A glossary of people, places & objects in Earthsea
Now showing glossary items relating to islands
Allernots
Also known as: The Allernots
A group of three islets in the eastern North Reach, north of Ferrins and south of Komokome and Sort
Andrad
Medium-sized, hilly northern island, near Orandrad and the Andrades; it lies north of Gont. Exports include fleecefell
Sources: The Hawk's Flight, WoE; Hort Town, FS
'So he had … gone on and on, east by south, the hills of Oranéa faint to his right and the hills of Andrad fainter to his left, and before him only the sea…'
[The Hawk's Flight, WoE]
Andrades
Group of small northern islands lying north of Andrad and south of the easterly islands of the North Reach; possibly also used to encompass the entire group, including Andrad and Orandrad. Exports include fine wine, fleecefell, and probably furs and ivories
Sources: The Shadow, WoE; Mice, T; Dragonfly, TfE
Apso
Islet in the western East Reach, near Kopp and Rolameny
Archipelago
Also known as: Western Isles, Hardic lands
All islands of Earthsea outside the eastern Kargad Lands; sometimes the four Reaches are also excluded
'"…there are many islands. Four times forty, they say, in the Archipelago alone, and then there are the Reaches; no man has ever sailed all the Reaches, nor counted all the lands. And each is different from the others."'
[The Great Treasure, ToA]
Ark
Small island in the Inmost Sea, adjacent to Ilien and part of that principality; described as rich with many cities, including Sesesry on the east coast. Ruled by the Lord of Ark
Sources: The Shadow, WoE; The Masters of Roke, FS; On the High Marsh, TfE
'…the two fair islands Ark and Ilien, towered and terraced with cities…'
[The Shadow, WoE]
Arrins
Small island in the southerly end of the West Reach, near Near Kaltuel and west of Ensmer
Astowell
Also known as: Lastland
Small seldom-visited isle, in the East Reach, near Kornay and Gosk; the most easterly of all the islands. Its single port lies in the north, on a creek mouth between rocky hills; its inhabitants live in wattle huts, facing north or west towards the rest of Earthsea. The people are wary and ignorant of much about the Archipelago beyond the East Reach; they have no wood and nothing to trade, use tools of stone or shell, weave coracles of reeds (which aren't strong enough to reach the neighbouring islands), and burn goat-dung and broom-faggots for fuel. Ruled by an Isle-Man or chief
'…an isle of pinnacled cliffs above which the sea-gulls wheeled in huge flocks whose mewing clamour could be heard from far over the sea.'
[The Open Sea, WoE]
Atnini
Small island off Hur-at-Hur in the Kargad Lands. Ruled by the Godking from Karego-At until it is conquered by the Hur-at-Hur warlord Thol, around ten years after the restoration of the Archipelagan monarchy
Sources: Palaces, OW
Atuan
Also known as: Holy Land
Island of the Kargad Lands, west of Karego-At; location of the Tombs of Atuan. Major cities are Tenacbah and Gar; other towns include Entat (and possibly Ossawa); other features include the Western Mountains and Cloud Cape. An island of contrasts: relatively fertile hill country lies in the north, and lowland plains with grassland, farms & pine forests lie on the west coast; however, the interior is desert, and barren plains are found in the east
Sources: The Wall around the Place, ToA; The Western Mountains, ToA
Barnisk
Medium-sized island in the Gontish Sea to the north-east of Havnor, near Torheven and Oranéa
Sources: The Shadow, WoE
Bars of Uny
String of islets in the southeast of the Archipelago, lying north of Uny and east of O in the Closed Sea
Bereswek
Medium-sized island in the North Reach, near Udrath and N&S Enwas; the inhabitants are white skinned
Sources: Mending the Green Pitcher, OW
Besu
Islet off the west coast of Havnor island in the Pelnish Sea, near Bishi; its port town may be Esen
Bishi
Islet off the east coast of Semel, in the Pelnish Sea; near Ebishi and Besu
Borilous Rocks
Rocks in the Inmost Sea, to the east of Roke, a danger to ships in poor visibility
Sources: The Shadow, WoE
Borth
Small island in the west of North Reach, north-west of Rogmy and south of Hogen Land. Osskili is probably the language spoken there
Sources: A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Chemish
Small elongated island in the eastern North Reach, near Komokome and Sort
Derhemen
Medium-sized island in the northerly West Reach, near Narveduen and Onon
Dragons' Run
Also known as: Dragon's Run
Cluster of small, rocky isles in the West Reach largely scattered along an east--west line. It is inhabited by many dragons, including Kalessin. Includes the Keep of Kalessin, an island with sheer basalt cliffs three hundred feet high. The Dragons' Run was sailed by Ged more than twenty years before The Farthest Shore, and by Ged and Lebannen in FS, but not travelled by any other living man
'The water was a maze of blue channels and green shoals, and among these, by hand and word and most vigilant care, he [Ged] and Arren now picked their boat's way, between the rocks and reefs. Some of these lay low, under or half-under the wash of the waves, covered with anemone and barnacle and ribbony seafern; like water-monsters, shelled or sinuous. Others stood up in cliff and pinnacle sheer from the sea, and there were arches and half-arches, carven towers, fantastic shapes of animals, boars' backs and serpents' heads, all huge, deformed, diffuse, as if like writhed half-conscious in the rock. The sea-waves beat on them with a sund like breathing, and they were wet with the bright, bitter spray.'
