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[[Image:Men of Northern Rhovanion.jpg|thumb|''Men of Northern Rhovanion'' by [[Angelo Montanini]]]]
{{people infobox
'''Northmen''' were [[Men]] that lived in the north of [[Rhovanion (region)|Rhovanion]] in [[Middle-earth]], and were friendly to [[Gondor]].
| name=Northmen
| image=[[File:Angelo Montanini - Men of Northern Rhovanion.jpg|250px]]
| caption="Men of Northern Rhovanion" by Angelo Montanini
| pronun=
| othernames=Men of the North (sometimes called the ''Free Men of the North''), Northmen of Rhovanion
| origin=Descended from the [[Edain]] or from their close kin
| location=Throughout [[Rhovanion]]; a [[Rohirrim|population]] removed to [[Rohan]] in the south
| affiliation=[[Alliance of Dwarves and Men]], [[Host of the West (Arnor)|Host of the West]], [[Oath of Eorl]]
| rivalry=[[Easterlings]], [[Orcs]]
| language=Various, most notably [[Rohirric]], [[Dalish]], and [[Westron]]
| members=[[Marhwini]], [[Fram]], [[Beorn]], [[Grimbeorn]], [[Girion]], [[Bard]], [[Brand]], [[Master of Lake-town]]
| lifespan=
| distinctions=
| height=Tall
| hair=Golden
| skin=Fair
| clothing=
| weapons=
}}
The '''Northmen''' were [[Men]] that lived in the north of [[Rhovanion]] in [[Middle-earth]], and were friendly to [[Gondor]].


The Northmen who dwellt in [[Mirkwood|Greenwood the Great]] and other parts of [[Rhovanion (region)|Rhovanion]] were friendly to the [[Dúnedain]] and were after the Dúnedain the most noble Men on [[Arda]], counted as [[Middle Men]] by the Dúnedain, and believed to have been descended from the same group of Men as the [[Edain]], the [[Atanatári]]. The only difference was that they didn't cross the [[Ered Luin]] into [[Beleriand]] and therefore didn't go to [[Númenor]]. The result of them not participating in the War against [[Morgoth]] was their considerably shorter lifespan if compared to the lifespan of the Dúnedain, whose lifespan was enhanced by the [[Valar]] after the [[War of Wrath]].  
The Northmen who dwelt in [[Mirkwood|Greenwood the Great]] and other parts of [[Rhovanion]] were friendly to the [[Dúnedain]] and were, after the Dúnedain, the most noble Men on [[Arda]], counted as [[Middle Men]], and believed to have been descended from the same group of Men as the [[Edain]], the [[Atanatári]]. The only difference was that they didn't cross the [[Ered Luin]] into [[Beleriand]] and therefore didn't go to [[Númenor]]. The result of them not participating in the War against [[Morgoth]] was their considerably shorter lifespan if compared to the lifespan of the Dúnedain, whose lifespan was enhanced by the [[Valar]] after the [[War of Wrath]].
 
The [[Men of Dale]] and [[Lake-town]] were also counted under the Northmen, as were the [[Woodmen|Woodmen of Mirkwood]]. Most of Rhovanion had been depopulated after the wars of the Easterlings and the Great Plague.
 
==Origins==
{{seealso|Middle Men}}
The Northmen descended from the group of the [[Edain]] who left their kin to reach the West, being always at war with the [[Men of Darkness]].<ref name="DM">{{PM|X}}</ref> The "Bëorians" were on the vanguard and the "Hadorians" followed on their trail. The latter were divided while passing through [[Greenwood]]: some reached the [[Vales of Anduin]] and turned northwards, while others passed between the northernmost eaves of the Wood and the [[Ered Mithrin]]. Only a few of them reached [[Eriador]] and then [[Beleriand]].<ref name=relations/> As such, the Northmern appear to be akin to the House of Hador who stayed behind in Rhovanion.<ref name="Cirion">{{UT|8}}</ref><ref name=relations/>


