Durin I

From Tolkien Gateway
"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.
The name Durin refers to more than one character, item or concept. For a list of other meanings, see Durin (disambiguation).
Durin
Dwarf
Turner Mohan - Durin.jpg
"Durin" by Turner Mohan
Biographical Information
Other namesDurin the Deathless
TitlesKing of Durin's Folk, King of Khazad-dûm
LocationGundabad, Khazad-dûm
AffiliationSeven Fathers of the Dwarves
LanguageKhuzdul
BirthBetween Y.T. 1050 and Y.T. 1250[1]
Mount Gundabad
RuleYears of the Trees - Late First Age
DeathLate First Age[2] (aged 2,395+[note 1])
Khazad-dûm
Notable forFounding Khazad-dûm
Family
HouseFounded the House of Durin
ParentageCreated by Aulë
Physical Description
GenderMale
GalleryImages 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
Ted Nasmith - Aulë and the Seven Fathers

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

Ted Nasmith - Durin I Discovers the Three Peaks

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 seven times, and each time he will again be named Durin and reign as King.[2]

Durin would not actually reincarnate in the sense of him being born and reborn in a new body. Rather, his original body was preserved, and his spirit would return to it and be granted life again. He would share this trait along with the other fathers of the Dwarves.[8]

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.[9][10]

Etymology

In-universe, the name Durin was a word for "king" in the language of the Men of the North in the early Second Age.[11]

In reality, Durinn is one of the Dwarfs in the Dvergatal. The name means "Sleepy".[12]

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
 
 
 
 
 
 
Durin VII
after Fo.A. 171
 


Notes

  1. 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

Durin I
House of Durin
None
Position created
King of Durin's FolkUnknown
Next known:
Durin II
King of Khazad-dûm


Kings of Durin's Folk
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