| This article refers to the a region in northern Middle-earth. For other namesakes, see Westlands. |
Eriador was a large region situated in northern Middle-earth. It was located between the Blue Mountains (to the west) and the Misty Mountains (to the east).
Description[]
According to The Atlas of Middle-earth, Eriador was about six-hundred miles (approximately 960 kilometers) from east to west.[2] It was mostly lowlands. Hilled areas were the Hills of Evendim, North Downs, South Downs and Weather Hills in the center of the region, the White Downs and Tower Hills in the west, and in the east the Ettenmoors, Coldfells, and foothills of the Misty Mountains. The north of Eriador and the south of Minhiriath were flat, wide plains. A plateau area existed in the area where Rivendell and the Trollshaws were located. Eriador was largely made up of scattered woodlands, with scrublands in the north and northeastern parts. The rest were short grasslands, mainly in the center of the region.[3][4]
The climate was mainly humid, with relatively mild to cold winters. A constantly warm and moist prevailing wind blew over the Blue Mountains. In the northern part, cold and dry prevailing winds blow down from the polar north, influencing the climate as well.[5]
Most of the population was concentrated in the central area, the core of the former kingdom of Arnor and the Shire,[6] and the dominant language was Westron at least by the Third Age.[7]
A part of the Shire, in western Eriador, during summer, by Shannon Long
Boundaries[]
- To the east: the Misty Mountains, east of which lay Rhovanion, the Wilderland.
- To the north: the Northern Waste (Forodwaith) and—after the War of Wrath and ensuing floods which ended the First Age—the Ice-bay of Forochel.
- To the west: the mountains of Ered Lindon (also known as Ered Luin or Blue Mountains). On the far (i.e. western) side of these mountains lay the region of Lindon, which was virtually the only part of Beleriand that had survived the First Age. The Grey Havens were located in a gap in the Ered Luin, and it's not clear whether these havens (and the adjacent lands west of the Tower Hills) were part of Lindon or Eriador.
- To the south: the rivers Glanduin and Greyflood (forming the border with the land of Enedwaith) and the shores of Belegaer west of Lond Daer Enedh.[8]
Eriador extended for some 600 miles (960 km) north-south and 700 miles (1120 km) west-east. It was traversed by two main routes:
- the East-West Road running from the Misty Mountains' High Pass (near Rivendell) to the Grey Havens
- the Greenway (formerly the North-South Road connecting the kingdoms of Arnor and Gondor).
Important rivers were the Lune (Elvish Lhûn), the Brandywine (Elvish Baranduin) and the Greyflood (Elvish Gwathló). Minor rivers included the Withywindle, Hoarwell [Elvish Mitheithel) and the Loudwater (Elvish Bruinen). Lake Evendim was the only lake of significant size, although there were smaller lakes and ponds such as Bywater Pool.
Major settlements[]
- Annúminas, former capital of Arnor, ruined.
- Fornost Erain, former capital of Arthedain, ruined.
- Grey Havens
- Rivendell
- Bree
- Michel Delving
- Tharbad, ruined
- Ost-in-Edhil, former capital of Eregion, ruined.
- Carn Dûm, former capital of Angmar, ruined.
History[]
Little is recorded of Eriador's history prior to the Second Age. Both the Calaquendi Elves and the Three Houses of the Edain would have passed through Eriador on their great westward journeys.
At the beginning of the Second Age, large populations of Middle Men inhabited the region, which was heavily forested. The Númenóreans however cleared vast areas to build their ships, leaving huge swathes of Eriador permanently denuded of trees. There was also a group of Ñoldorin exiles living in Eregion, near Khazad-dûm and also located in the western-most region of Eriador (and also in Middle-earth) was the High Elven Kingdom of Lindon, once the greatest and mightiest kingdom of Middle earth. Sauron's assault on the Elves of Eregion laid waste to that land, with Eriador bearing the brunt of the War of the Elves and Sauron.
