The following is alist of notable characters fromJ. R. R. Tolkien'sMiddle-earthlegendarium. The list is for characters from Tolkien's writings only.

• Aragorn: Son of Arathorn, descendant ofIsildur. A principal figure inThe Fellowship of the Ring andThe Two Towers, and the title character inThe Return of the King, he becomes king over the reunited kingdoms ofGondor and Arnor.
• Arwen: Daughter ofElrondHalf-elven and Celebrían. Marries Aragorn at the end of theWar of the Ring and becomes queen of the reunited kingdoms ofGondor and Arnor.

• Balin: Dwarf companion ofThorin Oakenshield inThe Hobbit. Slain during an attempt to retakeMoria.
• Bard the Bowman: Man ofEsgaroth who slewSmaug the dragon.
• Beorn:Skin-changer who resides in the region ofMirkwood and takes the form of a great bear.
• Bilbo Baggins: Title character ofThe Hobbit. Discovered theOne Ring after its loss byGollum. Cousin of youngerFrodo Baggins, who calls Bilbo "Uncle".
• Boromir: Member of the Fellowship of the Ring, son and heir toDenethor II of Gondor. Slain byUruk-hai at Amon Hen.

• Celeborn:Elf Lord ofLothlórien and the husband ofGaladriel, Lady of the Golden Wood. He fought during the War of the Ring defending Lothlórien. Celeborn went to the Grey Havens and sailed for the Undying Lands at the Fourth Age.
• Celebrimbor:Noldorin smith and grandson ofFëanor, who led the creation of all but one of the 20Rings of Power. Tortured to death bySauron.

• Denethor: Steward of Gondor (formally Denethor II) during the events ofThe Lord of the Rings. Committed suicide during the Siege of Gondor.

• Eärendil and Elwing:Half-elven couple, heroes of theWar of Wrath as well as the progenitors of the royalNúmenorean andDúnedain bloodlines through their sons Elrond and Elros.
• Elendil:Númenorean nobleman whose sons founded the kingdoms of Arnor andGondor in Middle-earth. Slain during the final battle between Sauron and the Last Alliance of Elves and Men.
• Elrond: Ruler of the elven refuge ofRivendell. Son of the Half-elvesEärendil and Elwing, husband of Celebrían, father ofArwen, Elladan and Elrohir.
• Éomer: Brother of Éowyn, nephew and heir of Théoden, King ofRohan. Son-in-law of Prince Imrahil ofDol Amroth.
• Éowyn: Sister of Éomer and member of the royal house ofRohan. Slayer of theWitch King of Angmar. MarriedFaramir after the War of the Ring.

• Faramir: Son ofDenethor II of Gondor, brother ofBoromir, and husband ofÉowyn following the War of the Ring.
• Fëanor: Son ofFinwë and Míriel. The greatest Noldorin smith to have ever lived, he forged the three jewels known asSilmarils. Slain byBalrogs.
• Fíli: Son of Dís; nephew of Thorin. Older brother to Kíli. Slain defending Thorin in the Battle of Five Armies.
• Fingolfin: Son of Finwë and Indis. First High King of the Noldor who left Valinor for Middle-earth. Slain by Morgoth.
• Fingon: Son of Fingolfin. Rescues Maedhros, pleasing Fëanor, who lets Fingolfin become King in his stead.
• Finrod Felagund: Grandson ofFinwë and Elvenking ofNargothrond. He died from wounds sustained by saving his friendBeren from a werewolf.
• Finwë and Míriel: Parents of Fëanor and leaders of theNoldorin migrants to theUndying Lands. Míriel dies at childbirth, while Finwë is slain by Morgoth.
• Frodo Baggins: Cousin (informally, 'nephew') ofBilbo Baggins who bore theOne Ring to its destruction inMount Doom.

• Galadriel: Co-ruler ofLothlórien alongside her husband Celeborn. Relative of numerous notable characters in Tolkien's legendarium through bloodline and kinship.
• Gandalf: Awizard. A member of the Fellowship of the Ring. Killed in battle inMoria, but returns to play a leading role in the defeat ofSauron.
• Gil-galad: Last High King of the Noldor, who ruled during the Second Age. Formed the Last Alliance of Elves and Men with Elendil, and fell in combat against Sauron's forces.
• Glorfindel:Noldorin elf-lord notable for his death and resurrection within Tolkien's legendarium.
• Gimli: Dwarven member of the Fellowship of the Ring and a major character inThe Lord of the Rings.
• Goldberry: Mysterious entity known as the River-woman's daughter, wife ofTom Bombadil.
• Gollum: Possessor of the One Ring until taken byBilbo Baggins. Falls into the Crack of Doom after retaking the ring fromFrodo Baggins.
• Gríma Wormtongue: An ally ofSaruman who gave false advice toThéoden, King ofRohan. Slain by hobbit militia during theScouring of the Shire.

