Elves in Middle-earth
The Elves are one of the races that appear in the work of J. R. R. Tolkien. Their complex history is described in full only in The Silmarillion, and it is mentioned tangentially in The Lord of the Rings. Elves were the first inhabitants of Middle Earth that were able to speak. They are sometimes called the Firstborn (as opposed to Men the Secondborn). Other names the Elves had for themselves are Quendi ("the speakers") and Eldar ("star folk").
Elves are described as the fairest of all creatures in Middle Earth, lovers of art (particularly songs which they sing in beautiful voices). The Elves are also stronger that Men and have far sharper senses, enabling them to communicate and be in harmony with nature. Unlike Men, Elves possess natural magic. Their memories and dreams are as vivid as real life.
Tolkien saw Elves as human beings prior to the original sin; while this made them perfect (it is specifically told that not a single Elf joined Morgoth or Sauron the Enemies), it also made them less able than the mortal Men, that appeared after them. By the Third Age (the time of The Lord of the Rings), the importance of Elves in affairs of the world is diminishing, and only a few of them are left in Rivendell, Lothlorien, and the Mirkwood. Many of them can be seen walking west, towards the elf havens to leave Middle Earth forever, and those who stay in the meanwhile know that it is their fate to "diminish and go West".
Some important elves