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Fingolfin

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Fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium

Fictional character

Fingolfin
Tolkien character
Fëanor threatens Fingolfin illustration byTom Loback
In-universe information
Aliases	Nolofinwë, Aracáno
Race	Elves
Book(s)	The Silmarillion

Fingolfin (Sindarin:[fiŋˈɡolfin]) is a character inJ. R. R. Tolkien'slegendarium, appearing inThe Silmarillion. He was the son ofFinwë, High King of theNoldor. He was threatened by his half-brotherFëanor, who held him in contempt for not being a pure-bred Noldor. Even so, when Fëanor stole ships and leftAman, Fingolfin chose to follow him back toMiddle-earth, taking the dangerous route over the ice of theHelcaraxë. On arrival, he challenged the Dark LordMorgoth at the gates of his fortress,Angband, but Morgoth stayed inside. When his son Fingon rescuedMaedhros, son of Fëanor, Maedhros gratefully renounced his claim to kingship, and Fingolfin became High King of the Noldor. He was victorious at the battle ofDagor Aglareb, and there was peace for some 400 years until Morgoth broke out and destroyed Beleriand in theDagor Bragollach. Fingolfin, receiving false news, rode alone to Angband and challenged Morgoth to single combat. He wounded Morgoth several times, but grew weary and was killed by the immortalVala.

Fingolfin has inspired artists, musicians and video game designers to create depictions of his deeds.

Internal history

Birth

Fingolfin was the second son ofFinwë, High King of theNoldor,a division of the Elves lower than the Vanyar but higher than the Teleri. He was full brother ofFinarfin, and half-brother ofFëanor, who was the eldest of Finwë's sons. He founded the House of Fingolfin which ruled the Noldor in Middle-earth. His wife was Anairë and his children were Fingon, Turgon, Aredhel and Argon.^{[T 1]}^{[T 2]} Fingolfin was said to be the strongest, most steadfast, and most valiant of Finwë's sons. His father-name inQuenya—one ofTolkien's fictional languages—was Nolofinwë, or "wise Finwë," while his mother-name wasAracáno, or "High Chieftain", the same name as his youngest son Argon.^{[T 3]}

Strife with Fëanor

The mother of Fingolfin and Finarfin was Finwë's second wife, Indis, who he married after Míriel died. While they lived inAman, there was always strife between the sons of Indis and Míriel's son Fëanor, mostly due toMelkor's treachery. However, Fingolfin would seek to forge a better relationship with Fëanor at every chance. Even after Fëanor threatened him with a sword and was banished from Tirion, Fingolfin forgave him and tried to mend their relationship.^{[T 4]} This occurred very soon before destruction of theTwo Trees and the Darkening ofValinor. After this event and Fëanor's decision to leave Aman, Fingolfin chose to follow him into exile, so as not to abandon his people.^{[T 5]}

Crossing the ice of the Helcaraxë

Arda in theFirst Age. The Elves migrated westwards acrossMiddle-earth and Belegaer, the great sea, toValinor in Aman,dividing up as they went. Fingolfin fatefully chose to cross the dangerous ice of theHelcaraxë (top) between Aman and Beleriand to followFëanor back to Middle-earth.

Fingolfin led the largest host of the Noldor when they fled Aman forMiddle-earth, even though he thought this unwise; he did not want to abandon his people to Fëanor. His followers participated in the Kinslaying at the Havens, but only because they arrived after the battle was underway not knowing that Fëanor was the aggressor. He led them across the ice of theHelcaraxë, an epic and arduous journey lasting many months, on which many of the people perished.^{[T 5]}

Challenging Morgoth at the gates of Angband

They arrived in Middle-earth at the first rising of the Moon, and sounded their trumpets. Soon after, at the first rising of the Sun, he came to the gates ofAngband and smote upon them, but Melkor—now known as Morgoth—stayed hidden inside. Fingolfin and the Noldor then came to the northern shores of Lake Mithrim, from which the Fëanorian part of the host had withdrawn.^{[T 6]}

High King of the Noldor

Fingolfin's son Fingon rescuedMaedhros, son ofFëanor, who in gratitude waived his claim to kingship: thus, Fingolfin became High King of the Noldor. He then ruled fromHithlum, by the northern shores of Lake Mithrim.^{[T 6]}

After defeating theOrcs in theDagor Aglareb, Fingolfin maintained theSiege of Angband for nearly 400 years. The Siege was ended by Morgoth's sudden assaults in theDagor Bragollach, the Battle of Sudden Flame, and many peoples ofBeleriand fled.^{[T 7]}

