What this is
In brief
Origins
Aulë the Smith made the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves in secret, impatient for the coming of the Children of Ilúvatar. Ilúvatar accepted them but ordained they should sleep until after the Elves awoke. Durin was the eldest of the Fathers and the founder of the line that ruled Khazad-dûm.
Culture
A culture of stone, metal and oath. Dwarves are miners, masons and smiths without peer, covetous of beautiful things, loyal in friendship and unforgiving in feud. They remember every wrong done to them, and their songs are full of labour, gold and grief.
Language
Khuzdul, kept largely secret, alongside the Common Speech and the cirth runes.
History
From the mansions of Khazad-dûm and the halls of the Ered Luin, the Dwarves spread through the Misty Mountains and the Lonely Mountain. They warred with dragons and Orcs, lost Khazad-dûm to the Balrog, and were driven from Erebor by Smaug. The quest of Thorin Oakenshield reclaimed the mountain, and in the War of the Ring dwarves fought beside Elves and Men at the Battle of Dale.
Leaders
Settlements
- khazad-dum
- erebor
- iron-hills
- ered-luin
- grey-mountains
Alliances
- men
- elves
- the-fellowship-of-the-ring
- bardings
Conflicts
- battle-of-azanulbizar
- war-of-the-dwarves-and-orcs
- battle-of-five-armies
- battle-of-dale
Notable members
CharacterGimli
The Dwarf of the Fellowship, whose friendship with Legolas becomes a symbol of reconciliation between their peoples.
CharacterBalin
A wise and kindly Dwarf of Thorin’s company who later led a doomed attempt to recolonise Moria.
CharacterDurin
The eldest of the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves and founder of the line of Durin’s Folk.
Sources
The Silmarillion · 1977
Posthumously edited. Contains the Ainulindalë, Valaquenta, Quenta Silmarillion, Akallabêth and Of the Rings of Power.
The Hobbit · 1937
Published in Tolkien’s lifetime. The primary narrative of Bilbo’s journey.
The Lord of the Rings · 1954–55
Three volumes: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King.
Related entries
PeopleDurin’s Folk
The eldest house of the Dwarves, descended from Durin the Deathless and long seated at Khazad-dûm and later at the Lonely Mountain.
LocationErebor
The great Dwarven kingdom under the Lonely Mountain, taken by Smaug and reclaimed in the quest of Thorin.
PeopleMen
The Secondborn Children of Ilúvatar, mortal and brief-lived, whose kingdoms and choices dominate the later ages of Middle-earth.
PeopleElves
The Firstborn Children of Ilúvatar, deathless and beautiful, whose long history spans the awakening at Cuiviénen, the wars of Beleriand and the slow fading of the Third Age.