The [[Men of Dale]] and [[Lake-town|Esgaroth]] were also counted under the Northmen, as were the [[Woodmen|woodsmen of Mirkwood]]. Most of Rhovanion had been depopulated after the wars of the Easterlings and the Great Plague.
==History==
==History==
===Origins===
===First Age===
The Northmen descended from the group of the [[Edain]] who left their kin to reach the West, being always at war with the [[Men of Darkness]].<ref name="DM">{{PM|X}}</ref> Somewhere in northern [[Rhûn]], they had met the [[Dwarves]]<ref>{{WJ|13}}</ref>
During these migrations many Men wandered or settled the empty lands between the [[Iron Hills]], the [[Greenwood]] and the [[Inland Sea]].<ref>{{PM|Atani}}</ref> Those Men of Rhovanion settled near the lands of the [[Longbeards]] and they began trading with them. Men chiefly provided food in exchange for Dwarven work in building, road-construction, mining, and the crafting of tools and weapons. The Men looked at the Dwarves with awe (although it is said that they had met evil ones in the east)<ref>{{PM|XNotes}} #28</ref> and were eager to learn from them. This system benefited the Dwarves, as the services they provided to Men required less effort than those offered in exchange.<ref name=relations>{{PM|Relations}}</ref>


There they were divided in two folks (who would later become [[House of Bëor]] and [[House of Hador|House of Marach]]) at NE of the [[Sea of Rhûn]] where they dwelt in the woods. The ancestors of the Hadorians dwelt in the north-east of the Sea, in the woods that there came near to the shores. The ancestors of the Beorians had reached the feet of the high hills to the south-west. Because of that distance, they both developed a craft of boat-building but met seldomly<ref>{{PM|XII}}</ref>.  
By the end of the [[First Age]] the Men who settled between the [[Grey Mountains]] and Greenwood were numerous (compared to the Dwarves) but scattered across villages.


The ancestors of the Beorians had been mingling with Men of other kinds and their dialect of [[Taliska]] seemed to the rest to contain alien elements.<ref name="DM"/>
===Second Age===
After the [[War of Wrath]], former [[Orcs]] of [[Morgoth]], now leaderless and reckless, but still numerous, armed and cruel, returned to the East and started harassing the lands again. Those Men who settled in small towns could defend themselves only with [[bows]], fences and dikes. Once more, the Dwarves provided the Men with metal weapons and defensive measures in exchange for their skill in taming and riding horses. Thus the [[Alliance of Dwarves and Men]] was formed, resulting to mutual respect and also warm friendship.<ref name=relations /> During this period the Longbeards adopted the [[Northern Mannish|speech]] of Men, keeping [[Khuzdul|their own language]] to themselves.<ref>{{PM|Dwarves}}</ref><ref name=relations />


The ancestors of the Beorians fled first and the ancestors of the Hadorians learned that only afterwards and followed on their trail through the [[Misty Mountains]] in the North (close to the dreadful [[Iron Mountains]]). Many sub-tribes of both peoples stayed behind, and when the shrinking teams (now led by [[Bëor]] and [[Marach]]) reached [[Beleriand]], those who stayed behind occupied many parts of [[Eriador]] and northern [[Rhovanion (region)|Rhovanion]]<ref name="DM"/>. These (known as [[Middle Men]] appear to be akin to the House of Hador<ref name="Cirion">{{UT|8}}</ref>
The Alliance ended in the [[Dark Years]] when [[Sauron]] sent Orcs to invade the peoples, and the Dwarves closed themselves in their mansions. The Northmen also had war with the savage tribes of [[Easterlings]] which scattered them and diminished their numbers. Those who remained there were impoverished, living in caves or in the borders of [[Greenwood]].<ref name=relations /> [[Rhovanion]] fell under the dominion of [[Sauron]] before being liberated by [[Gil-galad]].
 