[The Dragons' Run, FS]
Dromgan
Farmed islet of the Ninety Isles, lying near Hosk
'the rainy pastures of Dromgan…'
[Hunted, WoE]
Dunnel
Islet near Misk, Set and Wasny, at the northeastern edge of the South Reach
Ea
Titles: the Old Island
Island in the Sea of Éa in the north of the Archipelago, south of Enlad and near Taon and Ebéa; said to be the first land that Segoy raised from the sea. An old-established college is located here. Formerly one of the principalities of the kingship it was ruled by the Prince of Éa who was of royal lineage
Sources: The Masters of Roke, FS; The Finder, TfE; The Dragon Council, OW
Ear, Isle of the
See Isle of the Ear
East Hand
See Hands
East Reach
Group of predominantly small islands to the south-east, including the northerly cluster: The Hands, Venway, Vemish, Sattins and Yor; the northeast cluster: Koppish, Sneg and Far Toly; the southerly cluster: Korp, Kopp, Apso, Rolameny, Gale, Holp, Tok, Insmer, Soders, The Sellets and Iffish; and the easternmost cluster: Pelimer, Kornay, Gosk and Astowell. The inhabitants are dark-skinned, and speak Hardic with varying degrees of accent
Sources: Iffish, WoE; The Open Sea, WoE
Eastern Isles
See Kargad Lands
Ebéa
Small island in the Sea of Éa, near Ea, Oranéa and Havnor; in ancient times one of the islands at the heart of Earthsea. Ruled by the Lady of Ebéa
Sources: Mending the Green Pitcher, OW
Ebishi
Tiny islet in the Pelnish Sea, between Bishi and Besu; in some maps, this islet is identified as Besu
Sources: Frontispiece map, TfE
Ebosskil
Medium-sized northwestern island, lying southwest of Osskil and north of Semel
Sources: Orm Embar, FS; Selidor, FS
Enlad
Also known as: Isle of the Myths
A rich and peaceful island in the north of the Archipelago, near Ea and Osskil; part of the Enlades. Ruled by the Prince of Enlad and the Enlades at the capital, Berila; other towns include Temere (on the south coast), Serilune and Semermine (in the hills behind Berila). The terrain includes hills, orchards, woods and forests, including the Forest of Aol. At the eastern end of the island are two strings of islets, the North & South Teeth, with the sea channel, the Jaws of Enlad, between them. One of the principalities of the kingship, tracing its line of descent from Morred, via Serriadh and the House of Enlad. The people of Enlad speak their own language or dialect, of which little is known
Sources: Hunted, WoE; The Rowan Tree, FS; The Masters of Roke, FS; Hort Town, FS; The Children of the Open Sea, FS
Enlades
Group of small islands in the north of the Archipelago, in the Sea of Éa, next to Enlad. An old-established college is located on them. Associated from ancient times with magic
Sources: The Dragon Council, OW
Ensmer
Large island in the southwest of the Archipelago, lying at the southmost end of the Ninety Isles and near the southerly islands of the West Reach
Sources: The School for Wizards, WoE; The Dragon of Pendor, WoE
Enwas
Also known as: North Enwas, South Enwas
Two small islands, North & South Enwas, in the North Reach, near Bereswek; their inhabitants are white skinned
Sources: Mending the Green Pitcher, OW
Eppaln
Islet off the southeast coast of Paln, in the Pelnish Sea; it lies south of Lossow and north of Seppish
Esen
Port town of the islet of Besu off the west coast of Havnor island in the Pelnish Sea; alternatively, an islet near Besu
Sources: Hunted, WoE; frontispiece map, FS
Eskel
Islet off the east coast of Havnor. Also, in some sources, a name for Otrad, an islet off the east coast of Way
Ettil
Islet in the easterly West Reach, near Usidero and the Toringates
Faltuel
Small island in the southerly end of the West Reach, near Arrins and west of Ensmer
Far Sorr
Small island, south of Lorbanery and the Isles of Sand in the South Reach
'"Sailors say that there are stars to be seen from the waters by the Isle of the Ear and Far Sorr that cannot be seen anywhere else, and that have never been named."'
[The Open Sea, WoE]
Far Toly
Islet in the eastern East Reach, near Sneg
Sources: The Open Sea, WoE
Felkway
Medium-sized island in the east of the Archipelago, between Way, O and Havnor; features include Felkway Bay, with an unnamed town at its mouth. The Passage of Felkway leads into the Ebavnor Straits. Ruled by the Lord of Felkway
Sources: The Shadow, WoE
Ferrins
Small island in the eastern North Reach, north of the Andrades and south of the Allernots
Gale
Small island in the southwest of the East Reach, near Rolameny and Soders
Garhirien
Also known as: Garhirion
Northern islet, lying off the east coast of Ea, west of Oranéa and south of the South Teeth
Gate of Selidor
Small island off the east coast of Selidor, in the West Reach
Sources: Frontispiece map, TfE
Geath
Islet in the east of the Ninety Isles, near Roke; centre of whaling. The town has oil sheds and stinks of whale products
Sources: Hunted, WoE; The Finder, TfE
'There they fished for whales, as they still do. That was a trade he wanted no part of. Their ships stank and their town stank.'
