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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 1997-2025. 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 EntryTol FuinThe remnant of Taur-nu-FuinIn the Great Sea off the northwestern coasts of Lindon in the farthest west of Middle-earth, lay the small island of Himling. This was a remnant of the First Age, being the surviving peak of the old fortified Hill of Himring. Westward beyond Himring a great highland region had risen during the First Age known as Dorthonion or Taur-nu-Fuin. After the Sea covered the lands of Beleriand at the end of that Age, the highest parts of Taur-nu-Fuin also survived as an island: Tol Fuin, out in the Western Sea beyond the tiny isle of Himling. While Himling appears on the maps of Middle-earth within The Lord of the Rings, Tol Fuin does not. It lay further out to sea, just beyond the western edge of those maps, to the westward and slightly northward of Himling. It does, however, appear on earlier versions of the maps (reproduced in volume VII of The History of Middle-earth). From that source we can see that it was roughly oval in shape, but with many small bays especially along its southern side. It was considerably larger than Himling, running approximately a hundred and fifty miles from west to east, and about eighty from north to south. |