Not much is known about the forefathers of the Northmen during the [[Second Age]] other than that [[Rhovanion (region)|Rhovanion]] fell under the dominion of [[Sauron]] before being liberated by [[Gil-galad]].


===Third Age===
===Third Age===
They were important allies of Gondor and served as a buffer against the [[Easterlings]], and in the Army of Gondor. For this reason they were given land east and south of the Wood around [[Third Age 1000]]
The [[Kings of Gondor]] recognised the common ancestry with the Men of Rhovanion and showed them great favour. For a time many of them even became subjects of Gondor, as the realm extended beyond the river [[Anduin]]. In c {{TA|1000}}, they were given wide lands south of [[Greenwood the Great]] to serve as a buffer against the [[Easterlings]].<ref name=Foster>{{HM|Guide}}, p. 293-4</ref> They increased greatly during Gondor's golden age,<ref name=gondor>{{App|Gondor}}</ref> and east of Greenwood the Great was the "kingdom of Rhovanion".
 
[[File:Liz Danforth - Vidugavia.jpg|thumb|left|''Vidugavia'' by [[Liz Danforth]]]]
For a time many of them even became subjects of Gondor, as the realm extended beyond the river [[Anduin]].
However some Northmen were hostile to [[Gondor]] and often assailed the kingdom:<ref>{{TT|IV5}}</ref> in the days of [[Narmacil I]], some Northmern joined the Easterlings who resumed their attacks, either because of feuds, or because of greed for spoil, as [[Regent of Gondor|Regent]] [[Minalcar]] found out. In the thirteenth century of the [[Third Age]], Minalcar ensured their loyalty by crushing the Easterlings in {{TA|1248}} with the help of Prince [[Vidugavia]]; he then took many Northmen as officers in the army of Gondor (although the high men of Gondor looked askance at them).<ref name=Foster/><ref name=gondor/> He sent his son [[Valacar]] as an ambassador to Vidugavia, the so-called "King of Rhovanion". Valacar married the daughter of the King, [[Vidumavi]], and their son, ''[[Vinitharya]]'' (in his mother tongue) succeeded him as King [[Eldacar (King of Gondor)|Eldacar]]. His mixed ancestry caused a civil war in Gondor, the [[Kin-strife]] in {{TA|1447}}.
 
East of Greenwood the Great was the [[Rhovanion (Realm)|kingdom of Rhovanion]], and this became the most important nation of the Northmen. In the fourteenth century of the [[Third Age]], King [[Rómendacil II]] of Gondor ensured their loyalty by crushing the Easterlings in {{TA|1248}} and many Northmen joined the army of Gondor; he sent his son [[Valacar]] as an ambassador to [[Vidugavia]], the so-called "King of Rhovanion". Valacar loved Rhovanion and the daughter of the King, [[Vidumavi]]. He married her. and she bore him a son whom she called ''[[Vinitharya]]'' in her mother tongue. In Gondor Vinitharya became known as King [[Eldacar (King of Gondor)|Eldacar]] and caused a civil war, the [[Kin-strife]] because of his mixed Dúnadan/Northmen blood in {{TA|1447}}.


Their existence was a bulwark of [[Gondor]], keeping its northern and eastern frontiers from invasion. When they were weakened and at last destroyed, first with the [[Great Plague]], which appeared there in the winter of {{TA|1635}} and soon spread to Gondor. The Horsemen suffered since the Plague came with a cold winter and they had only low wooden houses and thronged stables, little skilled in the arts of healing and medicine. When the Plague passed more than half of the foil of Rhovanion had perished, and of their horses also. They were slow to recover undisturbed, since the people further east had been equally afflicted.<ref name="Cirion"/>
Their existence was a bulwark of [[Gondor]], keeping its northern and eastern frontiers from invasion. They were weakened by the [[Great Plague]], which appeared in the winter of {{TA|1635}} and soon spread to Gondor. The Horsemen suffered because it came with a cold winter and they had only low wooden houses and thronged stables, being little skilled in the arts of healing and medicine. The Plague resulted in the deaths of half of Rhovanion, and of their horses also. They were slow to recover, but they were undisturbed, since the hostile Easterlings had been equally afflicted.<ref name="Cirion"/>


