The
Valar (singular
Vala) are characters in
J. R. R. Tolkien's
legendarium. They are first mentioned in
The Lord of the Rings, but
The Silmarillion (published posthumously but assembled mostly from material written before
The Lord of the Rings) develops them into the
Powers of Arda or the
Powers of the World. They are angelic powers, the
Ainur that chose to go into the World (
Arda) and complete its material development after its form was determined by the Music of the Ainur (
Ainulindalë).