Minor places in Middle-earth

The stories of J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium contain references to numerous places. Some of these places are described below.

See also: Minor places in Arda, Minor places in Beleriand, List of Middle-earth rivers, and List of Middle-earth roads

A

Aldburg

(O.E. 'old fortress') A small fortified settlement in Rohan, built by Eorl the Young in the region known as the Folde, some miles to the southeast of Edoras. Though his son, Brego, moved to Edoras early in Rohan's history, Aldburg remained the residence of the descendants of Eofor, Brego's third son. At the time of the War of the Ring, it was the home of king Théoden's nephew Éomer, who was the Third Marshal of the Mark and heir to the Kingship.

Amon Hen

A hill located on the western bank of the river Anduin, at the southern end of the long lake Nen Hithoel above the Falls of Rauros. It is one of the three peaks at the Falls of Rauros, the others being Amon Lhaw, the Hill of the Ear, and Tol Brandir, an island located between the two hills. The Seat of Seeing was built there, serving as a watchtower for the northern borders of Gondor. It was constructed in the early days of Gondor, perhaps even as early as the Second Age.

In The Fellowship of the Ring, the Fellowship travels down the Anduin from Lothlórien to Amon Hen, but here the Fellowship is broken: Boromir attempts to take the One Ring by force from Frodo Baggins, who flees; Boromir is shortly afterward killed defending Meriadoc Brandybuck (Merry) and Peregrin Took (Pippin) from Orcs sent by Saruman to capture the Ring; and the Orcs abscond with Merry and Pippin. After Frodo escapes from Boromir, he sits upon the Seat of Seeing while still wearing the Ring and is able to see events hundreds of miles distant. From Amon Hen, Frodo and Samwise Gamgee cross the Anduin on their way east to Mordor, while Merry and Pippin are carried by Saruman's Orcs in the direction of his hold at Isengard, and the rest of the Fellowship set out in pursuit of the Orcs.

Amon Lhaw

(S. 'Hill of the Ear') One of the three peaks above the Falls of Rauros which drained the lake known as Nen Hithoel, it towered amongst the Emyn Muil on the eastern banks of the Anduin. Its twin, Amon Hen (The Hill of Sight) lay upon the western bank. Between them, at the centre of the stream above Rauros, was the island peak Tol Brandir upon which none had ever set foot.

Although at one time Amon Lhaw had been on the northern boundary of Gondor and a high seat was built there (probably called The Seat of Hearing), this was no longer the case at the time of the War of the Ring; by then, it had long since fallen under the influence of Mordor. Also called the Hill of Hearing and perhaps Hill of the Ear in Westron.

Andrath

The ascending section of the Greenway or North-South Road which passed between the Barrow-downs in the west and the South Downs in the east. Beyond Andrath the road met the Great East Road just west of the gates of Bree.

When the Nazgûl came north from Mordor to seek the Ring in the Shire at the end of the Third Age, their leader, the Witch-king of Angmar camped in Andrath. It is mentioned in the appendices of The Return of the King that it is likely that the Witch-king aroused the Barrow-wights in the nearby Barrow-downs while camped at Andrath.

Argonath

A monument comprising two enormous pillars carved in the likenesses of Isildur and Anárion, standing upon either side of the River Anduin at the northern approach to Nen Hithoel.

The figures were originally constructed about T.A. 1240 at the order of Rómendacil II to mark the northern border of Gondor, although the realm was greatly diminished in size by the time the Fellowship of the Ring passed the Argonath on February 25, 3019.

Each of the two figures was shown wearing a crown and a helm, with an axe in its right hand and its left hand raised in a gesture of defiance to the enemies of Gondor.

Also known as the Gate of Kings or the Pillars of the Kings.

Azanulbizar

See Dimrill Dale

B

Bamfurlong

The farmland of Farmer Maggot located in the Marish of the eastern part of the Shire. The boggy nature of the land makes for above ground habitation rather than the traditional hobbit-hole. Tolkien himself suggested the name Bamfurlong comes from Old English meaning roughly bean-field.

Brown Lands

A region across the Anduin from Fangorn forest. In the First Age the Entwives settled there and began to make gardens, and they also taught the Men that already lived there to engage in agriculture. The Entwives' gardens, as the region was called at that time, lasted for a long time into the Second Age, until Sauron later blasted the entire area at some time before the Battle of Dagorlad, which was when it became known as the Brown Lands. Treebeard appeared convinced that the Entwives were not all destroyed but were "lost"; their ultimate fate remains a mystery.