[The Finder, TfE]
Gmet
Small islet off the east coast of Paln, near Lossow, in the Pelnish Sea
Gont
Medium-sized island in the north east of the Archipelago, near the Kargad Lands, around a thousand miles from Roke. North lies the Northeast Sea; to the south, the Gontish Sea. Fifty miles wide and composed of the single high, wooded Gont Mountain; the interior is rocky and forested; the coastal regions are farmed, including Northward Vale in the north-east and Middle Valley in the south. Major towns are the capital Gont Port and East Port. Smaller towns and villages include Re Albi, Tettego, Etreke, Gont South Port, Lissu, Kahedanan, Oak Springs, Oak Village & Valmouth in the south; Korry, Up Selt, Desi Port, Ketoleko, Var, Solwes, Essary, Allage & Kebas in the west; Kemay, Tutok Bay, Kedun, Oskres & Selt in the northwest; Norvale & Up Norvale in the north; Ten Alders, Medu, Chodur & Lotin in the northeast; and Beech Springs, Wiss, Down Wiss, Ovark, Tant & Toss in the east. Other named features include East Forest, the rivers Ar & Kaheda, Armouth sands, Valmouth Bay, Cutnorth Cliff, High Fall, Kapperding Scarp, Hot Springs Mountain, Round Hill, Long Fells and the Overfell. The climate is cool, with fog and snow in winter. Suffered an earthquake in around 968 and again in 1004. Ruled by the Lord of Gont, at Gont Port; parts of it were under Kargish rule for at least a generation in the time of Maharion. Known for wizards, pirates and goatherds
Sources: Warriors in the Mist, WoE; Frontispiece map, T; The Bones of the Earth, TfE; A Description of Earthsea, TfE
'The island of Gont, a single mountain that lifts its peak a mile above the storm-racked Northeast Sea, is a land famous for wizards. From the towns in its high valleys and the ports on its dark narrow bays many a Gontishman has gone forth to serve the Lords of the Archipelago in their cities as wizard or mage, or, looking for adventure, to wander working magic from isle to isle of all Earthsea.'
[Warriors in the Mist, WoE]
Gosk
Tiny island in the easternmost region of the East Reach, near Kornay
Sources: The Open Sea, WoE
Gravels
Range of tiny islets lying between Ebosskil and Norst & Sorresk and into the western part of the Gut of Osskil, in the northwest of the Archipelago
Great Island
See Havnor
Great South Shoals
Long string of islets running southwest to northeast by the Isle of the Ear in the South Reach
Hands
Also known as: West Hand, East Hand, The Hands
Pair of mountainous inhabited islands at the northern edge of the East Reach, south of Karego-At and north of Vemish; named for their shape. The western isle has steep forests. So rarely are they visited by Archipelagan ships that songs made a hundred years ago are new there
Sources: Hunting, WoE; Iffish, WoE
'a pair of lonely isles that reach their mountain-fingers northward towards the Kargad Lands.'
[Hunting, WoE]
Hardic lands
See Archipelago
Havnor
Also known as: Great Island, King's Island, the Great Isle, Cold Hill
The largest island in the Archipelago, Havnor lies at its centre, and is the seat of the monarchy. A broad, rich, heavily farmed land with green hills and several mountain ranges, the Faliern Mountains, Revnian Mountains & Mount Onn. The Onneva river feeds into the Great Bay of Havnor, on which lies the capital city, Havnor City, also known as Havnor Great Port. South of this city lies the cave of Aurun, known as the Lips of Paor, a centre of the Old Powers. Other inhabitations include Havnor South Port, Glade, Reche, Easthill, Resbel and the villages of Endlane, Woodedge & Firn. Other features include Faliern Forest, the sands of Onneva and the rivers Amia, Serrenen & Yennava. The island is divided into domains, including Eolg and the Western domain
Sources: The Masters of Roke, FS; The Finder, TfE; Diamond and Darkrose; TfE; Palaces, OW; Dolphin, OW
Hille
Medium-sized island, the northernmost in the West Reach; near Derhemen
Hogen Land
Large ice-bound island in the northernmost part of the North Reach
'"Or to sail north into the ice-floes, clear to Hogen Land. Some say that is a land greater than all the Archipelago, and others say it is mere reefs and rocks with ice between. No one knows."'
[The Open Sea, WoE]
Holp
Small island in the East Reach, near Korp, Kopp and Tok
Sources: The School for Wizards, WoE; Iffish, WoE; Afterword, WoE
Holy Land
See Atuan
Hosk
Large island on the west side of the Inmost Sea; major city is the port of Orrimy. The interior is a lawless region
Sources: The Dragon of Pendor, WoE; Hunted, WoE
Hur-at-Hur
Largest and easternmost island of the Kargad Lands, part desert, part forested, mountainous and relatively impoverished; the inhabitants are considered barbarians by people of Atuan. Major town is called Mesreth. Produce includes opals, turquoises and cedar logs. Well-born women are segregated in women's quarters and wear the feyag (veil), which is not worn on Atuan or in Awabath. Small flightless dragons live in the mountains. Ruled by the Godking at Awabath on Karego-At, and by local warlords. Around ten years after the restoration of the Archipelagan monarchy, a warlord, Thol, consolidates power to become High King after deposing the Godking
Sources: The Wall around the Place, ToA; Dragonfly, TfE; Palaces, OW; The Dragon Council, OW
Iffish
Hilly populous island in the East Reach, near Tok; main town is Ismay, also hill village of Quor. An Islandwoman of Iffish serves on the King's Council at the time of The Other Wind. Tiny dragon-lizards called harrekki are native there
Sources: Iffish, WoE; The Dragon Council, OW
'…the low blue hills of a great island… The smoke of hearthfires lingered blue over the slate roofs of little towns among those hills, a pleasant sight in the vast sameness of the sea.'
