Lúthien
| Biography: Lúthien | |
|---|---|
| Birth - Death | First Age YT 1200 - FA 503 |
| Race: | Sindar (half-Maia) |
| Gender: | Female |
| Parent(s): | Thingol |
| Lúthien | |
| Child(ren): | Dior |
| Descendant(s): | Elwing, Elrond, Elros, Arwen, Elladan, Elrohir, Aragorn |
| Info: | Princess of Doriath, the most beautiful elf that ever lived, star-crossed lover of Beren |
Lúthien Tinuviel was the only child of King Thingol and his Maia bride, and is known for her love to Beren, for which they captured a Silmaril from the crown of Morgoth. Lúthien's parents were the first ever pairing of Elf and Maia and Beren and Lúthien were the first pairing of Elf and Man. Therefore their son, Dior, has elvish, mannish, and Maiar blood. Lúthien was accounted the fairest maiden of all the Children of Ilúvatar, and her beauty was said to be reflected later in her descendant Arwen.
History
Lúthien was born in the forest of Neldoreth during the Years of the Trees, when the first flowers of niphredil bloomed. She grew up in Doriath, often singing and dancing in the woods with her companion Daeron.
She was discovered there by Beren, a mortal Man, and the two fell in love. Her father Thingol initially opposed their union and demanded of Beren an impossible bride-price: to recover a Silmaril from the crown of Morgoth. Against all hope, Beren and Lúthien together accomplished this task. Using her enchantments, Lúthien subdued Morgoth himself in his throne room, allowing Beren to cut a Silmaril from his crown.
However, on their return, Beren was mortally wounded by a great wolf, and both he and Lúthien died of grief. Their spirits came before Mandos, and Lúthien sang so movingly that for the first and only time Mandos relented. She and Beren were restored to life, but Lúthien was given mortality and shared the fate of Men. They lived thereafter on an island in Ossiriand, ruling the surrounding land.
Lúthien and Beren passed away in the First Age, their deaths marked by the passing of the Silmaril to their son Dior. Through Dior and his daughter Elwing, Lúthien became an ancestor of both Elrond and Aragorn, making her fate central to the history of both Elves and Men.
Etymology
The Sindarin name Lúthien means "Daughter of Flowers", from *lúth* ("blossom") and the feminine suffix *-ien*. Her epithet Tinúviel means "Nightingale" or "Daughter of Twilight".
In-game mentions
In LOTRO Lúthien is featured as a statue which can be used as a decoration for a garden. It can be bought from Rombrennil in Imlad Gelair, Rivendell.
References
- The Silmarillion
- The Lay of Leithian
- The Grey Annals
- Lúthien