When the invasions of the [[Wainriders]] began against Gondor, the Northmen suffered the first assaults. Their scattered remains were recruited by King [[Narmacil II]] who took a great army north into the plains south of Mirkwood. They were defeated in the [[Battle of the Plains]] where Narmacil and [[Marhari]] were killed. The remnant of his army retreated over the [[Dagorlad]] into [[Ithilien]]. A few Northmen fled to Gondor, others over the [[River Running|Celduin]] and were merged with their kin, the folk of [[Dale]] under [[Erebor]] and others followed [[Marhwini]] to the [[Vales of Anduin]] and became the ancestors of the [[Éothéod]]. Most of the Northmen were reduced to servitude, and all their former lands were occupied by the Wainriders.<ref name="Cirion"/>
When the invasions of the [[Wainriders]] began against Gondor, the Northmen suffered the first assaults. Their scattered remains were recruited by King [[Narmacil II]] who took a great army north into the plains south of Mirkwood. They were defeated in the [[Battle of the Plains]] ({{TA|1856}}) where Narmacil and [[Marhari]] were killed. Most of the Northmen were reduced to servitude, and all their former lands were occupied by the Wainriders. A few managed to flee to Gondor, others over the [[River Running|Celduin]] and were merged with their kin, the folk of [[Dale]] under [[Lonely Mountain|Erebor]] and others followed [[Marhwini]] to the [[Vales of Anduin]] and became the ancestors of the [[Éothéod]].<ref name="Cirion"/>


Years later, Marhwini prepared an outbreak against the Wainrider occupation. After helping [[Calimehtar]] in fighting them in [[Dagorlad]], desperate poorly-armed outlaws came out of Mirkwood and roused the slaves. They burned many Wainriders dwellings, storehouses and fortified camps of wagons. Most of them perished in the attempt fighting the Wainriders' youths, women and old men. Marhwini retired to his land beside the Anduin, and the Northmen of his race never again returned to their former homes.<ref name="Cirion"/>
In {{TA|1899}}, Marhwini prepared an outbreak against the Wainrider occupation. After helping [[Calimehtar (King of Gondor)|Calimehtar]] in fighting them in [[Dagorlad]], desperate poorly-armed outlaws came out of Mirkwood and roused the slaves. They burned many Wainriders' dwellings, storehouses and fortified camps of wagons. Most of them perished in the attempt fighting the Wainriders' youths, women and old men. Marhwini retired to his land beside the Anduin, and the Northmen of his race never again returned to their former homes.<ref name="Cirion"/> Afterwards they battled with the enemies alone since Gondor could not help them. Still they joined the forces of Gondor and many comprised the army of the [[Battle of Fornost]] ({{TA|1975}}).<ref name=Foster/>


In {{TA|1856}} Northmen were enslaved by the Easterlings but revolted in {{TA|1899}}, aided with a timely attack of King [[Calimehtar (King of Gondor)|Calimehtar]]. Afterwards they battled with the enemies alone since Gondor could not help them. Still they joined the forces of Gondor and many comprised the army of the [[Battle of Fornost]] ({{TA|1975}}).
[[File:Donato Giancola - Fram Franson.jpg|thumb|''Fram'' by [[Donato Giancola]]]]
After the evil Kingdom of [[Angmar]] was defeated by Gondor and the remains of [[Arnor]] in {{TA|1977}}, these Northmen moved north and began to call themselves the [[Éothéod]]. They were skilled horse-breeders and horsemen. In {{TA|2510}} they responded to a plea of help from the trapped Gondorian army at the [[Field of Celebrant]]. After they helped Gondor win this important victory they were rewarded the province of [[Calenardhon]] which became known as [[Rohan]].


