Tag archives: The Hobbit

A definition of ‘hobbit’ for the OED

In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. . . What’s a hobbit and how did J.R.R. Tolkien come by this word? Was it invented, adapted, or stolen? To celebrate the release of The Hobbit film and renewed interest in J.R.R Tolkien‘s work, we’ve excerpted this passage from The Ring of Words: Tolkien [...]

Posted on: January 7 2013 | Comments: 2 | Categories: English in use, Word origins | Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Tolkien’s etymologies

I’m tremendously excited about the film version of J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit that’s coming out in the UK this week. As a child, my favourite film was the 1978 animated version of The Lord of the Rings by Ralph Bakshi. When I say it was my favourite, I suppose I mean that it [...]

Posted on: December 20 2012 | Posted by: | Comments: 3 | Categories: Competitions and quizzes, Word origins | Tags: , , , , , ,

The Hobbit: Tolkien’s Old English fairy tale

As Peter Jackson celebrates his birthday this week many Tolkien fans across the world are eagerly awaiting the release of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, due to hit the cinemas in December. To many, The Hobbit is the clumsier younger brother of The Lord of the Rings, less epic and with a Middle Earth that [...]

Posted on: October 31 2012 | Posted by: | Comments: 1 | Categories: English in use | Tags: , , , , , ,