Uruk - hai - wikipedia Uruk - hai This article relies too much on references to primary sources. Please improve this by adding secondary or tertiary sources. ( June 2011 ) Uruk - hai Attributes Founder Sauron Home world Middle - earth Base of operations Isengard, Mordor The Uruk - hai are fictional characters in J.R.R. Tolkien 's fictional universe of Middle - earth. They are introduced in The Lord of the Rings as an advanced breed of orcs that serve Sauron and Saruman. The first uruks appeared out of Mordor in attacks on Gondor in T.A. 2475. Contents 1 Terminology 2 Literature 3 Adaptations 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Terminology The name `` Uruk - hai '' has the element Uruk, which is a Black Speech word related to Orc, related to the word `` Urko '' in Tolkien 's invented language of Quenya. The element hai means `` folk '', so `` Uruk - hai '' is `` Orc - folk ''. A similar term is `` Olog - hai '' ( `` troll - folk '' ), used for a breed of especially strong and vicious trolls capable of surviving sunlight. Christopher Tolkien describes `` Uruks '' as an anglicization of `` Uruk - hai '' and his father used the two terms interchangeably a number of times. While `` Uruk - hai '' means simply `` Orc - folk '', the term was reserved for the soldier orcs of Mordor and Isengard. The larger orcs called the smaller breeds snaga ( `` slave '' ). Literature The Uruk - hai, described as large black orcs of great strength, first appeared from Mordor about the year 2475 of the Third Age, when they briefly took Ithilien and the city of Osgiliath. These original Uruks were of Sauron 's breeding, but Saruman bred his own, which could endure sunlight. Due to their superior size and strength, the Uruk often looked down upon and bullied other breeds of orc. In The Two Towers, Aragorn observes that the fallen Uruk - hai at Amon Hen had different gear than he had seen before : swords and bows like those of men, and shields and helmets set with the white hand and S - rune of Saruman. Treebeard speculates that Saruman had crossbred Orcs and Men. These orcs, who named themselves `` the fighting Uruk - hai '', made up a large part of Saruman 's army, together with the Dunlendings and other human enemies of Rohan. They were faster, stronger, and larger than normal orcs, and could travel during the day without being weakened, although they still did not like it. Saruman fed them with human flesh. Saruman 's Uruk - hai fought against the Rohirrim at the Battles of the Fords of Isen, at the first of which King Théoden 's son Théodred was killed, and at the Battle of the Hornburg, where the vast majority of the Uruks were defeated and destroyed. The chapter `` The Uruk - hai '' details some differences among the orcs. The raiding party included orcs from Mordor led by Grishnákh, Saruman 's `` fighting Uruk - hai '' from Isengard led by Uglúk, and `` northerners '', orcs from Moria. It was the dead Uruks from Isengard whom Aragorn found remarkable. The Uruk - hai of Isengard were the tallest of these orcs, and had large hands and thick legs. The orcs of Mordor were all long - armed and crook - legged, not as tall as the Isengarders but larger and more powerful than the orcs from Moria. The orcs of Moria in turn could see better in the dark than the Isengarders. Grishnákh from Mordor is described as `` short '' but `` very broad ''. In The Return of the King the orcs Shagrat and Gorbag are identified as Uruks of Mordor. The Lord of the Rings describes several differences in the equipment and heraldry of Uruks and other orcs. Uruks and other orcs in the service of Barad - dûr used the symbol of the red Eye of Sauron. The orcs of Mordor referred to Sauron as the Great Eye, and the Red Eye was painted on their shields. In contrast, Aragorn comments that the Uruk - hai of Saruman were not equipped in the manner of other orcs at all : instead of curved scimitars, they used short broad - bladed swords ; and they wore iron helms marked with the Elf - rune which had