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A question about Elves!
http://arwen-undomiel.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=942		 Page 1 of 5
Author:  Tirelen [ June 20th, 2005, 10:39 am ]
Post subject:  A question about Elves!
I heard it takes an Elf 500 years to go from a baby to fully grown and matured... is that true? It's really bugging me!
Author:  Beriadanwen [ June 20th, 2005, 1:07 pm ]
Post subject: 
Where did you hear that? I haven't been able to find any information about that but I've always wondered. And how long is an elf pregnant for? And do they look the same age their entire lives or do they age but they just never die. I've always been very confused about these things. Does anyone know?
Author:  SpanishEvenstar [ June 20th, 2005, 1:21 pm ]
Post subject: 
MrsDominicMonaghan wrote:
Where did you hear that? I haven't been able to find any information about that but I've always wondered. And how long is an elf pregnant for? And do they look the same age their entire lives or do they age but they just never die. I've always been very confused about these things. Does anyone know?


I'm not an expert in these things, but from what I understand, Elves would probably be pregnant for the same time as a normal human would, mainly because they are human-like in appearance and the size is no different. The gestation period (the time a female is pregnant for) differs due to the size of the creature. Thus, a mouse would be pregnant for less than a month (or something like that) while a whale would be pregnant for over a year. So I'm assuming that since Elves are humanoid in size and shape, they'd be pregnant for about the same amount of time.

As for the age issue, Tolkien mentioned somewhere that the older an Elf gets the more beautiful he or she becomes. That's one of the reasons why Galadriel is so beautiful; she's one of the oldest creatures in Middle-earth. They also get wiser as they grow older, and this often is reflected in looks as well. Basically, their facial structure of elves as they age doesn't change much, but as they age they either a. grow more beautiful or b. look wiser. Is that making any sense?

And I didn't know about the 500 years to reach maturity level. That's an interesting concept...it makes sense though...it's probably along the same lines as a hobbit reaching maturity at the age of thirty-three. :)
Author:  Beriadanwen [ June 20th, 2005, 2:33 pm ]
Post subject: 
Thank you SpanishEvenstar. You're very wise indeed :) Elves getting more beautiful as the age is very interesting. I never thought of that before. Makes sense though now that I think about it.
Author:  SpanishEvenstar [ June 20th, 2005, 3:13 pm ]
Post subject: 
Oh, well, thank you! :blush:
Author:  Arwen the webmaster [ June 20th, 2005, 7:14 pm ]
Post subject: 
I'm not sure...I don't know if Tolkien ever quite explained it. Somewhere in the RotK appendices though, I think he said that about 140 human years were equivalent to one elf year, but I could have misread that.
Author:  Larael [ June 20th, 2005, 8:11 pm ]
Post subject: 
Wow, I've never thought about any of that..........I might see if I can find something.
Author:  Elberethsq [ June 20th, 2005, 9:35 pm ]
Post subject: 
I haven't ever heard of that before. Thanks SpanishEvenstar - you either know a lot, or you have really good sources. :bye2:
Author:  eowynfaramir4eva [ June 22nd, 2005, 11:56 pm ]
Post subject: 
Arwen the webmaster wrote:
I'm not sure...I don't know if Tolkien ever quite explained it. Somewhere in the RotK appendices though, I think he said that about 140 human years were equivalent to one elf year, but I could have misread that.



You might be right, but I can't remember either. Sometimes people can get really into a character and start asking themselves a lot a questions. Some can even make belief stuff, but the 500 year span seems a little too long. Maybe someone was making it up. I believe that it might take long, but maybe not 500.
Author:  Arien Elensar [ June 23rd, 2005, 12:57 pm ]
Post subject: 
Quote:
I heard it takes an Elf 500 years to go from a baby to fully grown and matured... is that true? It's really bugging me!


Actually I don't think that is ture because then it would disagree with something Tolkine himself said. He said that elves usually marry in between 50-100 so how coulde they marry when they are not mature? If elves are married after 100 they are considered a special case so Galadriel, Elrond and Arwen are all special cases. Even if one elf year is 140 human years it doesn't exactly apply to the body it is just a time scale. Tolkien himself said that they are very much like us in body but in mind they are different and their senses are keener.
Author:  Larael [ June 23rd, 2005, 9:12 pm ]
Post subject: 
Thanks Arien for the info!!!!!!!!!!!
Author:  eowyn [ June 24th, 2005, 12:21 am ]
Post subject: 
Thanks Arien!

I didn't know they married that young!
Author:  Elberethsq [ June 24th, 2005, 5:21 pm ]
Post subject: 
Arien Elensar wrote:
Quote:
I heard it takes an Elf 500 years to go from a baby to fully grown and matured... is that true? It's really bugging me!


Actually I don't think that is ture because then it would disagree with something Tolkine himself said. He said that elves usually marry in between 50-100 so how coulde they marry when they are not mature? If elves are married after 100 they are considered a special case so Galadriel, Elrond and Arwen are all special cases. Even if one elf year is 140 human years it doesn't exactly apply to the body it is just a time scale. Tolkien himself said that they are very much like us in body but in mind they are different and their senses are keener.


Wow, thanks. That's logical, I suppose, but a bit complex. Another difference between those elves and us are their ears. :bye2:
Author:  Beriadanwen [ June 26th, 2005, 1:08 am ]
Post subject: 
Oooooo thanx everyone! I didn't know any of that. When it comes to elves I don't know much :P So thanx for the clarifications :)
Author:  Arien Elensar [ June 27th, 2005, 1:50 pm ]
Post subject: 
No problem you guys! I'm an elf fan so you can see why. lol
Author:  eowyn [ June 27th, 2005, 7:40 pm ]
Post subject: 
couldn't tell . . . ;)
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