It is described as withered, as if by fire, without any living green thing. In The Fellowship of the Ring,, the fellowship pass by the region in elven boats as they sail down the River Anduin. Interestingly, Aragorn's notable knowledge of geography and family history lets him down as he "could not tell" what had "so blasted" the region.

Bundushathûr

See Fanuidhol

C

Carrock

A stony eyot in the upper reaches of the River Anduin, to the north of the Old Ford. In Chapter 7 of The Hobbit, Gandalf states that the steps from the base of the rock to the flat top were made by Beorn and that "Carrock" is Beorn's name for it. This is somewhat of a linguistic joke on Tolkien's part, since car in Anglo-Saxon means "rock," the Irish for "rock" is "carraig", and the Welsh for rock being "Carreg."

Celebdil

Also called Zirakzigil in Khuzdul and translated to English as Silvertine. A peak in the Misty Mountains, the western-most of three peaks (with Caradhras and Fanuidhol) that stood above the Dwarves' city of Khazad-dûm. Durin's Tower was located at the peak of Zirakzigil. This was where Gandalf fought Balrog in the Battle of the Peak.

In a 1968 letter, Tolkien identifies the Swiss Silberhorn as it appeared to him when camping near Mürren in 1911 as "the Silvertine (Celebdil) of my dreams".

Cerin Amroth

The mound of Amroth, where elanor grows, that stood in the heart of Lothlórien where stood the house of Amroth before he was lost. It was here that Aragorn and Arwen plighted their troth centuries later, and it was here where Arwen, after Aragorn's death, went to die.

Cirith Gorgor

(S. 'Cleft of Horror') The main passage into Mordor located at the point where the mountain ranges Ered Lithui and Ephel Dúath met. It was protected by the Black Gate and guarded by the two Towers of the Teeth, Carchost and Narchost. The name is sometimes translated 'the Haunted Pass'.

Cloudyhead

See Fanuidhol

Coldfells

The highlands west of the Misty Mountains and south of the Ettenmoors, separated from them by the northern branch of the river Bruinen.

D

Dagorlad

The great, treeless, open plain between the Emyn Muil and Cirith Gorgor. The name means the Battle Plain in Sindarin, and refers to the Battle of Dagorlad fought there between Sauron's forces and the Last Alliance of Elves and Men at the end of the Second Age. The bodies of the dead decayed as normal, but over time part of the field became a wetland, the Dead Marshes, where the images of the fallen could be seen.

Later, in the Third Age, the Dagorlad was the site of many battles between Gondor and various Easterling armies, including the Battle of the Morannon.The countless battles of two ages left Dagorlad as a devastated wasteland, contaminated and unhealthy, with ponds of poisonous slick and mounds of scorched earth.

Dale

A city of Men on the Celduin (the River Running) between the Lonely Mountain and the Long Lake. It was ruled by Girion until its destruction in T.A. 2770 by the dragon Smaug. After the Dwarves restored their kingdom under the Lonely Mountain, Men began to settle once more in Dale.

Dale was sacked for a second time during the War of the Ring by invaders from Mordor and the Easterlings. The people of Dale took refuge in Erebor with the Dwarves, and it was during the Battle of Dale that King Dáin II Ironfoot of Erebor and King Brand of Dale were slain. However, after the fall of Sauron, the siege was broken and Dale rebuilt once more, though it was never restored to its former glory, partly because of the weakening of the dwarves who lived in Erebor.

Deeping Coomb

The deep, well-defended valley in the northern White Mountains that held Helm's Deep and the castle of the Hornburg. The site of an important battle, the Battle of the Hornburg, during the War of the Ring. The word coomb is a rare Brythonic survival word; meaning a small deep dry valley, easily defended. It gives its name to many places in the British Isles.

Dimholt

A forest of pine wood and fir situated at the base of the Dwimorberg mountain, past Dunharrow. The name means literally 'dark wood'. An ancient road was visibly forged there, that led to a glen where a standing stone lay in front of the Dark Door, the entrance to the Paths of the Dead. The pathways led under the Dwimorberg mountain and had been haunted by the spirits of the Dead Men of Dunharrow in the Third Age until they fulfilled their oath to Aragorn and departed.

