Friday, 25 September 2015

lord of the rings - How many Maiar are there?

Total



Not known; Tolkien himself wrote that the Elves didn't know how many (emphasis mine):




With the Valar came other spirits whose being also began before the World, of the same order as the Valar but of less degree. These are the Maiar, the people of the Valar, and their servants and helpers. Their number is not known to the Elves, and few have names in any of the tongues of the Children of Ilúvatar; for though it is otherwise in Aman, in Middle-earth the Maiar have seldom appeared in form visible to Elves and Men.



The Silmarillion II Valaquenta "Of the Maiar"




I don't know of any writings where Tolkien gives an estimate, so this is what we have.



Known



A bunch; at least fourteen or fifteen named:



And possibly any number of other creatures; it's a fairly common assertion among Tolkien fans that any speaking creature that isn't a Vala, Man (or Hobbit), Elf, Dwarf, or Orcish is necessarily a Maia; that would include (but is not necessarily limited to):

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