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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. |
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Featured EntryTreegarth of OrthancTreebeard’s garden of IsengardBefore the War of the Ring, a traveller approaching Isengard from the south would have encountered its forbidding guarded Gate set into the heavy wall of its Ring, and beyond the Gate the mechanised wasteland of Saruman its master. During the War, the Ents of Fangorn defeated Saruman and took over control of Isengard. The changes they made were extraordinary, so that the same traveller coming to Isengard after the War would have found the walls and the Gate entirely gone. In the place of the Gate stood two tall trees, through which a green path led into a garden of woodland and orchard. The path led on between the trees towards the old centre of the Circle of Isengard, the great Tower of Orthanc. That Tower had been made of stone unbreakable even by the Ents, so they left it in place but surrounded it with water. After their work was complete, Orthanc rose from a rocky island in the middle of a clear lake that reflected the image of the great four-horned Tower. |
