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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 EntryDays of FlightThe dark time of Sauron’s rule in Middle-earthWhen Sauron forged the One Ring in Orodruin, his plans for domination were made plain to the Elves of Eregion who had made Three Rings for themselves. Until this time, Sauron had attempted to seduce the Elves, but in II 1693 he abandoned that course and instead resorted to open war. Within six years the Elf-kingdom of Eregion (where the Rings of Power had been made) was utterly destroyed, and wider Eriador was overrun by Sauron's forces. The conquests of the Dark Lord were reversed by the Númenóreans, who sent an overwhelming force of their own to Middle-earth and drove Sauron back to his own land of Mordor. Having declared himself openly, Sauron now began to build his power. Over the following centuries he brought eastern lands under his yoke, and with the Rings of Power he had gathered from Eregion he brought the Nazgûl into existence. At last Sauron began to extend his power westwards again, even threatening the strongholds of the Númenóreans on the coasts of Middle-earth. |
