Editing Eärendil and Elwing

{{Short description|Characters in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion}}
{{redirect|Elwing|the German ice hockey goaltender|Sebastian Elwing}}
{{redirect|Eärendel|other uses|Earendel (disambiguation)}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2022}}
{{good article}}
{{Infobox character
| name        = Eärendil 
| series      = [[J. R. R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] 
| caption     = The emblem of Eärendil
| aliases     = Eärendil the Mariner <br/> <small> originally "''Eärendel''" <ref name=Rausch-2005-p14/>{{sfn|Flieger|2005|p=xi}}</small>
| race        = [[Half-elven]]
| lbl24       = Book(s)
| data24      = {{plainlist|
*''[[The Silmarillion]]'' (1977)
*''[[Unfinished Tales]]'' (1980)}}
}}
{{Infobox character
| name        = Elwing
| series      = [[J. R. R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] 
| aliases     = Elwing the White
| race        = Half-elven
| lbl24       = Book(s)
| data24      = ''The Silmarillion''
}}

'''Eärendil''' ({{IPA|qya|ɛ.aˈrɛn.dil}}) the Mariner and his wife '''Elwing''' are characters in [[J. R. R. Tolkien]]'s [[Middle-earth]] [[Tolkien's legendarium|legendarium]]. They are depicted in ''[[The Silmarillion]]'' as [[Half-elven]], the children of Men and Elves. He is a great seafarer who, on his brow, carried the [[Venus|Morning Star]],<ref name="Letter 297" group=T/> a jewel called a [[Silmaril]], across the sky. The jewel had been saved by Elwing from the destruction of the [[Havens of Sirion]]. The Morning Star and the Silmarils are elements of the symbolism of light, for divine creativity, [[Christianity in Middle-earth#Light|continually splintered]] as history progresses. Tolkien took Eärendil's name from the [[Old English]] name [[Aurvandill#Crist I|Earendel]], found in the poem ''[[Crist 1]]'', which hailed him as "brightest of angels"; this was the beginning of Tolkien's Middle-earth mythology. Elwing is the granddaughter of [[Lúthien and Beren]], and is descended from [[Melian (Middle-earth)|Melian]] the [[Maia (Middle-earth)|Maia]], while Earendil is the son of [[Tuor and Idril]]. Through their progeny, Eärendil and Elwing became the ancestors of the [[Númenor]]ean, and later [[Dúnedain]], royal bloodline.

Eärendil is the subject, too, of [[Song of Eärendil|the song]] in ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' sung and supposedly composed by [[Bilbo Baggins|Bilbo]] in [[Rivendell]], described by [[Tom Shippey]] as exemplifying "an elvish streak{{nbsp}}... signalled{{nbsp}}... by barely-precedented intricacies" of poetry.{{sfn|Shippey|2005|pp=217–220, 277–281}}

== Etymology ==

''Eärendil'' means 'Lover of the Sea' in Tolkien's invented language of [[Quenya]]. However, Tolkien borrowed the name from [[Old English literature]], in particular from the line "{{lang|ang|Eala Earendel, engla beorhtast}}" (Hail, Earendel, brightest of angels) of the poem ''[[Crist 1]]''.<ref name="Hostetter 1991">{{cite journal |last=Hostetter |first=Carl F. |author-link=Carl F. Hostetter |title=Over Middle-earth Sent Unto Men: On the Philological Origins of Tolkien's Eärendel Myth |journal=[[Mythlore]] |volume=17 |issue=3 |year=1991 |at=Article 1 |url=https://dc.swosu.edu/mythlore/vol17/iss3/1 }}</ref> Tolkien stated that the name came from the [[Old English]] name ''[[Ēarendel]]''; he was struck by its "great beauty" c. 1913, which he perceived as "entirely coherent with the normal style of [[Anglo-Saxon language|A-S]], but [[Sound and language in Middle-earth|euphonic to a peculiar degree]] in that pleasing but not 'delectable' language.".<ref name="Letter 297" group=T>{{harvnb|Carpenter|2023|loc=#297, draft, to Mr Rang, August 1967 }}</ref><ref name=Jones>{{cite book |last=Jones |first=Leslie |title=J.R.R. Tolkien: a biography |date=2003 |publisher=[[Greenwood Press]] |location=Westport, Connecticut |isbn=9780313323409 |pages=32–36}}</ref> Elwing means "Star-spray" in the Elvish language [[Sindarin]].<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1977|loc=annotated Index entry for "Elwing"}}</ref> "Eärendil" was originally spelled by Tolkien as "Eärendel", before being modified.<ref name=Rausch-2005-p14>{{citation |last=Rausch |first=Roman |title=Similarities between natural languages and Tolkien's Eldarin  |date=25 September 2005  |chapter-url=http://sindanoorie.net/art/Similarities.pdf |chapter=5.1 Eärendil |page=14}}</ref>

