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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 1997-2026. 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. |
Latest entries and updates
Featured EntryElven-cloaksThe concealing grey cloaks of LórienThe association of the Elves with grey cloaks went back into deep history. One of their greatest kings, Thingol of Doriath, was known as Thingol Greycloak, and from this - at least in part - came the name of his people, the Sindar or Grey-elves. Galadriel had dwelt in Thingol's halls during the First Age, and the tradition of the grey Elven-cloak was continued when she settled in the land of Lórien. Accounts of the Elves of Lórien have them cloaked in grey, and when Aragorn visited Galadriel's land in the years before the War of the Ring, she gave him a cloak of Elven-grey. In the closing years of the Third Age, when the Fellowship of the Ring departed on the Quest of Mount Doom, each wore a cloak lined with fur against the cold, and they wore these cloaks through the earlier parts of their adventures until they found themselves in Galadriel's land of Lórien. There Galadriel replaced their wayworn garments, and gave each of the surviving members of the Fellowship an Elven-cloak of their own. |
