Eregion
| Eregion | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General information | |
| Other names | Hollin |
| Location | The far southeast of Eriador, directly to the west of Khazad-dûm |
| Capital | Ost-in-Edhil |
| People | |
| Population | Mostly Noldor |
| Language | Sindarin |
| Governance | Celebrimbor |
| History | |
| Foundation | S.A. 750 |
| Three Rings made | S.A. 1590 |
| Destroyed | S.A. 1697 |
| Followed by | Rivendell |
| Gallery | Images of Eregion |
 | Eregion.mp3 |
| By Ardamir. (Help; more articles) | |
| Hollin.mp3 |
| By Ardamir. (Help; more articles) | |
Eregion (S, pron. [eˈreɡjon]) or Hollin was a realm of the Noldor in Eriador during the Second Age, located near the Walls of Moria, under the shadow of the Misty Mountains. It was the only lasting Noldorin realm outside Lindon.[1]
History
After the end of the First Age, most of the Noldor who remained in Middle-earth dwelt in Lindon under the rule of Gil-galad, their High King.[1] After some seven centuries, Celebrimbor, the grandson of Fëanor, chose to depart from Lindon and passed eastward, drawn by the promise of mithril in the mines of the Dwarves. These elves followed Celebrimbor and founded Eregion.[2] It's capital, Ost-in-Edhil, was founded in S.A. 750.[2] It was at this time that Galadriel and Celeborn travel from Lake Nenuial and settle in Eregion for a while.[3]
The Elves of Eregion lived in harmony with a Dwarven civilization, trading freely with their kingdom of Khazad-dûm. A high road ran from Ost-in-Edhil to Khazad-dûm, and an unprecedented friendship between the two races began in that time.[1] Within the Elves of Eregion, an important society or guild of craftsmen emerged with Celebrimbor as its leader. These were the Gwaith-i-Mírdain, the People of the Jewel-smiths, and their work was said to be the greatest to be seen since the time of Fëanor.[1]
In S.A. 1200, the Elves of Eregion became friends with Sauron, under the guise of Annatar, the "Lord of Gifts".[2] After "Annatar" taught and assisted the Gwaith-i-Mirdain with creating the Rings of Power, he left Eregion. Celebrimbor's smiths proceeded then to forge Three more on their own with the knowledge already gained from him. Their forging was completed by around S.A. 1590.[2] Annatar didn't learn about them, and they were "unsullied", free from Sauron's corrupting influence.
When Sauron created the One Ring in S.A. 1600, the Elves who wore the Rings of Power heard his voice and realized they had been deceived.[1][2] In S.A. 1693, Celebrimbor sent his three rings away for safekeeping: he gave Nenya to Galadriel in Lothlórien, who advised him to send the other two to Lindon, away from Sauron, so he gave Vilya to High King Gil-galad and Narya to Círdan.[1][2]
The Elves of Eregion did not stand alone against Sauron. From Lindon, Gil-galad sent a force commanded by Elrond to lend them aid. Before Elrond could come to Eregion, the Dark Lord demanded that the Rings of Power be turned over to him, and when he was refused he brought his full force against Eregion.[3] In S.A. 1697, Ost-in-Edhil fell, with Celebrimbor himself leading a last desperate defence on the steps of the Jewel-smiths' guild house.[3] He was taken captive by the Orcs, then shot through with Orc-arrows, and by some accounts, Sauron used Celebrimbor's body as a banner as he turned to face Elrond's army approaching from the north.[3]
Sauron gathered up the Rings of Power that remained, and laid waste the land of Eregion, bringing an end to its people. The surviving Elves of Eregion seem to have scattered, as there are various accounts of their fates. Some fled northward to join Elrond's host, and that host was itself forced into retreat; some of these Elves of Eregion settled at Rivendell when Elrond founded it shortly afterwards.[3] They were joined there by others of their kind who had escaped into the Wild, and only later found their way to safety. Many of these people seem to have later abandoned Middle-earth and sailed into the West.[3]
Etymology
The name Eregion is Sindarin for "Land of Holly"[4] (the word ereg means "holly").[5]
Hollin (from hollin-land) is an old form, still used locally, of "holly"; the region abounded in holly-trees.[6]
In Other Versions of the Legendarium
In the Unfinished Tales it is stated that "Celeborn and Galadriel therefore went eastwards, about the year 700 of the Second Age, and established the (primarily but by no means solely) Noldorin realm of Eregion."[3] This contradicts the information published in The Lord of the Rings which gives the founding of Eregion in the year 750.[2] It is possible to reconcile the texts if 700 is seen as the year of their moving eastwards with 750 as the year of the foundation of Eregion; the canonicity of this, however, is unknown.
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Second Age" Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "AppB1" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The History of Galadriel and Celeborn"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, Index
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Appendix: Elements in Quenya and Sindarin Names", ereg
- ↑ 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, p. 772
