# Barrow-Wights



## brookhollow (Nov 2, 2005)

I have never been a Lord of the Rings fan really, when the movies first came out they were just weird to me. Until a few weeks ago when, I have no idea why, I picked up the book, started reading, and now I can't put it down. As such I am very uninitiated in all of this and I have no clue what is going on in about half the references Tolkein makes to past histories or charachters or what have you. So this is really a simplisitic question, half of you will laugh at me Im sure, but what in the heck is a barrow-wight. Im stumped. I think its a big...thing. The whole chapter kind of didnt make sense because I don't know what they are. Any help?


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## Alcuin (Nov 3, 2005)

The barrow-wight is one of the evil spirits sent by the Witch-king (the Lord of the Nazgûl) centuries earlier to inhabit the ancient tombs of the Edain and their Dúnedain descendants during the wars between the northern Dúnedain and the Witch-king’s kingdom, Angmar. (Its capital was Carn-dûm, the place Merry mentioned as he awoke from the barrow-wight’s spell.) It might be reasonable to assume that the barrow-wight has animated a corpse buried in the tomb. In some of Tolkien’s other writings, he suggested that the spirits of elves who refused to return to the West (a summons to present themselves before the Mandos, the Vala in charge of the spirits of the dead) sought bodies they could inhabit; there are commentators that believe that perhaps these houseless elven spirits, which cannot leave Arda (the created world), might have been used for this purpose. The Witch-king sent the evil spirits into the barrow-downs to make them uninhabitable for the Dúnedain in that part of the old kingdom of Arnor. Since the Dúnedain had apparently used the tombs as a defense in some of the many wars Angmar waged against the northern Dúnedain kingdoms (Arnor split into three kingdoms, which sometimes fought one another), this not only terrified the local inhabitants and caused them to leave, it made the barrows useless as defensive works against subsequent attacks by Angmar.


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## HLGStrider (Nov 3, 2005)

They are ghosts who haunt tombs, basically.

To a hobbit they would probably seem "large" but they are most likely "man-sized." 

Ghosts may or may not be the right word for them, but I think they are somehow spirits of evil men who are entrapped in the graves and seak to entrap others with them, or at least slay them.


edit:
Dang Alcuin posted a longer better post before I could get my short little post out. ..pout. . .

Al, I heard the theory somewhere on the forum that they were men who had been practicing dark arts and had become enslaved by them. . .I want to say this was Valandil's theory, but he'll probably smack me and say I made it up. . .is there any backing for this?


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## Alcuin (Nov 3, 2005)

Well, Elgee, since we’re not told what the origin of the barrow-wights is as far as I know, one theory is as good as another as long as its proponents can marshal the requisite argument. Faramir seems to suggest that Black Arts were being practiced by Númenóreans in Middle-earth; certainly the Black Númenóreans were doing this, but perhaps this was being done in some parts of Arnor, too. In that case, we might presume that these evil practices led to the barrow-wights. I rather prefer the explanation that they are elvish “ghosts,” the “houseless ones” referred to in _HoME_ in _Morgoth’s Ring_, “Laws and Customs among the Eldar,” “Of Re-Birth and Other Dooms of Those That Go to Mandos,” against whom there is both warning and prohibition in dealing:


