Vanyar
The Fair Elves; the first kindred
The Vanyar
Names
- Vanyar — “the Fair”; the first and least numerous of the Eldar, the “Elves of the Light”. -
Their leader Ingwë is the High King of all the Elves, “that dwell at Taniquetil, with the gods, king of the Vanyar” — the only High King acknowledged by all kindreds, for the Vanyar “are the eldest and the dearest to the Valar”.
History
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Awakening:
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The Vanyar were of the first Elves who woke at Cuiviénen; their king Ingwë was one of the three ambassadors chosen to travel with Oromë to see Aman. Returning, his counsel persuaded his kindred to set forth on the Great Journey.
Culture and Nature
The Vanyar are the “Elves of the Light” (Calaquendi) who saw the Trees; their beauty is the first measure of Elvish beauty. They “love the Valar and the light of the mountains”; they care little for the making of things Western. Their language Vanyarin is the most archaic Quenya. Their significance within the Silmarillion is chiefly as the untouched kindred: “the Eldar of Valinor who never fell” — the standard against which the Noldor’s Great Journey and terrible Return is measured, and the hosts from whom — at the War of Wrath — the host of the West comes chosen — In the War of Wrath “hosts of the Vanyar came also” to the field. They are the “white flame” of the Valar’s army.