[Iffish, WoE]
Ilien
A small island in the Inmost Sea. One of the principalities of the kingship, tracing its descent from Gemal Sea-born via Maharion. Described as having many towns and cities
Sources: The Shadow, WoE; The Masters of Roke, FS
'…the two fair islands Ark and Ilien, towered and terraced with cities…'
[The Shadow, WoE]
Ingat
Small island in the easterly West Reach, near Risk and the Toringates
Sources: The Dragons' Run, FS
Inner Isles
See Inner Lands
Inner Lands
Also known as: Inner Isles, the West
A Kargish term for the Archipelago; also used among Archipelagans & inhabitants of the Reaches to denote the Archipelago, as opposed to the Reaches. The Inward Isles seems to denote a rather smaller region: Oranéa is said to be the eastmost Inward Isle
Sources: The Shadow, WoA
Insmer
Islet near Tok and Holp in the East Reach
Inward Isles
Also known as: Inward Lands
Islands of the central Archipelago, excluding outlying islands such as Gont, as well as the Reaches. Oranéa is the eastmost of the Inward Isles; Pendor lies in their west
Sources: The Shadow, WoE; A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Isle of the Ear
Also known as: Ear, Isle of the
Large uninhabited island to the east of the South Reach
'"…the Isle of the Ear where men do not go. …a disagreeable part of the world, they say, full of bones and portents. Sailors say that there are stars to be seen from the waters by the Isle of the Ear and Far Sorr that cannot be seen anywhere else, and that have never been named."'
[The Open Sea, WoE]
Isle of the Wise
See Roke
Isles of Sand
Also known as: Sand Isles
Scattered set of tiny islands between Obehol and Lorbanery in the South Reach; source of pearls
Sources: The Dragon Council, OW
Issel
Small island in the south of the Inmost Sea, near Roke and Wathort
Sources: Hort Town, FS
Jessage
Medium-sized, inhabited island in the southerly end of the West Reach, near Obb. Has farms and orchards
Sources: Orm Embar, FS; Palaces, OW
'Land lay ahead, low and blue in the afternoon like a bank of mist. … the eastern isle, Jessage, looked burned and black as far as they could see inland from the shore, and a haze hung blue and dull above it.'
[Orm Embar, FS]
Kaltuel
Medium-sized island in the southerly end of the West Reach, near Simly and Near Kaltuel
Sources: The Dragons' Run, FS
Kameber
Also known as: Kameber Rock
Small hilly islet in the Gontish Sea off the west coast of Gont; on a clear day its hills can be seen from the Old Mage's House in Re Albi
Sources: Mending the Green Pitcher, OW
Kamery
Small island on the east of the Inmost Sea, south of Ilien and near O; nearest of the eastern islands to Roke
Sources: The Shadow, WoE
Karego-At
Large, wealthy main island of the Kargad Lands in the north east of Earthsea; capital is Awabath, location of the Godking's court. Other cities include the old capital, Hupun
'…the distant loom of hills like clouds, the great island of the Godking.'
[Voyage, ToA]
Kargad Lands
Also known as: Eastern Isles, Kargad Empire, the Four Lands, Empire of the Sky
Four islands in the north-east: Karego-At, Atuan, Hur-at-Hur and Atnini, which do not form part of the Archipelago. Awabath on Karego-At is the capital. The white-skinned inhabitants, Kargs, are ruled by the Godking and, after civil war in around 1061, the High King. They have a very different culture, religion and language (Kargish), from the rest of Earthsea, with magic and writing being outlawed. The Kargad islands have few mineral resources
Related entries: Priest-Kings; Legal and punitive systems; War; Religion and the afterlife; Place of the Tombs; Reincarnation
Keep of Kalessin
Island in the Dragons' Run with sheer basalt cliffs three hundred feet high; named the Keep of Kalessin by dragons. Possibly constructed by Kalessin or another dragon, or a natural rock formation
'…ahead of them loomed an island like a tower. Its cliffs were black, and made up of many cylinders or great pillars pressed together, with straight edges and plane surfaces, rising three hundred feet sheer from the water.'
[The Dragons' Run, FS]
King's Island
See Havnor
Komokome
Small elongated island in the eastern North Reach, north of the Allernots, near Sort and Chemish
Kopp
Small island in the East Reach, near Korp, Apso and Holp
Sources: The School for Wizards, WoE
Koppish
Small, elongated, inhabited island in the East Reach, near Sneg and Iffish; it has small villages
Sources: The School for Wizards, WoE; The Open Sea, WoE
'…first raised land off the southernmost cape of Koppish. Over the waves they saw cliffs of stone rise like a great fortress. Seabirds cried wheeling over the breakers, and smoke of the hearthfires of small villages drifted blue on the wind.'