> But it would seem that in these after-days more and more of the Elves, be they of the Eldalië in origin or be they of other kinds, who linger in Middle-earth now refuse the summons of Mandos, and wander houseless in the world, unwilling to leave it and unable to inhabit it... Not all of these are kindly or unstained by the Shadow. Indeed the refusal of the summons is in itself a sign of taint.
> 
> It is therefore a foolish and perilous thing, besides being a wrong deed forbidden justly by the appointed Rulers of Arda, if the Living seek to commune with the Unbodied, though the houseless may desire it, especially the most unworthy among them. For the Unbodied, wandering in the world, are those who at the least have refused the door of life and remain in regret and self-pity. Some are filled with bitterness, grievance, and envy. Some were enslaved by the Dark Lord and do his work still, though he himself is gone. They will not speak truth or wisdom. To call on them is folly. To attempt to master them and to make them servants of one own's [_sic_; probably a misprint for _one’s own_] will is wickedness. Such practices are of Morgoth; and the necromancers are of the host of Sauron his servant.
> 
> Some say that the Houseless desire bodies, though they are not willing to seek them lawfully by submission to the judgement [_sic_] of Mandos. The wicked among them will take bodies, if they can, unlawfully. The peril of communing with them is, therefore, not only the peril of being deluded by fantasies or lies: there is peril also of destruction. For one of the hungry Houseless, if it is admitted to the friendship of the Living, may seek to eject the _fëa_ from its body; and in the contest for mastery the body may be gravely injured, even if it be not wrested from its rightful habitant. Or the Houseless may plead for shelter, and if it is admitted, then it will seek to enslave its host and use both his will and his body for its own purposes. It is said that Sauron did these things, and taught his followers how to achieve them.


This is not a precise description of a barrow-wight; but besides being rather frightening in itself, it is not far from what might constitute a barrow-wight, assuming that what was interred in the barrow could be reanimated by necromancy on the part of the Witch-king and his minions acting on behalf of and probably with the instruction of Sauron the Necromancer.

This is a particularly gruesome subject, and if you don’t mind, I’ll leave it at that. The only other thing I can add is that this was not originally my observation, but that of Alvin Eriol at SF-Fandom. I think it is well- considered, and while Tolkien left us no clear direction on what a barrow-wight might be, perhaps there is an echo of it in “The Passing of the Grey Company” in _RotK_:


> …Éowyn stood still as a figure carven in stone, her hands clenched at her sides, and she watched them until they passed into the shadows under the black Dwimorberg, the Haunted Mountain, in which was the Door of the Dead. When they were lost to view, she turned, stumbling as one that is blind, and went back to her lodging. But none of her folk saw this parting, for they hid themselves in fear and would not come forth until the day was up, and the reckless strangers were gone.
> 
> And some said: ‘They are Elvish wights. Let them go where they belong, into the dark places, and never return. The times are evil enough.’


The Rohirrim had once lived on the eastern borders of Angmar, while Arnor was on its western border; perhaps they recalled some dark memory from their old home in the northern Vales of Anduin; or perhaps they simply considered all Elves suspicious, and hence “wights.” 

“_Wight_” is in its origins an Anglo-Saxon word meaning “person.” (Middle English “_wight_” from Old English “_wiht_”, from the Germanic root “_*wihti-_”, a thing or creature. Related to the modern English words “_whit_” (as in, “I don’t care a whit…”), “_aught_”, “_naught_”, and even “_not_”. 

In _Othello_, Act ii Scene 1, Shakespeare has Iago describe a woman as a “wight”,She was a wight, if ever such wight were … 
To suckle fools and chronicle small beer.​E. Cobham Brewer describes the usage as meaning, “To note down events of no importance whatsoever.” But in this context, “wight” may simply mean a miserable person or someone of little or no account.

Edmund Spenser, Shakespeare’s contemporary, uses the word more generously but perhaps already archaically in the late 16th century in “The Shepheardes Calender”:_Of fayre Elisa be your silver song,
That blessed wight:
The flowre of virgins, may shee florish long
In princely plight.

_​Shakespeare uses it contemptuously again in _The Merry Wives of Windsor_, Act I, Scene 3, in a scene with Falstaff, Bardolph, Nym, Pistol, and Robin:_ Falstaff. _Bardolph, follow him. A tapster is a good trade: an old cloak makes a new jerkin; a withered serving-man, a fresh tapster. Go; adieu. 
_ Bardolph. _It is a life that I have desired. I will thrive. 
_ Pistol. _O base Hungarian wight! wilt thou the spigot wield? [Exit BARDOLPH.​The German version of the word, “_Wicht_”, has a series of bad connotations. “_armer Wicht_” means (more or less) “poor sucker”, while “_elender Wicht_” translates as “miserable wretch” and a “_feiger Wicht_” is a coward. “_Wicht_” by itself might mean, depending upon its context, a midget, a fairy, or a gnome.

