Celeborn: Difference between revisions

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| pronun=
| pronun=
| othernames=[[Telerin|T.]] ''[[Teleporno]]''
| othernames=[[Telerin|T.]] ''[[Teleporno]]''
| titles=Lord of [[Lothlórien|Lórien]]
| titles=[[Lord of Lórien]]
| position=
| position=
| location=[[Doriath]]; [[Lindon]]; [[Eregion]]; [[Edhellond]]; [[Imladris]]; [[Lothlórien]]
| location=[[Doriath]]; [[Lindon]]; [[Eregion]]; [[Edhellond]]; [[Imladris]]; [[Lothlórien]]
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In the early [[Years of the Sun]], [[Finrod]] and [[Galadriel]] came to Doriath as guests of Elu Thingol. There Celeborn and Galadriel  met, fell in love and were wedded. Galadriel remained in Doriath with Celeborn after [[Finrod]] went to the [[Caverns of Narog]] to establish the stronghold of [[Nargothrond]]. <ref name="Sil-13"/>
In the early [[Years of the Sun]], [[Finrod]] and [[Galadriel]] came to Doriath as guests of Elu Thingol. There Celeborn and Galadriel  met, fell in love and were wedded. Galadriel remained in Doriath with Celeborn after [[Finrod]] went to the [[Caverns of Narog]] to establish the stronghold of [[Nargothrond]]. <ref name="Sil-13"/>


For the rest of the [[First Age]], Celeborn and Galadriel are not mentioned to have played any significant role in the general course of events of the Age, while their relatives, both Sindarin and Noldorin did. The only thing that can be said for sure, is that the couple survived the [[Wars of Beleriand]], including the [[Second Kinslaying]] by the [[Sons of Feanor]]<ref>{{S|24}}</ref>. They may have escaped to the [[Havens of Sirion|Havens]] or the [[Isle of Balar]].
For the rest of the [[First Age]], Celeborn and Galadriel are not mentioned to have played any significant role in the general course of events of the Age, while their relatives, both Sindarin and Noldorin did. As Galadriel told [[Frodo Baggins]], she crossed [[Blue Mountains|the mountains]] before the [[Fall of Nargothrond]] ({{FA|495}}),<ref>{{FR|Mirror}}</ref> and presumably Celeborn was with her in [[Eriador]] during the last century of the Age.{{fact}}


===Second Age===
===Second Age===
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Up to the time when ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' was published, there had been no mention of Celeborn in the previously written legendarium.  [[J.R.R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] later attempted multiple times to fix upon the story behind such an important elf. He remains a fairly unsubstantial character in the legendarium, for despite his profound effect upon the doings of the Elder Days, there is very little direct information on him as a person.
Up to the time when ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' was published, there had been no mention of Celeborn in the previously written legendarium.  [[J.R.R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] later attempted multiple times to fix upon the story behind such an important elf. He remains a fairly unsubstantial character in the legendarium, for despite his profound effect upon the doings of the Elder Days, there is very little direct information on him as a person.


In his first writings (which make up the bulk of the matter of Celeborn)and the works published during Tolkien's lifetime, the elf-lord is portrayed as a kinsman of Thingol and one of the Sindar,<ref name=appb>{{App|B1}}</ref><ref name=rgeo>{{RGEO|Notes}}</ref> and met Galadriel when she came with the Noldor into exile. In a brief, speculative paper written by Tolkien included in ''[[Unfinished Tales]]'', Celeborn is made Thingol’s grandnephew, by the King’s brother [[Elmo]], who is also linked to Círdan. Elmo appears nowhere else in the legendarium.
In his first writings (which make up the bulk of the matter of Celeborn) and the works published during Tolkien's lifetime, the elf-lord is portrayed as a kinsman of Thingol and one of the Sindar,<ref name=appb>{{App|B1}}</ref><ref name=rgeo>{{RGEO|Notes}}</ref> and met Galadriel when she came with the Noldor into exile. In a brief, speculative paper written by Tolkien included in ''[[Unfinished Tales]]'', Celeborn is made Thingol’s grandnephew, by the King’s brother [[Elmo]], who is also linked to Círdan. Elmo appears nowhere else in the legendarium.


