Umuiyan

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This content is considered pre-canon. While the subject of this article is based on official information, it was replaced or emended in later stages of the legendarium.

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Umuiyan, seen near Tevildo, by Alan Lee
Umuiyan
Biographical information
Other names	Gumniow
Titles	Clumsy-foot Doorcat Tevildo's doorkeeper
Birth	Elder Days
Death	First Age
Realms	Tiberth's hall
Physical description
Race	Cats
Gender	Male
Hair	Grey
Eyes	Yellow
Culture	Angamandi (Cat-servants of Tevildo)

Umuiyan, also known as Gumniow, was the doorcat of Tevildo's stronghold in "The Tale of Tinúviel" in The Book of Lost Tales.

Biography

Umuiyan was a doorcat stationed at Tevildo's sunning ground, on the lowest terrace beneath the hill-top cliff that the stronghold stood on.

Some time after Beren was made a scullion by Tevildo, Tinúviel ventured to Tevildo's halls. Upon her approach, Umuiyan opened his yellow eyes and stretched on the rock before accusing her of trespassing on Tevildo's sunning ground. After Tinúviel asked to be brought to Tevildo himself, Umuiyan refused by lashing his tail; though he relented after Tinúviel called him a lord, loudly purring when his massive ugly head was stroked.

After tossing Tinúviel onto his back by seizing her garments by the shoulder, Umuiyan jumped from the first terrace to the second. After noting that he had a great desire to sleep and could not bear Tinúviel on his back anymore, he stretched, yawning, and led Tinúviel to meet the Prince of Cats at some baking stones further along that terrace. Umuiyan roused a sleeping Tevildo, reporting to him of Tinúviel's arrival and refusal to leave.

After bring intrigued by what Tinúviel had to say, Tevildo charged Umuiyan with bearing her to the kitchen of the stronghold. After bearing Tinúviel up two terraces, he stumbled when he landed on the third, causing Tevildo to suggest to him that he leaves his service due to getting swiftly older. To this, Umuiyan denied the accusation that he was getting old, claiming that a mist was hovering in front of him which was causing his head to be heavy. After staggering, Tinúviel feel off his back and Umuiyan went to sleep. This caused Tevildo to get angry at having to carry Tinúviel the rest of the way. As a consequence, Tevildo decided that the aging doorkeeper was too weak in his feet to be useful and, upon summoning his cat-servants, Tevildo ordered some of them to go to where Umuiyan slept and bind him before throwing him from the sheer cliff on the northern side of the hill-top.

Etymology

Umuiyan may be a Qenya word, though it is not glossed. Gumniow may be a Gnomish cognate, though it is not glossed.

Other versions

Umuiyan and Tevildo would be excluded as characters from later versions of the legendarium.