History Characters / TheLordOfTheRingsTheElves

* HeroicLineage: His ancestors were mostly famous heroes in Beleriand in the war against Morgoth. His brother Elros became the first King of Númenor, so he's also closely related to the HeroicLineage that produced Aragorn.

->"''O Elbereth! Gilthoniel!''"\\
"''We still remember, we who dwell''"\\
"''In this far land beneath the trees,''"\\
"''Thy starlight on the Western Seas.''"\\


A proud and ancient race, full of knowledge and sorrow. Now decaying and leaving Middle Earth, their time dwindling and fading. But before they go, they still have a part to play in the War of the Ring, aiding the other Free Races in beating back Sauron's machinations.

* TheAgeless: Elves do not suffer from old age or decrepitude and can live more or less indefinitely. That being said the existence of Círdan the Shipwright, one of only two elves known to have grown a beard, and a poorly defined "third cycle of life" means that Elves do eventually age.
* DyingRace: Most of the tribes of Elves have been slowly but steadily declining since the First Age, as a result of constant wars against the forces of the darkness, a low birth rate, and their living members steadily trickling away and West and leaving Middle-Earth forever. By the time of the books, the High Elves who crossed the sea to arrive in Middle Earth or are descended from them are in the last gasps of their people's presence in Middle-Earth and fully aware of this.
* ElvesVersusDwarves: One of the trope codifiers, but then deconstructed as Legolas and Gimli's story arc in the face of the war has them grow from barely tolerating each other to True Companions.
* InhumanlyBeautifulRace: Elves in J. R. R. Tolkien's works are almost invariably described as being good looking. The three best-looking females in Middle-Earth are all Elves or part Elvish. But that's only according to non-elves, as there are elves in ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'' that are described as plain or even ruddy.
* OurElvesAreDifferent: Despite being by and large the TropeMaker for modern fantasy elves, Middle-Earth's Elves are an interesting sort. They are [[TheAgeless ageless and potentially immortal]], but can be killed from excessive physical trauma or will themselves to die from grief; linger in the world as faint shadows upon death, but can reincarnate; and are less a DyingRace and more properly just in cultural decline and leaving the world for the earthly paradise of the Valar. Physically it's unclear if they actually have pointed ears, their skin colors have a lot of variety and have been described as anything from somewhat dark to glowing and nearly translucent. The ancient elves particularly were noted to have glowing eyes as a side effect of growing up in Valinor and come up to around six or seven feet tall ''on average''.

The Half-Elven, Master of Rivendell, father of Arwen, and bearer of one of the three elven Rings, Vilya the Ring of Air, given to him by Gil-galad before the latter's death at the end of the Second Age. He was a great warrior during the Second Age, and is a great healer and scholar as well as a cunning strategist; however, he also acts as opposition to Aragorn from a much less lofty post: that of a father.

* BittersweetEnding: It's said in the Appendices that for Elrond, "all chances of the War of the Ring were fraught with sorrow." Either Sauron prevailed, or Aragorn became king and he lost Arwen. In the end, the Fellowship defeated Sauron, restored the kingdom of Gondor and Arnor, and saved Middle-Earth, but Elrond had to part with his daughter Arwen ''forever'', even beyond the end of the world. His sons may have become mortal as well, which would leave him with no surviving children.

* EngagementChallenge: Demanded that Aragorn become king of both Arnor and Gondor before marrying Arwen. At the time the books take place, Gondor hadn't had a king for almost a thousand years, and Arnor hadn't even ''existed'' for more than a thousand years.
* HappilyAdopted: By Maglor. Rather remarkable, considering that Maglor took him and his brother prisoner (when they were about five years old), and was among the people who tried to kill his mother and successfully killed his grandparents. It helps that Maglor and Maedhros were compelled by the Oath of Feanor, the most reluctant about it, and [[TheAtoner tried to atone]] for their actions - with Maedhros in particular regretting his failure to save Elrond's uncles, Elured and Elurin - and decided that EvilParentsWantGoodKids. See StockholmSyndrome below.
* HealingHands: Though a capable commander in wartime, his skills and inclinations run mostly towards medicine. He's good enough to prevent the Morgul-knife wound from turning Frodo into a wraith.

* LivingDistantAncestor: A ''many'' times great-uncle of Aragorn via his brother Elros.

* ThePhilosopherKing: People of all races and from all around Middle-Earth will go to Rivendell to seek his counsel.

* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: While Aragorn aged fairly normally if gracefully (for a 200-year-old guy), Arwen remained youthful right up until her death. She still hadn't become weary of Middle-Earth by the time Aragorn died.

* TheHighQueen: Of Gondor.

* MissingMom: Her mother Celebrían, unable to endure the woes of Middle-Earth any longer, had sailed West centuries ago.

* OutOfFocus: Since she was only created late into the writing of LOTR, Arwen's role is fairly minimal. ''The Tale of Arwen and Aragorn'' in Appendix A would flesh out her story and relationship with Aragorn.

* ProperLady: nearly her defining trait.

* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Literally (after Lúthien died).

[[folder:Galadriel]]
-->''"In Dwimordene, in Lorien''
-->''Seldom have walked the feet of Men,''
-->''Few mortal eyes have seen the light,''
-->''That lies there ever long and bright.''
-->''Galadriel! Galadriel!''

-->''Clear is the water of your well,''
-->''White is the star in your white hand,''
-->''Unmarred, unstained is leaf and land,''
-->''In Dwimordene, in Lorien,''
-->''More fair than thoughts of Mortal Men."''\\
\\

The Lady of Light, Galadriel is a Noldorin Elf who co-rules Lothlórien as the Lady of Lórien, with her Sindarin husband Lord Celeborn. One of the oldest, mightiest and wisest Elves in Middle-Earth, she is a powerful sorceress (possibly; magic is very rare in Middle-Earth, and her true power, and its nature, are only hinted at) and wields Nenya, the Elven Ring of Water, which aids her people in their fight against Sauron's forces.

* [[{{DreamWeaver}} Dream Weaver]]: Owns a magic pool that shows the person who looks into it visions of the past, present, and possible futures.

* TheDreaded: She's this to the Dwarves and the Forces of Evil. Galadriel is one of the most powerful Elves that still exist in Middle Earth and is spoken of as an elf witch or sorceress. In reality they're not far off, but she is unquestionably benevolent.
* TheDulcineaEffect: Has this effect on Gimli, despite that whole ElvesVsDwarves thing.

* {{Foil}}: In several ways she's ''Sauron's'' mirror opposite. Both she and Sauron rule over mighty regions primarily kept running by their own power, both are immensely powerful creatures whose spiritual influence echo through Middle Earth and affect character's psyches often and both possess rings of power. This is most noticeable when Frodo and Sam are making their way through Mordor, and they often describe a dark influence storming their spirit (implicitly, Sauron's will echoing) but also a light power arising within them (implicitly, Galadriel's influence).

* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Galadriel's temptation shows that she ''could'' be this, but she resists. Had she taken the One Ring for herself, she would have used it to become a tyrant who rules Middle-Earth as "benevolently" as someone corrupted by it would.

* HiddenDepths: In her youth, Galadriel had a great sense of pride and a hunger for power. One of the reasons she came to Middle Earth at all was to have a kingdom of her own. In the ''Lord of the Rings'', She too lusts after the Ring, but just barely manages to overcomes its temptation.

** Galadriel was the Sindarin calque of Alatárielle, after she and her husband went to Middle-Earth. Teleporno took the name Celeborn, the Sindarin calque of his own name, presumably to stop everyone from [[HehHehYouSaidX snickering]]. If your name was Teleporno, you too would want to change it to ''anything else''.

* ItMayHelpYouOnYourQuest: She gives each of the Fellowship a gift at their parting, and specifically hints that the Phial of Light she gave to Frodo may be much more useful than it looks. It is. Subverted with her gift to Sam (a box of soil from her garden "for [the] little gardener and lover of trees"). She even lampshades that, saying that it is a gift that will only ever be useful if he ''completes'' the quest.

** In the former case, in some versions Galadriel was an uneasy ally to Fëanor who defended the Teleri during the First Kinslaying, but shared enough of his signature flaws, such as his great pride and lust for vengeance, that she was still defiant to the demands of the Valar and so refused to go home. Alternatively, she bore no allegiance to Fëanor but rode the wave of the rebellion anyway, as she was interested in carving out a kingdom of her own in Middle-earth. In these versions, her story has something of a redemption to it, where by the end of the Third Age, her turning down the Ring proves she has grown past her old arrogance. However, yet another version, late in Tolkien's life, has her being totally opposed to Fëanor from the beginning, taking no part whatsoever in his rebellion, and arriving at Middle-Earth of her own will just before he did, before writing off the war as a lost cause and heading east, but fell under the ban anyway.
** In the latter case, in an early version, Celeborn is a Nandorin Teleri who lived in Lothlórien his whole life, and Galadriel met him there sometime in the First Age and stayed with him. This was then followed by a version where he is a Sindarin elf related to Thingol, whom Galadriel met in Doriath sometime in the First Age. In yet another version, he is a Teleri elf related to Thingol, and Galadriel met him before she even set out from Valinor, sailing to Middle-Earth at his side.

