#urwen

[camille-lachenille]

Of Laughter and Tears in the Children of Húrin or the fates of Lalaith and Niënor:

Lalaith was doomed to die young from the beginning. She was Joy and Innocence in a not yet tainted world, in a family soon to be cursed, and her death foreshadowed the terrible events to come, for not joy and happiness can last under Morgoth’s gaze.

On the other hand, Niënor, born after most of her family is dead or lost, lives. She is born and raised in sorrow, she is the embodiment of grief, of all that was lost, in a broken land and family. She never could afford innocence or happiness. And Niënor endures; Grief endures and persists. Even when she has lost everything, even her own identity, she still has her tears left as she becomes Níniel.

Just as her older sister’s life was cut short; a beautiful, short-lived burst of happiness, Niënor’s drags and lasts through the worst, until she actively jumps to her death. Happiness can be taken away in the blink of an eye, but you have to actively choose to overcome grief in order to go on. And Niënor couldn’t live any longer because she was grief, just like Lalaith had to die so young because she was happiness.

The two sisters who mever met each other mirror the other’s life in a tragical way.

And, to paraphrase the Athrabeth, whither may Lalaith go, may she find light and await there for her siblings.

#tolkien #the silmarillion #the children of húrin #lalaith #urwen #niënor #níniel #nienor niniel #legendarium ladies #half baked ramblings by a sleep deprived tolkien fan #seriously though #i wrote this at 3am and found the worse typos ever as I edited it to make it coherent #tolkien meta

[thelordofgifs]

Obscure Tolkien Blorbo: Quarterfinal

Urwen vs Eldacar of Gondor

Urwen:

Also known as Lalaith, she was the elder daughter of Húrin and Morwen and died age three of the Evil Breath from Angband.

MY SWEET LAUGHING DAUGHTER SHE DESERVED SO MUCH BETTER

In response to her death, Hurin says this "Marrer of Middle-earth, would that I might see you face to face, and mar you as my lord Fingolfin did!' His love and subsequent loss of her is definitely a motivator, I think, for his later valiant defiance of Morgoth! So she may have died young but she had a big impact. (I mean if we want to apply the butterfly effect she kinda caused the fall of Nargothrond: motivated Hurin to deny Morgoth, got Turin cursed to give really bad advice about bridges, no more Nargothrond.  How many 3 year olds could claim that? Also more seriously, a lot of the deaths in the Silm are violent and awful. But we little of mundane, quiet deaths from sickness. A young child dying in this way stands out in its more realist tragedy. And it shows the subtler ways Morgoth sowed despair in middle earth and also that he knew the Edain were a threat. The 'evil breath' mostly killed 'the children or the rising youth in the houses of Men.'

Eldacar of Gondor:

The twenty-first King of Gondor, also known as Vinitharya. During his reign the conflict known as the Kin-strife occurred and he was forced from his throne for ten years.

The blorbo of all time actually. He’s the protagonist of one of the most interesting stories in the LoTR appendices, the Kin-strife, and everything about his life story is so fascinating! His father was the crown prince of Gondor and his mother was the princess of Rhovanion so not a Númenorean. As a result all the racist nobles of Gondor made noises about how Eldacar was of “lesser race” and wouldn’t live as long as a “true Dúnadan”. One of the most fascinating examples of fantasy racism in Tolkien’s works imo – the bigotry is awful but the bigots have a shield to hide behind! Obviously their concerns are actually valid because they just don’t want their king to die young! (Their concerns aren’t valid. But I think the worldbuilding here is great.) Anyway Eldacar was born in Rhovanion and given the birth-name Vinitharya, but when he returned to Gondor aged five he was obliged to take up the Quenya name Eldacar, presumably to pacify all the racists in Gondor. He’s the EMBODIMENT of mixed-race/immigrant child trauma my beloved. Eventually his father died and he ascended to the throne of Gondor, but then his shitty second cousin Castamir (all my homies hate Castamir he’s the worst) started the civil war known as the Kin-strife and usurped Eldacar’s throne. Eldacar was forced to flee north to Rhovanion but Castamir captured his eldest son Ornendil and had him cruelly put to death which is SO SAD. But Eldacar, being brave and resourceful and clever and extremely cool, put together an alliance with his mother’s kinsfolk in Rhovanion and after ten years reclaimed his throne, which turned out to be slightly easier than expected because Castamir was The Worst and all his subjects hated him. And Eldacar PERSONALLY fought and killed Castamir HIMSELF and AVENGED HIS SON which is extremely important when you consider all the cringefail elves in the legendarium whose quests for revenge didn’t really go anywhere at all. Then he lived to be 235 proving that all the idiot racists who were worried about his lifespan didn’t have any idea what they were talking about, as is par for the course with racists. Also the Kin-strife itself has such far-reaching consequences for the history of Gondor! The Corsairs of Umbar, Gondor’s long-standing enemies, are actually followers of the descendants of Castamir. And during the Usurpation of Castamir Osgiliath was sacked and burned, leading to the beginning of its decline as Gondor’s greatest city. Even though Eldacar’s story is, to me, ultimately hopeful, it’s also such a fascinating turning point in the history of Gondor. Also ALSO he’s explicitly surrounded by textual ghosts which is really fascinating. His father Valacar has “children” plural – so Eldacar had siblings!! What were they like? How did they react to it all? And his son Aldamir is described as Eldacar’s second son and third child, meaning that he had a daughter too. Who was she?? What happened to her? He’s such a blorbo and there’s so much interesting stuff to dig into around him and he has to win this entire tournament please please please❤️