{{anchor|Elros}}

== Fictional history ==

=== Background ===

{{further|The Silmarillion}}

[[Middle-earth]] was peopled in the [[First Age]] by immortal [[Elves]], later followed by [[Man (Middle-earth)|Men]]. The Elves [[Sundering of the Elves|became divided]] on their migrations, some settling in the Northwestern region called [[Beleriand]]. [[Fëanor]], son of [[Finwë]], the King of the [[Noldor]], one branch of the Elves, had unique skill in craftsmanship, and forged three brilliant and highly prized jewels, the [[Silmaril]]s, that shone like bright stars. The Dark Lord [[Morgoth]] desired the Silmarils for himself, and managed to seize them to put in his crown. There was enmity between Morgoth and the free peoples, Elves and Men.<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1977|loc="Quenta Silmarillion", chapters 1–5}}</ref>

=== Eärendil ===

Eärendil was the half-[[Elf (Middle-earth)|elven]] son of a Man, [[Tuor]], and an Elf, [[Idril Celebrindal|Idril]], daughter of [[Turgon of Gondolin|Turgon]], the King of the hidden Elvish city of [[Gondolin]]. He was raised in Gondolin; when he was seven years old, he escaped the [[Fall of Gondolin|sacking of Gondolin]] with his parents. Eärendil was almost killed by his mother's treacherous cousin Maeglin, who had betrayed Gondolin to [[Morgoth]]; he was saved when his father killed Maeglin. Eärendil and his parents lived afterwards in [[Arvernien]] by the mouth of [[River Sirion|Sirion]].

Eärendil became the leader of the people who lived there, and married Elwing, the half-elven daughter of Dior and the [[Sindar]] elf-maid Nimloth.  Another alliance between Man and Elf, the hero [[Beren]] and his Elvish bride [[Lúthien]], were Elwing's paternal grandparents. Eärendil and Elwing had two sons, [[Elrond]] and Elros.<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group="T" />

With the aid of [[Círdan|Círdan the Shipwright]], Eärendil built a ship, ''Vingilótë'' ([[Quenya]] for "foam-flower"). He often sailed the seas west of Middle-earth, leaving his wife behind in Arvernien.<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group=T/><ref name="Larsen">{{cite book |title=Tolkien and the Study of His Sources: Critical Essays |first=Kristine |last=Larsen |editor-first=Jason |editor-last=Fisher |editor-link=Jason Fisher |chapter=Sea Birds and Morning Stars: Ceyx, Alcyone, and the Many Metamorphoses of Eärendil and Elwing |pages=69–83 |publisher=[[McFarland & Company]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-7864-6482-1}}</ref> At this time Elwing had in her possession the Silmaril that Beren had wrested from [[Morgoth]]. When Fëanor's sons, who wanted the Silmarils back, heard about this, they attacked Arvernien and killed most of the people living there. Elwing, rather than be captured, threw herself with the Silmaril into the sea.<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group=T/> Next, according to ''[[The Silmarillion]]'':

