Hobbit

Hobbits are a race from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth universe which first appears in the book The Hobbit. They also play a major role in The Lord of the Rings.

Etymology

Hobbits are also called Halflings (in Sindarin, perian singular and periannath collective) due to their small stature. However, the term is slightly offensive to Hobbits, as to themselves they are not 'half' of anything, and certainly do not use the term to refer to themselves. Tolkien's etymology for 'Hobbit' is interesting as well: obviously constructed without prior intent, it would have been natural for him to connect it to the German prefix hob meaning small (e.g. hobgoblin). However this prefix dates back "only" to the 13th century, too late by Tolkien's standards, and so he constructed an alternative etymology, from Old English hol-bytla, "hole-dweller".

Related Topics:
Halflings - Sindarin - 13th century - Old English

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When later he began to work out the language relations further, Hobbit was to be derived from the Rohirric (actually Anglo-Saxon - which Rohirric parallels in Tolkien's universe) Holbytlan (hole builders). In the original Westron, the name was Kuduk (Hobbit), derived from the actual Rohirric kûd-dûkan (hole dweller).

Related Topics:
Rohirric - Anglo-Saxon - Westron

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

According to Tolkien, the word hobbit was the first element of The Hobbit that he created. As a university lecturer, he was in the process of correcting reports when he started scribbling on a piece of paper and wrote, "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit", and the multitude of stories sprang from that. The idea of a little hole dwelling creature was introduced to Tolkien by one of his students in a story he had written.

Related Topics:
The Hobbit - University - Lecturer

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~