Death: single combat with Morgoth

When Fingolfin learned of this, and received false report that his allies had been routed on all fronts, he became filled with wrath and despair. He immediately took his horse Rochallor and swordRingil, and rode alone to Angband. All enemies fled from him, fearing his anger, and mistaking him in his fury forOromë, theVala patron of hunters.^{[T 7]}

Fingolfin smote the gates of Angband and challenged Morgoth to single combat. Though Morgoth feared Fingolfin (of all theValar, Morgoth was the only one to know fear), he had to accept the challenge—or face shame in the eyes of his servants. Seven times Fingolfin wounded Morgoth and seven times Morgoth cried in pain, and seven times the host of Morgoth wailed in anguish, but he could not be slain for he was one of the Valar.^{[T 7]}

Whenever Morgoth attacked, Fingolfin avoided Morgoth's weaponGrond, the hammer of the underworld, as it cracked the ground so violently smoke and fire darted from the craters. Eventually, however, Fingolfin grew weary and stumbled on a crater. Then Morgoth pinned Fingolfin with his foot, and killed him, but not before he, with his last act of defiance, hewed at Morgoth's foot. Morgoth thenceforward always walked with a limp. Enraged, Morgoth sought to desecrate the body of the valiant king, butThorondor, Lord of Eagles flew down, raked Morgoth's eyes, and carried Fingolfin's body away to be placed on a cliff overlookingGondolin. Later, Fingolfin's son Turgon built a cairn over his father's remains.^{[T 7]}

Artefacts

Heraldic device

Further information:Heraldry of Middle-earth

Tolkien's design of heraldic device for Fingolfin. It has some similarity both with his fatherFinwë's and his brother Finarfin's devices, but in Elvish heraldry, the device is unique to the person. The eight points that reach the border indicate a High King.

Fingolfin is among those major characters such asGil-galad whom Tolkien, who illustrated his own writings, supplied with a distinctheraldic device. Like his brother Finarfin's device, it has eight points that reach the edge of its lozenge, denoting a High King, and a central circle; it differs from Finarfin's in having a second concentric circle. Its colours are like those for his father Finwë's device, but as the Tolkien scholarsWayne G. Hammond andChristina Scull note, its eight curling points are more like those of Fëanor's. They write that the device's motif of small silver stars on a blue field is presumably related to his shield, which Tolkien described as "with field of heaven's blue and star / of crystal shining pale afar".^[1]Catherine McIlwaine, who curated theBodleian Library exhibition of his artwork, wrote that Tolkien liked tocreate decorative patterns, leading up to pattern-based designs such as a carpet fromNúmenor. In her view, his creation of heraldic devices for characters inThe Silmarillion was a more deliberate form of the same impulse. Among "the loveliest of these kaleidoscopic patterns", wrote McIlwaine, were the devices for Fingolfin and his brother Finarfin.^[2]

Family tree

The family tree shows that Fingolfin is half Noldor, from his father Finwë, and half Vanyar, from his mother Indis. Among his descendants are Gil-galad,Eärendil, andElrond. His half-brother Fëanor is pure Noldor, by Finwë's other wife Miriel.^{[T 8]}^{[T 9]}^{[T 10]} The Tolkien scholarTom Shippey writes that inThe Silmarillion, as in Norse tradition and sagas, people are defined by their ancestry. The Vanyar are the seniordivision of the Elves; so Fëanor's fourth son Caranthir is quite wrong to treat his father's half-brothers Finarfin and Fingolfin with contempt, something that was both dangerous and ill-founded. Shippey states that Caranthir's scornful words could be said to have set in motion the events which led to the ruin ofDoriath.^[3]

House of Finwë family tree^{[T 8]}^{[T 9]}^{[T 10]}^{[T 11]}

Míriel
"broideress"

Finwë
of the Noldor

Indis
of theVanyar

Fëanor,
maker ofSilmarils

Findis §

Lalwen §

Finarfin

Maedhros

Five sons

Curufin

Fingon

Turgon

Aredhel

Argon §

Angrod

Aegnor

Celebrimbor,
maker ofRings

Maeglin

Orodreth ¶

Finduilas

Elros

Celebrían

Elladan

Elrohir

Eldarion

Colour key:
Colour	Description
	Elves
	Men
	Maiar
	Half-Elven
	Half-Elven who chose the fate of Elves
	Half-Elven who chose the fate of mortal Men

Kings of the Noldor inValinor

High Kings of the Noldor in exile inMiddle-earth

§ These figures do not appear in the published Silmarillion. The family tree as presented follows Tolkien's late noteThe Shibboleth of Fëanor.

