I love maps. Only slightly less than my love of maps, is my love of charts. I spent many hours poring over the genealogies at the back of the Silmarillion over the years. I began reading the Silmarillion again when I got into LOTRO, and have read it a few more times since. Even though I have become a min-maxing raider who spends a lot of time analyzing the game to maximize my effectiveness, it was the Lore which brought me to this game. And I still love that Lore.
One thing that always bugged me about the genealogies was that they were split up into 5 or 6 charts. They were split up by families, or races, etc. I wanted to see it all together in one chart so I could trace genealogies through the whole thing. I assumed there would be one on the internet, so I began searching. I found many good resources, but never exactly what I wanted, and never all in one chart.
Deciding this useful piece of research would be desirable, but was strangely lacking, I took it upon myself to create it. I started with the Genealogies themselves as they were presented in the Silmarillion.
I used Visio to build the chart, placing all the names on the chart and linking them up.
I then noticed that there were holes. For example the charts show Arwen descent from the Eldar of old, but just splice in Aragorn marrying her. Where did he come from? His ancestors as well as the Numenorean Kings were missing.
So a little Googling yielded some important resources:
- http://home.comcast.net/~mithrandircq/Sil_genealogy.htm
- http://www.tuckborough.net/elendil.html#Genealogy
Using these and a few other sites I was able to tie everything together. There were also a few controversies I had been unaware of. One was the lineage of Celeborn, Galadriel’s husband. After some research I decided to adhere to the opinion that he was a son of Galadhon, from the House of the Teleri as per this chart.
There was also the question of Olwe and Elwe. Were they brothers or merely from the same house? I decided to go with this interpretation and made them brothers of some unnamed lord.
And Mahtan, was he a Noldor? I decided to use this chart, and assume he is in fact a Noldor.
After getting everyone on the chart I spent a good bit of time untangling all the interconnections. There were a few loops which could not be untangled, but I believe I have reduced it to the fewest crossovers possible.
I then desired to place a little more context in the chart. I placed background boxes for each age and grouped the families. But I wanted to add in some other narrative and chronological details. I also wanted to have the years shown on the chart so that everything would be in its proper context. I used the Tolkien Gateway to help me sort out the earliest events.
So in the end I had a chart which showed almost every important person in all of Middle-Earth history. And the lines of Arwen and Aragorn can now be traced on one chart from beginning to end. But more than that, it turned into a condensed history of Middle-Earth.
The Genealogy of the Important Personages of Middle Earth
January 28, 2011 at 8:18 am
Best. Chart. Ever.
Seriously, this is a work of art. I can’t imagine the hours you must have spent putting this together.
/salute
January 28, 2011 at 8:52 am
*faint* This is very very impressive piece of work. How long did you pass on this chart?
I bet a week at least ?
You have all my congratulations !
January 28, 2011 at 8:54 am
Awesome work… But no Naugrim or Periannath?
joking aside… i wonder if it’s possible to make all the names hyperlinks to the encyclopedia of Arda? They may be interested in hosting your chart.
January 28, 2011 at 9:01 am
I really have to say this is great. I’m listening to the Audiobook of “The Silmarillion” atm and still it i really hard to recall all the connections. This chart will help me a lot. Thanks.
January 28, 2011 at 9:08 am
A very impressive piece of work. My hat off to you, sir.
January 28, 2011 at 9:25 am
<3 <3 <3
Made of so much win. I don't think I can add much more to the existing comments.
January 28, 2011 at 10:07 am
I think I remember seeing this some time ago.
Between this and the Khuzdul thing you deserve a medal.
January 28, 2011 at 10:11 am
I absolutely love this!! I can’t get enough of the Silmarillion and love poring over the lineages- this will be such a help when reading it.
Awesome, excellent work!!
January 28, 2011 at 10:35 am
Incredible chart!
You should have posters printed.
January 28, 2011 at 10:47 am
Wow!
I am impressed, wait … I have to sit down or I will faint. This IS the best thing I have seen since the awakening of the dwarves.
January 28, 2011 at 11:37 am
Amazing piece of work
January 28, 2011 at 11:39 am
Great article, but..
“There were also a few controversies I had been unaware of. One was the lineage of Celeborn, Galadriels wife.”
Might want to change that one
January 28, 2011 at 12:31 pm
Good catch. I missed that! It’s fixed!
January 28, 2011 at 1:04 pm
Oh, we all know who wears the pants in that family!