And thus with minimal encouragement have I chronicled small beer, wight that I am, though no barrow do I yet inhabit.

I think, brookhollow, that Elgee’s description as “ghosts who haunt tombs” is, in retrospect, clear enough.


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## brookhollow (Nov 3, 2005)

Yeah I would say yall know what youre talking about, lol. The explanations you gave were...impressively long. Its awesome. It takes awhile to get all of this in order in your mind when youre new to it. 

They often refer to Angmar and Arnor and the witches and so forth, referring back to former days. Does Tolkein cover this period of history or give a more detailed account of this in Lord of the Rings or in some other work? It all sounds pretty cool.

Oh, and just a random question, are hobbit years shorter than our "365 day years." I guess that would be something like dog years now that I think about it. I dont remember reading anything about it, but Ive covered so much info that I might have missed it. I guess I still have the movies in my head and Frodo doesnt look in his 50s when Im reading. Thanks a lot...

Mike


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## HLGStrider (Nov 3, 2005)

Due mostly to the movies removing the time gap between the Long Expected Party and Frodo leaving the Shire (In the book it seemed a matter of weeks/days/hours, depending on how you imagine it. In the movie it was nearer twenty years), there can be some confusion about this. 

Hobbits years are the same length as ours, I believe, they have twelve months and some equivelent holidays even. However, Hobbits DO mature later. A Hobbit reaches man (Hobbit?) hood in his 30's, whereas it seems pretty clear in the Appendixes that Aragorn was considered a man ready to set out on his path in his early twenties. This may be more cultural than biological as Aragorn's lifespan is actually longer than the Hobbits and Frodo at 50 and Aragorn at 80 are both in their "prime." 

Tolkien has two "History" works, one of which I have never been able to get ahold of a complete volume of. That is the _Unfinished Tales_ which I have read bits and pieces of but am otherwise ignorant (which is why Alcuin can run circles about me if he so choses). Then there is the Silmarillion which I have read. 

Alcuin, just one question, if they are Elvish wights why are they in Mannish graves? To try and capture those bodies? They're pretty well gone by now.


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## Walter (Nov 3, 2005)

Some excellent posts you have provided here, Alcuin...

As for your elaborations on wights I would like to add that the German(ic) meaning not only applies to things and persons or creatures, but the latter could be described somewhat more generally as 'beings' (even in a sense where it unclear whether these could or should be considered 'creatures').

"Mythological" connotations cover quite a multitude of beings, of which Grimm, in his _Deutsche Mythologie_, provides some good overview in chapter XVII (an English translation can be found at the Northvegr Site)...


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## Alcuin (Nov 3, 2005)

brookhollow said:


> The explanations you gave were...impressively long.


Yeah, you’re right. It was way too long. I got carried away. Everyone here can confirm that it is a weakness of mine.



brookhollow said:


> They often refer to Angmar and Arnor and the witches and so forth, referring back to former days. Does Tolkein cover this period of history or give a more detailed account of this in Lord of the Rings or in some other work?


Yeah, he does. All through the _Lord of the Rings_ he talks about it, and the end of the _Return of the King_ has a large section on it. The books _Silmarillion_, _Unfinished Tales_, and the 12 volumes of _History of Middle-Earth_ all cover this extensively. All this backstory fires us up: we’re junkies of Tolkien, and The Tolkien Forum – and other such fora – thrive on the debate. If you like this stuff, you’ll not run short of material.



brookhollow said:


> …are hobbit years shorter than our “365 day years.” I guess that would be something like dog years now that I think about it. I dont remember reading anything about it, but Ive covered so much info that I might have missed it.


