Funerary Practices

Burial or funerary practices among the Peoples of Arda were manifold. They arose originally among the Elves of the Elder Days to keep scavengers from their dead, but were continued by the other races as well and took many local forms and customs.

Dwarvish burial rites

Dwarves buried their dead in stone sarcophagi within elaborate subterranean chambers. They avoided cremation whenever possible and only in dire need erected pyres to burn their dead; the "burned dwarves" who had fallen at the Battle of Azanulbizar were an absolute exception. Dwarves usually held funeral pomp, most often a procession of the tribe, or at least the specific clan or family, in which dark and deep hymns were sung to commemorate the dead and the ancestors. While royal burials were large and important, even the sarcophagi and tombs of simple miners and craftsmen were works of art and passion, held deeply important by the family and house.

Elvish funeral traditions

Although elves did not usually die from natural causes such as sickness or age, they knew death and had their own burial rites. The early elves before or during the great journey seem to have buried those who were slain—by enemy, accident or wild beasts—in deep graves or pits they called sapsai or dagdai, and the Avari or wild elves probably continued that tradition. A tradition that may have arisen during the great journey was that of erecting large piles of stones or "cairns", possibly at first to shelter their graves from scavenging beasts.

The High-elves however eventually began to raise, first heaps (Q."cumbë"), then artificial hills or burial mounds for their dead, although at least some tribes seem to have continued to bury their dead in flat graves (Q."launer" or "lárar"). Among the Noldor however the mounds or heaps grew larger and began to contain actual chambers or tombs (Q."Noirër"); likewise their cairns became more elaborate and could even evolve into small monuments such as pillars (Q."Tarmar") or pyramids (Q."Ondënastar") upon the original mounds. The Grey Elves in some places continued the tradition of flat graves (S."Sairch"), with stone-cairns (S."sarnas") built atop, but at least in Doriath also began to erect greater mounds (S."tyrn") which likewise could contain tombs, although this may have been a late influence or imitation of the Noldor.

All elvish cultures also knew the tradition of mourning (S."nienor"), lament (Q."naire" or "nainië"), memorial feast and song. They all shunned cremation whenever possible and preferred body-burials. The Eldar also knew the custom of lighting funeral-candles, which could be carried in processions or brought to the gravesites by individual elves.

Halfling funeral traditions

Hobbits buried their dead in large wheel-barrows, decorated with flower-beds which were tended by the village-gardeners who also served as gravediggers and coffin-bearers. This old tradition was based on the Hobbits' ancestors' clan-burials in Rhovanion during the wandering days. The Shire Hobbits treated their funerals with ambiguity. On one hand there was mourning and silent memory; on the other hand they still gathered for large family feasts to share stories of the deceased, eat, drink especially brewed funeral-ale and toast to the dead and his relatives. The Tooks even had been known to invite Gandalf the grey to honour the death of the Old Took with memorable fireworks, and Bilbo Baggins's family held quite a grudge that they had been bereft of a proper funeral party by his traceless disappearance twice over.

Mannish funeral traditions

Snowman funeral traditions

Death was not seen as an end but a transition. The terms "kuolë" and "mâtany" referred to death, the grave, and silence. Burial was conducted with reverence, often involving "hautënykumpet" (La."burial ice-bergs") or "kivënyt" ("cairns"), which served as markers and spiritual anchors. The "lumëihmëkivënyt" ("Snow-folk cairns") were communal monuments, linking the living to their ancestors.

Orcish funeral traditions

Orkish Burial Rites were the crude and often brutal customs surrounding death among the Orc-kind of Middle-earth. While many tribes abandoned their dead without ceremony, archaeological traces and linguistic evidence suggested that some warbands maintained distinct funerary practices, especially in subterranean strongholds.

General Practices

Most Orcs left their dead where they fell. Corpses were often consumed by Wargs or war-wolves, a practice seemingly accepted among the tribes. Burial-pits (âmbod, matronk) were common in siege camps and mines, where bodies were thrown into open trenches without ritual.

Known Customs

Subterranean Graves

As Orcs typically dwelt underground, their graves were likewise subterranean. In deep warrens and tunnel-forts, bodies were interred in stone niches or collapsed shafts. The term zagâfum denoted such grave-pits in Mordorian dialects.

Cremation and Bone-Rites

Some tribes burned their dead, especially fallen captains or chieftains. Bone-cleaning and gnawing rites were likely practiced, either as desecration or as crude inheritance rituals. Formal tombs were known but rare; however ossuaries and bone-piles (suk, kaup) have been found.

Surface Mounds

Rare surface-dwelling tribes—those in earthwork camps or tent-settlements—raised barrows (torr, vorkodar) for war-leaders. These were often temporary and marked with crude totems or scavenged weapons.

Elite Interments

Greater Orcs such as Boldogs or Hobgoblins may have received more elaborate burials. Some ruins suggested chambered vaults or sealed crypts, possibly guarded or cursed. These were exceptions, not norms.

Vocabulary

âmbod, matronk, maronk – grave, pit zagâfum – grave (Mordor dialect) kaup, torr, vorkodar, suk – mound, barrow, tumulus vor, vorroz – tomb, burial ground (archaic or ceremonial)

Regional Notes

In Mordor, burial was minimal; bodies were discarded or burned. In Gundabad, cave interments and bone-shrines were more common. In Rhûn and Harad, hybrid customs included shallow graves and mound-burials. In Angband, mass pits and slag-chambers were used.

Main overview: Domain of the Lidless Eye Portal

Notes

Orkish burial culture reflected necessity, hierarchy, and tribal memory rather than reverence. Most rites were pragmatic, brutal, and shaped by war.

Trollish funeral traditions

Editorial Note: This entry contains speculative or fan-based material — such as fanon, fanfiction, or theory constructs — that may not be directly supported by canonical texts. Interpretations offered here are part of the NNCA’s speculative corpus and should not be mistaken for primary Tolkien sources.