¶ In the published Silmarillion, Orodreth is Finarfin's second son (and still Finduilas' father), and Gil-galad is Fingon's son.

Analysis

The Tolkien scholar Megan Fontenot, onTor.com, writes that mental images of Fingolfin are "unforgettable": his ride across Dor-nu-Fauglith to the gates of Morgoth's fortress ofAngband, or the image of him "pounding upon the great gates of the dark fortress, blowing great blasts upon a silver horn, demanding that Morgoth show his face and join him in single combat."^[4] She notes that Fingolfin's origins are hard to trace through the complex history ofTolkien's legendarium. He is absent from the earliest Fëanor stories inThe Book of Lost Tales, and that in Tolkien's many drafts, such as inThe Lays of Beleriand, Fingolfin has several different fathers and siblings; further, his name is temporarily assigned to various other characters. Fontenot traces him to a character named Golfin, a prince of the "Gnomes" (Elves) inThe Shaping of Middle-earth, created before 1926. Not long afterwards, inThe Lay of the Fall of Gondolin andThe Lay of the Children of Húrin, he becomes the son of Finwë/Finn and the father of Turgon. It was not until the 1950s, however, that Tolkien finally made Fingolfin the half-brother of Fëanor.^[4]

Gregory Hartley, inChristianity & Literature, notes that Fingolfin gleams below Morgoth's shadow "as a star", and avoids Morgoth's strikes "as a lightning shoots from under a dark cloud". Hartley interprets theChristian Tolkien to mean by this an increase in power equivalent to what theNew Testament calls being filled with theHoly Spirit. In his view, the imagery and the increase in Fingolfin's strength "suggest that the Secret Fire has taken possession of him; that perhaps he is no longer merely the King of the Noldor but a chosen instrument of the Valar", the gods ofArda.^[5]

The Tolkien scholar B. S. W. Barootes writes that in Tolkien's mythology,oaths are "a powerful form of performative language in Middle-earth". He states that they consistently lead to "trouble, pain, and sorrow", giving as prime example the oath of Fëanor, but also mentioning Finrod's oath of service to Barahir's kin, Beren's oath to Thingol, and the broken oath of the Dead of Dunharrow, who are ultimately redeemed when they choose to serve Aragorn as he returns to claim his kingdom. Fingolfin's oath to follow Fëanor back to Middle-earth means his own exile from the blessed realm of Valinor, and his own death.^[6]

Legacy

Fingolfin's Ride. Illustration byTom Loback, 2007

Fingolfin has inspired musicians andartists to create materials about his actions. The song "Time Stands Still (At the Iron Hill)", on the German power-metal bandBlind Guardian's 1998 albumNightfall in Middle-Earth, tells the story of the fight between Morgoth and Fingolfin.^[7] Austin Gilkeson wrote that "Sometal was Fingolfin’s challenge that Morgoth had no choice but to accept."^[8] The song (in Russian) "Do Not Ask Me To Praise Him" [Ты славить его меня не проси] by Aire and Saruman [Айрэ и Саруман] on their album "A Elberet[h] Gilt[h]oniel" [А Элберет Гилтониэль] is a lament for Fingolfin by his minstrel some time after that last battle: '... do not ask me to praise him, the day won't be brighter for a candle...'.^[9] Fantasy artists have painted illustrations of Fingolfin's actions.Ted Nasmith andJenny Dolfen have portrayed him leading his people across the ice of the Helcaraxë.^[10]^[11] Dolfen has illustrated various other scenes from his life, including Fëanor's threatening of Fingolfin, Fingolfin's ride to Angband, and his final fight with Morgoth.^[12]^[13] Artists includingJohn Howe and Pete Amachree have depicted Fingolfin challenging Morgoth at the gates of Angband.^[14]^[15]

References

Primary

^Argon only appears inThe Peoples of Middle-earth, Chapter 11 "The Shibboleth of Fëanor", and is left out of the publishedThe Silmarillion.
^Tolkien 1977, Chapter 5, "Of Eldamar and the Princes of the Eldalië"
^Tolkien 1996, Chapter 11 "The Shibboleth of Fëanor"
^Tolkien 1977, Chapter 7, "Of the Silmarils and the Unrest of the Noldor"
^^a ^bTolkien 1977, Chapter 9, "Of the Flight of the Noldor"
^^a ^bTolkien 1977, Chapter 13, "Of the Return of the Noldor"
^^a ^b ^c ^dTolkien 1977, Chapter 18, "Of the Ruin of Beleriand and the Fall of Fingolfin"
^^a ^bTolkien 1977, "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age": Family Tree I: "The house of Finwë and the Noldorin descent of Elrond and Elros"
^^a ^bTolkien 1977, "Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age": Family Tree II: "The descendants of Olwë and Elwë"
^^a ^bTolkien 1955, Appendix A: Annals of the Kings and Rulers, I The Númenórean Kings
^Tolkien 1996, "The Shibboleth of Fëanor"

Secondary

^Hammond, Wayne G.;Scull, Christina (1995).J. R. R. Tolkien: Artist and Illustrator.Houghton Mifflin. pp. 190, 192, 195.ISBN 978-0-395-74816-9.
^McIlwaine, Catherine (2018).Tolkien: Maker of Middle-earth.Bodleian Library. pp. 79–81.ISBN 978-1851244850.
^Shippey, Tom (2005) [1982].The Road to Middle-Earth (Third ed.).HarperCollins. pp. 282–283.ISBN 978-0261102750.
^^a ^bFontenot, Megan (19 November 2020)."Exploring the People of Middle-earth: Fingolfin, High King of the Noldor".Tor.com. Retrieved17 February 2022.
^Hartley, Gregory (2012). "A wind from the West: the role of the holy spirit in Tolkien's Middle-earth".Christianity & Literature.62 (1):95–120.doi:10.1177/014833311206200106.JSTOR 44315248.
^Barootes, B. S. W. (2014)."He Chanted a Song of Wizardry": Words with Power in Middle-Earth". In Houghton, John Wm.;Croft, Janet Brennan; Martsch, Nancy (eds.).Tolkien in the New Century: Essays in Honor of Tom Shippey.McFarland & Company. pp. 115–131.ISBN 9780786474387.
^"Nightfall in Middle-Earth / Unplugged Västeras Blind Guardian".Metal-Archives. 28 October 2021. Retrieved17 February 2022.
^Gilkeson, Austin (23 June 2015)."The Most Metal Deaths in Middle-earth, Ranked".The Toast. Retrieved8 June 2022.
^"Айре и Саруман - Ты славить его не проси меня текст" [Aire and Saruman - Don't ask me to praise him].Lyrics World (in Russian). Retrieved18 February 2022.
^Nasmith, Ted."Fingolfin Leads the Host Across the Helcaraxe". Ted Nasmith.Archived from the original on 8 January 2011. Retrieved18 February 2022.
^Dolfen, Jenny."Crossing the Helcaraxë". Jenny Dolfen. Retrieved19 February 2022.
^"Fingolfin".Tolkien Gateway. Retrieved19 February 2022.
^Dolfen, Jenny."Fingolfin's Challenge".Tolkien Gateway. Retrieved19 February 2022.
^Howe, John (1992)."Fingolfin's Challenge". John Howe.Archived from the original on 13 February 2005. Retrieved19 February 2022.
^Amachree, Pete (2020)."Fingolfin challenges Morgoth at the Gates of Angband".Fine Art America. Retrieved18 February 2022.

Sources

Tolkien, J. R. R. (1955).The Return of the King.The Lord of the Rings. Boston:Houghton Mifflin.OCLC 519647821.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1977).Christopher Tolkien (ed.).The Silmarillion. Boston:Houghton Mifflin.ISBN 978-0-395-25730-2.
Tolkien, J. R. R. (1996).Christopher Tolkien (ed.).The Peoples of Middle-earth. Boston:Houghton Mifflin.ISBN 978-0-395-82760-4.

v
t
e

Works

In Tolkien's lifetime	The Hobbit (1937) The Lord of the Rings (1954-55) The Fellowship of the Ring "The Shadow of the Past" "The Council of Elrond" The Two Towers The Return of the King "The Scouring of the Shire" "The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen" The Adventures of Tom Bombadil (1962)
Posthumous	The Silmarillion (1977) "Ainulindalë" Unfinished Tales (1980) The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien (1981) Bilbo's Last Song (1990) The three "Great Tales" The Children of Húrin (2007) Beren and Lúthien (2017) The Fall of Gondolin (2018) The Fall of Númenor (2022)