===Telerin descent===
===Telerin descent===

Revision as of 19:02, 17 November 2019

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This article is about the Lord of Lórien. For the the Tree, see Celeborn (White Tree).
Celeborn
Sinda
Ebe Kastein - Celeborn.jpg
Biographical Information
Other namesT. Teleporno
TitlesLord of Lórien
LocationDoriath; Lindon; Eregion; Edhellond; Imladris; Lothlórien
AffiliationGwaith-i-Mírdain
LanguageSindarin, Westron
BirthUncertain, see below
RuleT.A. 1981 - early Fourth Age
Sailed westEarly Fourth Age[1][2]
Grey Havens
Family
HouseA member of the royal house of Doriath
ParentageGaladhon
SiblingsGalathil
SpouseGaladriel
ChildrenCelebrían, (Amroth[3], earlier version)
Physical Description
GenderMale
Heightc. 6 feet 4 inches (193cm)[note 1]
Hair colorSilver, long[4]
GalleryImages of Celeborn

Celeborn (S: "silver-tall", pron. [ˈkeleborn]) was a noble Elf - a member of the Sindar[5][6] - who wedded Galadriel of the Noldor. After crossing the Blue Mountains at the beginning of the Second Age and living in the realm of Eregion for a while, he and Galadriel moved to Lothlórien to become the Lord and Lady of Lórien. Their daughter Celebrían married Elrond Half-elven whose daughter Arwen chose a mortal life to wed Aragorn.

History

Early life

Celeborn was a Sindarin prince from Doriath,[7] being the grandson of Elmo the brother of Elwe/Thingol, and thus he was the grand-nephew of the King of Doriath.[8]

See also: #Telerin descent
Līga Kļaviņa - Love at First Sight

In the early Years of the Sun, Finrod and Galadriel came to Doriath as guests of Elu Thingol. There Celeborn and Galadriel met, fell in love and were wedded. Galadriel remained in Doriath with Celeborn after Finrod went to the Caverns of Narog to establish the stronghold of Nargothrond. [7]

For the rest of the First Age, Celeborn and Galadriel are not mentioned to have played any significant role in the general course of events of the Age, while their relatives, both Sindarin and Noldorin did. As Galadriel told Frodo Baggins, she crossed the mountains before the Fall of Nargothrond (F.A. 495),[9] and presumably Celeborn was with her in Eriador during the last century of the Age.[source?]

Second Age

After the fall of Beleriand, Celeborn and Galadriel came to Lindon the coastal region west of the Blue Mountains. Celeborn ruled the fief of Harlindon, which was composed mostly of Sindar, under the High King of the Noldor Gil-galad.[10]

Galadriel and Celeborn crossed into Eriador with many Noldor in their following, together with Sindar and Green-elves; and for a while they dwelt in the country about Lake Nenuial.[11] They departed for Eregion in S.A. 700 and arrived there by S.A. 750.[12]They dwelt for a time with Celebrimbor and the jewelsmiths of Gwaith-i-Mírdain. After Celebrimbor had largely taken over, they made contact with the Nandor of Lindórinand, across the Hithaeglir. Not long after they went through Khazad-dûm to live there, becoming great among its people.

It is said that Celeborn fought in the Sack of Eregion, and he and Elrond narrowly escaped to a dell, where the latter founded Rivendell.[8]

But at some later time, Galadriel and Celeborn departed from Imladris and went to the little-inhabited lands between the mouth of the Gwathló and Ethir Anduin.[13] There they dwelt in Belfalas, at Edhellond,[13] near the place that was afterwards called Dol Amroth; and their company was swelled by Silvan Elves from Lórinand.[13]

Third Age

In early Third Age Amroth was weary of Middle-earth and wished to sail to the West. He departed to Edhellond and by the year T.A. 1981, King Amroth drowned in the Bay of Belfalas. Celeborn and Galadriel took the title Lord and Lady of Lothlórien, the new name for Lindórinand and together they built Caras Galadhon.