Dimrill Dale

A name in the tongue of Men of the North for a valley lying east of Khazad-dûm. The valley is also called Nanduhirion in Sindarin and Azanulbizar in Khuzdul. A bloody battle was fought there in T.A. 2799 between Dwarves and the Orcs of Moria, in which the latter were defeated and their leader Azog killed. In T.A. 2989 Balin and his followers fought the orcs here on the way to the Mines of Moria. Thirty years later the Fellowship of the Ring encamped there having escaped from Moria, after the loss of Gandalf. A feature of the vale was the Mirrormere, a crystal clear lake in which Durin first saw the stars. The river Silverlode ran through the vale to Lórien.

Drúwaith Iaur

A region to the west of Gondor. It was not a part of the realm of Gondor, and therefore also not of the Reunited Kingdom. It was the home to the remnants of the Drúedain, the original inhabitants of the Ered Nimrais, who were dispersed by the Númenóreans as they were hostile to them. The northern part of Drúwaith Iaur was also home to the Dunlendings, who feared the Drûgin because they used poisoned arrows.

Durin's Tower

The tower that stood on the peak of Celebdil above Khazad-dûm, where Gandalf defeated Durin's Bane. It could be reached only by a long stairwell, the Endless Stair, which began in the deep far below the mines.

Durthang

(S. 'dark oppression') An old castle in northern Mordor. It stood in the northern Ephel Dúath, on the slopes above the Isenmouthe. Possibly in origin it was built by Gondorians after Sauron's downfall at the end of the Second Age, but later was captured by his forces.

Dwimorberg

A peak in the White Mountains, which is situated at the head of the valley of Harrowdale. Dunharrow stands above a cliff on the valleys eastern side, parallel to the Dwimorberg mountain itself. Beyond Dunharrow is a forest of pine wood and fir, known as the Dimholt.

The Dimholt itself contains a small glen, which holds a standing stone that lies in front of a doorway that leads to the Paths of the Dead. The paths lead under the Dwimorberg and were in the Third Age haunted by the spirits of the Men of the Mountains. After the events at the end of the Third Age when Aragorn released them from their oath, the Dwimorberg was haunted no longer.

E

East Bight

A vast indention in the south-eastern edge of Mirkwood Forest, created by the clearing of trees by the Northmen.

Eastfold

Part of the kingdom of Rohan that lay east of the Snowbourn River, and west of Anórien in Gondor. Located east of Edoras.

Edhellond

(S. 'elf-haven') An ancient harbour and settlement of Elvish origin in Gondor, located just south of the junction of the rivers Morthond and Ringló.

In one account by Tolkien, Edhellond was founded by the Sindarin refugees in three small ships fleeing the ruin of Beleriand following Morgoth's successful onslaught of the Elvish kingdoms. Another version tells that some refugees of Doriath, in the course of their wandering, founded the haven. In both versions, the original founders possessed the knowledge of shipbuilding, which in the First Age was known only to Círdan and the elven-folk of the Falas. Whatever its ultimate origins, in time Edhellond was swelled by Nandorin Elves seeking for the sea.

Amroth, Lord of Lothlórien, was lost at or near Edhellond in the year 1981 of the Third Age while looking for his beloved Nimrodel. Already then nearly all Elves had sailed into the West from Edhellond, seeking escape from the shadows of Middle-earth. By the time of the War of the Ring no Elves remained in Edhellond, and while it was uninhabited, the area passed into the dominion of Gondor.

Elostirion

(S. ????) The tallest of the three towers that stood on the Tower Hills. These towers were said to have been built by Gil-galad, High King of the Noldor in Middle-earth, in honour of Elendil who came to Middle-earth in the aftermath of the fall of Númenor.

Afterwards Elendil often came to the tower and set there one of the palantíri of the North, the only one that could look to Westernesse but could not be used to communicate with other palantíri unlike the other six. This palantír eventually became known as the Elendil Stone.
Elostirion endured for millennia after the death of Gil-galad and Elendil, under the care of Círdan and the Elves of Lindon; but the Elendil Stone palantír that it once held was taken to the Blessed Realm when Elrond and company sailed away at the end of the Third Age.

Emyn Beraid

See Tower Hills

Emyn Muil

A craggy, impassable highland located upon either side of Nen Hithoel. In The Two Towers, Frodo and Sam, attempting to reach the Black Gate of Mordor, are lost in the eastern Emyn Muil for days until Gollum finds them. After a great deal of persuasion he agrees to show them the way, leading them south into the Dead Marshes.