Quarterfinals masterpost

#obscure tolkien blorbo #urwen #eldacar #hi um this may come as a surprise but. it would mean a lot to me if you voted eldacar <3 #queuevienen

[hugafeanorianday]

Elven romance in reverse (pt.1)

Beleg: I married my bestie's sister and I liked it! Lalaith: What he said. Beleg: Yeah, we're practically family, we just made that official! Turin: Family above all else!

#Beleg #Urwen #Belwen #Silmarillion #Funny shit #AU where Urwen survives obviously

[outofangband]

We talk about the ironic foresight in Túrin and Niënor’s names as well as the fact that Lalaith, named for laughter, was the first tragedy but I think I mention should be given to the fact that she was named for fire and died by fever. 

#the silmarillion #the children of húrin #urwen #Lalaith #musing and meta

[warrioreowynofrohan]

Favourite Female Tolkien Character Poll - Round 1, Match 14

#favourite female tolkien character poll #lalaith #urwen #nienor #tolkien #the silmarillion #the children of húrin

[helyannis]

Laughter

Húrin and Lalaith

#tolkien #Húrin #Urwen Lalaith #sketchy sketch #what direction is the light coming from? shhhh. #something loose for a change #I have a completely normal amount of hcs for húrin's family thank you very much #finding reference pics for this was ...unexpectedly hard?? #for strange reasons to do with advertising #i don't even like children why am i doing this to myself

[bretwalda-lamnguin]

Morgoth's curse is the major inciting event for the plot of the children of Húrin, but I can't help but feel that Lalaith's death is the catalyst for both that and the ending. If Lalaith doesn't die to Morgoth's plague, Húrin's hatred of him is not so bitter. He might have held his tongue a bit more, or baited Morgoth into killing him, and avoided the much worse fate Morgoth devised for him.

Perhaps also if Lalaith still lived, Morwen may have gone to Doriath sooner, for her sake.

Lalaith's death also leaves a gaping hole in Túrin's heart, which only Nienor it seems can fill...

#túrin turambar #urwen lalaith #nienor níniel #morwen eledhwen #húrin thalion #coh #my posts #urwen's death seems to start the negative spiral for this family before the curse #the curse almost spills out of it and merges with it...

[child-of-hurin]

people talk a lot about Morwen naming Niënor "mourning" but I'm also interested in Lalaith's original name, Urwen which means fire maiden or girl of fire which I find a strange choice given how horribly Morwen's early life was shaped by the fires of Dagor Bragollach

to be clear this isn't judgement at Morwen or Húrin (it's also possible Tolkien just wasn't thinking about this, didn't think anyone would notice or thought it was darkly fitting given her fever death and so chose it for meta reasons) I just find it very interesting

Some cultures do have naming customs where names are thought to act as wards of some sort.

-@outofangband

!!!

That had NOT occurred to me!! For some reason I put in my mind that the Ur in Urwen was derived from the same element as Tu in Tuor and Túrin, which -- Why did I think this?? It's clearly not true???

I did a word search on the History of Middle Earth and apparently both Urwen and Urwendi were previous names of Arien, and “Ur” a word connected to “Sun”:

Urwen, Urwendi In the earlier tales in this book the form is Urwen, becoming Urwendi in the Tale of the Sun and Moon. The original entry in GL was 'Urwendi and Urwin (Q. Urwen) the maiden of the Sun-ship', but this was later changed to read 'Urwedhin and Urwin (Q. Urwendi)'. In QL (see Ur) Urwen appears as a name of the Sun.