Celeborn and Galadriel had a daughter named Celebrían,[note 2] who later married Elrond Half-elven of Rivendell, thus making Celeborn and his wife Galadriel the grandparents of the twins Elladan and Elrohir and their younger sister Arwen Undómiel.

Rowena Morrill - The Swan-Boat of Galadriel

In response to the growing threat of Dol Guldur, the White Council was formed in T.A. 2463. Galadriel was on it; it is likely that Celeborn was also a member.

During the War of the Ring in T.A. 3019, Lórien received the Fellowship of the Ring, composed of various travelers on the quest to destroy the One Ring. He offered advice, and boats for the Anduin, speeding them on their way.

Celeborn's most significant recorded actions came in the same year (in March 3019), when he repulsed three attacks by orcs of Dol Guldur. Celeborn then marshalled his forces to cross the Anduin and lay siege to Dol Guldur. He captured the fortress, and Galadriel threw down its walls and purified it.

After the War of the Ring

Celeborn attended the wedding of King Elessar and his granddaughter Arwen, and on the journey to return bade a fond farewell to Treebeard as well.

"I do not think we shall meet again."
"I do not know, Eldest.
"
Treebeard and Celeborn, Many Partings

.

Celeborn returned to Lothlórien, but the power of Nenya was broken. It no longer was filled with the light and life it had before. It is believed that Celeborn also relocated to Rivendell to reside with Elladan and Elrohir after the departure of Galadriel and having also grown weary of East Lórien.[14][15]

Early in the Fourth Age, he sought the Grey Havens and sailed west aboard Last Ship with Cirdan the Shipwright, but when he did so, he took with him the last memory of the Elder Days in Middle-earth.[16][17]

Character

What can be gleaned of his personality is that he was quick-thinking and swift to act, one of the wisest elves of Middle-earth in the Third Age. He was a warrior too, leading his followers into battle against Dol Guldur and other menaces.

Other Versions of the Legendarium

Up to the time when The Lord of the Rings was published, there had been no mention of Celeborn in the previously written legendarium. Tolkien later attempted multiple times to fix upon the story behind such an important elf. He remains a fairly unsubstantial character in the legendarium, for despite his profound effect upon the doings of the Elder Days, there is very little direct information on him as a person.

In his first writings (which make up the bulk of the matter of Celeborn) and the works published during Tolkien's lifetime, the elf-lord is portrayed as a kinsman of Thingol and one of the Sindar,[5][6] and met Galadriel when she came with the Noldor into exile. In a brief, speculative paper written by Tolkien included in Unfinished Tales, Celeborn is made Thingol’s grandnephew, by the King’s brother Elmo, who is also linked to Círdan. Elmo appears nowhere else in the legendarium.

Telerin descent

According to an alternate history of Celeborn and Galadriel in Unfinished Tales, Celeborn was a Teler of noble rank in Alqualondë, born Teleporno[18], grandson of Olwë, King of the Falmari (so that he still was a kinsman of the king Thingol back in Beleriand).[8]

Artanis, Olwë's granddaughter and a Noldorin princess of great beauty, often spent long visits to Alqualondë and her mother’s kin. During this time the two fell in love, and Teleporno gave her the romantic epithet Alatáriel, meaning "Maiden Crowned with Radiant Garland".[19] Teleporno's name gained an additional Quenya form, Telporno (pron. [telˈporno]).

Later, Teleporno and Artanis helped to defend Alqualondë from the Noldor during the First Kinslaying. Nevertheless, Artanis’s heart was fired by the stories of Fëanor of the open lands across the sea. She urged Teleporno to take a ship eastward to Endor, and he gave in. In doing so the two fell under the Ban of the Valar.

In Beleriand, Teleporno and Artanis were greeted by Elu Thingol, High King of the Sindar and Lord of Doriath. Teleporno eventually "Sindarized" his name to Celeborn; Artanis Sindarinized the epithet Celeborn had given her, and Alatáriel became Galadriel.