Emyn Uial

(S. 'hills of dusk') The highlands in northern Eriador, called also the Hills of Evendim. The hills began about a hundred Númenórean miles north of the Shire; at the southern end is the city of Annúminas, the first capital of Arnor, at Lake Evendim. The Baranduin or Brandywine River flows out of this lake. The river Lhûn also has a tributary beginning in the hills.

In the Second Age, when the Men of Númenor first returned to Middle-earth, the Hills of Evendim were populated by Men related to the ancestors of the Edain. For this reason the Númenóreans later settled nearby, and the hills formed the core of the later kingdom of Arnor. After the establishments of the Kingdoms in Exile by Elendil and his sons, the Men of Evendim merged with the Dúnedain, becoming the people of Arnor together with non-Edain Men like the Men of Bree.

Ered Lithui

(S. 'Mountains of Ash') The mountain range forming the northern border of Mordor. From the Morannon, where it met the Ephel Dúath, the Ered Lithui ran generally eastward for hundreds of miles. The name "Mountains of Ash" suggests that the range is downwind of Mount Doom and collects its ash fallout.

Eryn Vorn

'The Black Wood', was a densely forested peninsular in southern Eriador. Forming the western tip of what became known as Minhiriath, it was originally part of the vast ancient treescape that covered most of north-western Middle-earth, and was named by the early Númenórean explorers of the Second Age.

Throughout the following millennium, Minhiriath's landscape beyond the cape was systematically deforested by the Númenóreans in their greed for ship-building timber, and was then almost completely burnt down during the ensuing War of the Elves and Sauron. By the war's end in S.A. 1700, the surviving natives had retreated either north to Bree, or hidden themselves in Eryn Vorn, but the whole region was largely ignored by both Elf and Númenórean thereafter.

Eryn Vorn eventually fell under the jurisdiction of Arnor after Númenor's destruction at the end of the Second Age, and from 861 in the Third Age, the Black Woods became a nominal part of Cardolan, one of Arnor's three successor states.

The people of Cardolan were almost completely destroyed by the Great Plague a few centuries later, and although it is not known how this affected the Black Wood, it is probable that they remained populated throughout their history, for although no permanent settlements of men existed anywhere west of Bree by the late Third Age, "a few secretive hunter-folk lived in the woods" of Minhiriath by the time of the War of the Ring. The Black Wood was the only woodland in Minhiriath large enough to be mapped, so presumably these secretive folk were the descendants of those who hid in Eryn Vorn over four thousand years earlier.

Everholt

Was the name the Rohirrim gave to a section of the Firienholt.Template:ME-fact It was notorious for its boar, after whom the forest was named. The first element is Old English Eofor, "boar".

F

Fanuidhol

Also called Bundushathûr in Khuzdul and translated into English as Cloudyhead. A peak in the Misty Mountains, the eastern-most of the three (with Caradhras and Celebdil) that stood above the Dwarven city of Khazad-dûm.

Firienholt

A forest between Rohan and Gondor, also called the 'Firien Wood'. The Mering Stream, marking the border between the two lands, flowed through. The White Mountains lay south of the forest; Elendil was buried on the Halifirien, one of these peaks.

Folde

An ancient and historic region of Rohan, close to the Kings of Rohan's courts in Edoras, which indeed originally held the King's seat at the town of Aldburg. Its name comes from Old English, with the approximate meaning 'bosom of the Earth', which shows its importance in Rohan's early history.

Forlond

(S. 'north haven') A harbour on the northern side of the Gulf of Lhûn in Lindon. It was built by Elves after the drowning of Beleriand.

G

Gram

See Mount Gram

Goblin Town

A goblin (or orc) dwelling which lay under the High Pass in the Misty Mountains, ruled by the Great Goblin. It was a series of tunnels and caverns, which led all the way through the mountains, with a "back door" near the Eagles' eyrie in Wilderland. The cave of Gollum was close to this door.

During the journey to Erebor Bilbo Baggins was captured by the goblins of Goblin Town together with the Dwarves of Thorin Oakenshield. They were brought before the Great Goblin, who accused them of spying, and was enraged to find out Thorin was carrying the sword Orcrist "Orc-cleaver". With the help of Gandalf, Bilbo and the Dwarves escaped and killed the Great Goblin, after which a frantic pursuit occurred.

