12 Of the Flight of the Noldor

[Arvegil145]

Not directly related to this thread - but Tolkien also seems to have abandoned the 'Amarie story' (again, )

This comes from a late note (after 1966) to 'Of Dwarves and Men', The Peoples of Middle-earth (pp. 317-8):

During their dwelling in Nargothrond as refugees he [Celebrimbor] had grown to love Finrod and his wife, and was aghast at the behaviour of his father and would not go with him. He later became a great friend of Celeborn and Galadriel.

Christopher Tolkien follows:

The reference in the first of these notes to the wife of Finrod Felagund is notable, since long before, in the 'Grey Annals', the story had emerged that Felagund had no wife, and that 'she whom he had loved was Amárië of the Vanyar, and she was not permitted to go with him into exile'. That story had in fact been abandoned, or forgotten, but it would return: see the note on Gil-galad, p. 350.

However, the 'note on Gil-galad' that CT references is from August 1965, predating the first note.


So, why did Tolkien seemingly abandon the story of Amarie, and Finrod having no wife? I doubt we'll ever know for sure, but I have a feeling that he intended to return to 'Gil-galad son of Finrod' idea (which I think was also the most longeval of the ideas for Gil-galad's parentage, if I'm not mistaken) - but this is just speculation.