Durin I
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Durin | |
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Dwarf | |
"Durin" by Turner Mohan | |
Biographical Information | |
Other names | Durin the Deathless |
Titles | King of Durin's Folk, King of Khazad-dûm |
Location | Gundabad, Khazad-dûm |
Affiliation | Seven Fathers of the Dwarves |
Language | Khuzdul |
Birth | Between Y.T. 1050 and Y.T. 1250[1] Mount Gundabad |
Rule | Years of the Trees - Late First Age |
Death | Late First Age[2] (aged 2,395+[note 1]) Khazad-dûm |
Notable for | Founding Khazad-dûm |
Family | |
House | Founded the House of Durin |
Parentage | Created by Aulë |
Physical Description | |
Gender | Male |
Gallery | Images of Durin |
- "They say also that the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves return to live again in their own kin and to bear once more their ancient names: of whom Durin was the most renowned..."
- ― The Silmarillion, "Of Aulë and Yavanna"
Durin I (fl. Elder Days), known as the Deathless due to his longevity, was the eldest of the Fathers of the Dwarves, the founder of the city of Khazad-dûm, and the first King of Durin's folk.
History
Origin
- Main article: Fathers of the Dwarves
Durin was the eldest of the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves fashioned under a mountain by the Vala Aulë who yearned for the arrival of the Children of Ilúvatar. The Vala instructed his creations in the speech he had devised for them when Ilúvatar pointed out that this was against His plans, and that Aulë, as a Vala, had no power to make animate creations. Aulë repented but Ilúvatar himself gave them independent life; and said that they shall sleep until after the coming of the Elves, who were to be his Firstborn.[3]
Aulë laid the sleeping fathers and their mates in deep places; Durin had none.[4] He was set to sleep under Mount Gundabad in the Misty Mountains in the Years of the Trees.[5]
Reign
When Durin awoke, he journeyed south alone through the wild where no person ever wandered before, and gave name to "nameless hills and dells".[6] He came upon Kheled-zâramand looking upon mysterious stars set like a crown reflected in its surface, he took this as a sign and erected Durin's Stone on the location of that event.[7] There, in the caves above the lake, he founded the city of Khazad-dûm and for many years, it was the greatest Dwarven city in Middle-earth.[2]
Durin founded the House of Durin and his people became known as Durin's folk, or the Longbeards. He lived to a great age, even by the measure of the Dwarves, until he was known as "the Deathless"; however, he was not actually immortal, and died before the end of the First Age and his tomb was in Khazad-dûm.[2]
Legacy
The Longbeards believed that Durin would return to them seven times, and in each reincarnation he will again be named Durin and reign as King. He did have six descendants that were named Durin, all of whom were Kings of Durin's folk.[2]
Durin's Axe, a great heirloom of Durin's folk, may have been his personal weapon although the canonicity of this is not certain; it was apparently found when Balin and his colony came to Khazad-dûm in T.A. 2989.[8][9]
Etymology
One account states that the name Durin was a word for "king" in the language of the Men of the North in the early Second Age.[10]
Another account states that Durinn is one of the Dwarfs in the Dvergatal. The name means "Sleepy".[11]
Genealogy
DURIN I fl. Y.T. | |||||||||
Durin II fl. late F.A./early S.A. | |||||||||
Durin III fl. S.A. 1600 | |||||||||
Durin IV fl. late S.A./early T.A. | |||||||||
Durin V fl. late S.A./early T.A. | |||||||||
Durin VI T.A. 1731 - 1980† | |||||||||
Notes
- ↑ Years of the Sun. Each Year of the Trees is equal to 9.582 Years of the Sun, and the Years of the Trees ended in the year 1500. So, 9.582 x 250 = 2,395.
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The War of the Jewels, "The Grey Annals": §19
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, "Durin's Folk"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, "Quenta Silmarillion: Of Aulë and Yavanna"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 212, (dated 14 October 1958)
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "Of Dwarves and Men"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "A Journey in the Dark"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "Lothlórien"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Bridge of Khazad-dûm"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, "The Third Age"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "X. Of Dwarves and Men", "Relations of the Longbeard Dwarves and Men"
- ↑ Chester Nathan Gould, "Dwarf-Names: A Study in Old Icelandic Religion", published in Publications of the Modern Language Association of America, Vol 44 (1929), issue #4, pp. 939-967
Durin I House of Durin | ||
None Position created | King of Durin's Folk | Unknown Next known: Durin II |
King of Khazad-dûm |
Kings of Durin's Folk | |
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Durin I* (Y.T.) · Durin II* · Durin III* (fl. S.A. 1600) · Durin IV* · Durin V* · Durin VI* (until T.A. 1980) · Náin I* (1980 - 1981) · Thráin I† (1981 - 2190) · Thorin I† (2190 - 2289) · Glóin (2289 - 2385) · Óin (2385 - 2488) · Náin II (2488 - 2585) · Dáin I (2585 - 2589) · Thrór† (2585 - 2790) · Thráin II (2790 - captured 2845, d. 2850) · Thorin II Oakenshield† (after 2845 - 2941) · Dáin II Ironfoot† (2941 - 3019) · Thorin III Stonehelm† (T.A. 3019 - Fourth Age) · Durin VII (Fourth Age)* | |
* Kings of Khazad-dûm · † Kings under the Mountain |