Gorgoroth

A plateau in north-western Mordor, in the midst of which stands the volcanic Mount Doom. To the northeast of Mount Doom upon a spur of the Ered Lithui, Sauron constructed his fortress of Barad-dûr. During the War of the Ring, Gorgoroth was the location for the mines and forges that produced Mordor's arms and armour. The plateau was covered in volcanic ash with little to no plant growth. Human settlement or habitation of the plateau was considered impossible.

A similar name was given to a range of mountains in Beleriand, Ered Gorgoroth.

Gulf of Lune

A sea-arm that broke through the range of the Ered Luin into Eriador. The Gulf of Lune, named after the river Lhûn or "Lune", was created during the War of Wrath when Beleriand was broken. In the midst of Ossiriand, Belegaer broke through the mountains, creating the Gulf of Lune. The remnant of Beleriand north of the gulf became known as Forlindon, and the part south of it as Harlindon (North and South Lindon). At the eastern end of the Gulf the Grey Havens of Mithlond were established.

During the Second Age the ships of the Númenóreans first came to the Gulf of Lune to visit the Noldor and Sindar under Gil-galad who remained behind, and during the Third Age from it the ships of the Eldar passed into the West.

H

Harlond

(S. 'south haven') A harbour on the southern side of the Gulf of Lhûn in Lindon. Like Forlond, it was built after the drowning of Beleriand.

Harrowdale

The deep north-south valley cut out of the White Mountains by the Snowbourn River. At its southern end, beneath the mountain known as the Starkhorn, stood Dunharrow, a great refuge of the Rohirrim. At its northern end, where the Snowbourn issued onto the plains of Rohan, stood that nation's capital, Edoras.

Hills of Evendim

See Emyn Uial

I

Irensaga

One of mountains in the White Mountains, which lays above Harrowdale.

Isenmouthe

The pass in the northwest of Mordor, also called by the Mannish name of the Isenmouthe or Carach Angren (both versions of the name mean 'iron jaws'). It was fored where spurs reaching out from the ranges of the Ephel Duath and the Ered Lithui met, leaving only a narrow passage between the Plateau of Gorgoroth and the smaller valley of Udun to the north. As the passage to the Black Gate of the Morannon, Carach Angren was heavily fortified, and both the rocky spurs that overlooked it carried fortresses and watchtowers. Across the passage itself, a wall of earth had been built, and a great ditch had been dug across the opening spanned by a single bridge.

K

Khand

A land which lay to the south-east of Mordor and to the east of Near Harad. Tolkien says little about the land or its people. It was the home of the Variags of Khand, warriors who appear tangentially in the text with little description. The index of Volumes VIII and XII of The History of Middle of Earth, presumably due to Christopher Tolkien, glosses Variag as "the people of Khand".

Khand was under the influence of Mordor and appears twice in Tolkien's account of the history of Gondor: first in the year 1944 of the Third Age when the Variags together with the Wainriders attacked Gondor, and later during the War of the Ring when they fought and died on the Pelennor Fields.

L

Lake Evendim

(S. Nenuial) Lake in Eriador. Lake Evendim was in the Hills of Evendim north of the Shire. The lake was the source of the Baranduin or Brandywine River.

In the early part of the Second Age, Galadriel and Celeborn may have dwelled in the area around Lake Evendim with many Elves in their following before they moved to Eregion around the year S.A. 700. Men also lived around Lake Evendim in the early part of the Second Age. When the North-kingdom of Arnor was established in S.A. 3320, the High King Elendil had his seat at Annúminas on the shore of Lake Evendim near the mouth of the Baranduin or Brandywine River. One of the palantíri was kept there.

After Arnor was divided into three kingdoms in 861 of the Third Age, the capital was moved to Fornost. Annúminas began to fall into ruin and was eventually abandoned. In the Fourth Age, Annúminas was reestablished as the northern capital by Aragorn, King Elessar. In the year 15 of the Fourth Age, the King and Queen Arwen came north to dwell by the shores of Lake Evendim for a time.

Evendim means "evening twilight." The Sindarin name was Nenuial meaning "lake of twilight" from nen meaning "lake" and uial meaning "twilight."

Last Bridge

The crossing point of the river Mitheithel by the Great East Road. The bridge served as an important landmark on the road from Bree to Rivendell, as it was just over the halfway mark between these two points and at least a weeks' journey east of Bree.

