Hithlum

From Tolkien Gateway
Revision as of 20:11, 14 October 2012 by Mith (talk | contribs) (Proper date format)
"...It is a long tale..." — Aragorn
This article or section needs expansion and/or modification. Please help the wiki by expanding it.
Hithlum
File:Hithlum-map.jpg
General information
LocationNorthwestern Beleriand
CapitalBarad Eithel
People
LanguageQuenya/Sindarin
GalleryImages of Hithlum

Hithlum (S, pron. [ˈhiθlum]) was a region north of Beleriand near the Helcaraxë.

Description

Hithlum was separated from Beleriand proper by the Ered Wethrin mountain chain, and was named after the sea mists which formed there at times.[1] The Ered Wethrin ("Mountains of Shadow") formed the southern and eastern wall, and had only a few passes; as such they formed a natural defensive line. The western wall was formed by the Ered Lómin or "Echoing Mountains", which curved north-westward to Helcaraxë. The land of Lammoth lay west of the Ered Wethrin and was not part of Beleriand or Hithlum, and the land of Nevrast was separated from Hithlum by the southern part of the Ered Lómin.[2] Hithlum was cold and rainy, but quite fertile.[1]

History

The Ñoldor entered Hithlum via the Firth of Drengist and first camped at the shores of Lake Mithrim.[3] Hithlum was subdivided in Mithrim, where the High Kings of the Noldor had their halls,[1] and Dor-lómin, which later became a fief of the House of Hador.[4]

Later in the First Age, Hithlum was continually under attack by Morgoth, finally being lost after the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. The Hadorians were scattered, killed, or enslaved, the Noldor were enslaved in Morgoth's mines if they could not flee in time, and Morgoth trapped the Easterlings there.[5]

Hithlum was completely destroyed during the War of Wrath.[6]

Etymology

Hithlum is a North Sindarin word,[7] meaning "Mist-shadow" (hith + lum); its Quenya counterpart is Hisilómë (pron. [ˌhisiˈloːme], stem Hisilómi-).[source?] Its Sindarin name is said to be Hithlũ.[7]

Tolkien initially marked the word as Noldorin; its second element was cognate to Quenya lumbe.[8]

Hithlum
Helcaraxë Angband
Lammoth WindRose3.pngAnfauglith, Dorthonion
Nevrast Nargothrond Doriath

References