* PersonOfMassDestruction: Galadriel is one of the most powerful characters in Middle Earth, at least those who aren't Maia, capable of even standing up to (at least in his diminished state) Sauron himself. A notable display of her power is [[spoiler:leveling Dol Guldur ''by herself''.]] It's implied her being corrupted by the One Ring would be comparably bad to it corrupting ''Gandalf''.
* ThePhilosopherKing: Probably one of the wisest still in Middle-Earth.

* SacredHospitality: Galadriel and Celeborn aid and shelter the Fellowship in Lothlórien.

* [[WorldsStrongestMan Worlds Strongest Woman]]: Lady Galadriel is one of the mightiest and physically strongest elves left in Middle Earth, and the most powerful female in the entire story. Her presence in Lothlorien is the sole thing keeping the forces of evil from taking the place over, to the degree that Sauron himself would have to come through and face her. The narrative implies that if she were to take the Ring, she'd be just as big a threat as a corrupted Gandalf.

* OvershadowedByAwesome: He's considered the wisest of the elf-lords of Middle-Earth, a great leader and a survivor of the First Age. However, he mostly gets overlooked in favour of his more dynamic wife, who founded the White Council and ultimately flattened Dol Guldur.

[[folder:Glorfindel]]

An Elf-Lord of Rivendell.

* BackFromTheDead: [[WordOfGod Tolkien's]] letters stated that Glorfindel from Gondolin and Glorfindel from the Lord of the Rings was the same elf, just reincarnated. Although technically this happens to all Elves; the real "back" part is that he returned to Middle-Earth as opposed to staying in Valinor.
* BigDamnHeroes: He arrives to help bring Frodo safely to Rivendell, and directly fights off the Nazgul at the ford of Bruinen.
* CoolHorse: Asfaloth.
* HyperCompetentSidekick: Dialog states that he was possibly the most powerful elf in Rivendell at the time the fellowship was there. Elrond implies that for the Fellowship's mission of stealth, his degree of power would have been a case of CursedWithAwesome: too obvious to avoid attention from Sauron but not powerful enough to overcome him.
* MinorMajorCharacter: A very important elven lord and a major figure in the history of Middle-Earth. His role in the main narrative however is fairly small, though impactful.
* TakingYouWithMe: His death in the backstory.
* UniformityException: Glorfindel is perhaps the ''only'' named Elf in the entire Legendarium who died, went to the halls of Mandos, resurrected in the Undying Lands, then came ''back'' to Middle-Earth. Even more, his return was at the behest of Manwe... who is basically the second-in-command and herald to the Legendarium's god "Eru Illuvatar".
* YouShallNotPass: When the refugees of Gondolin were escaping, he barred the way to the group of orcs and the Balrog that were chasing them. He killed most of the orcs and killed the Balrog as well, at the cost of his own life.
* YouWouldntLikeMeWhenImAngry: A noble, wise, and kind elf lord. His wrath terrifies the Nazgul horses enough that they plunge into a raging river to escape. Previously, he'd sent the Witch-King running for undead existence after the Fall of Angmar.
** In the backstory, Glorfindel is one of the few who took on a Balrog and killed it, even at the cost of his own life.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Gildor Inglorion]]

The leader of a band of wandering Elves of Eriador.
----

[[folder:Elladan and Elrohir]]

Elrond's children and Arwen's older brothers. [[GodNeverSaidThat While never actually stated to be twins]], most of the fandom assumes they are given that they were born in the same year and twins run in Elrond's family.
----
* AlwaysIdenticalTwins: Few could tell them apart.
* BackForTheFinale: They show up to fight alongside their foster brother at Pelennor Fields.
* TheDividual: They are never described apart from each other, and for all intents and purposed are the same.
* IChooseToStay: Both remain in Middle Earth after their father and other relatives have left. Some interpret this as choosing a mortal life, but it is never clarified.
* ItsPersonal: They've been ardent orc-hunters ever since their mother was captured and tortured by them.
* OutOfFocus: Despite being Aragorn's foster brothers, the two receive little characterization and are essentially (as far as we see) alike in every way.
* RevengeByProxy: They continue to despise all Orcs, hunting and killing them, five hundred years later for what other members of their race did to their mother.
* SaveThePrincess: It was their mother, and [[DespairEventHorizon it didn't quite work out]] but still.