And later:

The Sun-maiden is now named Urien, emended to Arien (her name in The Silmarillion), replacing Urwendi (< Urwen);

I can’t find anything else about the character Urwen Lalaith, so there’s no way to know what exactly was the logic here, but given that the name “Urwen” and “Urwendi” occurred a LOT in earlier versions of the Legendarium (the search function on my PDF accuses over 50 uses!), I think it must have held some significance in Tolkien’s mind when he picked it for our baby Hadorian! It seems to me she must have been named not after fire itself but after the sun? Which works SUPER WELL with the Aure Entuluva/Now comes the night theme of the book...

I don’t wanna be one of those people who are so deep into their favorite text of choice that they see meaning in even the most trivial thing but. If Urwen is named after the sun, it makes me think of both Húrin’s failed prophecy that “day shall come again” (it doesn’t), and Sador’s conversation with Túrin about how mortal children, unlike elves, do not live forever... Urwen shall not come again either 😭

#the children of húrin #lalaith #although ofc i DO think the idea of Urwen being named as a sort of ward also is simply delicious #in the light of the trauma of the Sudden Flame.... hella #basically all options here please me #outofangband #silmarillion

[cuthalions]

HÚRIN. The last Lord of Dor-lómin and the greatest warrior of Men in the First Age. Eldest son of Galdor and Hareth, brother of Huor, husband of Morwen and father of Túrin, Urwen and Niënor. Captured by Morgoth at the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. At his refusal to reveal the secret location of Gondolin, Morgoth cursed his kin and imprisoned him in Thangorodrim.

“Blind you are Morgoth Bauglir, and blind shall ever be, seeing only the dark. You know not what rules the hearts of Men, and if you knew you could not give it. But a fool is he who accepts what Morgoth offers. [...] Do you forget to whom you speak? Such things you spoke long ago to our fathers; but we escaped from your shadow. And now we have knowledge of you, for we have looked upon the faces that have seen the light, and heard the voices that have spoken with Manwë. Before Arda you were, but others also; and you did not make it. Neither are you the most mighty; for you spent your strength upon yourself and wasted it in your own emptiness. No more are you now than an escaped thrall of the Valar. And their chain still awaits you.” — THE CHILDREN OF HÚRIN, CHAPTER III: THE WORDS OF HÚRIN AND MORGOTH

#húrin #hurin #silmarillion #cohedit #silmedit #the children of húrin #the children of hurin #tolkiensource #tolkienedit #mgifs* #tolkien #the aurë entuluva moment deserves a better gif 😔 #legend. #fancast

[absynthe--minded]

one of my favorite things about the Silmarillion and the greater Legendarium is the question it asks the audience, every time someone reads it -

where is your line in the sand? how far is too far?

because nearly every character in this story has either done something terrible, benefited from something terrible, or turned a blind eye to something terrible. the amount of truly Good People is so low as to be in the single digits in a cast of a couple hundred named characters.* and one of the most fascinating parts of engaging with the fandom is seeing what kinds of terrible things are sympathetic, and why, and how that shapes your impression of the text and others’ as well. You might be perfectly fine with murder but draw the line at racism. someone else might say that ableism is acceptable but sexism isn’t. And still more people will argue over what kinds of murder are and aren’t worth vilifying, and how understandable someone’s motives are. that’s not even getting into the fact that the vague summaries of mental state and motivation that pass for character development in so many cases can leave space for interpretations as far apart as “well, it never says he loved them, so there’s no reason to assume he did” and “well, it never says he loved them, but it also never says he didn’t”

I’ve no idea where this is going, really, except that I think the reason this story has such staying power even though it’s only accessible in a truly convoluted way is that it engages with real morals and real questions, and I find that very powerful

* good people who it can be argued didn’t do anything terrible: Beren, Lúthien, Idril, Tuor, Niënor, Urwen, Rían, Eluréd, Elurín

#tolkien #silmarillion #silmarillion meta

[imakemywings]

@lightqueer tagged me to show a WIP...I don't actually have an active WIP right now, but have some of Nienor talking to Finduilas about her mom that I never fit in anywhere?

***

“…you know, I don’t recall that Mother ever laughed. She must have. Sometimes she had a look on her face that I knew she was amused…but real, out-loud laughter? I can’t recall. Perhaps her laughter died with Urwen.

            “When I was in a mood, usually when Mother had reprimanded me, or deprived me of something for which I wished, I told myself it was Urwen’s fault Mother was displeased. A few times—when I was cruel in the way children can be—I told her she loved Urwen more than me. That she would have rather Urwen had lived than that I had been born.

            “I don’t know what I expected. Something. For her to shout at me, or strike me, or perhaps even to cry. She never did. She didn’t even respond. She just looked at me as if to say ‘What a child you are, to think your childish words could hurt me.’ And I went away, abashed, to whatever privacy we had at the time—the yard in our house in Brethil, or only the edge of camp when we were traveling, or to my room—my own room, entirely my own, and larger than any space I’d ever had!—in Doriath.