Bilbo Baggins, the dwarves, and Gandalf crossed this bridge in The Hobbit, though it is not specifically mentioned, and their encounter with the trolls occurred in the Trollshaws nearby. In The Fellowship of the Ring, Aragorn finds a beryl on the bridge that was left by Glorfindel as a warning that the Nazgûl were searching the Great East Road for the One Ring. Glorfindel mentions waging battle with the Nazgûl upon the bridge, as to make it safe for the Hobbits and Aragorn to reach Rivendell.

Lithlad

(S. 'ash-plain') A region of Mordor to the south of Ered Lithui, upon the outskirts of which the Tower of Barad-dûr stood.

Long Lake

A lake situated at the confluence of the Forest River and the northern reaches of the Celduin south of the Lonely Mountain. The lake gets its name from being longer north-south than it was wide east-west (standing on the west shore where the Forest River emptied into the lake the east could barely be seen, but the north and south could not). The lake emptied out over waterfalls on the southern edge into the River Running that led all the way to the great Sea of Rhûn. The town of Esgaroth was built entirely upon the lake itself, which thus formed a natural moat. It was built very near to the Forest River outlet, but protected from the stream by a promontory of rock. The water in the Lake itself was calm.

M

Methedras

(S. 'end-horn') The southernmost peak of the Misty Mountains, that lay above Isengard in the valley of Nan Curunír.

Mindolluin

(S. 'towering blue head') The easternmost peak of the White Mountains, below and to the east of which stands the city of Minas Tirith. In The Return of the King, shortly after Aragorn's coronation as King Elessar Gandalf takes him by an ancient path into the foothills of Mindolluin far above the city. There he discovers, upon an otherwise barren slope, a sapling of Nimloth, the White Tree of Gondor, which he plants in the Court of the Fountain as a sign of rebirth.

Mirrormere

The lake located beneath the doors of Khazad-dûm. It is known as Kheled-zâram by the Dwarves. According to the Dwarves of Durin's folk, after Durin the Deathless had awoken at Mount Gundabad in the north of the Hithaeglir (Misty Mountains), he travelled south until he came upon this lake. He looked down in it, and saw a crown above his head. This crown was the reflection of stars above, despite the fact it was day and the stars should not have been visible. Then he founded Khazad-dûm at that place.

During the events that led up to the War of the Ring, the Fellowship of the Ring passed by the lake after escaping Moria. Despite their hurry, Gimli would not pass by without looking in the lake. Frodo Baggins and Sam Gamgee joined him and saw Durin's crown.

Mount Gram

A mountain in north Eriador; its exact location is unknown but it probably was located either in the Ettenmoors or the Mountains of Angmar, or somewhere else in the northern Misty Mountains. It was inhabited by Orcs whose army once attacked the Hobbits of the Shire.

Mount Gundabad

A mountain at the northern extremity of the Misty Mountains, a stronghold of Dwarves and later, Orcs.

According to the Dwarves, Durin the Deathless, oldest of the Fathers of the Dwarves, awoke at Mount Gundabad some time after the awakening of the Elves. Mount Gundabad remained a sacred place to the Dwarves ever after.

In the middle of the Second Age, Orcs (servants of Sauron) invaded Gundabad. The site would not be cleansed until very late in the Second Age, possibly around or after the fall of Sauron and the loss of the One Ring.

In the Third Age, the Orcs of Angmar yet again claimed it as their capital, which was one of the reasons for the Dwarves' special hatred of this people. After the fall of Angmar Gundabad remained an Orc stronghold, even after it was sacked during the War of the Dwarves and Orcs. The army of goblins that fought in the Battle of the Five Armies was said to have mustered at the mountain in The Hobbit.

Mountains of Angmar

A mountain chain in the far north, running north-west from Mount Gundabad at the northern end of the Misty Mountains. The evil kingdom of Angmar gave its name to the mountains. The mountains were probably inhabited at various times both by Dwarves and Orcs. The capital of Angmar, Carn Dûm, was located at the western foothills of the Mountains of Angmar.

Mountains of Ash

See Ered Lithui

Mountains of Moria

The three peaks of the Misty Mountains - Caradhras, Celebdil and Fanuidhol - beneath which Moria was delved by the Dwarves. The main body of their city seems to have been beneath Celebdil. During the events of The Lord of the Rings, the Company of the Ring attempted to travel over Caradhras, but they were forced to enter the Mines due to a heavy snowfall.