After the evil Kingdom of [[Angmar]] was defeated by Gondor and the remains of [[Arnor]] in {{TA|1977}}, these Northmen moved north and began to call themselves the [[Éothéod]]. They were skilled horsebreeders and horsemen. In {{TA|2510}} they responded to a plea of help from the trapped Gondorian army at the [[Field of Celebrant]]. After they helped Gondor win this important victory they were rewarded the province of [[Calenardhon]] and became known as the [[Rohirrim]].  
By the late Third Age, the Northmen were spread throughout the lands east of the [[Misty Mountains]] but had largely ceased to be a united people, as the Kingdom of Rhovanion was no more. Men who were of Northmen descent included the [[Rohirrim]], the [[Men of Dale]] (later known as the [[Bardings]]), the [[Lake-men]], the [[Beornings]], and the [[Woodmen]] of Mirkwood.


The later centuries it is mentioned that the Northmen were allied with [[Erebor]] and with [[Dwarves|Dwarven]] weapons drove the enemies back to [[Rhûn]]. However they did not prevent the enemies to reach the gates of Erebor during the [[War of the Ring]].
In later centuries it is mentioned that the Northmen of Dale and Esgaroth were allied with [[Lonely Mountain|Erebor]] and with [[Dwarves|Dwarven]] weapons drove their enemies back to [[Rhûn]]. However they did not prevent the enemies from reaching the gates of Erebor during the [[War of the Ring]].<ref name=Foster/>


In the [[Fourth Age]], they obviously retained their alliance with the [[Reunited Kingdom]].
==Language==
Since the Northmen were mostly descended from the [[Edain]], their languages were related to [[Adûnaic]] and some languages still bore a great resemblance to [[Westron]]. This language family included the languages of the peoples of the upper [[Vales of Anduin]] (the [[Beornings]] and the [[Woodmen|Woodmen of Western Mirkwood]]), the [[Lake-men]], and the [[Men of Dale]]. The [[Rohirrim]] still spoke their ancestral tongue, giving new names in it to nearly all the places in [[Rohan]]. The [[Kings of Rohan]] used the Common Speech and spoke it nobly like the [[Gondorians]]; a more gracious and antique style of the language.<ref name=languages>{{App|Men}}</ref> The [[House of Eorl|Kings and their descendants]] after [[Thengel]] also knew the [[Sindarin]] tongue - the language of the nobles of [[Gondor]].<ref>{{PM|XNotes}} #2</ref> 


==Inspiration==
==Inspiration==


[[J.R.R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] was possibly inspired by the ancient [[Wikipedia:Norsemen|Northmen]] of northern Europe, the speakers of [[North Germanic languages|Old Norse]]. These "Northmen" appear in his poem "[[The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm's Son]]".<ref>{{HB|II}}</ref>
[[J.R.R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] was possibly inspired by the ancient [[Wikipedia:Norsemen|Northmen]] of northern Europe (These "Northmen" appear in his poem "[[The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm's Son]]".<ref>{{HB|II}}</ref>) and their language is rendered with [[North Germanic languages|Old Norse]]. A significant difference is that the real Northmen were mostly sea-faring peoles while the Northmen of Rhovanion were continental.


{{references}}
{{references}}

Revision as of 06:10, 1 September 2021

Northmen
People
Angelo Montanini - Men of Northern Rhovanion.jpg
"Men of Northern Rhovanion" by Angelo Montanini
General Information
Other namesMen of the North (sometimes called the Free Men of the North), Northmen of Rhovanion
OriginsDescended from the Edain or from their close kin
LocationsThroughout Rhovanion; a population removed to Rohan in the south
AffiliationAlliance of Dwarves and Men, Host of the West, Oath of Eorl
RivalriesEasterlings, Orcs
LanguagesVarious, most notably Rohirric, Dalish, and Westron
MembersMarhwini, Fram, Beorn, Grimbeorn, Girion, Bard, Brand, Master of Lake-town
Physical Description
Average heightTall
Hair colorGolden
Skin colorFair
GalleryImages of Northmen

The Northmen were Men that lived in the north of Rhovanion in Middle-earth, and were friendly to Gondor.

