A-Z of Arda Trivia Quiz

Answer: Asfaloth

'Asphodel' was a yellow and white woodland flower seen by Frodo and Sam while in Ithilien. 'Almarian' was a Queen of Numenor, wife of Tar-Meneldur. 'Anglachel' was a black sword, forged by Eol using metal that fell from the skies. It was wielded by Beleg and later by Turin (after it was reforged as Gurthang).

There are two Glorfindels in the history of Arda: the one who aided Frodo's flight to Rivendell, and one in the First Age who was slain by a Balrog in the Fall of Gondolin. There is some debate as to whether the later Glorfindel is in fact a reincarnation of the first.

Answer: Barahir

The Ring of Barahir was passed down to his son Beren. Beren used it to enlist the aid of Finrod on his Quest to reclaim a Silmaril from Morgoth. Finrod honoured his debt to Barahir by accompanying Beren, but was killed while imprisoned by Sauron. The ring survived until the end of the Third Age, when it was worn by Aragorn, Barahir and Beren's very distant descendant. 'Beor' the Old, ancestor of Barahir, was the first Man to cross into Beleriand. 'Beorn' was the shape-changer who aided Bilbo and the Dwarves in The Quest Of Erebor.

Answer: Celebrian

'Celeborn' was the name of Celebrian's father, husband of Galadriel. (He, in turn, was named after the White Tree of Tol Eressea.) 'Celebrimbor' was the elf of Eregion who forged the three elven rings. 'Celebrindal' is the second-name of Idril, princess of Gondolin and mother of Earendil The Mariner. (Incidentally: "Celeb-" is elvish for "silver".) While travelling to visit her parents in Lothlorien, Celebrian was captured by orcs and horribly tortured.

Her sons found and freed her, but her love for Middle Earth was vanquished, and she took a ship into the West soon after, leaving Elrond and their children.

Answer: Dain II Ironfoot

'Dori' was one of the company that set out with Thorin and Bilbo from Bag End. 'Dain I' was an ancestor to both Thorin and Dain Ironfoot. 'Durin The Deathless' was the eldest of the seven Fathers of the Dwarves, created by Aule early in the history of Arda, but left to sleep under the earth until after the coming of the Elves. Durin was the founder of Khazad-Dum (Moria).

While not really "Deathless" - he died towards the end of the First Age - some of Durin's descendants were so similar to him that the Dwarves believed his soul had simply been reborn. Thus, they believed he never truly left the world.

Answer: Erebor

'Erebor' is the name of the Lonely Mountain, under which Smaug hoarded the riches of Thorin's kin. While there were battles in this area during the War Of The Ring, none of the Fellowship went there. The 'Emyn Muil' was the range of rocky hills from which Frodo and Sam were led by Gollum on their way to Mordor.

The entire Fellowship passed through 'Eregion': the area directly West of the Doors of Moria, where Dwarves and Elves once dwelt in harmony before the "Dark Times". 'Erech' is the site of a great spherical stone which Isildur brought to Gondor - it was here that Aragorn (along with Legolas, Gimli and others) led the Army of Oathbreakers from under the Dwimorberg, and made them swear to fulfil their pledge.

Answer: Feanor

Curufinwe means "Skillful Son of Finwe", while Feanor translates as "Spirit Of Fire". The deeds of Feanor are arguably the greatest of any of the Children of Illuvatar, but they also led to profound grief and destruction. Mighty in craft, valour and intellect, it was he who wrought the Silmarils from the light of the Trees Of Valinor.

But when Melkor, the first Dark Lord, destroyed the Trees and stole the Silmarils, Feanor's pride and love for the jewels was such that he led his kin in defiance of the Valar to retrieve them.

He and his sons swore an Oath that they would kill any who tried to keep the Silmarils from them. Their doomed quest to reclaim the jewels is the source of much of the long and wide-reaching tragedy that befell Middle Earth in the First Age.

Answer: Gardner

The children of Samwise and Rosie Cotton adopted the name 'Gardner' in honour of Sam, who replanted The Shire after it was ravaged by Saruman's "ruffians". He restored the beloved land of his birth, using the soil and seed given to him by Galadriel in Lothlorien.

Answer: Haldir

[from "The Lord Of The Rings - The Fellowship Of The Ring", Book II] Haldir - guard of Lothlorien's northern borders - said this to Frodo on a platform high in the trees. From there, Frodo surveyed both the light of Lorien and the darkness of Mirkwood - where Sauron had hidden many years earlier, regaining his strength and planning his return. 'Hama' was captain of Theoden's guard, slain at Helm's Deep and thus never meeting Frodo. 'Hador' was a great Lord among Men of the First Age. 'Hildor' (meaning "Followers") was an Elvish word for Mankind.

