J.R.R. Tolkien gives the name Númenor to the great island kingdom west of Middle-earth.
Númenor was a kingdom of Men created in the Second Age. The Valar raised the island from the sea and gave it to the Edain who had fought alongside the Elves during the wars of the First Age. Its people became renowned for their longevity, seafaring, strength, and learning.
The island’s history eventually turns tragic. Númenórean kings became increasingly jealous of the immortality associated with the Elves and sought to escape death. Under Ar-Pharazôn, the kingdom challenged the divine order and was destroyed in a cataclysm. Survivors Elendil and his sons founded realms in Middle-earth, including Gondor and Arnor.
Númenor is often confused with Valinor, the land of the Valar, or Beleriand, a region of the First Age. Tolkien also called Númenor Anadûnê in Adûnaic and Westernesse in some English renderings.