[The Open Sea, WoE]
Kornay
Tiny island in the easternmost region of the East Reach, near Gosk
Sources: The Open Sea, WoE
Korp
Small westernmost island of the East Reach, near Kopp. An Islandwoman of Korp serves on the King's Council at the time of The Other Wind
Sources: The School for Wizards, WoE; The Dragon Council, OW
Lastland
See Astowell
Lef
Small island in the North Reach, north of Udrath
Leng
Small island in the east of the Inmost Sea, near the isle of O
Long Dune
Trails westwards from Wellology; visited by the Children of the Open Sea (raft people) in autumn. Beaches are called Emah by those people
Sources: The Children of the Open Sea, FS
Lorbanery
Titles: Isle of Silk
Island in the South Reach, famous for high-quality silks, and for bright blue or crimson (dragon's fire) dyes, which are mined there as ores. Harbour village Sosara. Covered in hurbah trees on which silkworms feed, which make it appear bright green from a distance. Climate is warm
Sources: Hort Town, FS; Lorbanery, FS
Lossow
Also known as: Losso
A small islet in the Pelnish Sea, between Paln and Havnor
Sources: The School for Wizards, WoE
Misk
Islet south of Sowl, near Set and Dunnel, at the northeastern edge of the South Reach
Morred's Isle
In the Dark Years, island south of Havnor believed by the scattered women of the Hand to be a place where just rule was maintained and the old arts of magic were practised and taught. Medra identified Morred's Isle as Roke, though it is 'both less and more than the hope and rumor he had sought for so long.'a
Sources: The Finder, TfE (a)
'"They say … that there's an island where the rule of justice is kept as it was under the Kings. Morred's Isle, they call it. … There they say the women of the Hand have kept the old arts. And they teach them, not keeping them secret each to himself, as the wizards do."'
[The Finder, TfE]
Namien
Small island in the Closed Sea at the southeast of the Archipelago, near Uny and Sowl; it lies south of O, east of Wathort and north of the easterly islands of the South Reach
Narveduen
Medium-sized island, one of the most easterly of the West Reach. One of the early places where magic fails in The Farthest Shore
Sources: The Rowan Tree, FS
Near Kaltuel
Small island in the southerly end of the West Reach, near Simly, Kaltuel and Arrins
Nesh
Islet of the Ninety Isles, lying near Hosk; it has a harbour town
'past the wharves of Nesh…'
[Hunted, WoE]
Ninety Isles
Cluster of tiny islands between Hosk and Ensmer, to the west of Roke. The furthest south is Serd, thirty miles from Roke in the Inmost Sea, and the furthest north is Seppish, near Paln. The islets are organised into townships of ten or twenty islets apiece. There are few bridges and the islanders travel everywhere by boat. Although heavily populated with farms and fishing villages, there are no large towns. The economy revolves around whaling and turbies, an oily fish. Includes the harbour towns of Nesh and Serd, pastures in Dromgan, oil sheds in Geath and the township of Low Torning
Sources: The Dragon of Pendor, WoE; Hunted, WoE; The Finder, TfE
'West of Roke in a crowd between the two great lands Hosk and Ensmer lie the Ninety Isles. The nearest to Roke is Serd, and the farthest is Seppish, which lies almost in the Pelnish Sea; and whether the sum of them is ninety is a question never settled, for if you count only isles with freshwater springs you might have seventy, while if you count every rock you might have a hundred and still not be done; and then the tide would change. Narrow run the channels between the islets, and there the mild tides of the Inmost Sea, chafed and baffled, run high and fall low, so that where at high tide there might be three islands in one place, at low tide there might be one.'
[The Dragon of Pendor, WoE]
Norst
Islet near Sorresk, west of Ebosskil; it lies on the northwestern edge of the Archipelago, facing the Open Sea
North Enwas
See Enwas
North Reach
Group of islands with a cold climate lying to the north of Osskil and the Andrades. They include Borth, Rogmy, Udrath, Lef, Bereswek, Enwas, Ferrins, the Allernots, Komokome, Sort, Chemish, the Whale Isles and the large but untravelled Hogen Land among the ice floes
Sources: Hunted, WoE; The Open Sea, WoE
'…the islandless vastness of the North Reach.'
[Hunted, WoE]
North Sudidi
Also known as: Sudidi, North
Island in the Ninety Isles
Sources: The Finder, TfE
North Teeth
See Teeth
O
Elongated island at the east of the Inmost Sea near Ilien and Felkway; the Ebavnor Straits and Passage of Felkway lie to its north and the Closed Sea to its east. Towns include O-Tokne in the north, O Port in the south-east, and unnamed ports on the north coast. Known for its fine silverwork. Ruled by the Lord of O
Sources: The Shadow, WoE; The School for Wizards, WoE; The Masters of Roke, FS
Obb
Medium-sized, inhabited island in the southerly end of the West Reach, near Jessage
Sources: Orm Embar, FS; Palaces, OW
'Land lay ahead, low and blue in the afternoon like a bank of mist.'
