Variags: Difference between revisions
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The '''Variags''' were a little-known people who dwelt in the land of [[Khand]] | The '''Variags''' were a little-known people who dwelt in the land of [[Khand]] | ||
==History== | ==History== | ||
They were | They were allies of both [[Rhûn]] or [[Harad]], to neither of which they belonged. | ||
Khand was east of [[Mordor]], at the time of the [[War of the Ring]]. They were allied to [[Sauron]], and their warriors were seen at the [[Battle of the Pelennor Fields]]. | Khand was east of [[Mordor]], at the time of the [[War of the Ring]]. They were allied to [[Sauron]], and their warriors were seen at the [[Battle of the Pelennor Fields]]. | ||
Revision as of 23:50, 28 January 2010
Variag by John Howe.
The Variags were a little-known people who dwelt in the land of Khand
History
They were allies of both Rhûn or Harad, to neither of which they belonged.
Khand was east of Mordor, at the time of the War of the Ring. They were allied to Sauron, and their warriors were seen at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.
Etymology
Variag is a word of a Harad language[1], but its meaning is unknown.
Inspiration
Variag is a Slavic word derived from Norse Varingar "mercenary people" (vár "contract"). The Norse root indicates that perhaps Tolkien intended Variag to be a "translated" Northern Mannish word.
Also, the meaning suggests that the Variags of Khand were not an ethnic group but a kind of elite mercenaries or corps in service of Mordor.