{{blockquote|text=For [[Ulmo]] bore up Elwing out of the waves, and he gave her the likeness of a great white bird, and upon her breast there shone as a star the Silmaril, as she flew over the water to seek Eärendil her beloved. On a time of night Eärendil at the helm of his ship saw her come towards him, as a white cloud exceeding swift beneath the moon, as a star over the sea moving in strange courses, a pale flame on wings of storm. And it is sung that she fell from the air upon the timbers of Vingilot, in a swoon, nigh unto death for the urgency of her speed, and Eärendil took her to his bosom; but in the morning with marvelling eyes he beheld his wife in her own form beside him with her hair upon his face, and she slept.<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1977|loc=ch. 24 "Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath"}}</ref>}}

Hearing of the tragedy that had befallen Arvernien, Eärendil then sought after the home of the godlike and immortal [[Vala (Middle-earth)|Valar]], [[Valinor]], aboard the ''Vingilot'', and he and Elwing found their way there at last. Eärendil thus became the first of all mortals to set foot on Valinor. Eärendil then went before the Valar, and asked them for aid for [[Men (Middle-earth)|Men]] and [[Elf (Middle-earth)|Elves]] in Middle-earth, to fight against [[Morgoth]]; the Valar accepted his plea.<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group=T/>

Because Eärendil had undertaken this errand on behalf of Men and Elves, and not for his own sake, [[Manwë (Middle-earth)|Manwë]], King of the Valar, refrained from dealing out the punishment of death that was due for entering Valinor. Also, because both Eärendil and Elwing descended from a union of Elves and Men, Manwë granted to them and their sons the gift to choose to which race they would be joined. Elwing chose to be one of the Elves. Eärendil would have rather been one of the Men; however, for the sake of his wife, he chose to be one of the Elves also. His ship, Vingilot ([[Quenya]]: ''Vingilótë''), was placed in the heavens, and he sailed it "even into the starless voids", but he returned at sunrise or sunset, glimmering in the sky as the [[Venus|Morning Star]].<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group=T/>

Eärendil's son Elrond too chose elvish immortality, becoming known as [[Half-elven]], and in the [[Third Age]] played an important role in The War of [[One Ring|the Ring]], as narrated in ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group=T/> Elros chose mortality, the gift of Men, founding the line of the Kings of [[Númenor]];<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group=T/> his descendant at the time of The War of the Ring was [[Aragorn]], one of the Fellowship of the Ring, who married Elrond's daughter, [[Arwen]].<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1955|loc=Appendix A: Annals of the Kings and Rulers: I The Númenórean Kings: (v) ''[[The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen]]''}}</ref>

The Valar marched into the north of Middle-earth and attacked the Throne of Morgoth in the [[War of Wrath]]. Morgoth set loose a fleet of winged dragons, which drove the Valar back. Eärendil in Vingilot attacked, with Thorondor and his great eagles, and killed [[Ancalagon the Black]], greatest of the dragons. Ancalagon fell on to Thangorodrim and broke its towers. The Valar won the battle, destroying the dragons and the pits of Angband, captured Morgoth, and took the two remaining Silmarils from his crown.<ref name="Of the Voyage of Eärendil" group=T/>

===Family tree===

{{Half-elven family tree}}

==Concept and creation==

{{anchor|Origins}}

{{further|A mythology for England}}

[[File:Eala Earendel engla beorhtast - Exeter Book folio 9v top two lines.jpg|thumb|upright=3|center|{{lang|ang|Ēala ēarendel engla beorhtast / ofer middangeard monnum sended}} ("Hail, Earendel, brightest of angels, Over Middle-earth to men sent", second half of top line, first half of second line) - part of the poem ''[[Christ I|Crist I]]'' in the [[Exeter Book]], folio 9v, top, which inspired Tolkien<ref name="Letter 297" group=T/>]]

