Where is Wheel of Time actually set?

[Vince Black]

Hi all,

Just started the series, up to the end of the third book. Its great and im hooked, but where is the world actually set? Lord of the rings is set in middle earth etc. how about rand and friends?

Thanks

[Barid Bel Medar]

It is set on Earth. The premise of the 'Wheel' is that 7 Ages are repeated (not exactly the same, but in a general pattern) like a wheel turning. The 3rd Age - the age in the books - is one age of the Earth. Our own time is considered an age when channelling and magic etc.. doesn't exist. You may have noticed in the first book, Thom tells stories of 'the Age before the Age of Legends' which references historical nations and people from our own time. 

 

So the idea is that right now, we are in the First Age, and the Third Age tens of thousands of years in our future, and past (as the wheel has no beginnings or endings :))

 

I suspect you didn't so much care about that than you wanted a name for the land. Unfortunately, they don't have a name for it. They name regions by their nations etc.. but they don't have a name for the entire world. 

 

Fans have called it Randland and probably the most accurate one you could get is the Westlands. 

[Vince Black]

Thom tells stories of 'the Age before the Age of Legends' which references historical nations and people from our own time.

 

Wow! I missed that. Thats clever. What did he reference exactly?

[Barid Bel Medar]

A number of references occur in The Eye of the World, Chapter 4:

• Queen Elizabeth: "Alsbet, queen of all" (changed to Elsbet in later editions)
• Ann Landers: "The Thousand Tales of Anla, the Wise Counselor"
• Mother Theresa: "Materese the Healer"
• John Glenn, The Eagle, Sally Ride or Salyut: "Tell us about Lenn," Egwene called. "How he flew to the moon in the belly of an eagle made of fire. Tell about his daughter Salya walking among the stars."

Other things appear throughout the books, but that is later. 

[Vince Black]

Totally missed those references! Thats great

[jack of shadows]

"did mosk and merk really fight with spears of fire?and were they even giants?"

[mb]

to jack; I think that question is in a later book.

 

to vince; several other references come up in later books.

a number of them in Shadow Rising; a discussion between Thom and Elayne.

[Guest]

 

oh and at some point, someone goes to rhuidean (Tanchico) and finds something that made me think of the mercedes sign lol (Barid: It actually was a Mercedes badge according to RJ so you were right on :P)

 

 

*tries not to spoil*

[mb]

the spoiler function is good at hiding spoilers.

[ spoiler ] at the beginning without the spaces.

[ / spoiler ] at the end without the spaces.

looks like this::

 

 

 

[Vince Black]

Lol thanks guys for the spoiler alerts!

Back to the books!