Elves

The Elves were the first inhabitants of Middle-earth and the Lands of Arda.

Creation
The Firstborn, the Elder Children of Ilúvatar, conceived by Eru alone in the third theme of Ainulindalë, the eldest and noblest of the speaking races of Middle-earth. They awoke by Cuiviénen in the starlight of the Sleep of Yavanna, as the Sun and Moon have yet to be created. The first elves to awake are three pairs: Imin ("First") and his wife Iminyë, Tata ("Second") and Tatië, and Enel ("Third") and Enelyë. Imin, Tata, and Enel and their wives join up and walk through the forests. They come across six, nine, and twelve pairs of elves, and each "patriarch" claims the pairs as his folk in order. The now sixty elves dwell by the rivers, and they invent poetry and music in Middle-earth (the continent). Journeying further, they come across eighteen pairs of Elves watching the stars, which Tata claims as his. These are tall and dark-haired, the fathers of most of the Noldor. The ninety-six elves now invented many new words. Continuing their journey, they find twenty-four pairs of elves, singing without language, and Enel adds them to his people. These are the ancestors of most of the Lindar or "singers", later called Teleri. They find no more Elves; Imin's people, the smallest group, are the ancestors of the Vanyar. All in all they number 144. Because all elves had been found in groups of twelve, twelve becomes their base number and 144 their highest number (for a long time), and none of the later Elvish languages have a common name for a greater number.

They were discovered by the Vala Oromë, who brought the tidings of their awakening to Valinor.

Melkor, the Dark Lord, had already captured some wandering Elves, and twisted and mutilated them until they became the Orcs.

Division of the Elves
Early in the First Age the elves were divided into two groups - the Eldar, who accepted the summons of the Valar, undertook the Great Journey, and were ennobled by their life in Aman; and the Avari, who refused the summons and became the lesser Silvan Elves. The elves flourished in the First Age, but the Eldarin realms of Beleriand were destroyed by Morgoth, and in later ages their power waned. In the Second and Third Ages some elves still lived in Wandering Companies, traveling through the broad lands they loved, but many were gathered in Elven-realms and refuges such as Lindon, Imladris, the Woodland Realm, and Lorien, were Eldarian lords ruled over Silvan populations. By the end of the Third Age the Dominion of Men was at hand, and the elves who remained in Middle-earth dwindled and became a secret people. Yet in Eldamar the Eldar live nigh to the Valar until the End of the World.

Characteristics
Elves were the fairest of all earthly creatures and resembled the Ainur in spirit. They have leaf-shaped ears, pointed relative to men. They were about six feet tall and somewhat slender, graceful but strong and resistant to the extremes of nature. Their senses, especially of hearing and sight, were much keener than those of men. Elves apparently did not sleep, but rested their minds in waking dreams or by looking at beautiful things. The Eldar, and perhaps all elves, could talk directly from mind to mind without words; in other words, all elves were telepathic.

The elves possessed skills and knowledge that appeared as 'magic' to men.

Although they could be slain or die of grief, elves were not subject to age or disease. Elves could recover from wounds which would normally kill a mortal man. However this also made the elves less flexible in terms of adjusting to an otherwise fallen, ever-changing world.

An elf who lost his life went to the halls of Mandos, whence he could go elsewhere in Valinor but not return to Middle-earth. The date of an elf's death is the death of the physical body. The fate of Elves is bound to Eä, and they cannot leave the Circles of the World until the End, when they will join with the Ainur in the Second Music before the throne of Ilúvatar.

An exception to this was Glorfindel.

Nature
Elves loved all beautiful things, but especially the wonders of nature, above all the waters of Ulmo and the stars of Elbereth that shone on them at their awakening. Their curiosity and desire for knowledge was insatiable; one of their great achievements was to teach the Ents to talk. As their own name for themselves (Quendi, 'the speakers'), apparently in honor of the fact that when they were created they were the only living things able to speak. Oromë was the first who called them the Eldar, ('Star People') because they were born under the stars, but the name is generally considered to exclude the Avari. They were by nature good and abhorred all works of evil, although they could be seduced by evil that seemed fair.



Associations
At first the elves of Middle-earth welcomed men, but after the treachery of the Nirnaeth Arnoediad the two races were estranged, except for the Edain and their descendants. There were three marriages between the Edain and the Eldar, and apparently others between the Edain (especially the Dunedain of Dol Amroth) and lesser elves. The elves (except for the Noldor) never had much to do with the Dwarves (whom they call the Naugrim); the hunting of the Noegyth Nibin by elves of Beleriand and the murder of Thingol and sack of Doriath by dwarves of Nogrod were perhaps the earliest of the many events that alienated the two races.

Kindreds of the Elves

 * Calaquendi - Elves of Light
 * Moriquendi - Elves of Darkness

Eldar


 * Vanyar - Fair Elves (golden-blond hair)
 * Noldor - Deep-Elves (knowledge)
 * Teleri - Sea-Elves (Those who came last); Lindar (The singers)
 * Sindar - Grey-Elves of Beleriand;
 * Lathrim - People of the Girdle
 * Falathrim - Teleri of Beleriand (People of the Shore)
 * Mithrim - Grey-Elves
 * Nandor - Followers of Lenwë (Those who turn back)
 * Laiquendi - Green-Elves of Ossiriand
 * Falmari - People of the Waves
 * Silvan - Wood Elves

Avari

Best Known Elves
Half-elven:
 * Imin, Tata, and Enel - the first Elves that awoke in Cuiviénen
 * Iminyë, Tatië, and Enelyë - the wives of Imin, Tata, and Enel respectively
 * Ingwë (King of the Vanyar and High King of all the Elves)
 * Elwë (called Elu Thingol, King of Doriath and High King of the Sindar)
 * Olwë (Brother of Thingol, King of Alqualondë and High King of the Falmari)
 * Finwë (First High King of the Ñoldor)
 * Fëanor (Crafter of the Silmarils, second High King of the Ñoldor, greatest of the Elves)
 * Finrod Felagund (Lord of Nargothrond, elder brother of Galadriel, Anrod, and Aegnor)
 * Galadriel (Lady of Lórien, greatest Lady of the Ñoldor)
 * Celeborn (Lord of Lórien)
 * Celebrimbor (forger of the Rings of Power)
 * Gil-galad (High King of the Ñoldor during the Last Alliance of Elves and Men)
 * Círdan (wisest of the Sindar)
 * Glorfindel (elf of Gondolin that after his death returned to Middle-earth
 * Haldir, (Marchwarden of Lorien) and his brothers, Rumil and Orophin.
 * Legolas (also called Greenleaf, one of the Nine Walkers)
 * Lúthien (daughter of Thingol, wife of the Man Beren, fairest of all Children of Ilúvatar)
 * Thranduil (also called 'The Elvenking', king of the Elves in Mirkwood, father of Legolas)
 * Fingolfin (Fourth High King of the Noldor, second son of Finwë)
 * Finarfin (Father of *Finrod Felagund, *Angrod, *Aegnor and *Galadriel, grandfather of *Orodreth and *Celebrian)
 * Turgon (King of Gondolin)
 * Orodreth (Lordof Nargothrond, son of Angrod)
 * Angrod (son of Finarfin, father of Orodreth, grandfather of Gil-galad)
 * Dior Eluchil (son of Beren and Lúthien, Thingol's heir)
 * Elros (first King of Númenor)
 * Elrond (Lord of Rivendell)
 * Arwen (Queen to King Elessar)
 * Elladan and Elrohir (The sons of Elrond and brothers of Arwen)