{{#tag:imagemap|
File:Crist I's influence on legendarium.svg{{!}}thumb{{!}}upright={{{upright|2.0}}}{{!}}center{{!}}{{{caption|Imagemap with clickable links. [[Christ I|Crist I]]'s influence on Tolkien's legendarium<br/>It has been called "the catalyst for Tolkien's mythology".{{sfn|Lee|Solopova|2005|p=256}}{{sfn|Garth|2003|p=44}} }}}

rect  400  300  700  600 [[Silmaril]]

rect  600  150 1000  350 [[Middle-earth]]

rect   50   50  700  300 [[Eärendil and Elwing|Eärendil]]<!--please leave this link, it's part of the imagemap which might be used elsewhere-->

rect  200  300  400  600 [[Eärendil and Elwing|Eärendil]]

rect   50  300  200  600 [[Christianity in Middle-earth#Light|Light]]

rect   10   10 1280  720 [[commons:File:Crist I's influence on legendarium.svg]]
}}

[[Humphrey Carpenter]], in his biography of Tolkien, remarked that Eärendil "was in fact the beginning of Tolkien's own mythology".{{sfn|Carpenter|2000|p=79}} In 1914, Tolkien wrote a poem ''The Voyage of Earendel the Evening Star'', inspired by the ''[[Christ I|Crist I]]'' poem.{{sfn|Carpenter|2000|p=79}}<ref name=Jones/> While studying at Oxford, Tolkien developed a [[constructed language]] that later became known as [[Quenya]].<ref name=Jones/> Already around 1915 he had the idea that this language needed an internal history and was spoken by Elves whom his invented character Eärendil meets during his journeys.{{sfn|Solopova|2009|p=75}} The next step in the creation of the underlying mythology was the ''Lay of Earendel'', a work composed of several poems that describes the mariner Earendel and his voyages and how his ship is turned into a star. The mysterious land of [[Valinor]] and its [[Two Trees of Valinor|Two Trees]] shining gold and silver across the land were first described in this cycle.{{sfn|Carpenter|2000|p=84}} The [[List of poems by J. R. R. Tolkien|poem]] was published in ''[[The Book of Lost Tales 2]]''.<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1984b|pp=267–269}}</ref>

Tolkien was aware of the name's [[Germanic language|Germanic]] [[cognate]]s ([[Old Norse]] ''Aurvandill'', [[Lombardic language|Lombardic]] ''Auriwandalo''); the question why the Old English rather than the Lombardic or [[Proto-Germanic]] form should be taken up in the mythology is alluded to in ''[[The Notion Club Papers]]''. The Old Norse together with the Old English evidence point to an astronomical myth, the name referring to a star, or a group of stars; the Old English in particular points to the [[Venus|morning star]] as the herald of the rising Sun, [[Christianize]]d to refer to [[John the Baptist]].<ref name="Hostetter 1991"/> Tolkien stated in a 1967 letter that the Old English uses of {{lang|ang|ēarendel}} "seem plainly to indicate that it was a star presaging the dawn... that is what we now call ''Venus'': the morning star as it may be seen shining brilliantly in the dawn, before the actual rising of the sun. That is at any rate how I took it [when creating Eärendil as a mariner and "a herald star"]."<ref name="Letter 297" group=T/><ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1984b|p=266}}</ref>

Tolkien was particularly inspired by the ''Crist'' lines:{{sfn|Carpenter|2000|p=79}}{{sfn|Lee|Solopova|2005|p=256}}

{{blockquote|''éala éarendel engla beorhtast / ofer middangeard monnum sended''<br/>Hail Earendel, brightest of angels, over Middle-earth to men sent}}

[[File:Phial of Galadriel.jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|The [[Phial of Galadriel]] that [[Frodo Baggins|Frodo]] carried contained [[Christianity in Middle-earth#Light|a tiny fraction of the light]] of Eärendil's star. It helped the hobbits to defeat [[Shelob]].{{sfn|Flieger|1983|pp=6-61, 89–90, 144-145 and passim}}<ref name="Bassham Bronson 2013"/>]]