[Orm Embar, FS]
Obehol
Also known as: Ohol
Large island in the South Reach; white sandy beaches backed with forest, with great green peaks in the interior. Called Ohol by the Children of the Open Sea (raft people)
Sources: The Madman, FS; The Children of the Open Sea, FS
Ohol
See Obehol
Omer
Small island in the Inmost Sea and Ebavnor Straits, south of Havnor and near Ark
'The black basalt columns of the Isle of Omer towered off the ship's right side as she worked across the Ebavnor Straits'
[Dolphin, OW]
Onon
Small island in the northerly West Reach, near Derhemen
Ontuego
Medium-sized island on the easterly side of the West Reach, lying near the Toringates, west of Paln. The mage Ath is said to have been killed by the dragon Orm there
Sources: The Stone of Pain, FS; Dolphin, OW
Oranéa
Eastmost of the Inward Isles, lying just north of Barnisk in the Gontish Sea, near Havnor, the South Teeth, Garhirien, Ea and Ebéa. Its blue hills are visible from Re Albi on Gont
Sources: The Shadow, WoE; Kalessin, T
Orandrad
Small northern island, east of Andrad and north of Gont
Osskil
Also known as: Ravenland
Large Y-shaped island in the north-west of the Archipelago, north of Enlad and south of the North Reach. The main city is Neshum in the east; the Court of the Terrenon is located on the Keksemt Moors in the interior. Other features include the Mountains of Os and the Gut of Osskil, the sea channel between the arms of the Y. Language spoken is Osskili not Hardic
Sources: Hunted, WoE; The Hawk's Flight, WoE
'"There are happenings here not dealt with by the loremasters of the South, and things here not named in the Namers' lists."'
[The Hawk's Flight, WoE]
Otrad
Also known as: Eskel
Islet off the east coast of Way, in the east of the Archipelago; sometimes known as Eskel. One of the nearest islands to the East Reach
Outer Innran
Tiny islet south of Way, near Perilane, in the east of the Archipelago; one of the nearest islands to the East Reach
Paln
Large island in the west of the Archipelago, immediately south of Semel; over 300 miles from Havnor City and separated from Havnor by the Pelnish Sea. The north is mountainous and wild; the only town mentioned is Ferao. The inhabitants speak accented Hardic (Seppel's accent is described as clipped and singing) and have many words of their own dialect; they have a reputation for uncanniness in the rest of the Archipelago. Ruled by the Lords of Paln, who in ancient times refused fealty to the King of All the Isles. Famous for wizards who do not attend Roke School of Wizardry and are trained in the Lore of Paln, a different tradition from that of Roke. Also said to be great shipbuilders
Sources: Palaces, OW; Dolphin, OW; Rejoining, OW
'…in the mountains of the north part of the island, wild country without farms. Hunters used to go there to hunt mountain sheep and catch falcons to tame…'
[Palaces, OW]
Pelimer
Tiny inhabited island in the easternmost region of the East Reach, three days' southeast of Soders. At the time of The Wizard of Earthsea, its main town has a deranged sorcerer. Hardic is spoken there with a strong accent
'…a small isle humped high above the high grey seas.'
[The Open Sea, WoE]
Pendor
Island to the west of the Archipelago; spoiled by Yevaud, the Dragon of Pendor. In the Dark Years, before Yevaud's arrival, a peaceful, prosperous island, whose lords were then described as 'good men. They remember the kings. They don't seek war or plunder'a, though they send men west hunting dragons for sport. Later, however, they were said to be 'pirates, slave-takers, war-makers, hated by all that dwelt in the southwest parts of Earthsea'b
Sources: The Dragon of Pendor, WoE (b); The Finder, TfE (a)
'Maybe he thought, at first, that on Pendor he had found Morred's Isle, for the city was beautiful and peaceful and the people prosperous.'
[The Finder, TfE]
Perilane
Islet off the southern tip of Way, near Outer Innran, in the east of the Archipelago
Perregal
Small island north-east of Gont, one of the nearest islands in the Archipelago to the Kargad Lands. Under Kargish rule for at least a generation in the time of Maharion
Sources: A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Pody
Small fertile island, south of the Ninety Isles, near Ensmer and Wathort. Major town is the old port of Telio. Linen making is a major industry, with flax-retting houses in the weavers' quarter of Telio. At the time of 'The Finder', the island had been ruled by the lords of Wathort for a century, and was very run down
'It was a sleepy southern island with a pretty old port town, Telio, built of rosy sandstone, and fields and orchards that should have been fertile. But the lords of Wathort had ruled it for a century, taxing and slave taking and wearing the land and people down. The sunny streets of Telio were sad and dirty. People lived in them as in the wilderness, in tents and lean-tos made or scraps, or shelterless.'