[[/folder]]

* HeinzHybrid: 25/32 elven, 6/32 Man, and 1/32 angelic.

* UnevenHybrid: See HeinzHybrid above.

* ActionGirl: In her youth. According to one version in ''Unfinished Tales'', she fought for the Teleri in the first Kinslaying. And ''that'' she was an ActionGirl actually means a lot more than it sounds like — the elves believed [[WhiteMagicianGirl women had a special role as healers]], a task no less critical than that of warriors, most of whom were men (Elrond was a bit unusual, being both a masterful warrior and a great healer). Women ''could'' fight (and certainly trained to know how), but it was believed that the act of fighting endangered their abilities as healers. And it's hinted in the novels that she ''still is'' an ActionGirl, if [[spoiler:single-handedly destroying Dol Guldur in the War of the Ring]] is anything to go by.

* MultipleChoicePast: Tolkien never really came up with a background for her that he was satisfied with, creating revised versions as late as the last months of his life. ''Literature/UnfinishedTales'' furnishes a variety of them, with the main distinctions being in how complicit Galadriel was in Fëanor's rebellion and how and when she met her husband. Christopher Tolkien suggests that a very possible reason for his father's uncertainty is that it took a while for him to work out how important Galadriel was supposed to be in Middle-earth's history--notice, for instance, how she plays almost no part in the conflicts of the First Age, since they were likely mostly mapped out before Galadriel was even conceived of.

-->"''O Elbereth! Gilthoniel!''"
-->"''We still remember, we who dwell''"\\
"''In this far land beneath the trees,''"
-->"''Thy starlight on the Western Seas.''"\\

* StockholmSyndrome: In ''The Silmarillion'' he and his brother Elros were taken in by Maglor, one of the Sons of Fëanor, who led the invasion that killed their grandfather and raided their home in pursuit of a Silmaril. Maglor was kind to them and grew to love them, and only he and Maedhros showed remorse for the actions they took in pursuit of their Oath.

* TheWoobie: This guy lost his parents as a child (they aren't dead, but Elrond hasn't seen them in about six thousand years). He was then raised by two of Fëanor's sons, until one of them commits suicide and the other goes missing with an ambiguous final fate. Then his brother chooses to become mortal and die. Then his friend Gil-Galad dies at the end of the Second Age. Then his wife is near-fatally injured and has to leave for Aman before him. THEN his daughter goes the route of his brother and chooses mortality. And if that's not enough, Lord of the Rings leaves it ambiguous what fate Elladan and Elrohir will chose.
[[/folder]]

* ContraltoOfDanger: As described by Tolkien, "Her voice was clear and musical, but deeper than woman's wont."

* [[WorldsStrongestMan WorldsStrongestWoman]]: Lady Galadriel is one of the mightiest and physically strongest elves left in Middle Earth, and the most powerful female in the entire story. Her presence in Lothlorien is the sole thing keeping the forces of evil from taking the place over, to the degree that Sauron himself would have to come through and face her. The narrative implies that if she were to take the Ring, she'd be just as big a threat as a corrupted Gandalf.

* TheAgeless: Elves do not suffer from old age or decrepitude and can live more or less indefinitely. However, while they're more physically robust than Men, sufficient physical harm can still kill them.
* DyingRace: The Elves have been slowly but steadily declining since the First Age, as a result of constant wars against the forces of the darkness, a low birth rate, and their living members steadily trickling away and West and leaving Middle-Earth forever. By the time of the books, they're in the last gasps of their people's presence in Middle-Earth and fully aware of this.

* InhumanlyBeautifulRace: Elves in J. R. R. Tolkien's works are almost invariably described as being good looking. The three best-looking females in Middle-Earth are all Elves or part Elvish.
* OurElvesAreDifferent: By and large the TropeMaker for modern fantasy elves, Middle-Earth's Elves are [[TheAgeless ageless and potentially immortal]], but can be killed; linger in the world as faint shadows upon death, but can reincarnate; and are less a DyingRace and more properly just in cultural decline and leaving the world for the earthly paradise of the Valar.
* VestigialEmpire: In the Elder Days, and even in the Second Age, Elven kingdoms were extensive, powerful and widespread. Almost all have fallen by the books' time, and all that's left of the greatest civilizations in the world are a bare handful of city-states and isolated households left over as their former states slowly crumbled away.

