's kindred in the Telerin port of Alqualondë when she met Teleporno (later known as Celeborn), who would be her husband and co-ruler. During the great perturbations at the end of that period, she and Teleporno sailed from Valinor and came to Beleriand separately from most of the Ñoldor. Galadriel was not directly involved in the revolt of the Ñoldorin princes and fought in defence of Alqualondë during the Kinslaying, but she fell under the Ban of the Valar because she left without permission (at a time when it would certainly not have been granted). Once in Beleriand she and Celeborn were welcomed by Thingol and lived in Doriath. Celeborn, by this account, was a grandson of Olwë, and would have been especially welcomed for that reason. Once the Ñoldor arrived Galadriel reestablished contact with her brothers, although she was an enemy of the sons of Fëanor: in these later accounts Galadriel and Fëanor are described as great enemies even in Aman.

In both accounts Celeborn played no important role in the Battles of Beleriand. Both Celeborn and Galadriel survived the War of Wrath, but refused the pardon offered by the Valar. Galadriel refused out of pride and therefore remained under the Ban. Celeborn and Galadriel travelled first to Lindon, where they ruled over a group of Elves, probably as a fiefdom under Gil-galad. Later they moved eastward, and established (or were welcomed in) the realm of Eregion or Hollin. At this time they made contact with a Nandorin settlement in the valley of the Anduin, the later Lothlórien. Later they removed from Eregion by way of the mines of Khazad-dûm, and became lords of Lothlórien. Celebrimbor now ruled over Eregion. In Lórien Galadriel and Celeborn had a daughter, Celebrían, who later married Elrond Half-elven of Rivendell.

During the Second Age, when the Rings of Power were forged, Galadriel was mistrusting of Annatar, the loremaster who guided Celebrimbor and the other Ñoldor of Eregion. It later turned out that this mistrust was justified, as he was finally revealed to be Sauron. When Eregion was attacked, Galadriel was entrusted with one of the Three Rings of the Elves. Her Ring was Nenya, the Ring of Water. Conscious of Sauron's power, and wishing to thwart it, she did not use the Ring as long as the One Ring was in Sauron's hands. However, during the Third Age, when the One Ring was lost, she put it to use. Its power might have been related to the Mirror of Galadriel, a large bowl of water in which visions of the past, present, and future could be seen.

In The Lord of the Rings, Galadriel hosted the Fellowship of the Ring after their escape from Moria. When she met them in her tree dwelling at Caras Galadhon, she gave each member of the fellowship a searching look, testing their resolve, while Boromir regarded this test as a temptation. She, in turn, was tested when Frodo Baggins later offered to place the One Ring in her keeping. Knowing that its corrupting influence would make her "great and terrible," she showed Frodo a vision of her becoming dark and evil with terrible power (using her own ring, Nenya). Recalling the ambitions that had once brought her to Middle-earth, she declared, "I pass the test," and refused the Ring, accepting her fate of diminishing (as the time of the dominion of Men had come) and returning at last to Valinor. When the Fellowship left, she gave each member a gift and an Elven cloak and outfitted the party with boats and supplies.

She passed over the Great Sea in the early years of the Fourth Age (on the same ship as Elrond, Gandalf and the Ringbearers Bilbo and Frodo Baggins), leaving her husband Celeborn behind until he finally set sail as well. It is her refusal of the One Ring that lifts the Ban, and that is why she is finally allowed to return. She was aged well over 7,000 years at that time.

Haldir

He was an Elf of Lothlórien, probably a Silvan Elf: a marchwarden who guarded the forest's northern borders. When the Fellowship of the Ring arrived in Lórien, he became their guide to Caras Galadhon. He and his companions are described as wearing grey hooded cloaks and live on platforms in the trees.

Haldir was accompanied by his brothers, Rúmil and Orophin, who interacted little with the Fellowship because they, unlike Haldir, spoke little of the Common Tongue. Little is known about them.

    * Orophin may have been named after the Sindarin Lord Oropher of Mirkwood.

    * Rúmil was probably named after the Elf of the same name who developed the first Elven writing system.

Haldir was one of the few Elves of Lórien who could speak Westron. He had clearly heard of Aragorn, but there is no indication that they had met previously.

n addition to being the Fellowship's guide in Lothlórien, in the second movie he leads a regiment of Elven archers from Lórien to the Battle of Helm's Deep, where he is eventually slain, along with many of his archers.