Tolkien has a long section on calendars, and there is more backstory on time-keeping in the other material, too. At one point, Tolkien actually calculates the difference in seconds between the real-world Gregorian calendar and the Númenórean calendar to show that the Númenórean calendar is the more accurate. Tolkien’s years are the same length as ours. There is a note on “Shire-reckoning”, the hobbits’ calendar, in the Forward to the _Fellowship of the Ring_.



brookhollow said:


> I guess I still have the movies in my head and Frodo doesnt look in his 50s when Im reading.


He shouldn’t look 50. He received the Ring on his 33rd birthday, and basically, his physical aging stopped at that point.


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## Alcuin (Nov 3, 2005)

Sorry. Writing, editing, and posting, I was OBE (overtaken by events).



HLGStrider said:


> …if they are Elvish wights why are they in Mannish graves? To try and capture those bodies? They're pretty well gone by now.


Elgee, as I understand the theory, the Houseless Elves want bodies that they can only “legally” obtain from Mandos in Valinor. If they are evil, they will seize the bodies of other Incarnates if they can. I suppose that the “evil spirits” conjured up by the Witch-king are fallen Elves from the First Age that have been summoned for the purpose of animating the dead of the Dúnedain buried in the barrows. As for the condition of the bodies, the Dúnedain in Gondor embalmed their dead quite capably; since this was something the Dúnedain had begun in Númenor, there is no reason to believe that practice was not also followed in Arnor.

The barrow-downs were part of Cardolan. (That’s one of the splinter kingdoms from Arnor, brookhollow.) They were used not only as tombs but as defensive works when Angmar attacked. By “infecting” them, the Witch-king depopulated an important section of Cardolan – look at its strategic geographic location right in the middle of old Arnor, the fact that it lies right along the important East Road, its proximity to the royal demesne (The Shire), and finally the fact that the South Road to Tharbad and Gondor passes right through the barrow-downs. Essentially, the northern Dúnedain settlements were cut off from the land route to Gondor, probably not militarily, but economically. The tombs were important to the Dúnedain; the bodies animated by the Witch-king were the ancestors and ancestral kinsfolk of the people living nearby, a particularly grotesque and psychologically painful experience. Finally, Cardolan had used the tombs – they were pretty solid stonework – as defensive positions. The barrow-wights prevented this from happening again, weakening the defensive posture of the Arthedain-Cardolan alliance. (Arthedain was the principal splinter kingdom of Arnor, brookhollow.)

Why were they elves? Well, if the speculation I’ve presented is correct, it’s because elvish “ghosts” were what the Witch-king had available to work with. They were already corrupted in their own physical lives, they refused the summons to Mandos, they were susceptible to a counter-summons from the Darkness, and they were not unwilling to be housed in any available body. What exactly the barrow-wight planned to do to Merry, Pippin, and Sam is unclear, but it sounded as if he was trying to trap them and their bodies for some nefarious use. As I said before, a gruesome business. But I think that the Witch-king would use the spirits of fallen elves because (1) they were available; (2) the spirits of men departed Arda when men died; and (3) Tolkien specifically mentions in _Morgoth’s Ring_ that Houseless elves sometimes tried to use the bodies of others.

That doesn’t mean I’m right. 



Walter said:


> the German(ic) meaning not only applies to things and persons or creatures, but the latter could be described somewhat more generally as 'beings' (even in a sense where it unclear whether these could or should be considered 'creatures').
> 
> "Mythological" connotations cover quite a multitude of beings, of which Grimm, in his _Deutsche Mythologie_ provides some good overview in chapter XVII


Yes, I remember reading some of this about 30 years ago. Tolkien was quite familiar with Grimm, if I remember his _Letters_ correctly. (brookhollow, the book _Letters of JRR Tolkien_ is another important source assembled by his biographer, Humphrey Carter, and his son, Christopher Tolkien.) 

Now, brookhollow, you can see for yourself that I am overly verbose.


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## brookhollow (Nov 3, 2005)

Actually I enjoy the lenghty explanations...I have to read them over once or twice to get them all down pat, but there is a lot of information in them. Also it serves as a reminder to me that I am in part of a larger world in which I am quite puny. 

