The Encyclopedia of Arda - an interactive guide to the world of J.R.R. Tolkien
Dates
Came into existence with the foundation of the Mark of Rohan in III 2510
Location
Rohan, the Riddermark, to the north of the White Mountains
Origins
The people of the Éothéod were led to the new land of Rohan by Eorl the Young
Race
Division
Culture
Family
Ruled by the House of Eorl
Settlements
The chief city of the Riders of the Mark was Edoras; other notable settlements and fortifications include the former capital Aldburg, Dunharrow, Grimslade, the Hornburg, Underharrow and Upbourn
Meaning
'Mark' is a shortening of Riddermark, 'borderland of the Riders'
Other names

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About this entry:

  • Updated 17 December 2020
  • This entry is complete

Riders of the Mark

The horsemen of Rohan

Hildor
The first Men
Wild Men
Edain
Middle Peoples
Northmen
Men of the Éothéod
Riders of
the Mark

The Riders were descended from the so-called Middle Peoples, Men who shared an ancient kinship with the ancestors of the Edain. Note that the detailed descent of the Northmen is rather more complex than shown here, and according to some readings the Riders were ultimately descended from the 'Edain' branch of this tree. See the entry for 'Northmen' for a detailed discussion on this topic.

The people of Eorl had dwelt originally in the north of Middle-earth, where they were great breeders and riders of horses, and from those horses they took their name Éothéod, meaning 'horse-people'. When Eorl led an army south to the aid of Gondor in III 2510, Steward Cirion rewarded him with a new land, a wide green region that had been a northern borderland of Gondor known as Calenardhon.

Eorl brought his people from the north to settle their new country, which came to be known to outsiders by the Elvish name Rohan. The Riders themselves named the land in their own tongue, calling it the Riddermark, the 'borderland of the Riders', or often merely 'the Mark'. So, while the people of Gondor grew to call their new neighbours Rohirrim ('people of the horse-lords'), in their own land they referred to themselves as the Riders of the Mark.


Indexes:

About this entry:

  • Updated 17 December 2020
  • This entry is complete

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