Belegaer: Difference between revisions

From Tolkien Gateway
m (Recat)
(Changed to past tense)
Line 16: Line 16:
{{quote|The Sea! Alas! I have not yet beheld it. But deep in the hearts of all my kindred lies the sea-longing, which it is perilous to stir. Alas! for the gulls. No peace shall I have again under beech or under elm.|[[Legolas]]<ref name="TLB">[[J.R.R. Tolkien]], ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', ''[[The Return of the King]]'', "[[The Last Debate]]"</ref>}}
{{quote|The Sea! Alas! I have not yet beheld it. But deep in the hearts of all my kindred lies the sea-longing, which it is perilous to stir. Alas! for the gulls. No peace shall I have again under beech or under elm.|[[Legolas]]<ref name="TLB">[[J.R.R. Tolkien]], ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', ''[[The Return of the King]]'', "[[The Last Debate]]"</ref>}}


'''Belegaer''', the '''Great Sea''' or the '''Sundering Seas''', is the sea of [[Arda]] that is west of [[Middle-earth]].
'''Belegaer''', the '''Great Sea''' or the '''Sundering Seas''', was the sea of [[Arda]] that was west of [[Middle-earth]].


==History==
==History==
Before the [[Second Age]], Belegaer stretched from the Gap of [[Ilmen]] in the far north, where a bridge made of ice known as the [[Helcaraxë]] connected [[Middle-earth]] and [[Aman]], to the far south, where it also connected with Ilmen and froze, although no strait was formed there. Belegaer was narrower in the north than in the south, with its widest part near the equator of Arda.
Before the [[Second Age]], Belegaer stretched from the Gap of [[Ilmen]] in the far north, where a bridge made of ice known as the [[Helcaraxë]] connected [[Middle-earth]] and [[Aman]], to the far south, where it also connected with Ilmen and froze, although no strait was formed there. Belegaer was narrower in the north than in the south, with its widest part near the equator of Arda.


The full extent of Belegaer after the [[Akallabêth]] is never made clear, but it reaches far enough to the north to be ice-covered, and far to the south.
The full extent of Belegaer after the [[Akallabêth]] is never made clear, but it reached far enough to the north to be ice-covered, and far to the south.


Before the end of the Second Age, the continent of Aman, home of the [[Valar]], formed the western edge of Belegaer.  Before the ruin of [[Beleriand]] at the end of the [[First Age]], the sea was narrow and ice-filled in the north, forming the strait of Helcaraxë, the Grinding Ice. It was thus possible to cross from Aman to Middle-earth on foot, though with difficulty, as did [[Fingolfin]] and his people of the [[Noldor]] when fleeing [[Valinor]].
Before the end of the Second Age, the continent of Aman, home of the [[Valar]], formed the western edge of Belegaer.  Before the ruin of [[Beleriand]] at the end of the [[First Age]], the sea was narrow and ice-filled in the north, forming the strait of Helcaraxë, the Grinding Ice. It was thus possible to cross from Aman to Middle-earth on foot, though with difficulty, as did [[Fingolfin]] and his people of the [[Noldor]] when fleeing [[Valinor]].
Line 30: Line 30:
[[Image:Belegaer (Montanini).jpg|thumb|''Belegaer'' by [[Angelo Montanini]]]]
[[Image:Belegaer (Montanini).jpg|thumb|''Belegaer'' by [[Angelo Montanini]]]]
===Islands===
===Islands===
Belegaer has and had several islands and island chains:
Belegaer had several islands and island chains:
* [[Tol Eressëa]], the Lonely Isle close to the shore of Aman
* [[Tol Eressëa]], the Lonely Isle close to the shore of Aman
* the Twilit Isles or [[Enchanted Isles]] seaward of Tol Eressëa
* the Twilit Isles or [[Enchanted Isles]] seaward of Tol Eressëa

Revision as of 23:44, 15 June 2013

"I shan't call it the end, till we've cleared up the mess." — Sam
This article or section needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of article quality.
"Who told you, and who sent you?" — Gandalf
This article or section needs more/new/more-detailed sources to conform to a higher standard and to provide proof for claims made.
Belegaer
Ocean
Ted Nasmith - The Sea.jpg
General Information
Other namesThe Great Sea, Sundering Seas, Alatairë
LocationEast of Aman, west of Endor
TypeOcean
History
EventsThe War of Wrath & Akallabêth
GalleryImages of Belegaer
"The Sea! Alas! I have not yet beheld it. But deep in the hearts of all my kindred lies the sea-longing, which it is perilous to stir. Alas! for the gulls. No peace shall I have again under beech or under elm."
Legolas[1]

Belegaer, the Great Sea or the Sundering Seas, was the sea of Arda that was west of Middle-earth.

History

Before the Second Age, Belegaer stretched from the Gap of Ilmen in the far north, where a bridge made of ice known as the Helcaraxë connected Middle-earth and Aman, to the far south, where it also connected with Ilmen and froze, although no strait was formed there. Belegaer was narrower in the north than in the south, with its widest part near the equator of Arda.

The full extent of Belegaer after the Akallabêth is never made clear, but it reached far enough to the north to be ice-covered, and far to the south.

Before the end of the Second Age, the continent of Aman, home of the Valar, formed the western edge of Belegaer. Before the ruin of Beleriand at the end of the First Age, the sea was narrow and ice-filled in the north, forming the strait of Helcaraxë, the Grinding Ice. It was thus possible to cross from Aman to Middle-earth on foot, though with difficulty, as did Fingolfin and his people of the Noldor when fleeing Valinor.

After the War of Wrath Belegaer was widened by the drowning of a large part of Middle-earth, and possibly parts of Aman. The bridge of ice in the north was removed, removing land access to the western continent. During the Akallebêth in the Second Age, the seas were bent and the world was made round. Aman was removed from the world, Belegaer washed "new lands", and only the chosen could find the "Straight Road" to Valinor. The new western end of Belegaer is never described in the narrative, although there are indications that Númenórean refugees reached them in search for Valinor.

Oceanography

Islands

Belegaer had several islands and island chains:

Bays and inlets

Other features of Belegaer:

Etymology

The name is Sindarin, and has the elements Beleg ("mighty") and aer, an element meaning "sea".[2] The Quenya name of Belegaer, never used in primary writing, is Alatairë.[3]

Comment

Karen Wynn Fonstad has noted that "Belegaer was comparable to the Atlantic".[4]

References