Tricks for Studying Silmarillion Names


I have a friend with less background in Middle Earth than I who asked for help studying Silmarillion characters and family trees.(for a Fantasy Lit class) That being half of what I have spent my life doing, I of course agreed.

Just curious if anyone has any tips and tricks or hard things to watch out for that I should keep in mind as we study the many complex and confusing names in the amazingly dense constructed history?


Well-Known Member
Hmm, since it's for a class, I can't really say 'Don't worry about all of Turin's names' or anything like that. My typical advice for first time readers of the Silmarillion is to have the family trees (and maps) handy to refer to as you read.

Learning the meanings of the names *might* help with remembering them, but might be too much information at first. Honestly, having you around to answer the 'who's that?' questions as they come up is probably the best help.