In the Norse Mythology and in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth, the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves were the first of their race. Norse mythology, Viking mythology or Scandinavian mythology refer to the pre-Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian people, including those who settled on Iceland, where the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled. ... J. R. R. Tolkien in 1972, in his study at Merton Street (from by H. Carpenter) John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (January 3, 1892 – September 2, 1973) is the author of The Hobbit and its sequel The Lord of the Rings. ... The Three Graces, here in a painting by Sandro Botticelli, were the goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity and fertility in Greek mythology. ... A map of the Northwestern part of Middle-earth at the end of the Third Age, courtesy of the Encyclopedia of Arda. ...

It is told in The Silmarillion that the Vala Aulë created the Dwarves because he was impatient for the arising of the Children of Ilúvatar (Elves and Men). He created seven Dwarves, and was teaching them the language he had devised for them (Khuzdul) when Ilúvatar confronted him. Aulë offered his creations to Ilúvatar, who accepted them and gave them life. The Silmarillion is a collection of J. R. R. Tolkiens works, edited and published posthumously by his son Christopher, with the assistance of fantasy fiction writer Guy Gavriel Kay. ... In J. R. R. Tolkiens fantasy universe, Middle-earth, the Valar are the Powers of Arda who live on the Western continent of Aman. ... Aulë is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkiens legendarium. ... The Dwarves of J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional universe of Middle-earth are beings of short stature who all possess beards (even the women), and are often friendly with Hobbits although long suspicious of Elves. ... Eru (the One), also called Ilúvatar (the Father of All), is the name in the legendarium of J.R.R. Tolkien for the supreme God. ... The Elves (always pluralized as such, never Elfs) are one of the races that appear in the work of J. R. R. Tolkien. ... The race of Men in J. R. R. Tolkiens Middle-earth books, such as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, refers to humanity and does not denote gender. ... Khuzdul is the fictional language of the Dwarves in J. R. R. Tolkiens Middle-earth, written with Cirth script. ...

However, the Fathers of the Dwarves had to wait until the Elves first arrived, and Aulë laid them to rest in various places in the continent of Middle-earth.

The eldest of all, Durin, "lay alone" at Mount Gundabad in the north of the Misty Mountains. He later founded the line of the Longbeards (or Sigin-tarâg in Khuzdul), the Dwarves which were most friendly to the Elves and Men, mostly referred to as Durin's Folk. His city was Khazad-dûm. In Norse mythology, Durin was the first of the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves. ... In J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional universe of Middle-earth, Mount Gundabad is a mountain at the northern end of the Misty Mountains. ... Misty Mountains as seen in the prologue to Fellowship of the Ring In J. R. R. Tolkiens fantasy world of Middle-earth, the Misty Mountains (also known by its Sindarin name of Hithaeglir - misspelled as Hithaiglin on the original Lord of the Rings map - and as the Mountains of... In J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional universe of Middle-earth, Durins folk is the most important folk of Dwarves. ... In J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional world, Middle-earth, Moria (also known as Khazad-dûm, The Black Chasm, The Black Pit, Dwarrowdelf, Hadhodrond, and Phurunargian) is the name given to the underground city, mines, and connected tunnels that run through the central Misty Mountains. ...

Two others were laid to rest near Mount Dolmed in the Ered Luin or Blue Mountains, and they founded the lines of the Broadbeams and the Firebeards who later lived in Nogrod and Belegost. In J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional universe of Middle-earth, Mount Dolmed was a mountain in the Ered Luin or Blue Mountains. Mount Dolmed loomed over the only known pass from Eriador into Beleriand. ... The Ered Luin or Blue Mountains, also known as Ered Lindon, is the mountain range at the far west of Eriador, in J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional world of Middle-earth. ... In J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional universe of Middle-earth, Nogrod was one of two Dwarven cities in the Ered Luin. ... In J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional universe of Middle-earth, Belegost was one of two Dwarven cities in the Ered Luin. ...

The other four Fathers of Dwarves were laid to rest in the far east, two of them at the northern end of the Orocarni, and the other two near the southern end of the range. These founded the lines of the Ironfists and Stiffbeards, and Blacklocks and Stonefoots. No Dwarves of these lines appear in the tales: however, as noted below, the Longbeards may be formed out of Dwarves from all lines, and Dwarves from Durin's Folk may therefore have ancestors from these other lines. After the end of the First Age, when the ancestral homes of the Broadbeams and Firebeards were destroyed, these two lines merged with Durin's Folk, so that Moria had a mixed population, and Thorin Oakenshield grew up in the remnants of the Firebeards' halls. In J. R. R. Tolkiens fictional universe of Middle-earth, the Orocarni was a mountain range in the far east. ... In the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, the First Age began with the rise of the Sun and the arrival of the Ñoldor in the land Beleriand in Middle-earth, and ended with the overthrow of Morgoth. ... In J. R. R. Tolkiens Middle-earth legendarium, Thorin Oakenshield was a Dwarf, the son of Thráin II and the grandson of King Thrór. ...

Of the Fathers of the Dwarves, only Durin is said to have "lain alone". This can be interpreted as referring to the fact he was indeed laid down to rest alone while the other Fathers were laid to rest in pairs, but older versions of the story suggest that it meant Durin alone had no female companion. The other Fathers did: references are made by Tolkien to the "Thirteen Dwarves" created by Aulë (Durin and the six pairs). By this version of the story, Durin's Folk was formed out of Dwarves from the other six lines, as a mixed people arose when all Dwarves went to Gundabad.

Tolkien noted in his letters and essays that it is probably a mistake to take this origin story too literally: like the mythological stories about the first man or woman we must assume that this was a Dwarven tradition passed on amongst themselves, and was never meant as an actual historical recount. Mythology is the study of myths: stories of a particular culture that it believes to be true and that feature a specific religious or belief system. ... Various creation stories have a first man, the first human being. ...