Lord of the Rings has many different races. Among them are the beautiful, ancient, and almost god-like Elves. They have long lifespans, magic, and are skilled fighters as well as healers.
They are one of the oldest, most powerful and most beautiful creatures from Middle-Earth (or any of the other worlds) in the Lord of the Rings series. Like the other races, there are many fascinating facts about the Elves that aren’t even scratched at in the movies. If you delve into the history behind Middle-Earth and the races that reside there, you’ll find such culture — it could almost rival any race or heritage here in the real world.
Listed are 10 facts about the Elves that are left out of the movies!
10. The Elves Do Not Age
Elves don’t age physically and they do not die from disease. The only real ways to kill them are strong negative energy and violence, although there are probably magical ways to kill them, as well. They have healing powers shown in the movies but if you notice, none of the Elves ever got sick or seemed to die from old age.
They could “die” of old age, but as explained, they would kind of fade out so that they would become ghosts. If they became ghosts, they wouldn’t be able to live again unless they took over a living body through force. Their concept of an afterlife was also different. It seemed their soul would go on to a different place from humans, but they also had to follow a strict path after they passed or it would be bad.
9. Ingwë, Finwë, and Elwë Were The Oldest Of The Elves
They weren’t listed outside of one text, The War of the Jewels, but they were the original elves in Tolkien’s writing. In the movie, well, they are not mentioned in the movies at all. They are considered the Kings of Elves and created and awakened by Eru Ilúvatar (the god).
8. Tolkien Had Been Writing About Elves Long Before He Ever Created ‘The Hobbit’ Or ‘The Lord of the Rings’
Before he started his Hobbit or Lord of the Rings series, J.R.R. Tolkien was writing about elves. In some of his earliest works, Tolkien used mythological elves but put his own spin on them. That’s one reason the Elves have some of the richest histories in the series
7. The Elves Are Partly Based On Actual Mythology
Elves are part of Celtic and Scandinavian mythology.
J.R.R. Tolkien made it clear that his Elves were different from the “better known” elves of myth, but he did use myth as an influence. Some of his earliest work was poetry about elves.
6. Elves Are Nature Spirits
Elves were led to be aesthetically pleasing; led by being creative, artistic, and based on nature. They weren’t prone to greed, lust, or other things like humans were, and they were far from power hungry. They were nature spirits by heart and spirit.
5. The Elves Accepted Gandalf As One Of Their Own
The Elves considered Gandalf to be one of them and referred to him as “The elf of the wand.” He was the wizard in tune with nature as well as crafts, so they favored him over the other people of Middle-Earth.
4. Legolas Is Actually The Prince Of The Wood Elves
It’s hinted but not actually said in the movies that Legolas’ father is actually the King of the Wood Elves.
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3. Elrond Is More Than Half Elf, Half Human
He is related to all three Elf tribes but is both human and kind of a lesser god. His father was half-Elven and his mother was Elven.
His grandfather was full mortal, but was a strong warrior chosen by the Vala Ulmo to be the last chance for Noldor’s survival against Morgoth.
2. Arwen Has A Much Bigger Role In The Movie Than The Books
Peter Jackson took Arwen to use as a love interest and made her more powerful than she is in the books. She only had a very supporting role in the books, but the original Elf who came to the rescue in The Fellowship of the Ring was a male. Jackson wanted more female representation so he used Arwen and took Glorfindel out of his role.
She was in the books as Aragon’s love interest and she actually died after he died (she died from a broken heart a year after he died). When she and Aragon fell in love, she gave up her immortality and tied herself to him.
1. Glorfindel Was Originally The Elf Who Met Frodo In ‘The Fellowship Of The Ring’ And Healed Him
Since Arwen was a love interest of Aragon, plus Jackson wanted more females in the main cast, Arwen was given that position. Glorfindel was a powerful Elf, strong warrior, and one of the first generation Elves. He does make a few small appearances during the movies, but no where near the role he had in the books.
There are two facts that are commonly misrepresented by fans that didn’t make the list but do deserve mentioning. Despite the artwork for the Elves, his Elves actually didn’t have pointed ears.
Also, they were not all love and light (or even neutral). Most were good by nature, but there were some very evil Elves. J.R.R. Tolkien even mentioned that they could fall twice (similar to a fallen angel). The falling would be a lapse in their moral code as a race, and some of his creations were very capable of some very evil acts.
The Elven people are one of the most ancient races in Tolkein’s world. They have more history behind them than Peter Jackson’s movies show.