The ring-wraiths really have nothing to do with this line of thought, but yall know what youre talking about so why not ask right. Are they willful servants of Sauron? In other words, given the opportunity, would they try to destroy Sauron in a grab for power (not that they could do it...well, not that it seems like they could do it). I suppose Sauron holds sway over their mind and desires with the nine rings, but even so, would the lust for power drive them to destory Suaron, or does he have such a power over them that they are completley obedient and brain-washed so to speak? Not that this really changes much, but I enjoy the ring-wraiths. They looked incredibly cool in the movies, but I like them even more in the books...for some reason they are even scarier in the books with the way they just pop up out of nowhere sometimes.


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## Alcuin (Nov 3, 2005)

BTW, brookhollow, one of the links in “Similar Threads” will (eventually) lead you to an essay by Ancalagon from 16 December 2002 posted at http://www.thetolkienforum.com/showthread.php?threadid=7817 in which he references other appearances of “wights” in Tolkien’s works: “The Adventures of Tom Bombadil” published 1934 in _Oxford Magazine_, and “The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, Beorhthelm’s Son”, which was originally published in 1953, about the same time as the _Lord of the Rings_. Both are reprinted in _The Tolkien Reader_ published in 1966 but still in print and available in most any library or bookstore.

The Nazgûl have no will of their own, at least as regards the One Ring, but they can make decisions on their own independently of Sauron. They do not seem to be telepathically connected to Sauron in a series of writings and author’s notes that make up the essay “The Hunt for the Ring” in _Unfinished Tales_: they wander off in the wrong direction altogether, and Sauron threatens them for their mistake. However, in the chapter “The Field of Cormallen” in _Return of the King_, Sauron summons the Nazgûl to leave battle to do his urgent bidding, but how his summons is delivered is unexplained.

The Witch-king, the chief Nazgûl and called “Witch-king” because of his long rule of Angmar at the north end of the Misty Mountains, apparently led the long assault on Arnor and the northern Dúnedain on his own, if not on his own initiative. (My guess it was Sauron’s initiative but at the Witch-king’s discretion most of the time. The attacks on Arnor and its successor kingdoms seem to be somewhat coordinated with attacks on Gondor, the southern Dúnedain kingdom.) The second-in-command of the Nazgûl – as far as we know the only one Tolkien named, Khamûl, the Black Easterling – was in charge of Dol Guldur after Sauron returned to Mordor. Either the Witch-king or another of the Nazgûl was in charge of Minas Morgul (renamed from Minas Ithil, the principal point from which attacks on Gondor were launched out of Mordor), and later there is a confrontation between the Witch-king and Éowyn that is one of the key episodes in the tale (don’t read it out of context if you haven’t already read the books!) in which the Witch-king definitely shows his own personality. 

The Nazgûl were mortal men ensnared by Sauron with the Nine Rings of Power (there was a set of Nine, a set of Seven, a set of Three, and Sauron’s One, apparently in addition to a number of lesser rings of various sorts made by the Elves of Hollin) about 4½ millennia earlier. The Rings made the men subservient to Sauron’s evil will, but did not, it would seem, reduce their mental or physical capacities, except that their bodies “faded” into the shadow world, and as long as the power of the Rings remained intact, they did not die. Another of Ancalagon’s posts (http://www.thetolkienforum.com/showpost.php?p=47873&postcount=12) notes the common source of the Nazgûl and the barrow-wights in Tolkien’s drafts of the story.

Is this your first reading, and how far along are you? I think you will find a ready audience to your questions and your reactions here at TTF!