            “Mother seemed always unflappable. When I look back now, I realize the truth of it. I used to think Mother was a night owl. She spent so many nights up by firelight, weaving, embroidering, re-reading our handful of books. I think now she was keeping watch. She must have been terrified—she must have been! Alone in that house with a babe and the wolves prowling around outside! But she never showed it. Mother was so fearless she made me fearless—I thought nothing could touch me with Mother there. She never seemed fazed—not when we were accosted by Brodda’s men in the streets, or when they stole from us, or when we were confined to the house. Now though…we must have been in danger my whole childhood, until we passed behind the Girdle. On some level I knew danger existed—Mother told me how dangerous were Brodda and his men, servants of Morgoth, and I knew that Turin had been sent away for his safety, and that Father had died in the Nirnaeth Arneodiad…but I only remember being afraid a handful of times, and only when I was without Mother.

            “She was strong that way,” Nienor murmured. “That I am not. But perhaps this is for the best.”

            “How do you mean?” Finduilas asked. Nienor declined to speak. Already it felt she had said a great deal—more than she would have said to anyone else of her personal life—but this was Finduilas, and speaking to her made words flow like water, in a way they did with none other. Words had come easily enough with Turambar, once she had them, but they had been quiet between the two of them—they spoke never of the past, and not much in general. Their understand had seemed outside the realm of spoken word. Perhaps, Nienor had often thought with chagrin, it would have behooved them to be a bit chattier. Then she said:

            “Mother’s strength came at a price. Her walls kept out friends as well as foes. There was no place in her life for softness.” Nienor touched Finduilas’ cheek, rubbing her thumb against the tender flesh, something unguarded in her hazel eyes—an admission of sorts. “I know not that I could be that way. That I would be willing.”

            “Perhaps she did it that you need not,” Finduilas suggested, catching Nienor’s hand in her own. She didn’t move it away, only curled her long fingers around it, pressing the warmth of Nienor’s palm against her cheek.

            “Perhaps it was only necessity,” said Nienor.

            “If a life is preserved without tenderness, without whimsy…for what has it been preserved?” Finduilas asked quietly. She leaned in and pressed her mouth to Nienor’s, and Nienor relaxed into her kiss. “We live for our moments of joy, do we not?”

            “It is hard to say,” said Nienor, her grave tone giving way to a faint smile. “You give me such joy it casts a light on all else around it. I wonder there are parts of my life left without it.” Finduilas smiled a golden smile, radiant and gentle, and Nienor kissed her again. “If it were given that I could choose to live, but only in absence of your softness,” she murmured inches from Finduilas’ lips, “I would have one last kiss from you before death.”

            “Speak not to me of death,” Finduilas implored. It was a touchy subject among Elves at best, but worst of all among any with a mortal lover.

            “Prefer you to know that I would have my kiss off your breasts?” Nienor asked. Finduilas’ jaw dropped at this audacity, and then she laughed. Nienor grinned. “Or perhaps I shall have it off the softest place of all,” she teased.

            “Nienor!”

            “Yes? Shall you not take pity on your poor mortal love and give me one last kiss of your royal flower to see me off to the unknown?”

            “I shall not!” said Finduilas, torn between somewhat performative shock, and amusement. “I should sooner provide you a reason to return to the realms of Arda.” Nienor laughed again.

            “You think for your cunt I can break the rules of Eä?” she asked. “Well. I won’t deny it quite yet.”

#nienor #morwen #finduilas #ninduilas #rocky writes #wip wednesday

[serregon]

I’ve referenced the Turbo Heaven line from the old draft Turambar and the Faolókë in BoLT2, but I want to analyze it a bit

what stands out to me the most is the fact that Túrin and Nienor became Valar. BoLT was written when Tolkien was kind of in this throw-mythology-tropes-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks phase. humans becoming gods was a common theme in mythologies, after all. I’m not sure why Túrin and Nienor specifically out of all humans were singled out as the ones to become Valar, but then again greek mythology didn’t have consistent rules about which children of gods became gods and which became mortals so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

but Tolkien put a Christian spin on it and made it so that they became Valar because their parents prayed really really hard. this part is also interesting to me because there are very few references to characters praying to the Valar in the published Silm, and it’s probably related to the fact that the concept of the Valar being Gods with capital G’s did not carry over into the Silm

there’s also something interesting about the name Urwendi, which here refers to the sun maia Arien. Urwen was also another name for Lalaith. Lalaith, however, doesn’t exist in this version. there’s something poetic about the name of the Maia who greeted Túrin into death being reborn as the first death Túrin witnesses

#narnposting

[thelordofgifs]

I have some propaganda for Urwen!