N

Nanduhirion

See Dimrill Dale

Nindalf

Also called Wetwang, this swamp lay to the south of the Emyn Muil and east of the Great River Anduin, fed by the great inland delta of the Entwash. The Dead Marshes lay further east and may have been an extension of the Nindalf.

Nen Hithoel

A large lake upon the Great River Anduin amid the Emyn Muil to the east of Rohan. The lake is approximately 20 miles (32 km) long from north to south, and 10 miles (16 km) wide. Upon the lake's northern approach from Anduin the Men of Gondor constructed the huge pillars of the Argonath in the reign of Rómendacil II to mark the northern boundary of their realm, although by the time of the War of the Ring that boundary has long since receded. At the southern end of the lake stand three hills. Amon Hen, the Seat of Seeing, stands upon the western shore and Amon Lhaw, the Seat of Hearing upon the east. The third hill forms an island in the lake itself, Tol Brandir. None has ever set foot upon the island due to the intense currents at the lake's south end, for the lake is drained by the falls of Rauros.

The Fellowship of the Ring arrived at Nen Hithoel on February 25, T.A. 3019 and made camp at Parth Galen close to Amon Hen. The fall of Boromir and the breaking of the Fellowship occurred soon after. Frodo and Sam took a boat for the eastern shore, Merry and Pippin were captured by Orcs, and after sending Boromir's body over the falls in another boat Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli, calling themselves the Three Hunters, set out to track the orcs and find the captive Hobbits.

O

Old Ford

The point where the Old Forest Road crossed the River Anduin, about forty miles (sixty-four kilometres) downriver from the Carrock. In older times, the river was crossed by a stone bridge here, but by the end of the Third Age, the bridge had long since disappeared, and the crossing was no more than a simple ford.

Old Púkel Land

See Drúwaith Iaur

P

Parth Galen

(S: 'Green Sward') A green lawn above the Falls of Rauros at the feet of Amon Hen. It is on the western shore of Nen Hithoel near the southern end — a fair, green sward, watered by a small spring. Sward means a large open expanse of lawn: parth means "field, enclosed grassland", related to "path", meaning "level space, sward"; galen (or calen) means "green." It was here that the breaking of the Fellowship of the Ring took place.

R

Ravenhill

An outlying hill beneath the height of Erebor, the Lonely Mountain. It stood at the end of a ridge of high ground extending southwards from the mountain itself, overlooking the River Running and the valley of Dale. The Dwarves of Erebor built a guard post on the hill, and above its chamber for many years lived two intelligent ravens, Carc and his wife. It was they, and the ravens of hill, that gave it its name.

S

Sarn Gebir

A hilly area just west of the Falls of Rauros on the river Anduin.

Sea of Núrnen

An inland sea in Mordor. It held bitter water not suitable for drinking, but the area around it, Núrn, watered by a river system coming from the Ephel Dúath, was fertile enough to feed the entire armies of Sauron in Mordor.

Sea of Rhûn

A large saltwater lake or sea in the region of Rhûn. The Sea of Rhûn, according to Tolkien's maps, covers roughly 400,000 square miles (1,000,000 km²). The Celduin (River Running) flows from the northwest into a northwestern arm of the sea, while several unnamed rivers flow from the northeastern shore.

Silvertine

See Celebdil

Stair Falls

A waterfall outside the West-gate of Moria. They were formed by the stream Sirannon, which flowed from the valley in front of the West-gate and over a cliff about 30 feet (9.1 m) high and then continued southwestward to join the Glanduin. There was a flight of stone steps carved into the cliff on the northern side of the falls, but the main path wound up the cliffside a bit north of the stairs. The Stair Falls were once strong and full, but by the time of the War of the Ring the waterfall was cut off when the Sirannon was dammed, forming a pool where the Watcher in the Water lurked.

The Fellowship came to the cliff where the Stair Falls had been on January 13, 3019. Gandalf, Gimli, and Frodo climbed the Stair, discovered that the pool blocked their path, returned and used the main path up the cliff and around the pool. It seems possible that after the War and reoccupation of Moria, the Sirannon may have been unblocked and the Stair Falls may have flowed once more, but this is nowhere stated.

Starkhorn

A snow-clad peak that rose in the inner regions of the White Mountains. From its feet sprang the Snowbourn River, whose widening valley ran northwards through the mountains to emerge onto the plains of Rohan. The Rohirrim called that valley Harrowdale, and built their courts of Edoras at its mouth, from where the lonely white peak of the Starkhorn could be seen along the straight length of the valley.

