#uin moodboard

The Animal Ainur

There are multiple mighty beasts that show up in Tolkien’s writings, and their exact role in the hierarchy of Arda changed over time. They are usually much larger than normal members of their species, and some of them are able to speak. At one stage in Tolkien’s works, these characters were seen as Maiar who had taken an animal instead of humanoid or elvish appearance. An example of this is a quote regarding the eagles from an early version of The Silmarilion that states:  “Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world.”

Similarly, a quote relating to the hound Huan says:

“As the Valar would robe themselves like the Children, many of the Maiar robed themselves like other lesser living things, as trees, flowers, beasts.”

The problem with the concept was that Thorondor of the eagles and the steed Nahar had descendants, and Tolkien had already decided that the Ainur (with the exception of Melian) wouldn’t have children. So it was decided that while these special creatures were empowered by the Valar with special gifts, they were still creatures, and didn’t have souls/spirits like the Ainur and the Children of Illuvatar. 

Characters in this post are:

Huan, the Hound of the Valar

Thorondor (also called Sorontar), the King of the Eagles

Nahar, the Steed of Oromë

Uin, the Oldest of Whales

Maiar of Ulmo, The Lord of Waters

Ulmo is the Vala responsible for water and was a close friend of Manwë. He was one of the Aratar, the eight most powerful Valar, and it was said that Melkor feared him almost as much as he feared Varda because the sea could not be tamed. Ulmo had dominion over all water on Arda, including the waters that flowed beneath the earth. His palace called Ulmonan was located in the bottom of the ocean, and he maintained contact with Middle-earth through rivers and streams.

Uin

The Mightiest of Whales, Gulma’s (Ulmo’s) Whale, The Primeval Whale

In the early stages of Tolkien’s writings, there existed a mighty whale named Uin who helped carry Ulmo’s chariot (along with narwhals and sea lions) as well as towing the island of Tol Eressëa. At one point the word “uin” meant wave, and later it also became the word for whale, while the name uimoth (sheep of the waves) was another term for whales. At this stage Uin was tasked to pull Tol Eressëa, with the help of other sea creatures, to it’s present spot. Ossë and Uinen both disagreed with this decision (this was at a stage where they were both Valar in their own right and often clashed with Ulmo) and tried to prevent it. The piece of the island that broke off and stayed behind was the Isle of Balar. 

As Tolkien’s writings evolved, Uin disappeared and it was Ulmo himself who dragged the island. At one point, Tolkien had envisioned characters such as Uin, the Eagles, and Huan the Hound of Valinor as Ainur/Maiar that had taken an animal instead of humanoid form. This idea was later dropped.