In the books, there were no Elves at Helm's Deep (aside from Legolas), and the Elves of Lorien were occupied in battles against forces out of Moria and Dol Guldur which were only mentioned in passing. Although the Half-elven Elladan and Elrohir did turn up at Dunharrow, this was after the Battle of the Hornburg had ended. It is also doubtful that Haldir had the authority to command such a large group, since he leads only a small group of border guards.

There is also no mention of Haldir's death in any of the books. Haldir encountered the Fellowship between January 15 and February 16 3019 T.A. and it is generally believed that he lived long before and after this period.

Arwen

Lady Arwen Undómiel (usually called Arwen Evenstar, which is Undómiel in Quenya Elvish) (T.A. 241–F.A. 121) Queen of the Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor, is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's universe of Middle-earth, the betrothed of Aragorn in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. She is the daughter of Elrond and Celebrían (and therefore granddaughter of Galadriel), and the younger sister of their twin sons Elladan and Elrohir. She rejects her Elvish immortality (which she had the freedom to do, since she was one of the Peredhel, the Half-elven, thus having the choice to be counted as an Elf or a Man) to marry Aragorn and die with him.

She was the consort of Aragorn (later named as King Elessar Telcontar) and the mother of the future heir of the throne, Eldarion, and at least two unnamed daughters from her marriage with Aragorn after the War of the Ring ended.

Arwen is actually a very distant relative of Aragorn, being his first cousin sixty-three times removed. Aragorn's ancestor, Elros, the first King of Númenor, was Elrond's brother, and therefore her uncle.

She plays a much more prominent role in the story, which Jackson defends as cinematically necessary to establish her role in the plot more firmly. (Elladan and Elrohir, her brothers, never appear.) In the first film, but not in the books, she sneaks up to find Aragorn and after finding out Frodo's sickness, takes Frodo by herself on horseback where she thwarts the Black Riders at Bruinen with a sudden flood, summoned by an incantation. In the book, it was Glorfindel who put Frodo on horseback and sent him alone to flee the black riders, and Elrond and Gandalf who arranged the flood. In the book, Frodo makes his own stand against the Black Riders; in the movie Arwen defends him. In the movies, during this flight Arwen wields the sword Hadhafang, stated to have once been wielded by her father. This sword, however, does not appear in the books at all; in fact, in the books, Arwen is never mentioned as armed (but she could have armed herself at need; see below).

The three mentions described above and a brief mention of her arrival at Aragorn's coronation are her only appearances in the books. In the movie trilogy, however, various additional scenes pertaining to Arwen are inserted some of which deviate from the books and some of which are in the appendix of RotK. The deviations include a scene in which Aragorn is injured and has a dream about Arwen, a scene where Arwen has a fight with her father about leaving for Valinor, and a scene where she (with Figwit) actually departs for Valinor and then suddenly returns when she sees an image of her future son, Eldarion. In the books, it can hardly have been surprising to Arwen that she and Aragorn might have children together, since she herself is the descendant of two similar unions. The appendix scenes include the story of Aragorn and Arwen's meeting and the story of Aragorn's death and Arwen's grief and eventual death. She was 2,901 years old.

Of all the changes made in the films, the changes to the role of Arwen have been the most controversial (with the possible exception of Faramir's role), particularly with fans. Arwen's role in the movies was originally planned to be even greater: in earlier copies of the script (when the movies were supposed to be filmed in two parts under a different production company), she actually fought in the Battle of Helm's Deep alongside Haldir and the Elven archers, and it was Arwen who brought the sword Andúril to Aragorn. It was after a leaked copy of this script made it online that fan outrage against the much expanded role of Arwen began, along with the comparisons with Xena: Warrior Princess (inspiring the satirical moniker XenArwen). These scenes were altered, downplaying Arwen's role (also, Tyler herself turned out not to be well suited to battle scenes).

Some argue that the substitution of Arwen for Glorfindel, other changed scenes, and the insertion of additional scenes (mostly involving the romance between her and Aragorn), is a major departure in the film version of the story, and even less acceptable than the substitution of Legolas for Glorfindel in the Ralph Bakshi version. As with other changes in character and plot, this is a common hazard encountered in the adaptation of a story from a literary to a film format.