Swanfleet

(S. Nîn-in-Eilph) A marshy area in Eriador. Formed where the Glanduin (mistakenly labelled as "Swanfleet river" on some maps) joins the Gwathló (Greyflood), the Swanfleet is effectively an inland delta, with uncertain streams and a very uncertain difference between land and water.

It strongly resembles the Gladden Fields on the other side of Hithaeglir, and as such many Stoors felt right at home here after their migration into Eriador. These Stoors remained here until the Great Plague nearly wiped them out, and the remainder then went to the South Farthing of the Shire. Near the Swanfleet was a ford over the Glanduin, from where led a road to the ruins of Ost-in-Edhil, the ruined city of Eregion.

T

Tharbad

A city on the southern edge of Eriador in Middle-earth. Tharbad, Sindarin for 'The Crossing Road', was originally the name given to a fort where the old North-South Road crossed the fenlands at the head of the Gwathló. The area around Tharbad was flat and marshy; the road approached the river from either side along miles of causeway.

Tol Brandir

An island crag set in the lake of Nen Hithoel which straddles the Falls of Rauros. The island was bordered by Amon Hen to the west and Amon Lhaw to the east. In days past, the hills near Tol Brandir had been important watchtowers for the Kingdom of Gondor. However, no man ever visited Tol Brandir, or so the legends state.

Tol Brandir means "tall island" and is the name used by the Elves. The men called the island "Tindrock", derived from the Old English word "tind" meaning sharp point (literally, therefore, 'pointed rock').

Tomb of Elendil

Was the tomb of the first King of Arnor and of Gondor. Its location was a secret kept for many centuries, but it was later discovered to be atop the mountain known as the Halifirien, on the borders of Gondor and Rohan.

Tower Hills

A series of steep hills at the west end of Eriador, called in Sindarin Emyn Beraid. They lay about 30 Númenórean miles east of the Grey Havens, and about 50 miles (80 km) west of the White Downs, of old the border of the Shire. High upon the Tower Hills stood three tall Elven towers, the highest of which was called Elostirion and held a palantír.

The Tower Hills formed the ancient border between the Elven realm of Lindon and the Kingdom of Arnor, and the Great East Road which led all the way to Rivendell ran through them. In the early Fourth Age, Elanor Gamgee and her husband Fastred Fairbairn moved to the Tower Hills, founding the town of Undertowers on the eastern slopes of the Hills, and becoming the Wardens of Westmarch, when the Tower Hills became the new western border of the Shire by the issue of King Elessar.

Towers of the Teeth

Also called the Teeth of Mordor. Two towers situated on either side of the Black Gate of Mordor. The towers — known individually as Carchost and Narchost — were originally constructed by the men of Gondor after Sauron's defeat in the Second Age to guard the entrance to Mordor, but were taken over by Sauron in the later Third Age, having been abandoned sometime after the defeat of King Ondoher in 1944 to the Wainriders, as the Towers are stated to have been manned before the Battle.

Tolkien's writings leave it unclear which tower was located on which side of the Morannon. However, Carchost appears to have stood to the eastern side and Narchost on the western side. Carchost is a Sindarin name that means "Tooth Fort", a compound of carch (meaning 'tooth or fang') and ost (meaning 'fortress'). Narchost is a Sindarin name that means "Fire Fort". The towers were destroyed in the War of the Ring with the defeat of Sauron following the destruction of the One Ring. Their collapse is shown in Peter Jackson's film interpretation of Return of the King.

Trollshaws

The upland woods, consisting at least partly of beech trees, that lay to the west of Rivendell between the rivers Hoarwell and Loudwater. They were the haunt of trolls. Three of these trolls waylaid Bilbo Baggins and his companions during The Hobbit. Years later Frodo Baggins and his companions found them on their way to Rivendell, but they were inert stone.

There is a contradiction regarding the layout of the Trollshaws. In The Hobbit, the company passes over a "stone bridge" and very soon after that spots the troll's fire, an hour or two away. In The Fellowship of the Ring, however, Aragorn explicitly leads the Hobbits over the Last Bridge and takes six days to reach the site of the troll camp. This discrepancy was not noticed by J. R. R. Tolkien, but was discussed by Christopher Tolkien in The Return of the Shadow.

U

Upbourn

A hamlet in Rohan south of Edoras, located on the banks of the Snowbourn river in the valley of Harrowdale.

Z

Zirakzigil

See Celebdil

References