The Encyclopedia of Arda - an interactive guide to the world of J.R.R. Tolkien
Dates
Dwelt in Gondolin before its Fall in I 510
Race
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Culture
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Pronunciation
ene'rthil ('th' as in English 'these')
Meaning
Uncertain1

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  • Updated 22 April 2017
  • This entry is complete

Enerdhil

A jewel-smith of Gondolin

A legendary, and quite possibly mythical, smith of Gondolin. According to one account, it was Enerdhil who made the original Elessar, an astonishing green gem through which marred and broken things could be seen as though whole and healed again. This Elessar was given as a gift to Idril Celebrindal, and by her to her son Eärendil, who bore it on his voyages across the Great Sea.

However, other, apparently more recent and plausible accounts, name Celebrimbor as the maker of Eärendil's Elessar, as well as the later version borne by Aragorn. Even if this is true, Enerdhil the smith of Gondolin may still have existed, though it is equally possible that he was merely a passing, insubstantial character that Tolkien meant to discard entirely.


Notes

1

Enerdhil's name is not explained, but it appears to contain an old Elvish word for 'seed', and a prefix denoting repetition, so the entire name can be taken as related to 'regrowth'. It's hard to be sure whether this was Tolkien's intention, but given the power of Enerdhil's Elessar to show things as they had once been, this interpretation would seem to make some sense.

Indexes:

About this entry:

  • Updated 22 April 2017
  • This entry is complete

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