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## brookhollow (Nov 3, 2005)

Alcuin, 

So far I seem to have found a ready audience as you say. This helps me out a lot to say the least. Most of these question would drive me nuts without these discussions. This is my first read through, and my only knowledge apart from what I have read comes from the movies which I saw (at the latest) a year or so ago, and I really didnt care for them and really cant remember much about them (except the freakishly ugly Shelob). So I am very much a rookie, and I really don't remember much of the movie storyline to recall what happens in the coming books (well, I mean I know what basically happens in the end). Its pretty exciting for me (although the thickness of the book still scares me some day). I hope to have the whole sage done by mid-December (during the height of the holidays Im a lot like the hobbits, all about excessive eating and 'merrymaking' and very little time will be spent reading).

Im not sure what first drew me to read these, as I said I really didnt care much for the movies when I first saw them (although now I really want to see them again, however I refuse to see any of them until I finish the whole series). I am a big fan of CS Lewis (although coincidently I have never read his great fantasy series of Narnia either), and I knew he and Tolkein were great friends. I havent read much fiction latley and I just up out of the blue decided to try Lord of the Rings. I really enjoy Lewis, so I thought I would enjoy Tolkein. So far Im greatly pleased.

I finished the first book of Fellowship (Flight to the Ford) on Tuesday I think. I have some spare time tonight so I will probably get as far as completing The Ring goes South tonight. So all of your comments on the Dunedain (my spelling may be off on a lot of the names) kingdoms and the Nazgul come at a good time (a lot of that is discussed at the Council of Elrond). The book, at least for me, tends to have a lot of suspense. I enjoy that.

The vast amount of references to places, names, history, etc can be overwhelming. I feel as if Im treading water, not in a swimming pool, but in something the size of the Indian Ocean (to randomly selct a large body of water). So again, these discussions are a life-saver. 

Is there any good work that discusses symbolism, spirituality, meaning, or themes behind the Lord of the Rings? I am finding great messages on my own, but the sheer breadth of the text will make it hard to find them again on my own. Not that I mind, its a good read. 

Thanks again to you, and everyone, in helping me out. Talk to everyone later...

Mike


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## Gothmog (Nov 4, 2005)

Alcuin said:


> The Nazgûl have no will of their own, at least as regards the One Ring, but they can make decisions on their own independently of Sauron. *They do not seem to be telepathically connected to Sauron* in a series of writings and author’s notes that make up the essay “The Hunt for the Ring” in Unfinished Tales: they wander off in the wrong direction altogether, and Sauron threatens them for their mistake. However, in the chapter “The Field of Cormallen” in Return of the King, Sauron summons the Nazgûl to leave battle to do his urgent bidding, but how his summons is delivered is unexplained.



I think that you are mixing up 'telepathically connected' with 'telepathically Directed'. the former is simply a means of comunication while the latter is direct control. It is quite likely that there was such a connection between Sauron and the Nazgul which allowed him to summon them from battle. However, it is obvious from the essays you cite that Sauron did not use this connection to direct the Nazgul in their actions after sending them on a mission.


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## Ingwë (Nov 5, 2005)

I want to add something:

