Ages of Arda

The Ages of the Children of Iluvatar narrates significant events in the Eruhini’s history. It also accounts for the primary reference and timeline of the history of Middle-earth.

The First Age of the Children of Iluvatar started during the Years of the Trees, as the Elves came into existence by waking up in Cuiviénen. It was also the time when the Children of Iluvatar began to thrive in Middle-earth. In the late First Age, Men, which are the second beings of their likeness, and the Dwarves, adopted by Iluvatar, also awakened. As Tolkien had written, the course of the following Ages after the first is 3,000 years. However, he mentioned it also varied slightly because time eventually passed quickly. All the ages end with the fulfillment or an important happening for the Children of Iluvatar.

In his writings, Tolkien often pertained to the first era as the First Age of the World and the First Age of Middle-earth instead of “First Age of The Children of Iluvatar.” These terms also had varying beginning events, reaching foremost from Arda’s creation, but all ends in Morgoth’s demise in Beleriand.

“The Ages of the Sun” or “First Age of the Sun” is a favorite term of Tolkien’s fans. However, it is never found in his books. This idea involves marking the beginning from the first sunrise and proceeds to Morgoth’s doom around 600 years after. This is contrary to Tolkien’s confirmation that the First Age was the most extensive age of all. It is a misunderstanding because all the next ages after the first occurred entirely in the Years of the Sun. It accounts for Arda’s history in “ages,” and age is one era for the Valar. There were an estimated one thousand Valian years in one age before the first rising of the Sun. Meanwhile, Tolkien wrote different estimates on the duration of one Valian year. One of the versions is 10 sun years, but the final duration is 144 sun years. Sun Ages accelerated later on, and so the Valian year varied. The Age of the Sun dawned in the Thirtieth Valian Age while Middle-earth’s Fourth Age arrived in the 37th Valian Age. But only four ages are acknowledged, and not seven. All in the Years of the Sun, the Second Age and the next ages refer to the previous Valian epoch and not the ages.

• Ainur’s creation. Range: Unaccounted.
• Eä’s creation (Universe). Range: Unaccounted.
• Arda’s creation (World). Range: Unaccounted.
• Valar’s Creation of Arda’s constituents. Range: 1 to 5,000 Valian years or Five Ages.
• Year of the Lamps. Range: 5,000 to 10,000 Valian Years.
• Ages of Darkness, Melkor’s reign as Lord of Middle-earth, the realm is shrouded in Darkness.
• Years of the Trees. Range: Valian Years 10,000 to 30,000.
  • Time of the Two Trees (Era of Darkness, Time begins) Range: Valian Years 10,000 to 20,000
  • Two Trees’ Second Era, Ages of the Stars, and the arrival of the Elves. Range: Valian Year 20,000 to 30,000 also Ten Ages.
    • The Age of the Stars, the awakening of the Elves, and the first age of Melkor’s imprisonment.
    • The second age of Melkor’s imprisonment.
    • The third age of Melkor’s imprisonment.
    • Age of Melkor’s habitation in Valinor.
• The Years of the Sun.
  • First Age. Range: 450 Years of the Trees, 583 Years of the Sun.
  • Second Age. Range: 3441 Years of the Sun.
  • Third Age. Range: 3021 Years of the Sun.
  • Fourth Age. Range: 6000 Years before 1 A.D.

Though there are assumptions that there must be later ages assigned to the present age and the future, Tolkien clarified during an interview that the events in the Lord of the Rings and the actual world are at a different level. And so, the controversial fifth age and hereafter are impossible to count or view accurately, and therefore are exempted from this timetable.