Answer: Indis

'Idril' was Turgon's daughgter, who married Tuor, a child of Men, in Gondolin (see the additional info in q.3). 'Ilmare' was one of the most powerful Maiar, serving as a handmaid to Varda. 'Ioreth' was an old woman who worked in Minas Tirith's Houses of Healing.

She believed the prophesy that the 'athelas' plant had powerful medicinal properties when used by the true King of Gondor. Thus, she knew Aragorn to be the hidden King when she witnessed him using the plant to heal Faramir.

Answer: Jewels

The five battles were The First Battle, The Battle Under Stars, The Glorious Battle, The Battle Of Sudden Flame, and The Battle Of Unnumbered Tears. Over the course of the First Age, the tide turned increasingly against the Children of Illuvatar, until all hope seemed lost.

The War Of The Jewels finally came to an end with the War Of Wrath, in which the Valar agreed to enter Middle Earth and fight Morgoth, whereupon he was vanquished. The brutality of that conflict caused phenomenal destruction, and the entire region of Beleriand sank into the Great Sea.

Answer: Khuzdul

'Kheled-Zaram' is the Dwarvish name for the Mirrormere, a shimmering lake in the valleys of the Misty Mountains which always reflected the stars, even in the daylight. 'Khim' and his family were among the last of the "Petty-Dwarves" in Beleriand. 'Khazad' is simply the Khuzdul word for Dwarves. Every Dwarf had a name in the Khuzdul tongue, but these were kept extremely secret. Khuzdul names were never even printed on gravestones, for fear of being discovered by outsiders.

Answer: Laurelin

'Lorien' was a region of beautiful gardens in Valinor where the Vala Irmo and his wife Este dwelt. 'Lorellin' was a lake in the midst of this garden. 'Loende' is the name given to Mid-Year's Day, the equivalent of June 22nd in our modern calendar. Laurelin means "Song Of Gold", and was known by many other names, including Malinalda and Culurien.

The two Trees Of Valinor were destroyed by Melkor and the gargantuan creature Ungoliant, mother of all Spiders.

Answer: Meriadoc Brandybuck

[from "The Lord Of The Rings - The Two Towers", Book III] Merry was welcoming Gandalf ('Mithrandir') and company to Isegard, following the Ents' triumphant victory. Pippin was lying asleep at his friend's feet. Merry and Pippin went on to win great renown for their deeds in The War Of The Ring, and became highly respected figures after their return to The Shire.

They both travelled to Minas Tirith in their old age, and dwelt there in friendship with King Aragorn Elessar. When they died they were buried in places of honour among Gondor's forefathers.

Answer: never revealed

Although clearly described as fairly young among the elves, Tolkien in fact never revealed exactly how old Legolas was. This has led to some debate about who was the last elf ever born in Middle Earth; it was probably either Legolas or Arwen. Arwen was born in III 241, making her almost 2800 at the time of the War Of The Ring. Legolas was not mentioned when Bilbo and his companions encountered the Woodland Elves on the way to the Lonely Mountain, leading some to suggest he was born after this - making him only in his 70s at the Council Of Elrond.

However it seems unlikely that Legolas was younger than Aragorn, who was 87 at the time. As a warrior prince, it is plausible that Legolas was simply away elsewhere when Bilbo and the Dwarves met his father.

Answer: Olorin

In his 'youth' as a Maiar of Manwe and Varda, it is said that Olorin would secretly arouse hope and wisdom in Elves and Men, but never counsel them openly. 'Orome' was the Huntsmen Of The Valar. 'Onodrim' was the Elvish name for the Shepherds Of The Trees, whom Yavanna made to protect her creations. 'Ohtar' was the squire who brought the shards of Narsil back to the North-Kingdom, after the slaughter of King Isildur at the Gladden Fields.

Answer: Primula

Primula and Drogo lived with Frodo - their only child - in Brandy Hall, the traditional home of Primula's family. When Frodo was just 12, his parents both drowned while boating on the Brandywine River. Nasty rumours suggested they had deliberately drowned each other.

However the boating jaunt and subsequent accident occurred during one of 'Broadbelt' Brandybuck's famous feasts, so perhaps an excess of ale led to the misadventure. Frodo was adopted by his distant cousin Bilbo nine years later, and went to live with him in Bag End.