[The Finder, TfE]
Reaches
Four groups of islands outside the central Archipelago: the North Reach, East Reach (which excludes the Kargad Lands), South Reach and West Reach. Though nominally subject to the King of All the Isles after the restoration of the Archipelagan monarchy, many of the islands in the Reaches are very isolated, with rather different ways of life than in the main Archipelago. As is commonly said, 'Rules change in the Reaches.'a
Sources: Iffish, WoE (a)
Risk
Islet in the easterly West Reach, near Usidero
Rogm
See Rogmy
Rogmy
Also known as: Rogm
Medium-sized island north of Osskil in the west of the North Reach, near Borth and Udrath. Osskili is probably the language spoken there
Sources: A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Roke
Also known as: Isle of the Wise, Isle of the Wizards, Morred's Isle
Island in the Inmost Sea; said to be the heart of Earthsea and the second land raised from the sea. Location of the legendary Morred's Isle. Famous for the School of Wizardry, it is governed by the Archmage. Main town is Thwil on Thwil Bay in the south east, which is the only harbour; other named features include Roke Knoll, the Immanent Grove, Thwilburn and the Isolate Tower. The island is partly farmed, partly oak wooded, with green hills, heaths, pastures and granite cliffs
Sources: The School for Wizards, WoE; The Finder, TfE
Rolameny
Also known as: Rolomeny
Medium-sized island in the southwestern East Reach, south of Kopp and west of Soders
Sources: The Open Sea, WoE
Rood
Medium-sized island in the South Reach, near Lorbanery and Toom
Sources: The Open Sea, WoE
Sand Isles
See Isles of Sand
Sattins
Small island in the northern East Reach, near Vemish and Yor. It has farm land with sheep and cows, pine woods and a high green hill with a cave. The main town has an inn; the main harbour is Sattins Harbor; other named features include West Shore, East Creek and Long Banks
Sources: The Rule of Names, W12Q
Selidor
Also known as: the Farthest Isle
Desolate westernmost isle of the Archipelago, around a thousand miles from the Inmost Sea, in the West Reach. Uninhabited, largely without birds or animals. A fairly large island, the south coast has dunes, and reedy marshes and lagoons, with low hills towards the interior. 'As long ago as for ever, as far away as Selidor'a is the Archipelagan equivalent of 'once upon a time'
Sources: Selidor, FS; The Stone of Pain, FS; Finding Words, T (a)
Sellets
Also known as: The Sellets
Group of three islets off the south coast of Soders in the East Reach
Semel
Medium-sized island in the north west of the Archipelago, near Paln and Havnor. Forested, with cattle and sheep farming. Landscape dominated by the volcano Andanden, with a high marshy grassy plain, the High Marsh, formed by ash deposition during the last eruption. Southern coast is most populated; major towns include Oraby
'The island of Semel lies north and west across the Pelnish Sea from Havnor, south and west of the Enlades. Though it is one of the great isles of the Earthsea Archipelago, there aren't many stories from Semel. Enlad has its glorious history, and Havnor its wealth, and Paln its ill repute, but Semel has only cattle and sheep, forests and little towns, and the great silent volcano called Andanden standing over all.'
[On the High Marsh, TfE]
Seppish
Northernmost islet of the Ninety Isles, lying southeast of Paln and Eppaln, just south of the Pelnish Sea
'West of Roke in a crowd between the two great lands Hosk and Ensmer lie the Ninety Isles. The nearest to Roke is Serd, and the farthest is Seppish, which lies almost in the Pelnish Sea;'
[The Dragon of Pendor, WoE]
Serd
Islet at the southern end of the Ninety Isles near Pody, in the Inmost Sea; the nearest of those isles to Roke, which lies thirty miles away. Described as thriving, its main port is Serd Inner Port
Sources: The Dragon of Pendor, WoE; Hunted, WoE
'West of Roke in a crowd between the two great lands Hosk and Ensmer lie the Ninety Isles. The nearest to Roke is Serd…'
[The Dragon of Pendor, WoE]
Set
Tiny islet near Misk and Dunnel, at the northeastern edge of the South Reach
Simly
Medium-sized, inhabited island in the southerly end of the West Reach, lying near Kaltuel, north-east of Jessage and west of Ensmer; grain is grown there
Sources: Palaces, OW
Sneg
Small island in the East Reach, near Koppish
Sources: The School for Wizards, WoE; The Open Sea, WoE
Soders
Small, hilly inhabited island in the East Reach, a hundred miles south of Iffish; it has a port
Sources: The Open Sea, WoE
Soléa
Northern island in the Sea of Éa known for its orchards; engulfed in the sea by the spell of the Enemy of Morred one or two thousand years ago, drowning everyone on it, including Elfarran
Sources: The Open Sea, WoE; Hort Town, FS; A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Sorresk
Small island off the west coast of Osskil, near Norst and Ebosskil; it lies on the northwestern edge of the Archipelago, facing the Open Sea
Sort
Islet in the eastern North Reach, northeast of the Allernots, near Komokome and Chemish
South Enwas
See Enwas
South Reach
Group of islands lying south and southwest of Wathort, described as 'the place least known and fullest of mysteries' in all of Earthseaa. They include the Isle of the Ear & the Great South Shoals in the east; Wasny, Misk, Dunnel & Set in the northeast; Toom, Rood, Lorbanery, Far Sorr & the Isles of Sand in the south; and Obehol, Wellology & the Long Dune in the southwest, near the West Reach. The climate here is generally warmer than in the rest of Earthsea. Slavery is practised in parts of the South Reach
Sources: Sea Dreams, FS (a); The Open Sea, WoE; The Madman, FS
'"A strange part of the world, where the fish fly, and the dolphins sing, they say."'
[Sea Dreams, FS]
South Teeth
See Teeth
Sowl
Small island in the South Reach east of Wathort and near Namien; exports gauze fabric to Hort Town, and also markets slaves
Sources: Hort Town, FS; Dolphin, OW
Spevy
A small island between Gont and the Kargad Lands. Taken by the Kargs around a year before the start of A Wizard of Earthsea; the land was looted and laid waste, and the people taken into slavery. Previously under Kargish rule for at least a generation in the time of Maharion
Sources: Warriors in the Mist, WoE; A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Springwater Isle
Rocky sand bar near Karego-At on which Ensar and Anthil, the last descendants of the House of Hupun, were stranded. The isle was named for the spring of freshwater that Ged charmed
Sources: Hunting, WoE
Sudidi, North
See North Sudidi
Taon
Titles: Isle of the Harpers
Small island in southern part of the Sea of Éa, near where Soléa formerly was found; less than 100 miles from the island of Semel. Ruled by the Prince of Éa. Main city is Meoni; other habitations include the market town of Elini. Known for singers, schools of music and the making of fine harps, such as the one owned by Vetch
Sources: Iffish, WoE; Mending the Green Pitcher, OW
'Taon is at the southern end of the Sea of Éa, not far from where Soléa lay before the sea whelmed it. That was the ancient heart of Earthsea. All those islands had states and cities, kings and wizards, when Havnor was a land of feuding tribesmen and Gont a wilderness ruled by bears. People born on Éa or Ebéa, Enlad or Taon, though they may be ditchdigger's daughter or witch's son, consider themselves to be descendants of the Elder Mages, sharing the lineage of the warriors who died in the dark years for Queen Elfarran.'
