The Chroniclers of Middle-Earth

The history of Middle-earth spans over many thousands of years of intriguing history. Through it we get to hear the fascinating tales of Beren and Luthien, Earendil the Mariner, and Bilbo and Frodo Baggins.

But who gave us these stories? Who are the great authors of the lays and annals that Professor Tolkien translated into English, recounting this time utterly lost? Throughout the First, Second and Third age, Elves, Men, and Hobbits have kept records of their history, in form of annals, lays, sagas and biographies.

Unlike in many other cultures, the names of many of these “chroniclers” have survived through the centuries. The main reason for this is perhaps that the many authors put out their names on the documents, and even gave credit to their sources. Over the next couple of weeks, I am going to pull together various discussions on what we know about the greatest chroniclers and their works.