_–Terry O’Briant _
_A: First let us examine the etymology of the actual word, Barrow Wight. My fellow Green Books staffperson Turgon (who is held high among the Wise) shared the following with me: _
_A barrow is an earthmound marking a grave (from Middle English "berw," Anglo-Saxon "beorg"). But "wight" is also an archaic word, meaning 1) a human being, or 2) a preternatural or supernatural being. It derives from Middle English "wight" and Anglo-Saxon "wiht," meaning "creature, animal, person, thing." So of course the terms have a perfect resonance for Tolkien's use of them..._
_Put the two together and you have "supernatural creature of the grave." This is a shining example of Professor Tolkien’s erudition with these ancient languages. _
_The Barrow-downs were, as you know, dome-shaped hills crowned with monoliths and ringed with white stones. But we need to look closely at the history of the surrounding lands, as it yields more lucid information about the nefarious Barrow Wights. I will try to keep this "history lesson" as succinct as possible, for there is much to tell. What follows is most germane to your question:_
_Early in the Third Age, the race of Men (the Dúnedain) held power in two main Kingdoms, Arnor and Gondor. In the north, Arnor was split into three principalities: 1) Arthedain, 2) Rhudaur, and 3) Cardolan. This triad of the Dúnedain had a capital city at Annúminas (and later Fornost). There was constant strife between them and the Witch-King of Angmar, who reigned from his cold seat in Carn Dûm._
_The power of the Witch-King was undoubtedly great–he was chief of the Nazgûl, after all. He took into his service Hillmen of the North, and a variety of Orcs and other foul creatures. Not the least of which were the demonic spirits that would eventually become the Barrow Wights, but I'll get to that in a minute._
_Many battles were fought over the centuries between the Dúnedain and the Witch-King, and Elrond himself makes mention of them during the high Council in The Fellowship of the Ring:_
_"In the North ... the Men of Westernesse were diminished, and their city of Annúminas beside Lake Evendim fell into ruin; and the heirs of Valandil removed and dwelt at Fornost on the high North Downs, and that now too is desolate. ... For the folk of Arnor dwindled, and their foes devoured them, and their lordship passed, leaving only green mounds in the grassy hills."_
_Those 'green mounds' he speaks of are the burial mounds the four hobbits passed through only a few chapters earlier. The men of Cardolan used the fields of Tyrn Gorthad (the Barrow-downs) as a refuge and also as a burial field for their fallen kings and warriors. The white monoliths marked the gravesites of many of the fallen._
_When the Witch-King was ultimately defeated, he fled into the shadows of dusk and vanished from the north. Many tortured servants and spirits also fled from Angmar after his power was broken, no longer having their lord to rule them (or enslave them, if you prefer)._
_There were also demons, now disembodied and wandering aimlessly, looking for other bodies in which their evil spirits could dwell. And so that's how I speculate the Wights came into being, as they traveled southward from Angmar to the Barrow-downs and inhabited the bones and jeweled armour of the ancient dead. _
_The Wights could crush the will of an unwary traveler. Apparently they wielded spells that hypnotized the victim, rendering him mindless, and luring him into the treasure tombs below ground. As you'll recall from "Fog on the Barrow-downs," the Barrow Wight laid the hobbits on a stone altar and bound them with gold chains. He draped them in the pale cloth and precious jewelry of the long-dead kings, then readied to take their lives with a sacrificial sword._
_It certainly was a good thing Frodo did not succumb to the spell as readily as Sam, Merry, and Pippin. He found his courage and his bearing, asserting himself without the aid of the Ring._
_As Tom Bombadil knew all too well, daylight would be the undoing of the Barrow Wight. Once a stone chamber was broken open, light would pour in and the Wight would fade, perishing before the sun. Gandalf would later say of these events:_
_"That was touch and go: perhaps the most dangerous moment of all."_
_And indeed that much is true. With no Wizard or Ranger to help them, the hobbits were in their greatest peril at the hands of such an ancient evil. In the moment where Merry returns to consciousness, the golden circlet around his head falls over his face, and it somehow brings out the voice of the dead man who was originally buried with it:_
_"Of course, I remember!" he said. "The Men of Carn Dûm came on us at night, and we were worsted. Ah! the spear in my heart!"_
_Having a good understanding of Arnor and the history of the Dúnedain makes many of these small details more vibrant as you read. For the best information, you should turn to the Professor himself. Read Appendix A, "Annals of the Kings and Rulers," especially Section I, "The Númenorean Kings," Subsection (iii), "Eriador, Arnor, and the Heirs of Isildur." As you pore over these pages you'll gain a greater understanding of the scope of Tolkien’s world. I’m also certain that you’ll appreciate Aragorn much more, as his background and lineage is made clear. _

Sorry about the font but it was Times New Roman that I hate, so I changed it but it doesn't look beautiful now...


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## StoneHeart (Sep 2, 2007)

Although the question has been more than answered I will add-

That with or without any actuall reference or proof, in my humble opinion there is one all encompassing synonym for a barrow-wight and that is...

ZOMBIE
Though of a much more inteligent and not so B Movie variety.


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