In response to her death, Hurin says this "Marrer of Middle-earth, would that I might see you face to face, and mar you as my lord Fingolfin did!' His love and subsequent loss of her is definitely a motivator, I think, for his later valiant defiance of Morgoth! So she may have died young but she had a big impact. (I mean if we want to apply the butterfly effect she kinda caused the fall of Nargothrond: motivated Hurin to deny Morgoth, got Turin cursed to give really bad advice about bridges, no more Nargothrond. How many 3 year olds could claim that?

Also more seriously, a lot of the deaths in the Silm are violent and awful. But we little of mundane, quiet deaths from sickness. A young child dying in this way stands out in its more realist tragedy. And it shows the subtler ways Morgoth sowed despair in middle earth and also that he knew the Edain were a threat. The 'evil breath' mostly killed 'the children or the rising youth in the houses of Men.'

Sorry this got so long 😅

Thank you!!! She’s my submission and I need people to understand how precious she is ❤️

#obscure tolkien blorbo #otb propaganda #urwen #asks #theworldisquietheretooquiet

[hugafeanorianday]

Urwen's Lament

#urwen lalaith #clamavi de profundis #music video #Youtube

[emyn-arnens]

Morwen for the character ask?

-@outofangband

(From this ask game.)

Okay, first I have a confession: It’s been probably ten years since I read COH, so most of this is based on Morwen's and her family members' Tolkien Gateway pages. 😅 Please overlook any inaccuracies on my part!

One aspect about them I love: That she’s stern and speaks little of her thoughts and emotions. I love, love, love Tolkien’s stern/proud/bitter/angry female characters; he writes them so well.

One aspect I wish more people understood about them: I’m not aware of any fandom debates about her, so I can't speak to any misunderstandings of her.

One (or more) headcanon(s) I have about this character: 

As a child, Morwen was impressed by Emeldir's strength and leadership as she led the remnants of the Bëorians to Brethil, and she wished to one day show that same kind of strength.

She speaks even less after Urwen’s death.

One character I love seeing them interact with: She and Húrin break my heart. The tragedy-loving side of me loves their story and the I-just-want-everybody-to-stop-suffering side of me hates it. Finally reuniting after years apart just before her death? Spending the night together trying to shrink the years of absence into mere hours? Giving each other the comfort they've been deprived of for years, knowing that it may be gone at any moment? AGHH.

One character I wish they would interact with/interact with more: As with all of the badass women in the Silm and beyond, I wish I could see her interact with Andreth, Emeldir, Haleth, etc., damn the timelines. Let the proud/angry women bond and unite over their grievances!

One (or more) headcanon(s) I have that involve them and one other character: Sometimes Nienor’s laugher and chatter in her infancy and childhood remind Morwen too much of Urwen, and she turns away so that her daughter doesn’t see her grief. When this happens, Morwen is silent even more than usual, and Nienor does not understand why, until she pieces it together later on.

#thanks for the ask! #i wish i could give you something better than this because i know how much you love her! #the silmarillion #coh #morwen #headcanons #asks #outofangband #.txt

[echoofthemusic]

Hadorian blorbirthdays in the King’s Reckoning calendar system (canon approximates):

Túrin - Gwaeron/Súlimë (2/21-3/22), FA 464

At this time Túrin was almost eight years old, in the month of Gwaeron in the reckoning of the Edain, in the year that cannot be forgotten. — CoH

Lalaith - Gwirth/Víressë (3/23-4/21), FA 466

In that year Túrin son of Húrin was yet only five years old, and Urwen his sister was three in the beginning of spring. — CoH

Tuor - Girithron/Ringarë (11/21-12/20), FA 472

For there was a dwelling of this people in the mountains westward of Lake Mithrim; and thither they led her [Rían], and she was there delivered of a son before the end of the Year of Lamentation. — UT

Niënor - Narwain/Narvinyë (12/23-1/21), FA 473

Early in the year after Túrin was gone Morwen gave birth to her child, and she named her Niënor, which is Mourning; but Túrin was already far away when she was born. — CoH

Eärendil - Gwirth/Víressë (3/23-4/21), FA 503

In the spring of the year after was born in Gondolin Eärendil Halfelven, the son of Tuor and Idril Celebrindal; and that was five hundred years and three since the coming of the Noldor to Middle-earth. — Silm

#I’m officially obsessed #túrin #lalaith #tuor #nienor #earendil #the children of húrin #the silmarillion