Mahtan

Mahtan was a renowned Ñoldorin metallurgist of Aman and the father of Nerdanel, the wife of Fëanor.
== Biography ==
Mahtan was a skilled smith in Valinor who learned the arts of metal and stonework under direction of the Vala Aulë.The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Chapter VI: "Of Fëanor and the Unchaining of Melkor" He wore a copper circlet around his head and was known for his fondness for metal above gold. Mahtan passed on his knowledge to his eager pupil and son-in-law, Fëanor, who surpassed his teacher by becoming the greatest of all Elven craftsmen. When Fëanor and certain Ñoldor became more proud and suspicious of other Ñoldor kin due to the lies of Melkor, and began forging armaments for what would be Valinor's first war, Mahtan came to regret teaching him. Later, Nerdanel became estranged from Fëanor and retired back to Mahtan's house. The servants of Aulë counselled against joining the Revolt of the Ñoldor, and therefore Mahtan chose not to rebel, and remained in Valinor in peace forever after.The History of Middle-earth, Vol. XII: The Peoples of Middle-earth, XI: "The Shibboleth of Fëanor"
Mahtan had a beard, which was unusual for an Elf, especially a young one. J.R.R. Tolkien tells that Elves could only grow beards from the "third cycle" of their lives, while Mahtan was an exception, being only early in his second cycle. It is unclear what these "cycles" actually refer to."From The Shibboleth of Fëanor" (edited by Carl F. Hostetter), in Vinyar Tengwar, Number 41, July 2000, pg. 9
== Etymology ==
The name Mahtan might be from the Quenya mahta- ("to handle"), referring to the arts and skill of making. His devotion to Aulë had earned him the name Aulëndur ("Servant of Aulë")The History of Middle-earth, Vol. XII: The Peoples of Middle-earth, XI: "The Shibboleth of Fëanor", Note 61 from -ndur ("to serve"). The earlier form of this name was Aulëndil, which was later used by Sauron during his treachery to Númenor.
Mahtan's other name Urundil means "Copper-lover" from urun ("copper") and -ndil ("lover, friend").The History of Middle-earth, Vol. V: The Lost Road and Other Writings, Part Three: "The Etymologies"The Silmarillion, Appendix: Elements in Quenya and Sindarin names His alternate epessë, Rusco, meant "Fox", a reference to his red-brown hair.
==Translations==
Foreign Language 	Translated name
Amharic 	ማህታን
Arabic 	ماهتان
Armenian 	Մահտան
Belarusian Cyrillic	Маhтан
Bengali 	মাহ্তান
Bulgarian Cyrillic 	Махтан
Chinese 	瑪哈坦
Georgian 	მაჰტანი
Greek 	Μάχταν
Gujarati 	મહતાન
Hebrew 	םאהתאנ
Hindi 	मह्तन
Japanese 	マハタン
Kazakh 	Маһтан (Cyrillic) Маһтан (Latin)
Korean 	마흐탄
Kyrgyz Cyrillic 	Маhтан
Laotian 	ມະຫຕະນ
Macedonian Cyrillic	Махтан
Marathi 	महतान
Mongolian Cyrillic 	Маhтан
Nepalese 	मह्तन
Pashto 	ماهتان
Persian 	ماهتان
Punjabi 	ਮਹਾਤਨ
Russian 	Махтан
Sanskrit 	मह्तन्
Serbian 	Махтан (Cyrillic) Mahtan (Latin)
Sinhalese 	මහ්තන්
Tajik Cyrillic 	Маҳтан
Tamil 	மஹ்தந்
Telugu 	మహ్తన
Ukrainian Cyrillic 	Магтан
Urdu 	ماہتن
Uzbek 	Маҳтан (Cyrillic) Mahtan (Latin)
Yiddish 	מאַהטאַנ
== References ==
de:Mahtan
it:Mahtan
pl:Mahtan
ru:Махтан
pt-br:Mahtan
Category:Quenya names & words
Category:Ñoldor
Category:The Silmarillion characters
Category:Characters in The History of Middle-earth
Category:Elves