Celeborn

Lord Celeborn is the Elven husband of Galadriel; Lord of the Galadhrim; and co-ruler along with Galadriel of Lothlórien. He is known in the Third Age as the Lord of Lórien. He is the father of Celebrían, the wife of Elrond, making him the grandfather of Arwen Evenstar. He is also apparently a kinsman of the First Age Elven King Thingol. Celeborn means "(tall) silver tree" in Sindarin.

He is referred to as Lord of Lórien, Lord of the Galadhrim, or Lord of the Wood interchangeably. Within the realm of Lothlórien, he is called simply Lord Celeborn or The Lord (more often with Galadriel as The Lord and Lady).

In the Fellowship of the Ring, Celeborn's role is minor. The main focus is on his wife, Galadriel.

Celeborn's ancestry is not exactly certain. He first appears in The Lord of the Rings, and he does not appear at all in Tolkien's (at the time unpublished) existing legends of the First Age, the Silmarillion. Tolkien felt that for an Elf of Celeborn's importance he had to have a good ancestry, and spent several years trying to resolve his origins.

Most existing writings portray Celeborn as a Sindarin Elf from Doriath, the kingdom of Thingol. He is described as a "kinsman" of Thingol. That Celeborn and Thingol are remotely related is further alluded to by the fact they both have silver hair, a colour which is never mentioned outside of the royal house of the Sindar. This origin was adopted by Christopher Tolkien and Guy Kay for The Silmarillion when it was decided to publish this book after Tolkien's death, and a new paragraph about Celeborn's marriage to Galadriel was inserted. Exactly how Celeborn could have been a kinsman of Thingol was not mentioned.

According to one speculative text written by Tolkien, published as part of the Unfinished Tales, Celeborn is the grandson of Thingol's younger brother Elmo (who never appears elsewhere). Elmo is also linked to Círdan, making Círdan another member of the Sindarin royal house.

This simple origin was later changed: in Tolkien's last writings Celeborn is a Telerin Elf from Valinor, then named Teleporno in Telerin Quenya. (This brings him closer to being a peer and equal to Galadriel and makes their partnership seem more balanced.) He meets Galadriel when she is living in the Telerin city Alqualondë, before the rebellion of the Ñoldor. They decide to travel together to Middle-earth, without asking permission from the Valar to do so. While not involved with the rebellion of the Ñoldor, because they leave at the same time and without permission (which would certainly not have been granted at that time), Celeborn and Galadriel are caught under the same Ban that prevents them from returning. The name Teleporno was then "Sindarized" as Celeborn: Telerin telep ("silver") (Ñoldorin Quenya tyelep) was translated to Sindarin keleb (or celeb). In order to be counted as a kinsman of the Sindarin king Thingol, Celeborn must have been part of the family of the Telerin king Olwë, likely one of his sons or grandsons.

This altered origin was not adopted into the published Silmarillion, primarily because it would have necessitated a major rewrite of the earlier parts to account for a separate departure of Galadriel. A further problem was that this descent would have made Celeborn Galadriel's first or second cousin (assuming that he was still to be considered closely related to Thingol), and Elves never married close kin.

Unfortunately, Tolkien's "final word" on Celeborn's origin is unknown, as he never returned to the question. While it is likely the Aman origin of Teleporno was the final intent, it is equally likely Celeborn would have been portrayed in the eventual "author's Silmarillion" as related more distantly to Thingol—the relationship could have been through other family members not mentioned. (See Daughters of Finwë for an example of significant family members not named in The Silmarillion.)

Celeborn's further history is as shady as his past: at one point during the Second Age, Celeborn apparently rules over Elves in Lindon, but it is not certain if he fell under the overlordship of Gil-galad, or ruled (together with Galadriel?) as an independent lord. Celeborn and Galadriel later rule over the Elves of Eregion (at least in some accounts), before settling in Lothlórien.

Celeborn remains behind after Galadriel leaves Middle-earth, but eventually, some time during the Fourth Age, leaves for Valinor. The "Tale of Aragorn and Arwen" suggests that Lórien is wholly abandoned shortly afterward. However, there are other references about the Fate of the Elves of Middle-Earth suggesting that at least some Silvan Elves continue to live there deep into the Fourth Age. It is said with Celeborn passes the last memory of the Elder Days from Middle-earth.