The elf maiden who later became known as Lithwen was born some time around the Invasion of Eregion. The exact circumstances around her birth are unknown, as in fact is almost everything around her origins. A group of fleeing Noldor found the ashen-haired elf toddler crying in a burnt down house in a small settlement completely destroyed by the forces of Sauron. There were no other survivors, bodies of elves and cattle and other animals were still lying where they fell and everything was completely charred, as if by dragonfire. The refugees did not have any time to do a proper burial, the danger of the enemy appearing any moment was imminent, so they just grabbed the girl and continued their flight.
When they arrived in in the refuge of Rivendell, they called her Lithwen, for she was found among the ashes of Eregion and because of her hair colour. Later, her hair colour became darker but the name stuck regardless.

The young girl grew in the safety of Imladris, where she learned to read and write in Sindarin, Quenya and other languages, and became a scholar and poet.