Galadriel

Galadriel was the "Lady" of the woods of Lothlórien, which she ruled with Celeborn, her husband.

One of the greatest of the Elves in Middle-earth, she surpassed nearly all others in beauty, knowledge, and power. She bore Nenya, one of the three Elven rings of power. J.R.R. Tolkien thought of her as one of the mightiest and fairest of all Elves remaining in Middle-earth in the Third Age.

She was the only daughter and youngest child of Finarfin, prince of the Ñoldor, and Eärwen, whose cousin was Lúthien. Her elder brothers were Finrod Felagund, Orodreth, Angrod, and Aegnor. Galadriel was a niece of Fëanor, the most important Elf of the early First Age.

Biography

Galadriel was born in Valinor in the Years of the Trees, before the First Age. Much of Galadriel's story is confusing, and there are several distinct tales told about her collected in Unfinished Tales. According to the older account, used in The Silmarillion, Galadriel was an eager participant and leader in the rebellion of the Ñoldor and their flight from Valinor due to her desire to one day rule over lands in Middle-earth herself.

She was eager to see Middle-earth, having heard of it from Fëanor, and wanted to rule a realm of her own. She swore no oaths and was like minded with her cousin Fingon, son of Fingolfin.

However, separated from Fëanor and his kin, she and her people did not take part in the Kinslaying at Alqualondë. They followed Fingolfin instead and crossed the Helcaraxë in the far north.

The Lady Galadriel - "Lady of Light" - grandmother of Lady Arwen, was an Elven Queen of extraordinary beauty, with her timeless features and golden river of hair.

Galadriel was highly praised for her beauty, particularly that of her hair, which was a deep and radiant gold, shot with silver. It was said by the Elves of Tirion to have ensnared the light of the Two Trees of Valinor, Telperion and Laurelin, and possibly to have inspired the creation of the Silmarils by Fëanor. She was also the tallest of elf-women, standing at around 6 feet 4 inches, or 193 centimeters. Because of her wisdom and power, she had very important roles throughout the history of Middle-earth, especially during her time in Eregion and during the War of the Ring. She had a penchant for dressing in the purest white.

She was known, especially in her younger days, as being quite prideful. However, by the end of the Third Age, that pride had been tempered a great deal by age.

Powers

Galadriel possessed a tremendous amount of magical powers, and was said to be the greatest of the Ñoldor after Fëanor.

When she still lived in the Undying Lands, she had been a pupil of Yavanna and Aulë, and she later became a friend of Melian the Maia. Hence, it can be deduced that she had learned her powers from these three illustrious personages, though the nature of her magic is still not well-understood.

The majority of Galadriel's powers were said to stem from the artifact she controlled: Nenya, the Ring of Water. In some tales, she was also depicted with the powers of communicating over vast distances, predicting the future, and even cloaking her mind from other tremendously powerful beings (she once stated that Sauron could not perceive her mind, though she could perceive his). It is also possible that her powers of divination were either derived from or accentuated by her mirror, which could reveal events of the past, present, and future.

However, due to her incredibly enigmatic nature, even the immensely skillful Saruman and an Elf as perceptive as Elrond found it difficult to understand her powers, and they were such to bring doubt to the minds of the non-Elven inhabitants of Middle-earth. Whatever they might have been, it must still be noted that Galadriel had used them for good: protecting Lórien from any attack. She also used this formidable power to destroy the very foundations of Dol Guldur (a fortress whose power was multiplied by Sauron's magic). Galadriel also possessed the skill of ósanwe (the ability to communicate with others through thoughts), this can be seen after the destruction of the One Ring, when Galadriel communicated mentally with Elrond and Gandalf on their return journey from Minas Tirith.

Besides her magical powers, Galadriel was also very wise and intelligent: she was one of the very few who were not fooled by Sauron in the Second Age, and therefore suggested to Celebrimbor to hide the Three Rings. She also refrained from using the powers of Nenya while the One Ring was in Sauron's possession, and only did so after the One Ring was lost (for it was only then that it was safe enough for her to do so). When Frodo offered her the One Ring, Galadriel managed to reject the undeniable temptation, for she was wise enough to know that, though she might start off with good intentions with the One Ring in her possession, she would only become a tyrant as terrible as Sauron in the end. This could be viewed as a testament to her excellent understanding of the seductive nature of power, as well as her awareness of her own personal limitations.

Etymology

Galadriel was originally named Artanis ("noble woman") which was her father-name, and Nerwen ("man-maiden"), her Mother-name referring to her height and strength. Galadriel is the Sindarin translation of Telerin Quenya Alatáriel, the name given to her by Celeborn, meaning "maiden crowned with a garland of bright radiance" in reference to her hair.

The name Galadhriel was used outside Lórien by the people who did not know the ancient days and Galadriel's history, confusing her name with the Elvish word galadh ("tree") and the name of the Galadhrim, the people of Lórien.

Names and titles

She is referred to as The Lady of Lórien, Lady of Light, The Lady of the Galadhrim, or The Lady of the Wood interchangeably. Within the realm of Lothlórien, she was referred to as simply Lady Galadriel or The Lady.

When she and Celeborn were being referred to collectively, they were known as The Lord and Lady.

Faramir of Gondor referred to her as a Mistress of Magic when Frodo and Sam were with him in Henneth Annûn.