Region
Harad
The hot southern lands beyond the Poros, home of the Haradrim and the corsairs of Umbar
The southern edge of the Middle-earth map fades into heat and rumor. Gondor's real frontier is the River Poros, crossed at the Crossings of Poros, and south of it lies Harondor, South Gondor, described as a debatable and desert land that neither Gondor nor the Haradrim could hold. Further south is the great haven of Umbar on its firth, then Near Harad, and beyond that Far Harad, which Tolkien places off the bottom of the standard map. East of Harad and south of Mordor lies Khand, the country of the Variags.
Umbar is the hinge of the whole region. It was a Numenorean harbor from SA 2280, and it was there that Ar-Pharazon landed and took Sauron prisoner. After the Downfall it was held by the Black Numenoreans, enemies of Gondor by inheritance. Gondor captured it in TA 933 and again under Hyarmendacil, lost it, retook it under Telumehtar in TA 1810, and lost it for good during the Kin-strife, when the defeated rebels made it a pirate state. The Corsairs of Umbar raided Gondor's coasts for centuries afterwards. Thorongil, who was Aragorn under another name, burned their fleet in the haven in TA 2980.
The Haradrim themselves appear in the books mostly as armies. They came north with the Wainriders in TA 1944, fought at the Crossings of Poros in TA 2885 where two sons of King Folcwine of Rohan were killed, and in TA 3019 they marched for Sauron in strength. Sam sees a dead Southron in Ithilien and wonders what lies the man was told to bring him so far from home, one of the few moments in the story where an enemy is given an inner life.
On the Pelennor, the Haradrim fight under a black serpent banner. Their chieftain is killed by Theoden, and their mumakil, the huge war-beasts that the hobbits call oliphaunts, break the lines of both sides. At the same battle the Corsair ships come up the Anduin from Pelargir, but Aragorn has already taken them with the Dead. After the war King Elessar made peace with the Haradrim and, according to the appendices, set Gondor's southern boundary back at the Poros.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Harad on the Middle-earth map?
Harad is the whole southern region below Gondor and Mordor. Harondor and Umbar appear on the standard map, and Near Harad and Far Harad continue south beyond its lower edge.
Where is Umbar?
Umbar is a large natural haven on the coast south of the Bay of Belfalas, roughly opposite the mouths of the Anduin. It was a Numenorean port before it became the corsairs' base.
Who are the Haradrim?
The Men of Harad, also called Southrons. They were long under Sauron's influence and fought for him at the Pelennor Fields, bringing cavalry and the war-beasts called mumakil.