January 28, 2011 at 3:33 pm
lol… woops.
January 28, 2011 at 2:24 pm
GREAT WORK! Congratulations!
I’m actually thinking of printing it as a poster
January 28, 2011 at 9:11 pm
Simply amazing work!!
January 28, 2011 at 10:41 pm
Nicely done.
Did you look for Celeborn under his original name of Teleporno (yeah, you can see why he changed that one)? It might yield a bit more info on where he came from.
January 28, 2011 at 10:44 pm
Ooops, my bad. I missed that it said ‘Teleporno’ under Celeborn’s name.
Was Galadriel known as Artanis at some point? Or am I mis-remembering something?
January 28, 2011 at 10:59 pm
This chart is amazing! This and your dwarven language guide are great for lore newbs like myself.
January 29, 2011 at 12:12 am
Cirdan the Shipwright? A contemporary of Ingwe, Elwe, and Olwe – perhaps the oldest living creature in Middle Earth at the time of the War of the Ring (possibly excepting Treabeard and some of the Ents, and Bombadil), and an elf who played a major roll in all three ages. An excellent map, but it’s incomplete without Cirdan.
January 29, 2011 at 3:42 am
Very useful. There are a few little errors I think I’ve found: The elves who refused the journey were the Avari, not the Silvan. ‘Noldor’ is misspelt in the second paragraph. ‘Middle-earth’ should not have a capital E. The Sindar were only those Teleri that were left behind in Beleriand. Not necessarily an error, but what group left the host in Eriador?
January 29, 2011 at 9:26 am
This is a genealogy. Cirdan is not related to anyone on the chart. While this is also true of Ingwe, I think you would agree Ingwe needs to be shown to show the three kindreds.
January 30, 2011 at 4:30 am
Your chart, your decision, of course. The title, however, is “Important Personages in Middle Earth” – and the argument you imply that justifies Ingwe’s inclusion will also justify Cirdan’s. And – with only a slight stretch – a few hobbits….
January 30, 2011 at 10:58 am
Just got around to taking a peak at this. Well done! It is amazing how rich of a history Tolkien created for Middle Earth!
January 30, 2011 at 8:27 pm
Incredible!
I thought I was a Tolkien geek and general lore fan, but this…excellent work.
January 31, 2011 at 12:48 am
You should try http://sdgeard.customer.netspace.net.au/hccag2.html as a reference on the Kings of Gondor if you want to throw all 29 of them in.
February 7, 2011 at 12:24 pm
Perhaps I’m reading the chart wrong, but Ereinion, called Gil-galad, is son of Fingon, of the House of Fingolfin.
February 7, 2011 at 4:53 pm
Quoting from the Gil-galad entry on Wikipedia:
“Gil-galad was the last High King of the Noldor in Middle-earth. In early texts, he was the son of Fingon the Valiant, son of Fingolfin, son of Finwë, first High King of the Noldor. Other sources and versions of the text however, indicate Gil-galad is the Son of Orodreth of the House of Finarfin. This would make him grandson of Angrod, the brother of Finrod Felagund and Galadriel. It is through this descent that his High-kingship of the Noldor is explained.”
February 8, 2011 at 2:09 am
I guess you’ve reserched it more than I have, I guess it depends on what you consider to be early text. Here I am looking at The Silmarillion Index, which states:
“Gil-galad ‘Star of Radiance’, the name by which Ereinion son of Fingon was afterwards known. After the death of Turgon he became the last High King of the Noldor in Middle-earth, and remained in Lindon after the end of the First Age…”
Also, from the Unfinished Tales, from the tale of Aldarion and Erendis, from a scene when Tar-Meneldur reads the letter from Lindon:
“Ereinion Gil-galad son of Fingon to Tar-Meneldur of the line of Earendil, greeting…”
Although both The Silmarillion and the Unfinished Tales are comprised of what could be called early texts, they have been edited to make them ‘compatible’ with current lore of The Lord of the Rings and since became canon. Or at least that’s how I look at it
May 20, 2011 at 1:21 pm
Absolutely gorgeous! I’m a visual person myself, so I have a hard time following who’s who when reading Tolkien. I will keep this at hand when I reread the Silmarillion this summer.
June 4, 2012 at 2:01 am
I love your genealogy. Thank you so much for doing all this work and sharing it. I’ve got a scrap book and trying to put it together was an exercise in frustration. Thanks again.