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glosses over some of the truly incredible women of the First Age. And
so, the Atanamli were born. In Quenya, this translates into Mothers
of Men, and is used in this guide to refer to the women of the Edain of
the First Age.
The Edain of the First Age (the Edain being the men and women
who lived in Beleriand and fought Morgoth alongside the elves.)
This guide is divided into three parts, each part focusing on one of the
houses of the Edain. While there are some women we know nothing
about, apart from their place in a family tree, there are plenty of
women with fascinating and inspiring stories that deserve more attention that they usually get. Ive also included a brief timeline of the First
Age, to help you put these womens lives into context.
The first generation of Edain (like Bor the Old, or Marach) who led
their people into Beleriand.
The ancestors of the Edain, meaning basically the first generations.
For the purposes of this guide, were subscribing to a combination of
the first two definitions.
While Tolkien never really specified, saying that the Atanatri only referred to men, the fact that its masculine-by-default, in my opinion,
None of the artwork included in this guide is mine. All the paintings
are by the wonderful Ted Nasmith, and the maps are excerpts from
Karen Wynn Fonstads Atlas of Middle Earth. If you have any questions, feel free to come find me at askmiddlearth.tumblr.com
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MORWEN ELFSHEEN
Lived: 443 - 500 (age 57)
Parents: Baragund (f)
Husband: Hrin
Children: Trin
Morwen was born in Dorthonion, where the
rest of the House of Bor lived. However,
when she was twelve, Morgoth and his armies attacked in the Dagor Bragollach - the
Battle of Sudden Flame. Dorthonion was conquered in the battle, and so Morwen and the
others had to flee from their home and make
the long journey to Dor-lmin. While we dont
know anything about Morwens mother, we
do know that her father was one of the few
men to stay behind in Dorthonion. Baragund
was part of the group of outlaws that
RAN
Lived: 450 - 472 (age 22)
Parents: Belegund (f)
Husband: Huor
Children: Tuor
Ran was born in Dorthonion, where the rest
of the House of Bor lived. However, when
she was five, Morgoth and his armies attacked in the Dagor Bragollach - the Battle
of Sudden Flame. Dorthonion was conquered in the battle, and so Ran and the
others had to flee from their home and make
the long journey to Dor-lmin. While we
dont know anything about Rans mother,
we do know that her father was one of the
few men to stay behind in Dorthonion. Belegund was part of the group of outlaws that
served Barahir, and were eventually hunted
down and killed by Morgoths orcs. So at
the very least, she grew up without her father.
Ran was said to be gentle-hearted, and a
lover of trees, wildflowers, and singing.
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ANDRETH WISE-HEART
Lived: 361 - after 455 (aged 94+)
Parents: Boromir (f)
Husband: none
Children: none
Andreth was born in Dorthonion,
where the rest of the House of Bor
lived. Though we know that she had
a father and brother, its said that
Andreth actually grew up in the
house of her uncle Belmir and his
wife Adanel, who was a wisewoman of the House of Hador. From
Adanel, Andreth learned much of
the lore of both houses, and grew
to be one of the Wise of her people.
Andreth met Aegnor, one of the
princes of the Noldor, and the two
fell in love, However, because of
the different fates facing their two
races, they never married. Andreth
didnt marry anyone else either, and
never had any children.
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Bregil
Lived 386 - after 411 (aged 25+)
Oldest child of Bregor, second
Lord of Ladros
Married Arachon of the House of
Bor
Mother of Brandir and Beldis
Eilinel
Married to Gorlim, one of Barahirs outlaws
ZIMRAHIN MELDIS
ADANEL
Lived: 339 - after 374 (aged 35+)
Parents: Malach Aradan (f) and Zimrahin Meldis (m)
Husband: Belemir
Children: Beren I (also implied that she raised Andreth)
Adanel was most likely born in Dor-lmin, soon after her parents led their people to live there. As the oldest child of the de facto leader of her people (the
chieftain, her grandfather, lived far away in Estolad), Adanel likely grew up
with many responsibilities. And while not much is known about her early life,
we can be sure that she spent a great deal of time learning from the elders of
her community, because she is recognized as one of the great Wise-women
of the Edain.
Adanel married Belemir of the House of Bor, and so moved away from her
home and people to live with him in Dorthonion. She then raised a son, Beren
(not that Beren), and its implied that she also raised her niece Andreth, since
were told that Andreth lived with Belemir and Adanel while young.
She shared her knowledge and her peoples history with Andreth, which was
incredibly important, since only the House of Hador (Adanels house) had remembered the story of Mans original sin (according to legend, just after
awakening, some men worshipped Morgoth instead of Ilvatar.) Adanel
passed this knowledge on to Andreth, who later shared it with Finrod.
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NIENOR TEAR-MAIDEN
Lived: 473 - 499 (aged 36)
Parents: Hrin (f) and Morwen (m)
Husband: Trin (did not realize he was her
brother)
Children: none (died while pregnant)
Nienor was born in Dor-lmin under unquestionably difficult circumstances. Her father
was captured in the Nirnaeth Arnoediad before her birth, and after the battle her homeland was controlled by Morgoths allies, the
Easterlings, and her people oppressed. She
AERIN
Lived: before 472 (marriage date) - 495
(aged 23+ - likely much older)
Parents: Indor (f)
Husband: Brodda
Children: none
We dont know much about Aerins youth, other
than that shes described as a kinswoman of
Hrin, which means she was probably raised as
some sort of nobility.
After the Nirnaeth Arnoediad, the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, the men of Dor-lmin were defeated, and rule of the country was given to Morgoths allies, the Easterlings. During this time,
the people of Dor-lmin were oppressed and enslaved. The leader of the Easterlings in Dorlmin was Brodda. And, in order to get an heir,
Brodda forced Aerin to marry him.
For years Aerin lived with Brodda. She would try
to secretly help Morwen (who lived in great poverty under the Easterlings rule), and if she was
caught, Brodda would beat her. But Aerin didnt
give up, and managed to create a safe space
in her home, making it a shelter for beggars.
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