* HiddenDepths: She too lusts after the Ring, but overcomes its temptation.

The Half-Elven, Master of Rivendell, father of Arwen, and bearer of one of the three elven Rings, Vilya the Ring of Air, given to him by Gil-galad before the latter's death at the end of the Second Age. He was a great warrior during the Second Age, and is a great healer and scholar as well as a cunning strategist; however, he also acts as opposition to Aragorn from a much less lofty post: that of OverprotectiveDad.

* OverprotectiveDad: Demanded that Aragorn become king of both Arnor and Gondor before marrying Arwen. At the time the books take place, Gondor hadn't had a king for almost a thousand years, and Arnor hadn't even ''existed'' for more than a thousand years.

** The subject of Galadriel and Arwen's beauty, and whose was greatest, actually nearly brought Gimli and Éomer to blows. In Book II, Éomer speaks ill of Galadriel, remarking "few escape her nets." Gimli declares that if Éomer ever sees Galadriel in person, he must admit her to be the fairest lady that lives; otherwise their friendship will end. In Book III, Éomer finally sees Galadriel, but says he cannot say she is the fairest woman that lives. Gimli calls for his axe, but Eomer swiftly says his excuse is because he has now also seen Arwen, and expresses his own readiness to do battle on her behalf. Shall he call for his sword? Gimli, however, bows, saying, "Nay, you are excused. You have chosen the Evening; but my love is given to the Morning."

** The subject of Galadriel and Arwen's beauty, and whose was greatest, actually nearly brought Gimli and Éomer to blows. In Book II, Éomer speaks ill of Galadriel, remarking "few escape her nets." Gimli declares that if Éomer ever sees Galadriel in person, he must admit her to be the fairest lady that lives; otherwise their friendship will end. In Book III, Éomer finally sees Galadriel, but says he cannot say she is the fairest woman that lives. Gimli calls for his axe, but Eomer swiftly says his excuse is because he has now also seen Arwen, and expresses his own readiness to do battle on her behalf. Shall he call for his sword? Gimli, however, rises and bows, saying, "Nay, you are excused. You have chosen the Evening; but my love is given to the Morning."

** The subject of Galadriel and Arwen's beauty, and whose was greatest, actually nearly brought Gimli and Éomer to blows. In Book II, Éomer speaks ill of Galadriel, remarking "few escape her nets." Gimli declares that if Éomer ever sees Galadriel in person, he must admit her to be the fairest lady that lives; otherwise their friendship will end. In Book III, Éomer finally sees Galadriel, but says he cannot say she is the fairest woman that lives. Gimli calls for his axe, but Eomer swiftly says this is only because he has now also seen Arwen, and expresses his own readiness to do battle on her behalf. Shall he call for his sword? Gimli, however, rises and bows, saying, "Nay, you are excused. You have chosen the Evening; but my love is given to the Morning."

** The subject of Galadriel and Arwen's beauty ,and whose was greatest, actually nearly brought Gimli and Éomer to blows. In Book II, Éomer speaks ill of Galadriel, remarking "few escape her nets." Gimli declares that if Éomer ever sees Galadriel in person, he must admit her to be the fairest lady that lives; otherwise their friendship will end. In Book III, Éomer finally sees Galadriel, but says he cannot say she is the fairest woman that lives. Gimli calls for his axe, but Eomer swiftly says this is only because he has now also seen Arwen, and expresses his own readiness to do battle on her behalf. Shall he call for his sword? Gimli, however, rises and bows, saying, "Nay, you are excused. You have chosen the Evening; but my love is given to the Morning."

* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Galadriel's granddaughter Arwen was often said to be the most beautiful Elf in Middle-earth at the time of the War of the Ring, but Galadriel's great beauty was every bit as much the stuff of legend. Tolkien described her as being 'the mightiest and fairest of all the Elves that remained in Middle-earth'. The subject of Galadriel and Arwen's beauty and whose was greatest actually nearly brought Gimli and Éomer to arms. Éomer, having seen them both, preferred Arwen to which Gimli (also having seen them both) replies, ''"You have chosen the Evening; but my love is given to the Morning."''

* BewareTheNiceOnes: You would ''not'' want her to take the One Ring, not at all.