Controversy

Celeborn as a Telerin prince seems a late development. This altered origin was not adopted into the published Silmarillion, primarily because it contradicted published canon, and was not incorporated in Tolkien's drafts of the earlier parts, and therefore would have necessitated a major rewrite by Christopher Tolkien and Guy Gavriel Kay to account for a separate departure of Galadriel.

"On the other hand, the making of Celeborn into a Telerin Elf of Aman contradicts not only statements in The Silmarillion, but also those cited already from The Road Goes Ever On and Appendix B to The Lord of the Rings”"
Christopher Tolkien, Unfinished Tales

It's unknown whether Tolkien would have revised the story or would have felt bound by published writings.

His Telerin ancestry would have made the couple first or second cousin. In the Morgoth's Ring it is stated that the first cousins might marry, but seldom did so, or desired to do so.[20]

Etymology

Celeborn is a Sindarin name, consisting of celeb ("silver") + a derivative of ornā ("tall"). Teleporno, his original Telerin name, has an identical meaning. The name Teleporno was "Sindarized" as Celeborn: Telerin telpe ("silver") (Quenya tyelpe) was transformed to Sindarin celeb.[21]

He was given the epithet "the Wise" by Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings.

Portrayal in adaptations

Celeborn in adaptations

1978: The Lord of the Rings:

Celeborn only has a brief, role and speaks only one line. He appeared beside Galadriel for a brief shot.

1981: The Lord of the Rings

Celeborn was voiced by Simon Cadell. Unusually, virtually the whole dialogue Celeborn speaks in the book is utilised in the radio adaptation.

2001: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring:

Celeborn is played by Marton Csokas. The role was extremely small in the theatrical version, but expanded slightly in the Extended Edition of The Fellowship of the Ring. In that version, he participates in giving gifts to the Fellowship as they are leaving Lórien. Notably, he gives Aragorn a dagger and warns him of the dangers the Fellowship will face while sailing down the Anduin.

2002: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (video game):

Celeborn makes a brief appearance in Lothlorien.

2003: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King:

Celeborn leaves for Valinor with Galadriel and the other Ringbearers, rather than remaining behind as in the book.

2006: The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II:

Celeborn only appears during the "Evil" campaign, when is he is slain by the Forces of Sauron.

2007-: The Lord of the Rings Online:

Celeborn can be found alongside Galadriel on a main talan in Caras Galadhon. He is involved in various storylines, including negotiations with the Dwarves of the Iron Hill Garrison and organization of a military assault against Dol Guldur in Mirkwood.

See also

Notes

  1. In the chapter "The Mirror of Galadriel", the heights of Galadriel and Celeborn are described: "Very tall they were, and the Lady no less tall than the Lord". Galadriel's height of 6'4 comes from "Appendix: Númenórean Linear Measures" to "The Disaster of the Gladden Fields" in Unfinished Tales.
  2. Celebrían's exact date and place of birth are not specified.

References

  1. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, "Prologue"
  2. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen"
  3. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn"
  4. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Mirror of Galadriel"
  5. 5.0 5.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Second Age"
  6. 6.0 6.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, "Notes and Translations", in The Road Goes Ever On (J.R.R. Tolkien, Donald Swann)
  7. 7.0 7.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Quenta Silmarillion: Of the Return of the Noldor"
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn"
  9. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Mirror of Galadriel"
  10. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "Of Dwarves and Men"
  11. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn", "Concerning Galadriel and Celeborn"
  12. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn", "Concerning Galadriel and Celeborn"
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn"
  14. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, "Prologue"
  15. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Great Years"
  16. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, "Prologue"
  17. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The Númenorean Kings", "The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen"
  18. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "XI. The Shibboleth of Fëanor", pp. 347, 364 (note 46)
  19. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "XI. The Shibboleth of Fëanor"
  20. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Morgoth's Ring, "Part Three. The Later Quenta Silmarillion: (II) The Second Phase: Laws and Customs among the Eldar"
  21. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn", "Appendix E: The Names of Celeborn and Galadriel"