The first of the ''Crist'' lines is parallelled by [[Frodo Baggins]]'s exclamation in ''[[The Two Towers]]'', ''Aiya Eärendil Elenion Ancalima!'', which in Tolkien's [[fictional language|invented language]] of [[Quenya]] means, "Hail Eärendil, brightest of stars!" Frodo's exclamation was in reference to the "Star-glass" he carried, the [[Phial of Galadriel]], which contained [[Christianity in Middle-earth#Light|a little of the light]] of Eärendil's star, the [[Silmaril]].{{sfn|Flieger|1983|pp=6-61, 89–90, 144-145 and passim}}<ref name="Bassham Bronson 2013">{{cite book |last1=Bassham |first1=Gregory |last2=Bronson |first2=Eric |title=The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy: One Book to Rule Them All |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dw-NAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA35 |year=2013 |publisher=[[Open Court Publishing Company|Open Court]] |isbn=978-0-8126-9806-0 |page=35}}</ref>

These lines from ''Crist'' can be taken as the inspiration not only for the role of Eärendil in Tolkien's work from as early as 1914, but for the term [[Middle-earth]] (translating [[Old English]] ''Middangeard'') for the inhabitable lands (cf. [[Midgard]]). Accordingly, the medievalists [[Stuart D. Lee]] and [[Elizabeth Solopova]] state that ''Crist A'' was "the catalyst for Tolkien's mythology".{{sfn|Carpenter|2000|p=79}}{{sfn|Lee|Solopova|2005|p=256}}{{sfn|Garth|2003|p=44}}

== Analysis ==

=== Splintered light ===

{{further|Christianity in Middle-earth#Light}}

The Tolkien scholar [[Verlyn Flieger]] writes in her 1983 book ''[[Splintered Light|Splintered Light: Logos and Language in Tolkien's World]]'' that a central theme of Tolkien's writing is the progressive fragmentation of the light from the moment of the creation; light symbolises both the divine creation and the author's [[subcreation]].{{sfn|Flieger|1983|pp=44–49}}

The light begins in ''The Silmarillion'' as a unity, and in accordance with the splintering of creation is divided into more and more fragments as the myth progresses. Middle-earth is peopled by the angelic [[Valar]] and lit by two great lamps; when these are destroyed by the fallen Vala [[Melkor]], the world is fragmented, and the Valar retreat to [[Valinor]], which is lit by [[The Two Trees]]. When these too are destroyed, their last fragment of light is made into the [[Silmaril]]s, and a sapling too is rescued, leading to the White Tree of [[Númenor]], the living symbol of the Kingdom of [[Gondor]]. Wars are fought over the Silmarils, and they are lost to the Earth, the Sea, and the Sky.{{sfn|Flieger|1983|pp=6-61, 89–90, 144-145 and passim}}

The last of the Silmarils, carried by Eärendil the Mariner, becomes the [[Venus|Morning Star]] as he sails across the sky with the shining jewel in his ship Vingilot. By the time of ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', in the [[Third Age]], that is all that is left of the light. Some of the star's light is captured in [[Galadriel]]'s Mirror, the magic fountain that allows her to see past, present, and future; and some of that light is, finally, trapped in the Phial of Galadriel, her parting gift to Frodo, the counterbalance to Sauron's evil and powerful [[One Ring|Ring]] that Frodo is also carrying. At each stage, the fragmentation increases and the power decreases. Thus the theme of light as Divine power, fragmented and refracted through the works of created beings, is central to the whole mythology.{{sfn|Flieger|1983|pp=6-61, 89–90, 144-145 and passim}}

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! scope="col" | Age
! scope="col" | [[Christianity in Middle-earth#Light|Splintering of the Created Light]]{{sfn|Flieger|1983|pp=6-61, 89–90, 144-145 and passim}}<ref name="Bassham Bronson 2013"/>
|-
| [[Years of the Lamps]] || Two enormous lamps, [[Illuin]] and [[Ormal]], atop tall pillars, give light to [[Middle-earth]], but [[Melkor]] destroys them.
|-
| rowspan="3" | [[Years of the Trees]] || The lamps are replaced by the [[Two Trees of Valinor]], [[Telperion]] and [[Laurelin]], lighting the blessed realm of [[Valinor]] for the [[Elves (Middle-Earth)|Elves]], leaving Middle-earth in darkness. 
|-
| [[Fëanor]] crafts 3 [[Silmaril]]s with light of the two Trees. 
|-
| Melkor and the giant spider [[Ungoliant]] kill the Two Trees; their light survives only in the Silmarils.
|-
| rowspan="2" | [[First Age]] || There is [[Silmarils#Fictional history|war over the Silmarils]]. 
|-
| One is buried in the Earth, one is lost in the Sea, one sails in the Sky as Eärendil's Star, carried in his ship Vingilot.
|-
| rowspan="3" | [[Third Age]] || [[Galadriel]] collects light of Eärendil's Star reflected in her fountain mirror. 
|-
| A little of that light is captured in the [[Phial of Galadriel]]. 
|-
| The [[Hobbit]]s [[Frodo Baggins]] and [[Sam Gamgee]] use the Phial to defeat the giant spider [[Shelob]].
|}