The Northmen who dwelt in Greenwood the Great and other parts of Rhovanion were friendly to the Dúnedain and were, after the Dúnedain, the most noble Men on Arda, counted as Middle Men, and believed to have been descended from the same group of Men as the Edain, the Atanatári. The only difference was that they didn't cross the Ered Luin into Beleriand and therefore didn't go to Númenor. The result of them not participating in the War against Morgoth was their considerably shorter lifespan if compared to the lifespan of the Dúnedain, whose lifespan was enhanced by the Valar after the War of Wrath.

The Men of Dale and Lake-town were also counted under the Northmen, as were the Woodmen of Mirkwood. Most of Rhovanion had been depopulated after the wars of the Easterlings and the Great Plague.

Origins

See also: Middle Men

The Northmen descended from the group of the Edain who left their kin to reach the West, being always at war with the Men of Darkness.[1] The "Bëorians" were on the vanguard and the "Hadorians" followed on their trail. The latter were divided while passing through Greenwood: some reached the Vales of Anduin and turned northwards, while others passed between the northernmost eaves of the Wood and the Ered Mithrin. Only a few of them reached Eriador and then Beleriand.[2] As such, the Northmern appear to be akin to the House of Hador who stayed behind in Rhovanion.[3][2]

History

First Age

During these migrations many Men wandered or settled the empty lands between the Iron Hills, the Greenwood and the Inland Sea.[4] Those Men of Rhovanion settled near the lands of the Longbeards and they began trading with them. Men chiefly provided food in exchange for Dwarven work in building, road-construction, mining, and the crafting of tools and weapons. The Men looked at the Dwarves with awe (although it is said that they had met evil ones in the east)[5] and were eager to learn from them. This system benefited the Dwarves, as the services they provided to Men required less effort than those offered in exchange.[2]

By the end of the First Age the Men who settled between the Grey Mountains and Greenwood were numerous (compared to the Dwarves) but scattered across villages.

Second Age

After the War of Wrath, former Orcs of Morgoth, now leaderless and reckless, but still numerous, armed and cruel, returned to the East and started harassing the lands again. Those Men who settled in small towns could defend themselves only with bows, fences and dikes. Once more, the Dwarves provided the Men with metal weapons and defensive measures in exchange for their skill in taming and riding horses. Thus the Alliance of Dwarves and Men was formed, resulting to mutual respect and also warm friendship.[2] During this period the Longbeards adopted the speech of Men, keeping their own language to themselves.[6][2]

The Alliance ended in the Dark Years when Sauron sent Orcs to invade the peoples, and the Dwarves closed themselves in their mansions. The Northmen also had war with the savage tribes of Easterlings which scattered them and diminished their numbers. Those who remained there were impoverished, living in caves or in the borders of Greenwood.[2] Rhovanion fell under the dominion of Sauron before being liberated by Gil-galad.

Third Age

The Kings of Gondor recognised the common ancestry with the Men of Rhovanion and showed them great favour. For a time many of them even became subjects of Gondor, as the realm extended beyond the river Anduin. In c T.A. 1000, they were given wide lands south of Greenwood the Great to serve as a buffer against the Easterlings.[7] They increased greatly during Gondor's golden age,[8] and east of Greenwood the Great was the "kingdom of Rhovanion".

Vidugavia by Liz Danforth

However some Northmen were hostile to Gondor and often assailed the kingdom:[9] in the days of Narmacil I, some Northmern joined the Easterlings who resumed their attacks, either because of feuds, or because of greed for spoil, as Regent Minalcar found out. In the thirteenth century of the Third Age, Minalcar ensured their loyalty by crushing the Easterlings in T.A. 1248 with the help of Prince Vidugavia; he then took many Northmen as officers in the army of Gondor (although the high men of Gondor looked askance at them).[7][8] He sent his son Valacar as an ambassador to Vidugavia, the so-called "King of Rhovanion". Valacar married the daughter of the King, Vidumavi, and their son, Vinitharya (in his mother tongue) succeeded him as King Eldacar. His mixed ancestry caused a civil war in Gondor, the Kin-strife in T.A. 1447.

