Ekkaia

Ekkaia (also known as Vaiya, the Outer Ocean, the Outer Sea, or the Encircling Sea) was a vast, cold and dark ocean completely surrounding the world of Arda, at least until the Undying Lands were removed from the "circles of the world" in the cataclysm near the end of the Second Age.
== History ==
Ekkaia flowed completely around the world, forming a sea below it and a form of air above it. Arda is described as having floated on Ekkaia, like a ship on a sea. The Sun passed through Ekkaia on its way around the world, warming it as it did so. Within Ekkaia lay Ilmen, the upper atmosphere, and Vista, the lower atmosphere. At sea level, Ekkaia met the Belegaer at the Helcaraxë. Ekkaia itself was enclosed within the Walls of the Night.
Ulmo, the Lord of Waters, dwelt in Ekkaia, below the roots of Arda. Ekkaia is described as extremely cold: the strait where it met Belegaer in the northwest of Middle-earth, the Helcaraxë, was filled with ice floes and icebergs. Ekkaia cannot support any ships except the boats of Ulmo; the ships of the Númenóreans that tried to sail on it sank, drowning the sailors.
Ekkaia apparently disappeared after Arda was made round, although it may have been changed into the upper atmosphere of the world.The Complete Guide to Middle-earthThe Atlas of Middle-earth, IntroductionThe Atlas of Middle-earth, The Second Age, "Introduction"
== Etymology ==
Ekkaia (at first spelled Eccaia) was a Quenya word.
==Translations==
Foreign Language 	Translated name
Arabic 	أكايا
Armenian 	Էկկիա
Assamese 	এক্কাইয়া
Bengali 	এককাইয়া
Bulgarian Cyrillic 	Екая
Danish 	Det Omkredsende Hav (Ekkaiahavet)
Georgian 	ეკაია
Greek 	Εκκαια
Gujarati 	એકકાઆ
Japanese 	エッカヤ
Hebrew 	אקאיה
Hindi 	एक्क्ऐअ
Japanese 	エカイア
Kannada 	ಏಕಿಯ
Kazakh 	Эккая (Cyrillic) Ékkaya (Latin)
Korean 	에 카시아
Kyrgyz Cyrillic 	Эккаиа
Macedonian Cyrillic	Еккаиа
Marathi 	एक्कैअ
Malayalam 	എക്ഖിയ
Mongolian Cyrillic 	Эккаиа
Nepalese 	एक्क्ऐअ
Punjabi 	ਏਕਾਇਆ
Russian 	Эккайа
Serbian 	Еккаиа (Cyrillic) Ekkaia (Latin)
Sinhalese 	එකයියා
Tamil 	இக்கையே
Telugu 	ఎక్కాయ
Thai 	เอคไคอา
Ukrainian Cyrillic 	Еккайа
Urdu 	ایککایا
Yiddish 	עקקאַיאַ
== References ==
de:Ekkaia
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pt-br:Ekkaia
ru:Эккайа
Category:Seas
Category:Arda
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Category:Quenya names & words