If there is one thing that J.R.R. Tolkien is known for, it is his ability to sculpt worlds, with their own complex histories, races of creatures, and a wealth and variety of different languages. Throughout the books and the film adaptations, many of the languages from the races of elves, dwarves, and orcs are shown, for example when Gandalf utters Mordorian at the council of Elrond, or when Frodo solves the Riddle in elvish at the Mines of Moria. But there are also different languages among the kingdoms of men, and these pop up in unusual places.
Near the beginning of the Two Towers, the kingdom of Rohan suffers an immense tragedy in the loss of the prince, and heir to the throne, Theodred. He is cut down in a battle against orcs and later dies. As he is laid to rest in the burial mounds of his forebears, after his father King Theoden is awoken from the poisonous spell he is under, a funeral procession mourns his loss. Eowyn, the king’s niece, sings a song at his funeral in a haunting display of grief. However, the song is not sung in the common tongue, it is sung in an ancient language of Rohan known as Rohirric.
There are many poems and songs in the books that are included in the film adaptations, including the Elves Lament to Gandalf when he is thought to have fallen at the hands of the Balrog, and the Lay of Luthien, the song Aragorn sings of his ancestors and their love story, but the source of Eowyn's lament to Theodred is a little more complex. It isn’t a direct translation of something from the book, the lyrics are written by Phillipa Boyens, based on studies of the Rohirric language throughout the histories of Middle Earth.
The song was originally written in English, with a heavy emphasis on the word ‘Bealo’ meaning ‘evil’ and also draws inspiration from the medieval epic ‘Beowulf’ of which Tolkien was a studious enthusiast. Elements of Beowulf are strewn throughout his works, most notably in the appearance of Beorn, the half-man half-bear skinwalker that audiences will recognize from the Hobbit films, and the languages used in medieval works, as well as Norse mythologies among many other classics, were a great influence on his works.
The song Miranda Otto, who plays Eowyn, sings, is not only a song of grief for her cousin, but also a symbol of her feeling trapped and utterly alone. Her character must undergo battle, proving her worth as a shield-maiden, rejection and loss, and tremendous growth and recovery in the houses of healing before she finally frees herself of the isolation and torment that has followed her for most of her life, when she meets Faramir, and they remain together for the rest of their days. The funeral scene is not included in the cinematic releases of the films, nor in the books themselves, but Peter Jackson added the scene into the extended edition DVDs as he felt that it would add depth and meaning to her character, as well as provide a clearer understanding of her and her brother Eomer’s relationship to the king, being his niece and nephew rather than his children.
After the funeral, an exchange happens between Theoden and Gandalf. Theoden is steeped in his grief, saying that ‘No parent should have to bury their child’ and Gandalf assures him that Theodred was brave and valiant during his life and that his souls will find peace among those of the past kings of Rohan. As if to help guide the spirit along its way, Gandalf whispers ‘Westu hál. Ferðu, Théodred, Ferðu’ which is also Old English, and can be translated to mean ‘Be Thou Well, Go thou’.
When King Theoden later dies at the mouth of a screaming Fell-beast at the battle of Pelennor Fields, after being defended by Eowyn who defeats the Witch-king to protect him, Theoden says that he can finally go to the halls of the great kings before him without any shame or reticence, and many Lord of the Rings fans believe that in this moment, he is actually talking about being reunited with his son.
As all major fans will know, the allies of Middle Earth, across all ranges of creatures from elves to dwarves to hobbits, to moving trees from Fangorn Forrest, to eagles and horses and a whole host of other beings, band together to defeat the enemy, and help the ring-bearer Frodo to achieve the mission of destroying the One Ring, and thus Sauron himself. In this sense, the deaths and losses that are experienced by the remaining warriors who survive the war or the ring are not in vain, they are honorable heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice to protect all that is good in the world.