Their existence was a bulwark of Gondor, keeping its northern and eastern frontiers from invasion. They were weakened by the Great Plague, which appeared in the winter of T.A. 1635 and soon spread to Gondor. The Horsemen suffered because it came with a cold winter and they had only low wooden houses and thronged stables, being little skilled in the arts of healing and medicine. The Plague resulted in the deaths of half of Rhovanion, and of their horses also. They were slow to recover, but they were undisturbed, since the hostile Easterlings had been equally afflicted.[3]

When the invasions of the Wainriders began against Gondor, the Northmen suffered the first assaults. Their scattered remains were recruited by King Narmacil II who took a great army north into the plains south of Mirkwood. They were defeated in the Battle of the Plains (T.A. 1856) where Narmacil and Marhari were killed. Most of the Northmen were reduced to servitude, and all their former lands were occupied by the Wainriders. A few managed to flee to Gondor, others over the Celduin and were merged with their kin, the folk of Dale under Erebor and others followed Marhwini to the Vales of Anduin and became the ancestors of the Éothéod.[3]

In T.A. 1899, Marhwini prepared an outbreak against the Wainrider occupation. After helping Calimehtar in fighting them in Dagorlad, desperate poorly-armed outlaws came out of Mirkwood and roused the slaves. They burned many Wainriders' dwellings, storehouses and fortified camps of wagons. Most of them perished in the attempt fighting the Wainriders' youths, women and old men. Marhwini retired to his land beside the Anduin, and the Northmen of his race never again returned to their former homes.[3] Afterwards they battled with the enemies alone since Gondor could not help them. Still they joined the forces of Gondor and many comprised the army of the Battle of Fornost (T.A. 1975).[7]

After the evil Kingdom of Angmar was defeated by Gondor and the remains of Arnor in T.A. 1977, these Northmen moved north and began to call themselves the Éothéod. They were skilled horse-breeders and horsemen. In T.A. 2510 they responded to a plea of help from the trapped Gondorian army at the Field of Celebrant. After they helped Gondor win this important victory they were rewarded the province of Calenardhon which became known as Rohan.

By the late Third Age, the Northmen were spread throughout the lands east of the Misty Mountains but had largely ceased to be a united people, as the Kingdom of Rhovanion was no more. Men who were of Northmen descent included the Rohirrim, the Men of Dale (later known as the Bardings), the Lake-men, the Beornings, and the Woodmen of Mirkwood.

In later centuries it is mentioned that the Northmen of Dale and Esgaroth were allied with Erebor and with Dwarven weapons drove their enemies back to Rhûn. However they did not prevent the enemies from reaching the gates of Erebor during the War of the Ring.[7]

Language

Since the Northmen were mostly descended from the Edain, their languages were related to Adûnaic and some languages still bore a great resemblance to Westron. This language family included the languages of the peoples of the upper Vales of Anduin (the Beornings and the Woodmen of Western Mirkwood), the Lake-men, and the Men of Dale. The Rohirrim still spoke their ancestral tongue, giving new names in it to nearly all the places in Rohan. The Kings of Rohan used the Common Speech and spoke it nobly like the Gondorians; a more gracious and antique style of the language.[10] The Kings and their descendants after Thengel also knew the Sindarin tongue - the language of the nobles of Gondor.[11]

Inspiration

Tolkien was possibly inspired by the ancient Northmen of northern Europe (These "Northmen" appear in his poem "The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm's Son".[12]) and their language is rendered with Old Norse. A significant difference is that the real Northmen were mostly sea-faring peoles while the Northmen of Rhovanion were continental.

References