History of
composition

History of Middle-earth	[1–2]The Book of Lost Tales (1983–84) Ælfwine [3]The Lays of Beleriand (1985) [4]The Shaping of Middle-earth (1986) [5]The Lost Road and Other Writings (1987) The Etymologies Lhammas [6–9]The History of The Lord of the Rings (1988–92) The Notion Club Papers [10]Morgoth's Ring (1993) [11]The War of the Jewels (1994) [12]The Peoples of Middle-earth (1996)
Others	John D. Rateliff The History of The Hobbit (2007) Carl F. Hostetter The Nature of Middle-earth (2021)

Fictional
universe

Peoples, monsters	Ainur Maiar Balrogs Wizards Valar Dragons Ancalagon Smaug Dwarves Eagles Elves Half-elven Noldor Sundering Ents Hobbits Men Beornings Drúedain Dúnedain Orcs Trolls
Characters	First and Second Ages Celebrimbor Eärendil and Elwing Elendil Fëanor Fingolfin Finwë and Míriel Gil-galad Húrin Isildur Lúthien and Beren Melian Morgoth Thingol Tuor and Idril Túrin Turambar Ungoliant Third Age Elrond Galadriel Gandalf Glorfindel Goldberry Gollum Saruman Sauron Tom Bombadil
Places	First and Second Ages Beleriand Númenor Valinor Third Age Bree Esgaroth Gondor Harad Isengard Lonely Mountain Lothlórien Mirkwood Mordor Moria Rivendell Rohan The Shire Bag End
Objects	Mithril Palantír Red Book of Westmarch Rings of Power One Ring Silmarils Two Trees of Valinor List of weapons and armour

Analysis

Elements	Artwork Family trees Heraldry Languages Adûnaic Black Speech Elvish Quenya Sindarin Khuzdul Valarin Westron Maps Tolkien's poetry Scripts Cirth Sarati Tengwar
Themes	Anachronism Ancestry as guide to character Architecture Christianity Cosmology Round World dilemma Death and immortality Decline and fall Dreams and visions Economy England Environmentalism Evil First World War Forests Frame stories Hell Heroism Light Luck and fate Magic Mental illness Modernism Moral dilemma Music Naming of weapons Northern courage Old Straight Road Paganism Plants Psychological journeys Quests Sound and language Time Trees
Literary	Tolkien's impact on fantasy Influences Beowulf Celtic Classical world Finnish language and literature Medieval Modern Norse Philology Shakespeare Prose style Ambiguity A mythology for England
Geographic	The Atlas of Middle-earth Journeys of Frodo A Map of Middle-earth

Adaptations,
legacy

Artists	Pauline Baynes Cor Blok Anke Eißmann Brothers Hildebrandt Jenny Dolfen Mary Fairburn Donato Giancola John Howe Tove Jansson Alexander Korotich Alan Lee Tom Loback Margrethe II of Denmark Ted Nasmith
Composers	Bo Hansson Johan de Meij Symphony No. 1The Lord of the Rings Howard Shore Music ofThe Lord of the Rings film series Music ofThe Hobbit film series Music ofThe Rings of Power TV series Blind Guardian Nightfall in Middle-Earth
Settings	Donald Swann The Road Goes Ever On Poems and Songs of Middle Earth The Tolkien Ensemble An Evening in Rivendell A Night in Rivendell At Dawn in Rivendell Leaving Rivendell
Other media	Impact Middle-earth Enterprises Works inspired by Tolkien Fan fiction Film Calendars Video games Things named after Tolkien and his works

Literary
criticism

v t e Elves
Norse mythology andGermanic folklore	Types of elves Alp Dökkálfar and Ljósálfar Huldufólk Svartálfar Notable elves Elegast Erlking Queen of Elphame Völundr Figures associated with Alberich Freyr Helgi Högni Skuld Locations Álfheimr Niðavellir Svartálfaheimr Phenomena Álfablót Álfröðull Elf-arrow Elf-locks Elfshot Half-elf
Tolkien's Middle-earth	Sundering of the Elves Noldor Celebrimbor Fëanor Finwë and Míriel Glorfindel Half-elves Arwen Eärendil and Elwing Elrond Fingolfin Galadriel Gil-galad Idril Legolas Lúthien Thingol Thranduil
Other modern	Elves in fiction Christmas elf Icelandic Elf School Machine elf
See also	Dwarf Fairy Rå Hulder Witte Wieven Dames blanches Weiße Frauen

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