Named Maiar[edit]
Only a few of the Maiar are named. These include the Chiefs of the Maiar, Eönwë the Herald of
Manwë, King of the Valar, and Ilmarë the Handmaiden of
Varda, Lady of the Stars;
[T 4] Ossë and Uinen, spirits who ruled the seas and act under the Lord of Waters
Ulmo;
[T 4] Arien, guide of the sun and a spirit of fire uncorrupted by Melkor; Olórin, the wisest Maia, and Tilion, guide of the moon and the servant of the Huntsman of the Valar,
Oromë.
[T 5]
Melkor (known in
Sindarin as Morgoth), the evil Vala, corrupted many Maiar into his service. Among Morgoth's most dangerous servants, they are called
Úmaiar in Quenya: these include Sauron, and Gothmog, Lord of the
Balrogs, large demonic beings of flame and shadow armed with fiery whips,
[T 6] and are said to be perhaps more powerful than
dragons.
[T 7] Morgoth is eventually overthrown when his fortresses are destroyed in the
War of Wrath by the hosts of the West led by Eönwë.
[T 8] Most of the Balrogs did not survive Morgoth's defeat, which marked the end of the First Age, although at least one hid deep beneath the
Misty Mountains until well into the Third Age.
[T 9]
The Maia
Melian went to
Middle-earth prior to the
First Age, where she later fell in love with the
Elven-king Elu
Thingol, King Greymantle, and with him ruled the kingdom of
Doriath. When war with Morgoth came to Doriath, she used her powers to guard and defend her realm with an enchantment called the Girdle of Melian (
List Melian in Sindarin).
[4] She had a daughter with Thingol named
Lúthien, said to be the fairest and most beautiful of all the Children of
Ilúvatar. Some of Melian's notable descendants through Lúthien include
Elwing,
Elrond,
Arwen,
Elendil, and
Aragorn.
[5]
Wizards[edit]
Main article:
Wizards (Middle-earth)
In about
T.A. 1100, the Valar sent five Maiar to Middle-earth to help contest the evil of Sauron. They had great skills of hand and mind and assumed the guise of Men, seemingly old but of great vigour.
[T 10] Their mission was to guide elves and men by gaining trust and spreading knowledge, not by ruling them with antiestéticar and force. They were known as the Istari or Wizards, and included
Gandalf the Grey (Olórin or Mithrandir, later Gandalf the White), Saruman the White (Curumo or Curunír; he later called himself Saruman of Many Colours),
Radagast the Brown (Aiwendil), and two "Blue Wizards" (named after their sea-blue robes) who are mentioned in passing within commentary about the development of Tolkien's legendarium, but do not appear in his narratives.
[6]
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