Elladan and Elrohir
Encyclopedia
Elladan and Elrohir are fictional character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
s in J. R. R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
's Middle-earth
Middle-earth
Middle-earth is the fictional setting of the majority of author J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings take place entirely in Middle-earth, as does much of The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales....
, the sons of Elrond
Elrond
Elrond Half-elven is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He is introduced in The Hobbit, and plays a supporting role in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion.-Character overview:...
Half-elven
Half-elven
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, the Half-elven are the children of the union of Elves and Men. The Half-elven are not a distinct race from Elves and Men, and must ultimately choose to which race they belong...
and Celebrían
Celebrían
Celebrían is a fictional character created by J. R. R. Tolkien. She is an Elven noblewoman, the daughter of Celeborn and Galadriel, wife of Elrond, and mother of Elrohir, Elladan and Arwen. She was called the Lady of Rivendell. Her name means "silver queen" in Sindarin.- Biography :The place and...
and older brothers of Arwen
Arwen
Arwen Undómiel is a fictional character in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in his novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes. Arwen is one of the Half-elven who lived during the Third Age.-Literature:...
.
Literature
Born in Third Age, 130, they have one younger sister, ArwenArwen
Arwen Undómiel is a fictional character in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in his novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes. Arwen is one of the Half-elven who lived during the Third Age.-Literature:...
. Though Tolkien never specifically states that Elrohir and Elladan were twins, many clues were given to prove this possibility. First, they are described as being so similar that "few could tell them apart: dark-haired, grey-eyed, and their faces elven-fair, clad alike in bright mail beneath cloaks of silver-grey". Second, one is rarely mentioned without the other and their names are only separated when they are speaking. Third, they were born in the same year, while most Elves wait at least ten years between children. We are not told which twin is older.
The brothers were friends and companions-in-arms of the Rangers of the North
Rangers of the North
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the Rangers of the North, also known as the Dúnedain of the North, were the descendants of the Dúnedain from the lost kingdom of Arnor...
, and helped defend the remnants of Arnor
Arnor
Arnor is a fictional kingdom in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings. Arnor, or the Northern Kingdom, was a kingdom of the Dúnedain in the land of Eriador in Middle-earth. The name probably means "Land of the King", from Sindarin Ara- + dor...
from evil after the fracturing and fall of the Northern Kingdom. Five centuries before the War of the Ring
War of the Ring
In the fictional high fantasy-world of J. R. R. Tolkien, the War of the Ring was fought between Sauron and the free peoples of Middle-earth for control of the One Ring and dominion over the continent. The War of the Ring took place at the end of the Third Age. Together with the Quest of Mount Doom,...
, Celebrían was captured by Orcs
Orc (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings, Orcs or Orks are a race of creatures who are used as soldiers and henchmen by both the greater and lesser villains of The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings — Morgoth, Sauron and Saruman...
and tortured. Elladan and Elrohir rescued her, slaughtering the Orcs, and their father healed her wounds, but she soon departed Middle-earth. Ever since, they held a special grudge against the Orcs because of their mother's suffering at their hands. During the War of the Ring, they fought alongside Aragorn
Aragorn
Aragorn II is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, one of the main protagonists of The Lord of the Rings. He is first introduced by the name Strider, which the hobbits continue to call him...
in the battle of the Pelennor Fields in Gondor
Gondor
Gondor is a fictional kingdom in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings, described as the greatest realm of Men in the west of Middle-earth by the end of the Third Age. The third volume of The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, is concerned with the events in Gondor during the War of the Ring and with...
.
Like their sister, father, and uncle, they could make a choice between mortality and immortality, expressed by whether they would follow their father to Valinor
Valinor
Valinor is a fictional location in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the realm of the Valar in Aman. It was also known as the Undying Lands, along with Tol Eressëa and the outliers of Aman. This is something of a misnomer; only immortal beings were allowed to reside there, but the land itself,...
at the time of his own departure at the end of the Third Age
Third Age
The Third Age is a time period from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth fantasy writings. The history of Middle-earth is to be taken fictionally as a history of the real Earth....
. Since they are explicitly described as remaining in Rivendell
Rivendell
Rivendell is an Elven outpost in Middle-earth, a fictional realm created by J. R. R. Tolkien. It was established and ruled by Elrond in the Second Age of Middle-earth...
for a time after their father's departure, it is believed that they may also have chosen to live life as mortal men. However, Tolkien never wrote what their choices were, but noted that they were allowed to "delay" their choices. Others believe they chose to be immortal.
