Beornings

From Tolkien Gateway
Beornings
People
Angelo Montanini - Beornings.jpg
"Beornings" by Angelo Montanini
General Information
LocationsUpper Vales of Anduin
RivalriesOrcs of the Misty Mountains
LanguagesWestron
MembersBeorn, Grimbeorn
GalleryImages of Beornings

Beornings were a people of the upper Vales of Anduin, between Mirkwood and the Misty Mountains.[1][2][3]

History

As other Northmen, the Beornings descended from Men of the First Age who were related to the Edain,[4] perhaps akin to the Third House.[5] As such, the Beornings were close kin of the Éothéod, the Woodmen of Mirkwood and the Bardings.[6][7]

After the Battle of Five Armies and the decimation of the Orcs of the Misty Mountains, many Northmen gathered around Beorn who became a great chief. It is possible that the Beornings became known as a people through being descendants of Beorn.[2][3]

The Beornings kept open the passages of the Ford of Carrock and the High Pass in return for tolls,[3] likely clearing the paths from Dale to Rivendell of evil creatures such as Orcs and Wargs.[8]

In the events leading up to the War of the Ring, the Beornings helped Aragorn, who was taking Gollum to Mirkwood, to cross the Anduin.[9]

During the War, Grimbeorn, son of Beorn, was the leader of the Beornings.[3] It is possible that Sauron's forces had attacked them in early T.A. 3019: when Frodo Baggins wore the One Ring upon Amon Hen, he saw the land of the Beornings aflame.[10]

After the War, the Beornings and the Woodmen were given central Eryn Lasgalen by Thranduil and Celeborn.[11]

Characteristics

They spoke the Common Speech,[12] and had perhaps also their own dialect of it or tongue.[1][13]

Through many generations, the descendants of Beorn were like him skin-changers, able to take the shape of a bear.[note 1] Some of Beorn's descendants were grim like him and even "bad", but none of them matched Beorn in size and strength.[2]

The Beornings seemed to have shared a dislike for Dwarves,[3][14] perhaps related to the latter's praise of metals and the former's disinterest in it.[15]

They were known as great bakers, famous for their honey-cakes (which could feed travelers similarly to the lembas) although they were reluctant to share them with travelers around the time of the War of the Ring.[16]

Etymology

Portrayal in adaptations

Beornings in adaptations
A Beorning in The One Ring  

2011-: The One Ring (role-playing game):

Beornings are one of the playable cultures. The game describes them as rough Men, sometimes outlaws, gathered under the banner of Beorn. One of their cultural Virtues is the ability to take control of a 'spirit animal' whilst sleeping, a talent taught to some Beornings by Beorn himself.[17]

2013: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug:

Beorn tells Thorin and Company that in the past Azog hunted him and his people for sport and that, as a result, few of his kind are left. It is one of his prime motivations to help them in their Quest.

2014-: The Lord of the Rings Online:

Beornings are one of the playable races, added seven years after the game's debut. Unlike other characters, Beorning is both their race and class. They use a game stat known as Wrath to access their skin-changing ability and transform into the shape of a bear. Non-player Beornings can be found in the Vales of Anduin and Wells of Langflood regions.

See also

External links

Notes

  1. Since it is unknown if all Beornings came from the line of Beorn, one can only guess if this was valid for all the Beornings.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix F, "The Languages and Peoples of the Third Age", "Of Men"
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "The Return Journey"
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "Many Meetings"
  4. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix F, "The Languages and Peoples of the Third Age", "Of Men"
  5. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "Cirion and Eorl and the Friendship of Gondor and Rohan"
  6. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "The House of Eorl"
  7. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers, "The Riders of Rohan"
  8. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Treason of Isengard, "XIII. Galadriel", pp. 263-4 (note 15)
  9. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, "The Hunt for the Ring", "(ii) Other Versions of the Story"
  10. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Breaking of the Fellowship"
  11. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Great Years"
  12. J.R.R. Tolkien, "Letter to Leila Keene and Pat Kirke" (cf. The Peoples of Middle-earth, p. 72)
  13. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "II. The Appendix on Languages", p. 34 (§14)
  14. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "Queer Lodgings": [Beorn speaking:] "I am not over fond of dwarves"
  15. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "Queer Lodgings": "[The Dwarves] spoke most of gold and silver and jewels and the making of things by smith-craft, and Beorn did not appear to care for such things: there were no things of gold or silver in his hall, and few save the knives were made of metal at all.
  16. J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "Farewell to Lórien"
  17. Francesco Nepitello (2011), The One Ring: Adventures over the Edge of the Wild, pp. 41-6