Dunharrow: Difference between revisions
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== Etymology == | == Etymology == | ||
Tolkien made ''Dunharrow'' the Modern English form of [[Rohirric]] ([[Old English]]) ''Dūnhaerg'', meaning "the heathen fane on the hillside".<ref name="Nomen"/> | Tolkien made ''Dunharrow'' the Modern English form of [[Rohirric]] ([[Old English]]) ''Dúnharg'' (or ''Dūnhaerg''), meaning "the heathen fane on the hillside".<ref>{{App|E1}}, Note</ref><ref name="Nomen"/> | ||
[[J.R.R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] notes that he modernized the element ''haerg'' since ''harrow'' exists as an element in English place-names.<ref name="Nomen">{{HM|N}}, pp. 769</ref> | [[J.R.R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] notes that he modernized the element ''haerg'' since ''harrow'' exists as an element in English place-names.<ref name="Nomen">{{HM|N}}, pp. 769</ref> | ||
Revision as of 16:20, 8 November 2011
Dunharrow was a refuge of the Rohirrim hidden in the White Mountains and fortified against attack. Dunharrow was a clifftop overlooking Harrowdale, the valley of the river Snowbourn.
In order to reach the refuge, a winding path had to be used, known as the Stair of the Hold leading to the "Firienfeld", a large grassy area for the encampment of soldiers and refuge-seekers.
Large carved stones marked the entrance to the Dimholt, a natural amphitheater, which led into the Paths of the Dead.
History
Dunharrow had been used as a refuge sacred place by the Pre-Númenórean Middle Men of the White Mountains during the Second Age — nearly three millennia before the establishment of the Kingdom of Rohan.
Those Men of the White Mountains had lined the winding path with statues known as the Púkel-men — statues originally carved in the likeness of the Drúedain.
When the Rohirrim came to the region, the recognized the "heathen fane" and they used it as a refuge.
Etymology
Tolkien made Dunharrow the Modern English form of Rohirric (Old English) Dúnharg (or Dūnhaerg), meaning "the heathen fane on the hillside".[1][2]
Tolkien notes that he modernized the element haerg since harrow exists as an element in English place-names.[2]
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix E, "Pronunciation of Words and Names", Note
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, "Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings" in Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, pp. 769
