Carcharoth

Carcharoth, also known as the Red Maw, lived in the First Age of the Sun, and was the greatest werewolf that ever lived. He was of the line of Draugluin. His name is pronounced car-ca-roth.
== Biography ==
Carcharoth was created as a defence against Huan, and was reared by Morgoth's own hands on living flesh and filled with great power. So Carcharoth, who was also named Anfauglir (IPA: /anˈfaʊglir/), the 'Jaws of Thirst', grew to great size and his strength seemed beyond compare. His eyes burned like red coals and his teeth were poisoned as the spears of the Orcish legions. Carcharoth was the guardian of the gate of Angband and none could pass him by strength of body alone.
He became involved with the Quest for the Silmaril when Beren and Lúthien had to pass him upon their entrance of Angband. He there espied them, and grew suspicious of Beren because he was disguised as Draugluin, who Carcharoth knew to be slain. Before he could take action against the pair, Lúthien enchanted him with her magic, sending him into a deep sleep. Unfortunately, on their way out Carcharoth awoke, and Lúthien was too weary to spell him again. Beren held out the captured Silmaril in an attempt to slay the beast, but Carcharoth was not daunted, and bit off Beren's hand at the wrist, Silmaril and all.The Silmaril burnt away Carcharoth's insides, and he became crazed with pain, yet filled with great power. A terror to Elves, Men, and Orcs alike, he burst from Angband, slaying anything and everything in his path. He continued south through Beleriand, and eventually he arrived in Doriath. With the power of the Silmaril inside him, the Girdle of Melian had no effect on him, and his presence placed the entire kingdom in grave danger. To protect Doriath, Beren Erchamion, Elu Thingol, Beleg Cúthalion, and Mablung joined with Huan the Hound to track down and slay the Wolf.
Carcharoth was later killed in single combat by Huan, in FA 466, but he poisoned both Huan and Beren mortally with his teeth. When Mablung cut open the wolf's belly, he found there the Silmaril with Beren's hand still closed around it, but, when he touched the flesh, the hand was swept away by a wind, leaving only the great jewel.The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Chapter XIX: "Of Beren and Lúthien"
==Other versions of the legendarium==
Originally, Carcharoth's name was Karkaras, meaning the Knife-Fang. Karkaras was considered a father of wolves and initially bore a shape of a huge grey wolf.The History of Middle-earth, Vol. II: The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, I: "The Tale of Tinúviel"
Another name for Carcharoth was Borosaith, meaning 'Ever-hungry', which was used mainly in song.The History of Middle-earth, Vol. IV: The Shaping of Middle-earth, III: "The Quenta"
==Behind the scenes==
The detail of Beren losing his hand to Carcharoth may have been inspired by the Norse legend of the god Týr, who lost his hand to the wolf Fenrir.
==Translations==
Foreign Language 	Translated name
Amharic 	ጫርችሃሮጥ
Arabic 	خارچهاروته
Armenian 	Կարկառոթ
Belarusian Cyrillic	Кархарот
Bengali 	কার্ছারথ
Bosnian 	Karharot
Bulgarian Cyrillic 	Карчарот
Chinese (Hong Kong)	卡黑洛斯
Georgian 	კარხაროთი
Greek 	Κάρχαροθ
Gujarati 	કર્ચારોથ
Hebrew 	קארכארות
Hindi 	चर्छरोथ
Kannada 	ಕಾರ್ಕರಾಥ್
Kazakh 	Карцһаротһ (Cyrillic) Karcharth (Latin)
Kyrgyz Cyrillic 	Карцhаротh ?
Laotian 	ຈະຣຈຮະຣໂຖ
Macedonian Cyrillic	Каркарот
Marathi 	कर्कारोथ
Mongolian Cyrillic 	Карчотот
Nepalese 	चर्छरोथ
Pashto 	چارچهاروته
Persian 	چارچهاروته
Punjabi 	ਕਾਰਚਰੋਥ
Russian 	Кархарот
Sanskrit 	चर्छरोथ्
Serbian 	Карцхарот (Cyrillic) Karcharot (Latin)
Sinhalese 	චර්ඡරොථ්
Slovenian 	Karcharoth
Tajik Cyrillic 	Карчҳаротҳ
Tamil 	சர்ச்சைரோத்
Telugu 	కార్చరోత్
Thai 	คาร์คาร็อธ
Ukrainian Cyrillic 	Карчарот
Urdu 	کآرچاروت
Uzbek 	Карчаротҳ (Cyrillic) Karcharoth (Latin)
Yiddish 	קאַרטשאַראָטה
==References==
de:Carcharoth
es:Carcharoth
it:Carcharoth
fr:Carcharoth
pl:Carcharoth
ru:Кархарот
Category:Villains
Category:Werewolves
Category:Servants of Morgoth
Category:The Silmarillion characters
Category:Characters in The History of Middle-earth
Category:Sindarin names & words
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