• Húrin: Human warrior of the First Age, and the father ofTúrin Turambar.
• Halbarad: A Dúnadan Ranger of the North, and one of Aragorn's comrades during the weeks leading up to Sauron's final demise.

• Isildur: Son of Elendil, and co-founder of the kingdom ofGondor. He cut the One Ring fromSauron's hand at the end of the Second Age, but was later slain by Orks at the Disaster of the Gladden Fields. He was shot by two poisoned arrows (one through his throat and one through his heart).

• Kíli: Son of Dís. Thorin Oakenshield’s nephew, son of his sister. Died during the Battle of the Five Armies.

• Legolas: Elven member of the Fellowship of the Ring and a major character inThe Lord of the Rings.
• Lúthien and Beren: The ancestors of theHalf-elven bloodline.

• Maedhros:Noldorin elf lord and eldest of the Sons ofFëanor. Committed suicide after recovering one of the lost Silmarils.
• Melian:Maia who took the physical form of an Elf. Queen of Doriath in the First Age. Wife of EluThingol and mother ofLúthien.
• Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck: A hobbit member of the Fellowship of the Ring and companion ofFrodo Baggins. He slay theWitch-King of Angmar.
• Morgoth: The firstDark Lord in Tolkien's legendarium, originally known as Melkor. Succeeded bySauron after his defeat and banishment by theValar following the War of Wrath.

• Peregrin "Pippin" Took: Ahobbit member of the Fellowship of the Ring and companion ofFrodo Baggins. Served as a Guard of the Citadel ofMinas Tirith during the War of the Ring.

• Radagast: one of the Five Istari or Wizards who has an affinity with nature.

• "Master"Samwise Gamgee: Loyal companion ofFrodo Baggins during his journey toMordor to destroy theOne Ring.
• Saruman: Awizard. Once the leader of the Istari, he attempted to form his own empire as a rival ofSauron and was defeated at theBattle of the Hornburg. Murdered byGríma Wormtongue during theScouring of the Shire.
• Sauron: The primary antagonist ofThe Lord of the Rings. He crafted theOne Ring, and was destroyed upon its destruction at the end ofThe Return of the King.
• Shelob: Monstrous spider and last notable spawn ofUngoliant.
• Smaug: A dragon and primary antagonist ofThe Hobbit. Slain byBard the Bowman.
• Sméagol: was a stoor (one of the early hobbit types) that later on became Gollum.

• Théoden: King ofRohan, uncle of Éomer and Éowyn. Fell in battle during theBattle of the Pelennor Fields.
• Thingol: Elvenking of the Sindarin realm ofDoriath in the First Age. Husband ofMelian and father ofLúthien. Slain by dwarves over a dispute concerning one of theSilmarils.
• Thranduil: Elvenking of the Silvan realm ofMirkwood, father ofLegolas.
• Thorin Oakenshield: Dwarf noble who led the company of dwarves that retookErebor from the dragonSmaug inThe Hobbit. Slain during the Battle of the Five Armies.
• Tom Bombadil: A mysterious figure who aided the hobbits during their departure fromthe Shire inThe Fellowship of the Ring.
• Treebeard: Leader of theEnts inThe Lord of the Rings.
• Tuor and Idril: Heroes of the First Age and parents ofEärendil as the second married union of Men and Elves. Left Middle-earth for Valinor, where Tuor is said to be counted amongst the Elven kindreds.
• Túrin Turambar: A First Age hero who is embroiled in a tragic fate along with the rest of his family and ultimately committed suicide.

• Ungoliant: Monstrous spider spirit. Progenitor of the Great Spiders and ofShelob.

• Watcher in the Water: A mysterious aquatic creature that lives in a pool guarding the gates ofMoria.
• Witch-King of Angmar: Lord of the Nazgûl or Ringwraiths. He got enslaved by Sauron, because of the Ring of Power Sauron gave to him.

• List ofThe Hobbit characters – complete list of characters inThe Hobbit
• List of original characters inThe Lord of the Rings film series – original characters inPeter Jackson'sThe Lord of the Ringsfilm trilogy
• List of original characters inThe Hobbit film series – original characters in Peter Jackson'sThe Hobbitfilm trilogy
• Middle-earth peoples – descriptions of races and groups in the legendarium
• Women inThe Lord of the Rings – analysis of female characters inThe Lord of the Rings

• Lists of Middle-earth characters
• Lists of literary characters
• Middle-earth characters
• Middle-earth lists

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata