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Welcome to The Encyclopedia of ArdaThe Encyclopedia of Arda is a personal project - a tribute to and a celebration of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. The site is evolving into an illustrated hypertext encyclopedia of Tolkien's realms and peoples. It already contains about four thousand entries, and we're constantly adding new entries and expanding existing ones. Inside the encyclopediaThe Encyclopedia of Arda contains thousands of articles covering topics from J.R.R. Tolkien's world, some brief, some lengthy and some containing detailed essays and discussions. You'll also find a selection of interactive tools, including a chronicle to help you explore Tolkien's fictional history, and calendar to translate dates and events, a lexicon of names, a glossary of old and rare words, and much more. Context and approachThe content of the Encyclopedia is written in the same context as Tolkien himself used; he presented himself simply as a translator, rather than originator of the tales. Hence, we try to describe his world from a 'historical' rather than a literary perspective, though sometimes it's useful to explore ideas in their wider context. Where relevant, therefore, you'll also find a few references to Tolkien's life or opinions, or to real historical or mythological parallels to events in his universe. About the name ArdaArda was the name given by the Elves to their world and all it contained, and so 'Encyclopedia of Arda' seemed a peculiarly apt title for this project. Special thanksThanks to all those who've e-mailed us over the years with their suggestions, corrections, ideas and just general support. But the real Special Thanks, though, belong to the memory of J.R.R. Tolkien for his extraordinary and unparalleled creation. For acknowledgements and references, see the Disclaimer & Bibliography page. Original content © copyright Mark Fisher 1997-2024. All rights reserved. For conditions of reuse, see the Site FAQ. Website services kindly sponsored by Discus from Axiom Software Ltd.Discus is a powerful, flexible DISC profile solution - find out much more in our free guide. |
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Featured EntryKíliOne of the young nephews of Thorin OakensheildKíli was the younger of a pair of brothers descended from the ancient Kings of Khazad-dûm, though at the time he and his brother Fíli were born, his people had long abandoned that ancient stronghold. Kíli was a grandson of the old King Thráin II through his mother Dís, and therefore both he and Fíli were nephews of Thráin's successor, Thorin Oakenshield. Thorin had no children of his own, and so Kíli was second in line of succession to Thorin (after his slightly older brother Fíli, who was five years his senior). Kíli was born and raised in the halls of the Dwarves in the Blue Mountains, alongside his brother Fíli. The two were similar in many ways, each with a yellow beard, and commonly wearing a pair of matching blue hoods and silver belts. Both brothers showed musical talent, too, being able to play a melody on both the fiddle and the harp. |