the value of `` S ''. It was clear the `` S '' stood for Saruman, considering Sauron 's general desire not to have his name written or spoken. Saruman 's Uruks used black shields emblazoned with a white hand, a symbol of Saruman. The book speculates that Saruman commands various hybrids of Orcs and Men, including in the Shire. Some of these, called `` half - orcs '' in The Two Towers, were sallow - skinned, squint - eyed, and as tall as men. Merry describes them as `` horrible : man - high, but with goblin - faces ''. An account of the first Battle of the Fords of Isen in Unfinished Tales clearly treats Uruk - hai and `` orc - men '' separately. In Morgoth 's Ring, Tolkien states that Saruman did interbreed orcs and men, resulting in `` Man - orcs large and cunning, and Orc - men treacherous and vile. '' However, the relationship of the Uruk - hai, as well as half - orcs and `` goblin - men '', to these creatures is not made explicit. Adaptations In Ralph Bakshi 's animated The Lord of the Rings, differences between Orc kinds are not noted, though there are recurring physical and costume variations. A replica of an Uruk from Peter Jackson 's film trilogy. In Peter Jackson 's film trilogy, Saruman 's Uruk - hai are bred from pits beneath Isengard and when the time is `` right '' they are dug up by lesser orcs working for Saruman, who are occasionally killed by the newborn Uruks. Jackson 's depiction of the Uruks being spawned from the mud came from Tolkien 's old description of orcs being `` bred from the heats and slimes of the earth. '' It is said they were a result of cross-breeding orcs and `` Goblin - men '', instead of Orcs and Men. In Tolkien 's writings `` Goblin '' is just another term for orc. The film versions of the Uruk - hai tend to be tall, broad, burly and with long black hair. They usually wield hooked broadswords and pikes. The first of them is Lurtz, an original character, who is the first of Saruman 's Uruk - hai to be bred and leads the raiding party that ambush the Fellowship of the Ring at Amon Hen, where Lurtz himself fatally wounds Boromir before being slain in turn by Aragorn. The Uruks are also shown to use crossbows at Helm 's Deep, though Tolkien does not mention the weapon in the book. Berserker Uruks were also used during the siege of Helm 's Deep, both to clear the ramparts of defenders and to detonate explosive mines to breach the deeping wall. These Uruks were very tall, wore no armour and were prepared for battle ( and most likely death ) by donning helmets filled with the blood of their enemy. Sauron is shown to have bred his own Uruk - hai, known as Black Uruks. They can be seen when Frodo is captured by the orcs of Cirith Ungol and his mithril shirt leads to a confrontation between Shagrat, a Black Uruk of Mordor, and an orc from Minas Morgul called Gorbag. Gorbag threatens to stab Shagrat if he tries to steal the shirt, but he tosses it aside and throws Gorbag down a long flight of stairs, where he falls on top of several other Uruk - hai. A huge brawl between orcs and Uruk - hai spreads all over the fortress, allowing Sam to enter the tower with ease. See also Middle - earth portal List of Middle - earth wars and battles Minor battles in The Lord of the Rings Olog - hai References Jump up ^ Tolkien, The Return of the King, Appendix A ( I, iv ), `` The Stewards '', p. 414. Jump up ^ Tolkien, J.R.R. ( 1954 ), The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings, Boston : Houghton Mifflin ( published 1987 ), The Departure of Boromir, ISBN 0 - 395 - 08254 - 4 ^ Jump up to : Tolkien, J.R.R. ( 1954 ), The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings, Boston : Houghton Mifflin ( published 1987 ), Treebeard, ISBN 0 - 395 - 08254 - 4 Jump up ^ Tolkien, J.R.R. ( 1954 ), The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings, Boston : Houghton Mifflin ( published 1987 ), `` The Uruk - hai, ISBN 0 - 395 - 08254 - 4 ^ Jump up to : Tolkien, J.R.R. ( 1954 ), The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings, Boston : Houghton Mifflin ( published 1987 ), Helm 's Deep, ISBN 0 - 395 - 08254 - 4 Jump up ^ Tolkien, J.R.R. ( 1954 ), The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings, Boston : Houghton Mifflin ( published 1987 ), `` The Uruk - hai '', ISBN 0 - 395 - 08254 - 4 Jump up ^ Tolkien, J.R.R. ( 1993 ), Christopher Tolkien, ed., Morgoth 's Ring, Boston : Houghton Mifflin, `` Myths Transformed '', Text X, ISBN 0 - 395 - 68092 - 1 External links `` Uruk - hai ''. Tolkien Gateway. J.R.R. Tolkien 's The Lord of the Rings The Fellowship of the Ring film soundtrack game The Two Towers film soundtrack game The Return of the King film soundtrack game Production and reception Composition Themes Influences Translations Reception Fandom Study Related works The Hobbit The Adventures of Tom Bombadil The Road Goes Ever On The Silmarillion Unfinished Tales The History of Middle - earth The History of The Lord of the Rings Bilbo 's Last Song The Children of Húrin The History of The Hobbit The Tale of Beren and Lúthien Characters Aragorn Arwen Bilbo Boromir Butterbur Celeborn Ceorl Denethor Elladan and Elrohir Elrond Éomer Éowyn Faramir Frodo Galadriel Gandalf Gildor Gimli Glorfindel Gollum Legolas Merry Mouth of Sauron Old Man Willow Pippin Radagast Sam Saruman Sauron Shelob Théoden Tom Bombadil Treebeard Witch - king Wormtongue Adaptations and other derivative works Books Bored of the Rings ( 1969 ) The Last Ringbearer ( 1999 ) Muddle Earth ( 2003 ) Theatre Fellowship ! ( 2005 ) Lord of the Rings ( 2006 ) Radio The Lord of the Rings ( 1955 ) The Lord of the Rings ( 1979 ) Hordes of the Things ( 1980 ) The Lord of the Rings ( 1981 ) Der Herr der Ringe ( 1992 ) Film Animated The Lord of the Rings ( 1978 ) The Return of the King ( 1980 ) Peter Jackson trilogy The Lord of the Rings : The Fellowship of the Ring ( 2001 ) The Lord of the Rings : The Two Towers ( 2002 ) The Lord of the Rings : The Return of the King ( 2003 ) Fan - made The Hunt for Gollum ( 2009 ) Born of Hope ( 2009 ) Video games Journey to Rivendell Game One Game Two : Shadows of Mordor War in Middle Earth Vol. I ( 1990 ) Vol. I ( SNES ) Riders of Rohan Elendor Volume II Kingdom O ' Magic The Fellowship of the Ring The Two Towers The Return of the King War of the Ring The Third Age The Battle for Middle - earth Tactics The Battle for Middle - earth II The Rise of the Witch - king The Lord of the Rings Online Mines of Moria Siege of Mirkwood Rise of Isengard Riders of Rohan Helm 's Deep Conquest Aragorn 's Quest War in the North Lego The Lord of the Rings Guardians of Middle - earth Middle - earth : Shadow of Mordor Middle - earth : Shadow of War Tabletop role - playing games The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying Game Middle - earth Role Playing The One Ring Roleplaying Game Board games Middle Earth Lord of the Rings Risk : The Lord of the Rings Trilogy Edition War of the Ring Other games The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game The Lord of the Rings : The Card Game The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game Middle - earth Collectible Card Game Toys Middle - earth Lego sets Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Uruk-hai&oldid=801480213 '' Categories : Middle - earth races Orcs Fictional warrior races Middle - earth Orcs Hidden categories : Articles lacking reliable references from June 2011 All articles lacking reliable references All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from April 2017 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Беларуская Български Bosanski Català Čeština Dansk Español Esperanto Euskara Français Galego 한국어 Italiano Magyar 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Српски / srpski Suomi Svenska Türkçe Українська Zazaki 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 19 September 2017, at 22 : 39. 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Question: what is an uruk hai in lord of the rings
Answer: an advanced breed of orcs that serve Sauron and Saruman