Answer: Quickbeam

Quickbeam befriended Merry and Pippin, and showed them around Fangorn while the other Ents participated in the Ent Moot. Saruman's Orcs had ravaged the rowan-trees which Quickbeam loved and cared for, so he was a very willing participant in the attack on Isengard.

Answer: Roac

'Rhiw' was the Sindarin word for Winter. 'Rana' (meaning 'wayward') was the name the Noldor used for the Moon. 'Rochand' was an ancient Elvish word for the land of Rohan. The Ravens of Ravenhill, near The Lonely Mountain, were long-lived and wise. Roac was 153 years old when he aided in the Quest of Erebor, and his father Carc had been alive when Smaug first descended on the mountain.

Answer: Stoors

The three hobbit-kinds were Fallohides, Harfoots and Stoors. Stoors were said to be the broadest and strongest of the hobbits, and they continued to dwell East of the Misty Mountains long after the other hobbits had crossed into Eriador. The Fallohides were taller and slimmer than the other kinds, and were the least numerous.

However they related more openly with other races, particularly the Elves. The Harfoots were the smallest and most common form of hobbit. They entered Eriador a hundred years before the others.

By the late Third Age, much of the distinction between the kinds had faded with centuries of inter-breeding. However there were still strong Fallohidish strains in the Brandybuck and Took families.

Answer: Telcontar

'Thorondor' was the mightiest of the Eagles of the First Age. It is said he lived first upon Taniquetil, home of Manwe and Varda, but he dwelt later in the Encircling mountains, protecting Gondolin from The Enemy. Gwaihir who aided Gandalf was but a distant descendant of Thorondor. 'Telchar' the Dwarf was one of the greatest metal-workers in history. Among many works of note, he created the sword Narsil (later reforged as Anduril) and Angrist, the knife that cut the Silmaril from Morgoth's crown. 'Thangorodrim' was the name given to the three mighty peaks above the gates of Angband, Morgoth's lair. Thangorodrim was destroyed in the War of Wrath when Earendil, sailing his ship through the skies (see additional info in q.21), slew the dragon Ancalagon, whose body then fell upon the towers.

Answer: Ulmo

[from "Unfinished Tales", Chapter I] Ulmo, Lord of the Waters, sent Tuor to find the hidden city of Gondolin, fulfilling the prophesy He had made to Gondolin's King Turgon centuries earlier. Tuor reached the city and rose to great honour among the Gondolindrim, marrying Turgon's daughter Idril.

The hope of which Ulmo spoke was their son Earendil, who would go on to achieve the impossible task of sailing to the Undying Lands. There, he begged the Valar to aid in the war against Morgoth, finally bringing an end to the long age of grief the Children of Illuvatar had endured. Earendil was set to eternally sail in the skies with a Silmaril bound to his brow, appearing as a bright star to those on earth.

This is probably the "light that shall pierce the darkness" to which Ulmo was cryptically referring.

Answer: Vilya

'Varda', 'Vaire' and 'Vane' are all names of Valar: Varda is Queen of the Stars, Vaire is the wife of Mandos who weaves the history of Arda, and Vana is the sister of Yavanna and wife of Orome. The three Elven Rings were forged without the knowledge of Sauron, and were never used while he posessed The One. Thus, they remained untainted by Dark Lord's evil, and were kept secret until after his fall.

Answer: of Westmarch

Although The Red Book itself was lost to the ages long ago, Tolkien tells us it was the source from which all the tales in "The Hobbit", "The Lord Of The Rings" and "The Silmarillion" were translated. It is not known exactly when Bilbo began writing recollections of his adventures, but he definitely took the Red Book with him when he left The Shire on his 111th birthday. Presumably most of Bilbo's contribution was written after arriving in Rivendell, with Frodo continuing the book after his return to The Shire.

Answer: Yen

There were 144 years of the Sun to every one Elven 'yen' (plural 'yeni'). 'Yestare' was the name given to the first day of the year, while 'Yavie' was the Quenya word for the 54 day season encompassing late Summer and early Autumn. The 'Yale' was an area of scarcely populated lowlands in the Eastfarthing of The Shire.

Answer: Zirakzigil

'Zamin' was a woman of Numenor, childhood friend of Queen Ancalime. 'Zarn-Dum' and 'Zarazinbar' are invented variations on other mountain names. The peak of Zirakzigil was crowned with the Tower Of Durin, and it was here that the epic fight between Gandalf and the Balrog came to an end. ~ Thank you for playing! 'The Encyclopedia Of Arda' (http://www.glyphweb.com/arda/) was an invaluable resource in the creation of this quiz. Hopefully you enjoyed it, and learned something about the complex and beautiful world of J.R.R.Tolkien's imagination.