In SA 3319 Elendil landed in Middle-earth and founded the Kingdom of Arnor in Eriador the following year. In the War of the Last Alliance many Elves were killed and a majority of Lindon's inhabitants sailed over the sea, bringing the Elven kingdom (although not their presence) to an end. Having also taken heavy losses in the war, Arnor was depopulated as well. In the early Third Age it encompassed a large part of Eriador, although it soon split into three warring successor kingdoms, Arthedain, Cardolan and Rhudaur
Even after his fall, Sauron's evil spirit acted through his agents, such as the Witch-king of Angmar, and he also concocted virulent plagues which swept over the land. Between warfare against the surviving Dúnedain kingdoms, the Great Plague, and the general lawlessness sweeping over the land, the population dropped considerably. The Angmar war turned Eriador into a mostly wild and untamed land, by the time of the War of the Ring the remaining population centres were: The Elves, either in the valley of Rivendell or Lindon. The Dúnedain of Arnor in the Angle or dispersed, Middle Men in Bree, Hobbits in the Shire, Dwarves in the Blue Mountains and Orcs in the Misty Mountains.
In the Fourth Age the Kingdom of Arnor was re-founded, forming part of the Reunited Kingdom, which presumably expanded to include all of Eriador.
Etymology[]
Eriador is a Sindarin word that meant 'Lonely land' or 'Lone-lands'.
Translations[]
| Foreign Language | Translated name |
| Amharic | ኤሪያዶር |
| Arabic | إريادور |
| Armenian | Երիադոր |
| Belarusian Cyrillic | Эриадора |
| Bengali | এরিঅদর |
| Bosnian | Erjador |
| Bulgarian Cyrillic | Ериадор |
| Catalan | Èriador |
| Chinese (Hong Kong) | 伊利雅德 |
| Danish | Eriador (Eneland) |
| Georgian | ერიადორ |
| Greek | Eρίαντορ |
| Gujarati | ઍરિઅદોર |
| Hebrew | אריאדור |
| Hindi | एरिअदोर |
| Japanese | エリアドール |
| Kazakh | Еріадор (Cyrillic) Eriador (Latin) |
| Korean | 에리아도르 |
| Kyrgyz Cyrillic | Эриадор |
| Macedonian Cyrillic | Ериадор |
| Malayalam | എറിയഡോർ |
| Marathi | एरिअदोर |
| Mongolian Cyrillic | Ериадор |
| Nepalese | एरिअदोर |
| Pashto | ېریادور |
| Persian | اریادور |
| Punjabi | ਐਰੀਡੋਰ |
| Russian | Эриадор |
| Sanskrit | एरिअदोर् |
| Serbian (Cyrillic) | Еријадор |
| Serbian (Latin) | Erijador |
| Sinhalese | ඒරිඅදොර් |
| Tajik Cyrillic | Ериадор |
| Tamil | ஏரிஅதொர் |
| Telugu | ఏరిఅదొర |
| Thai | เอเรียดอร์ |
| Ukrainian Cyrillic | Еріадор |
| Urdu | اریاڈور |
| Uzbek | Ериадор (Cyrillic) Eriador (Latin) |
| Yiddish | עריאַדאָר |
| Realms of Men of Middle-earth throughout the Ages | ||
|---|---|---|
| First Age | Amon Ereb • Forest of Brethil • Dor-lómin • Eriador • Estolad • Ladros | |
| Second Age | Arnor • Dunland • Gondor • Haradwaith • Númenor• Rhovanion • Rhûn • Umbar | |
| Third Age | Arnor (later split into Arthedain, Cardolan, and Rhudaur) • Dale • Dunland • Lake-town (later part of the kingdom of Dale) • Gondor • Haradwaith • Khand • Rhovanion • Rohan • Rhûn • Umbar • Vales of Anduin | |
| Fourth Age | Dale • Haradwaith • Núrn • Reunited Kingdom of Gondor and Arnor • Rhovanion • Rohan • Rhûn • Khand • Eriador • Vales of Anduin | |
References[]
- ↑ The Atlas of Middle-earth, The First Age, The Elder Days, "Introduction"
- ↑ The Atlas of Middle-earth, The Second Age, "Introduction"
- ↑ The Atlas of Middle-earth, Thematic Maps, "Landforms"
- ↑ The Atlas of Middle-earth, Thematic Maps, "Vegetation"
- ↑ The Atlas of Middle-earth, Thematic Maps, "Climate"
- ↑ The Atlas of Middle-earth, Thematic Maps, "Population"
- ↑ The Atlas of Middle-earth, Thematic Maps, "Languages"
- ↑ The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, I, (iii) pg. 319