Adaptations
Elladan and Elrohir make an appearance in Peter JacksonPeter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
's The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings is an epic film trilogy consisting of three fantasy adventure films based on the three-volume book of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers and The Return of the King .The films were directed by Peter...
, at the very end when Aragorn is crowned and also sitting behind Elrond at the council in Rivendell. They also appear in the related The Lord of the Rings Trading Card
The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game
The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game is a collectible card game produced by Decipher, Inc. Released November 2001, it is based on Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy and the J. R. R. Tolkien novel on which the films were based. Decipher also have the rights to The Hobbit novel...
. They feature as miniatures in The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game
The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game
The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game , and often referred to by players as Lord of the Rings, is a tabletop miniature wargame produced by Games Workshop . It is based on The Lord of the Rings film trilogy directed by Peter Jackson, and the book that inspired it, written by J. R. R...
, in which their character profiles maintain that they are twins. Moreover, they appear in the PC-game The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar
The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar
The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game for Microsoft Windows set in a fantasy universe based upon J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth writings...
, standing in the Trollshaws, west of the Ford of Bruinen. They appear also in the 2009 fan film
Fan film
A fan film is a film or video inspired by a film, television program, comic book or a similar source, created by fans rather than by the source's copyright holders or creators. Fan filmmakers have traditionally been amateurs, but some of the more notable films have actually been produced by...
Born of Hope
Born of Hope
Born of Hope: The Ring of Barahir is a 2009 fantasy-adventure fan film directed by Kate Madison and written by Paula DiSante that is based on the appendices of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings...
.
Names and titles
The names Elladan and Elrohir can be loosely translated as "Elf-Man" and indicate the brothers' dual descent from both ElvesElf (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Elves are one of the races that inhabit a fictional Earth, often called Middle-earth, and set in the remote past. They appear in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, but their complex history is described more fully in The Silmarillion...
and Men
Man (Middle-earth)
The race of Men in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth books, such as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, refers to humanity and does not denote gender...
.
The element el is often translated as "star" and the Elves were called the Eldar, or "People of the Stars."
Elladan includes the element adan, the singular of Edain
Edain
In the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, the Edain were men who made their way into Beleriand in the First Age, and were friendly to the Elves....
(the fathers of Men who became the Númenóreans). "Adan", strictly speaking, is "man", but in usage, it means Númenórean, advanced man, wise man, as in Dúnedain
Dúnedain
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the Dúnedain were a race of Men descended from the Númenóreans who survived the sinking of their island kingdom and came to Eriador in Middle-earth, led by Elendil and his sons, Isildur and Anárion...
. There is also overlap with the word "dan" meaning "wright or smith". (Examples of this are Círdan
Círdan
Círdan the Shipwright is a fictional character created by J. R. R. Tolkien. He was a Telerin Elf, a great mariner and shipwright, and lord of the Falas during much of the First Age. He was the bearer of the Great Ring Narya, which he in turn gave to Gandalf.He had a beard, which was rare for...
[singular name, ship-wright] and Mírdain [plural name, jewel-smiths]). So the highest, most knowing sort of man is what is implied here - a man of lore and craft, significant ideas in the Tolkien universe.
Elrohir contains the word rohir meaning "horse-lord" or "knight." The name Elrohir may be translated as "Elf-knight" or "Elf-rider", alternatively "Star-knight" or "Star-rider", as El- can be translated as both Elf and Star
(This echoes the Dioscuri/Gemini
Castor and Pollux
In Greek and Roman mythology, Castor and Pollux or Polydeuces were twin brothers, together known as the Dioscuri . Their mother was Leda, but Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus, king of Sparta, and Pollux the divine son of Zeus, who visited Leda in the guise of a swan...
twins of Greek and Roman mythology - among these two, Castor
Castor and Pollux
In Greek and Roman mythology, Castor and Pollux or Polydeuces were twin brothers, together known as the Dioscuri . Their mother was Leda, but Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus, king of Sparta, and Pollux the divine son of Zeus, who visited Leda in the guise of a swan...
was a great horseman).
External links
- Elladan & Elrohir at The Thain's Book.