=== Wade ===

{{further|Wade (folklore)}}

The Tolkien scholar Tibor Tarcsay writes that Eärendil is based not only on Old English but also Indo-European and universal myths. [[Wade (folklore)|Wade]] has power over the sea and superhuman strength, while numerous other mythical Indo-European figures share Eärendil's conjunction of water, boat or horse, and herald or star, such as [[Surya]], the sun-god of the [[Vedas]], or Apollo with his horse-drawn chariot which pulls the sun across the sky.<ref name="Tarcsay 2015">{{cite journal |last=Tarcsay |first=Tibor |title='Chaoskampf', Salvation, and Dragons: Archetypes in Tolkien's Earendel |journal=[[Mythlore]] |volume=33 |issue=2 (126) |year=2015 |pages=139–150 |jstor=26815994 |url=https://dc.swosu.edu/mythlore/vol33/iss2/12/}}</ref> Vingilot is mentioned in [[Geoffrey Chaucer]]'s ''[[The Merchant's Tale]]'' as the name of Wade's ship; Wade is in turn mentioned in the Old English poem ''[[Widsith]]'', while [[Sir Gawain]]'s horse has a name similar to Vingilot, Gryngolet.<ref name="Tarcsay 2015"/> 
[[Christopher Tolkien]], too, noted the matching boat-names, [[Guingelot]] for Wade and Wingelot for Earendel, and stated that the link between Wade and [[Tuor and Idril|Tuor]] was "not casual", which Flieger takes to mean, certainly intentional. Flieger notes further that in ''[[Parma Eldalamberon]]'' 15, Tolkien unambiguously wrote "Wade = Earendel".<ref name="Flieger 2022">{{cite journal |last=Flieger |first=Verlyn |author-link=Verlyn Flieger |year=2022 |title=A Lost Tale, A Found Influence: Earendel and Tinúviel |journal=[[Mythlore]] |volume=40 |issue=2 |at=Article 7 |url=https://dc.swosu.edu/mythlore/vol40/iss2/7}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Tolkien |first=J. R. R. |author-link=J. R. R. Tolkien |title=Sí Qente Feanor & Other Elvish Writings |journal=[[Parma Eldalamberon]] |issue=15 |year=2004 |page=97}}</ref>

=== Echoes of other legends ===

Tolkien's legend of Eärendil has elements resembling the ''[[Mabinogion]]'' or the Christian legend of [[Brendan the Navigator|St. Brendan the Navigator]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Stephens |first=Charles |title=Shakespeare's Island: Essays on Creativity |page=88 |year=1994 |publisher=[[Birlinn (publisher)|Polygon Books]] |isbn=978-0-74866-139-8}}</ref>

=== The long-suffering woman ===

Elwing's staying at home waiting for her husband to return from his vain voyages across the ocean echoes the literary motif of the "long-suffering woman". The choice of fate offered by the Valar to Eärendil and Elwing, resulting in both of them becoming immortal Elves, has been interpreted as a move of Tolkien to solve "several untidy plot points in one fell swoop": being Half-elven, neither of the two would have been allowed to set foot in the land of the Valar, nor was their eventual fate determined since in Tolkien's legendarium Men are mortal, while Elves will live until the world is undone. The metamorphosis of the couple continues as Eärendil's ship is transformed into a flying vessel, so he can continue his journeys in the sky rather than at sea. Still now, Elwing will remain at home, but she is granted a white tower to dwell in.<ref name="Larsen"/>

