The Atlas of Tolkien’s Middle-earth: by J.R.R. Tolkien, Karen Wynn Fonstad and Christopher Tolkien

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Post Lord of the Rings efforts to revise the mythology for publication. Includes the controversial 'Myths Transformed' section, which documents how Tolkien's thoughts changed radically in the last years of his life. The Complete Tolkien Companion ( ISBN 0330411659, J. E. A. Tyler – a reference, covers The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, The Silmarillion, and Unfinished Tales; substantially improved over the two earlier editions.)

Newman, J. K. (2005). "J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Lord of the Rings': A Classical Perspective". Illinois Classical Studies. 30: 229–247. JSTOR 23065305. a b Christopher, Joe R. (2012). "The Journeys To and From Purgatory Island: A Dantean Allusion at the End of C. S. Lewis's 'The Nameless Isle' ". In Khoddam, Salwa; Hall, Mark R.; Fisher, Jason (eds.). C. S. Lewis and the Inklings: Discovering Hidden Truth. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p.206. ISBN 978-1-4438-4431-4. This is from the Crist poems by Cynewulf. The name Éarendel was the inspiration for Tolkien's mariner Eärendil, [T 5] who set sail from the lands of Middle-earth to ask for aid from the angelic powers, the Valar. Tolkien's earliest poem about Eärendil, from 1914, the same year he read the Crist poems, refers to "the mid-world's rim". [3] Tolkien considered middangeard to be "the abiding place of men", [T 6] the physical world in which Man lives out his life and destiny, as opposed to the unseen worlds above and below it, namely Heaven and Hell. He states that it is "my own mother-earth for place", but in an imaginary past time, not some other planet. [T 7] He began to use the term "Middle-earth" in the late 1930s, in place of the earlier terms "Great Lands", "Outer Lands", and "Hither Lands". [3] The first published appearance of the word "Middle-earth" in Tolkien's works is in the prologue to The Lord of the Rings: "Hobbits had, in fact, lived quietly in Middle-earth for many long years before other folk even became aware of them". [T 8] Extended usage [ edit ] Arda versus "Middle-earth": Middle-earth is in geographic terms the name of the continent inhabited by Elves, Dwarves and Men, excluding the home of the Valar on Aman, while Arda is the name of the world. However, "Middle-earth" is widely used for the whole of Tolkien's legendarium. [4] (Depicted: Arda in the Years of the Trees) Tally, Robert T. Jr. (2010). "Let Us Now Praise Famous Orcs: Simple Humanity in Tolkien's Inhuman Creatures". Mythlore. 29 (1). article 3.The Hobbit Bilbo Baggins joins a company of Dwarves and the Wizard Gandalf in a quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug. a b Gilliver, Peter; Marshall, Jeremy; Weiner, Edmund (2006). The Ring of Words: Tolkien and the Oxford English Dictionary (1sted.). Oxford University Press. p.164. ISBN 978-0-19-861069-4.

Tolkien, J. R. R. (1986). Christopher Tolkien (ed.). The Shaping of Middle-earth. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 978-0-395-42501-5.Bratman, David (2013) [2007]. "History of Middle-earth: Overview". In Drout, Michael D. C. (ed.). J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia. Routledge. pp.273–274. ISBN 978-0-415-86511-1.

He did this through a Vision, to which the Ainur was so moved that they felt an irresistible urge to encounter the events in it. Because of this, Iluvatar formed Ea, the universe, where the Ainur went to experience directly the events they have seen in the Vision. However, they went to Ea at the beginning of time, so they found it without form. These " ages of the star" were shapeless, and so the Ainur labored tirelessly to give them meaning and to fill the universe with all things far beyond what Men can ever reach. After a while, Iluvatar created Arda, where Men, Elves, and the Children of Iluvatar dwelt. Valar is the fifteen most formidable Ainur, with Melkor being the most fearsome one, but the leader of the Valar was Manwe. Maps prepared by Christopher Tolkien and J.R.R. Tolkien for the world encompassing The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings were published as foldouts or illustrations in The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion. Early conceptions of the maps provided in The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings were included in several volumes, including "The First Silmarillion Map" in The Shaping of Middle-earth, "The First Map of the Lord of the Rings" in The Treason of Isengard, "The Second Map (West)" and "The Second Map (East)" in The War of the Ring, and "The Second Map of Middle-earth west of the Blue Mountains" (also known as "The Second Silmarillion Map") in The War of the Jewels. The maps are organised first by period, with chapters on the First, Second, and Third Ages of Middle-earth. [10] A chapter covers regional maps, and a short chapter focuses on The Hobbit. [11] A major chapter follows the action in The Lord of the Rings. [12] The book ends with a chapter of thematic maps, illustrating the landforms, climate, vegetation, population, and languages of Middle-earth. [13] Reception [ edit ] Fonstad created "the most comprehensive set" of thematic maps of Middle-earth, such as Frodo and Sam's route to Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring. [7] Straubhaar, Sandra Ballif (2013) [2007]. "Men, Middle-earth". In Drout, Michael D. C. (ed.). J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia. Routledge. pp.414–417. ISBN 978-1-135-88034-7.The Misty Mountains were thrown up by the Dark Lord Melkor in the First Age to impede Oromë, one of the Valar, who often rode across Middle-earth hunting. [T 4] The Dwarf-realm of Moria was built in the First Age beneath the midpoint of the mountain range. The two major passes across the mountains were the High Pass or Pass of Imladris near Rivendell, with a higher and a lower route, [T 5] [T 6] and the all-year Redhorn Pass further south near Moria. [6] Rhovanion [ edit ]