A name among the common people for the plant otherwise known as sweet galenas in Gondor, or 'pipe-weed' to the Hobbits of the northern lands. The name westmansweed derives from the fact that the plant was brought to Middle-earth by the Men of the West, the Númenóreans,1 at some point in the Second Age. It grew wild in Gondor, where it was appreciated for its pleasant aroma, but not cultivated. In the north, the Hobbits valued it for more than its scent, drying its leaves for use in their pipes (hence its alternative names of 'pipe-weed' and 'Halflings' Leaf').
Notes
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There was a region in Númenor known as Nísimaldar, the Fragrant Trees, where the people of that land grew sweet-scented plants brought as gifts from the Elves of the Eressëa. Given that the scent of westmansweed is particularly praised, it might perhaps have come from this region, suggesting that the plant might even have had its ultimate origins in Aman itself. |
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- Updated 3 July 2015
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