[Mending the Green Pitcher, OW]
Teeth
Also known as: North Teeth, South Teeth
Two strings of islets, the North & South Teeth, line the Jaws of Enlad. They run east--west, from the east of Enlad towards Andrad and the Andrades
Tesk
Islet at the northern end of the Ninety Isles, near Hosk
Sources: The Dragon of Pendor, WoE
Tok
Small island in the East Reach, near Iffish, Holp and Insmer
Sources: Iffish, WoE; Afterword, WoE
Toom
Medium-sized island in the South Reach, near Rood
Sources: The Open Sea, WoE
Toop
Northern islet off the south coast of Osskil, near Ebosskil, Enlad and the Enlades
Torheven
Moderately large island in the Gontish Sea to the north-east of Havnor, near Barnisk, Way and Gont, and relatively close to Karego-At; the Torikles lie off its southern end. Under Kargish rule for at least a generation in the time of Maharion
Sources: A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Torikles
Cluster of small islands south of Torheven; among the closest of the Archipelago to Karego-At. Under Kargish rule for at least a generation in the time of Maharion
Sources: A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Toringates
String of tiny inhabited islands running north--south in the West Reach, east of the Dragons' Run. Has farms
Sources: Palaces, OW
Torning
Islet at the northern end of the Ninety Isles, near Hosk; possibly one of the islets of the Low Torning township
Udrath
Medium-sized, deserted island in the North Reach, near Bereswek, Rogmy and Lef. Has the bones of an unnamed dragon
Sources: The Rule of Names, W12Q
Ully
Small inhabited island in the West Reach, west of Paln and east of the Dragons' Run. Has farms and villages
Sources: Palaces, OW
Uny
Small island in the southeast of the Archipelago, near Namien; it lies southeast of O and south of the Bars of Uny in the Closed Sea
Usidero
Small inhabited island in the West Reach, west of Paln and east of the Dragons' Run. Has farms and villages
Sources: Palaces, OW
Vemish
Small island in the northern East Reach, near Sattins and Venway; port town is Mishport
Sources: Iffish, WoE
Venway
Small island in the East Reach, near Vemish. Under Kargish rule for at least a generation in the time of Maharion. Exports glass beads
Sources: The Rule of Names, W12Q; The School for Wizards, WoE; A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Vissti
Tiny island in the Inmost Sea, between Ilien and Kamery
Sources: The Finder, TfE
Wasny
Small island south of Dunnel, at the northeastern edge of the South Reach
Wathort
Island south of Roke, in the south of the Archipelago; main city is Hort Town. The southern part of the island is hilly
Sources: The Rowan Tree, FS; Hort Town, FS
Way
Large, wealthy island east of Havnor, with sheep and dairy farming, vineyards, orchards, oak forests and mountains. Towns/regions include Shelieth of the Fountains, the capital in the south, the port city of Kembermouth in the north west, Westpool, Wayfirth and the domain of Iria. Its inhabitants are dark-skinned. One of the principalities of the kingship, tracing the line of descent from Akambar and the House of Shelieth
Sources: The Masters of Roke, FS; Dragonfly, TfE
Waymarsh
Islet off the southeast coast of Way, in the east of the Archipelago; one of the nearest islands to the East Reach. Site of a decisive defeat of the Kargs by Maharion & Erreth-Akbe in around 440
Sources: A Description of Earthsea, TfE
Wellology
Also known as: Welwai
Island on the west of the South Reach adjacent to the Long Dune. Called Welwai by the Children of the Open Sea (raft people)
Sources: The Madman, FS; The Children of the Open Sea, FS
Welwai
See Wellology
West Hand
See Hands
West Reach
Also known as: Western Reach
Large, scattered group of islands to the west of the Archipelago, including Selidor, the Gate of Selidor & the Dragons' Run in the far west; Hille, Derhemen, Narveduen & Onon to the north; Ingat, Risk, Ully, Usidero, Ettil, Ontuego & the Toringates to the west of Paln; Simly, Kaltuel, Near Kaltuel, Arrins & Faltuel to the west of Ensmer; and Obb & Jessage to the south, near the South Reach. The middle of the West Reach lies around seven hundred miles west of Roke; the remote westernmost isles are the home of dragons
Sources: Orm Embar, FS; The Dragons' Run, FS; Selidor, FS; The Stone of Pain, FS; Palaces, OW
Western Isles
See Archipelago
Whale Isles
A group of three small islands in the far north of the North Reach, north of North Enwas
Yor
Small island in the northern East Reach, near Sattins
| WoE | A Wizard of Earthsea |
| ToA | The Tombs of Atuan |
| FS | The Farthest Shore |
| T | Tehanu |
| OW | The Other Wind |
| W12Q | The Wind's Twelve Quarters |
| TfE | Tales from Earthsea |
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