It is stated in Morgoth's Ring (238) that Finwë had one son by his first wife Míriel (Fëanor) and two sons and three daughters by his second wife Indis. These daughters have never figured in the histories of Middle-earth, and it is not documented who their descendants (if any) were and what part they played in the War of the Jewels. I will comment on these later.

It is clear from Tolkien's works that the House of Fëanor consisted of his seven sons and at least one grandchild. It is not inconceivable that there were other descendants. ICE have created a nephew for Celebrimbor: Finculin (thereby implying that Curufin had at least one more child). Celebrimbor seems to have been born in Beleriand, having lived in Nargothrond before its fall, and remained there even after his father's departure. Curufin was apparently among the cruelest of Fëanor's descendants. This may imply that he had an unfortunate character. Celegorm and Caranthir seem to have had equally unfortunate dispositions (their names meaning, respectively, "The Crafty" and "The Dark").

It is noted in Morgoth's Ring (210) that the natural state of affairs for Elves was to marry while fairly young. Fëanor's other four sons seem to have been much more personable and inherited less of their father's darker side. It is interesting that no other descendants of Fëanor are mentioned in The Silmarillion as having sworn the oath, but this may simply be that they were not fated to play significant roles within the war against Morgoth. Fëanor seems to have married fairly quickly after reaching his majority (50 Valian years). There was apparently a fairly short time between the wedding and the first childbirth, with a longer period between the first and second (MR: 212). Given that Fëanor had the largest number of children recorded among the Eldar, it is probably safe to believe that a few of these were born fairly soon after his marriage.

If I assume that Fëanor married in his 60^th year and had his first child (Maedhros) after 5 years, then there would be approximately 251 Valian years left until his exile from Valinor. This would be ample time for the elder two of Fëanor's sons (by all accounts, the better among them) to marry and have children. Given the fact that marriage was a natural condition for Elves, this does not seem an unreasonable proposition, especially since the other younger grandsons of Finwë had begun to have children, at least towards the end of the time in Valinor (e.g., Turgon and possibly Orodreth).

It is quite probable that any other descendants of Fëanor would have suffered heavy losses during the war against Morgoth. An indication of this may be found in the course of events surrounding the founding of Eregion. Initially, these Noldorin Elves were led by Galadriel and Celeborn. The rule of Eregion was subsequently usurped by Celebrimbor. I would contend that this may mean that a majority of the Noldor had been0 followers of Fëanor—those of Fingolfin's and Finrod's followers may have chosen to remain in Lindon with the high king, Gil-galad. There may have been sufficient tension remaining among the Noldor (following the assault on the mouths of Sirion and in spite the pardon of the Valar) to cause Galadriel to lead away many followers of Fëanor. If a senior member of the House of Fëanor remained with the Noldor of Eregion, they surely would have claimed seniority over Celebrimbor. Furthermore, given the taint upon their house, any descendent of Fëanor might be particularly reluctant to return to Valinor to face those who suffered on account of their actions. (This would also apply to those who followed Fëanor.)

The descendants of Fingolfin were the high kings in exile. Ereinion (Gil-galad), born eighteen years before his death, may not have been Fingon's only child but does appear to have been his only son. Any elder daughter would appear to have perished in the wars, chosen not to journey to Beleriand (unlikely) or accepted the pardon of the Valar. The same could be said of any younger children. Turgon's only child was his daughter Idril. His wife perished in the journey across the Helcaraxë, and it is stated that he had no other children (WotJ: 323). Aredhel had only one child, Maeglin, and he perished during the fall of Gondolin. Aredhel is elsewhere referred to as the eldest daughter of Fingolfin, but no other children of Fingolfin are mentioned. It is stated that Galadriel could have claimed the high kingship of the Noldor after the fall of Gil-galad, thus implying that no other descendants of Fingolfin remained.

The descendants of Finarfin became known as the House of Finrod while in exile. Finrod never produced any children (Sil: 156); his beloved, Amárië of the Vanyar, did not go into exile. Orodreth is listed as the second son of Finarfin, but it is mentioned by Christopher Tolkien that his father was not clear whether Orodreth should be moved to the next generation of the same house. (I have not seen any such comment, and so cannot pursue this further.) Orodreth had at least one child, a daughter Finduilas, although she may not have been his only child. In The Shaping of Middle-earth (213, 312, 323), Tolkien lists Orodreth as having had two sons: Ordhelm and Ordláf (213). In another version, only a single son is named: Halmir, who was "hung to a tree by Orcs" (312; note 49). It may be that the option of two sons was eventually rejected in favor of a daughter, Finduilas, who came to assume Halmir's fate.

