Lutetium nitride (LuN), an end member of a new quaternary system Si 3 N 4 -SiO 2 -Lu 2 O 3 -LuN, was synthesized by direct nitridation of a lutetium metal. The nitridation extent of the lutetium ingot (10 × 5 × 2 mm) reached about 97% by heating at 1600°C for 8 h with an applied N 2 pressure of 0.92 MPa; the initial shape of the bulk metal was maintained in the course of nitridation. The resulting nitrided lutetium possessed a moderately low oxygen content (∼0.7 wt%), which enables the preparation of uncharacterized high nitrogen-containing phases in the Lu-Si-O-N system.