{{anchor|Eärendillinwë}}

== ''Song of Eärendil'' ==

{{main|Song of Eärendil}}

The longest poem in ''The Lord of the Rings'' is the ''[[Song of Eärendil]]'' which Bilbo sings, and supposedly composed, at Rivendell.{{sfn|Shippey|2005|pp=217–220, 277–281}} This poem has an extraordinarily complex history, deriving through many versions from his light-hearted poem "[[Errantry]]".<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1989|pp=84–105}}</ref> The ''Song of Eärendil'' is described by [[Tom Shippey]] as exemplifying "an elvish streak .. signalled .. by barely-precedented intricacies" of poetry, an approach derived from the [[Middle English]] poem ''[[Pearl (poem)|Pearl]]''.{{sfn|Shippey|2005|pp=217–220, 277–281}}<ref>{{cite web |author=Anon |translator-last=Stanton |translator-first=Bill |title=Pearl |url=http://www.billstanton.co.uk/pearl/menu.htm |website=Pearl |access-date=15 January 2020}}</ref> The song was recorded by [[The Tolkien Ensemble]] on their 2005 CD ''[[Leaving Rivendell]]''.<ref>{{cite AV media |last=The Tolkien Ensemble |author-link=The Tolkien Ensemble |title=[[Leaving Rivendell]] |publisher=Classico (CD 765) |date=2005}}</ref>

== References ==

=== Primary ===

{{reflist|group=T|28em}}

=== Secondary ===

{{reflist|28em}}

=== Sources ===

{{refbegin}}
* {{ME-ref|Letters}}  <!-- Carpenter 2023 [1981] -->
* {{cite book |first=Humphrey |last=Carpenter |author-link=Humphrey Carpenter |title=[[J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography]] |location=New York |publisher=[[Houghton Mifflin]] |isbn=978-0618057023 |year=2000}}
* {{cite book |last=Flieger |first=Verlyn |author-link=Verlyn Flieger |year=1983 |title=Splintered Light: Logos and Language in Tolkien's World |title-link=Splintered Light |publisher=[[William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company|Wm B. Eerdmans Publishing]] |isbn=978-0-8028-1955-0}}
* {{cite book |last=Flieger |first=Verlyn |author-link=Verlyn Flieger |title=Interrupted Music: The Making of Tolkien's Mythology |title-link=Interrupted Music |year=2005 |publisher=[[Kent State University Press]] |isbn=978-0-87338824-5}}
* {{cite book |last=Garth |first=John |author-link=John Garth (author) |title=[[Tolkien and the Great War: The Threshold of Middle-earth]] |date=2003 |publisher=[[HarperCollins]] |isbn=978-0-00711953-0}}
* {{cite book |last1=Lee |first1=Stuart D. |author1-link=Stuart D. Lee |last2=Solopova |first2=Elizabeth |author2-link=Elizabeth Solopova |title=The Keys of Middle-earth: Discovering Medieval Literature Through the Fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien |title-link=The Keys of Middle-earth |date=2005 |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan|Palgrave]] |isbn=978-1-40394671-3}}
* {{ME-ref|ROAD}}     <!-- Shippey 2005 -->
* {{ME-ref|Solopova}} <!-- Solopova 2009 -->
* {{ME-ref|ROTK}}     <!-- Tolkien 1955 -->
* {{ME-ref|Silm}}     <!-- Tolkien 1977 -->
* {{ME-ref|BOLT2}}    <!-- Tolkien 1984b -->
* {{ME-ref|TOI}}      <!-- Tolkien 1989 -->
{{refend}}

{{Middle-earth}}
{{Elves}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Earendil}}
[[Category:The Silmarillion characters]]
[[Category:Literary characters introduced in 1977]]
[[Category:Middle-earth Half-elven]]
[[Category:Fictional dragonslayers]]
[[Category:Fictional married couples]]
[[Category:Fictional sailors]]