Angrod and Aegnor are given fairly limited attention in The Silmarillion and other writings. ICE's Arnor modules detail Ellindiel Orgalad as a grand-daughter of Angrod, and his only remaining descendent (in Middle-earth at least). Aegnor was enamored not of an Elf, but of Andreth, a woman of the House of Bëor (MR: 323-324). He chose not to pursue this love and so had no children. Celebrían is the only recorded offspring of Galadriel, though Amroth of Lórien was initially considered (but rejected) as her son.

The fact that Galadriel could have claimed the rule of the Noldor but chose not to would seem to preclude further descendants of the other members of the House of Finrod. However, the method of succession may not have been straightforward. Fingon, for instance, was succeeded by his brother Turgon—not by Gil-galad, his son. (This may have been because Gil-galad had not reached his majority; yet Gil-galad would surely have been a suitable choice as king, since he would have been able to coordinate military campaigns and rally his people in a way that Turgon could not.) Thus, if the succession passed to the eldest member of the house, it would not be impossible for Orodreth to have had surviving children who remained in Middle-earth.

I am particularly fond of this idea because of the existence of Glorfindel, described as "one of the mighty of the First-born....an Elf-lord of a house of princes (LotR I: 235);" and of Gildor, a Noldo of Imladris who addresses himself as "Gildor Inglorion of the House of Finrod (ibid.: 89)." Finarfin's birth name was Ingalaurë, since he shared the golden hair of his mother, which continued with his descendants. The implication is that Glorfindel was a descendant of Finarfin. It would seem that Glorfindel, if not Gildor also, were scions of Orodreth or Angrod.

The use of the term "House" is the only possible point of contention, since it may refer to a direct descendent or a close follower. I would suggest it refers to a direct descendent, since Tolkien states that "their families, or houses, were held together by love and a deep feeling for kinship in mind and body (MR: 210)." This would imply that "House" may refer to a tie of blood. However, in The Silmarillion, Voronwë son of Aranwë describes himself as a member of the house of Fingolfin. Assuming he is not descended from Finarfin, the term may perhaps be used for both purposes. Another possibility would be that individuals descended from Finwë's daughters attached themselves to the houses of Finwë's two sons. The House of Fingolfin should probably command the loyalty of anyone not descended from Finarfin, since this became the line of kings in exile. Descendants of the three daughters would surely be considered princes and princesses, thus it is not inconceivable for Voronwë, Gildor and Glorfindel were descended from Finwë's daughters, thus attaching themselves to the lines of Fingolfin and Finarfin. Of Finwë's daughters, it is possible that Finvain accompanied the exiles to Middle-earth (MR: 265).

I turn now to Noldorin characters generated for the MERP series. As mentioned earlier, Celebrimbor was considered to have a nephew, Finculin. It is suggested that Finculin had relatives in the House of Finrod (which, as I have pointed out, is quite possible). Also in the Lórien module, two members of the House of Fingolfin are listed: Danil and Daniros. It should be obvious that these cannot be descended from Fingolfin, but again they may be related to his sisters. Some of the characters from the Court of Ardor module are also stated as being of the House of Finrod: Cambragol and the twin Fëanturi. Chrys and Laurrë Menelrana are detailed as being of the line of Finrod. I would interpret this to mean they are direct descendants of Finrod. Based on my previous discussion, I would argue that this is not possible.

One thing I am rather surprised about is that Gil-galad perished without issue. Given the fact that he lived in Middle-earth for over 3,500 years, it would seem rather unusual that he had no queen or children. However, it is mentioned in Morgoth's Ring (210) that Elves marry only once (Finwë being an exception) and that spouses were chosen fairly early in life. Obviously, the nature of the exile could seriously affect this ideal situation. The period after the defeat of Morgoth allowed those who wearied of Middle-earth to return to Valinor. It would mean that those who were betrothed or married could find themselves separated. The Eldar, as the Númenóreans after them, would not bring forth children if there was the possibility of separation. It is possible that Gil-galad may indeed have had a wife and children. Their fate may have been to journey over the sea before the end of the Second Age, or the king's children may have perished in the war against Sauron (although an event this important would surely have warranted some sort of comment).

The wars against Sauron (like their First Age counterparts) would have seriously depleted the ranks of the Noldorin princes and princesses, as indeed would the option to return to Valinor. It is not really surprising that by the time of the War of the Ring, or indeed the middle of the Third Age, only a handful remained.