The Tolkien Meta-FAQ Compiled from the Usenet newsgroups by Steuard Jensen

The Tolkien Meta-FAQ is a unified index to several major lists of Frequently Asked Questions about J.R.R. Tolkien and his "subcreated" world of Middle-earth, all based on scholarship from the Tolkien newsgroups on Usenet.

Table of Contents

Guide to the Tolkien Meta-FAQ

Each of the questions below is discussed in one or more of the source documents.

Questions discussed in multiple FAQs have answers listed in recommended reading order.

Questions in bold are more "important" than others.

Answers in [square brackets] link to other websites.

Answers in (parentheses) have been entirely superseded.

Newcomers to the Tolkien Newsgroups

Feel free to skip questions not in bold on your first reading.

Make sure to read the introduction to Newsgroups and Netiquette.

Very Frequently Asked Questions

What book should I read first? What overall order is best? What was Tom Bombadil? Did Balrogs have wings? Could they fly? Did Elves have pointed ears?

Story External Questions

Who was J.R.R. Tolkien? Who was J.R.R. Tolkien anyway? Was Tolkien racist? Were his works? Why did Tolkien fail to publish The Silmarillion during the eighteen years which followed the publication of The Lord of the Rings ? Why is Tolkien's work, The Lord of the Rings in particular, so difficult to translate (into other languages of our world)?

Finding the Right Book for You What books about Middle-earth are considered "canonical"? What is the best order in which to read the books? Where can I find a full list of Tolkien's Middle-earth writings? What editions of Tolkien's books are best? Which books about Tolkien are good, and which aren't? What audio versions of Tolkien's works are available? Are there electronic versions of Tolkien's books? Where can I report copyright violations that I observe?

The Setting of the Books Is Middle-earth Medieval? Did the events in The Lord of the Rings take place on another planet or what? Was the northwest of Middle-earth, where the story takes place, meant to actually be Europe? Was the Shire meant to be England?

The Writing of the Books What were the changes made to The Hobbit after The Lord of the Rings was written, and what motivated them? Was there a change of tone between Book I and the rest of The Lord of the Rings ? What does it mean when people (or Tolkien himself) speak of him as having been the "editor" of The Lord of the Rings ? How thoroughly realized was Tolkien's fiction that he was the "translator" of The Lord of the Rings ? Why is Tolkien's work, The Lord of the Rings in particular, so difficult to translate (into other languages of our world)? Why did Tolkien fail to publish The Silmarillion during the eighteen years which followed the publication of The Lord of the Rings ? How does The Silmarillion as published differ from what Tolkien intended? [Many questions about getting the books published.] [Story external questions about The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings .] [Story external questions about the greater Legendarium.]

Adaptations of Tolkien's Stories What is the groups' view of the recent Lord of the Rings movies? What audio versions of Tolkien's works are available? Where can I find out about music related to Middle-earth? Why is Tolkien's work, The Lord of the Rings in particular, so difficult to translate (into other languages of our world)? [Several questions about Tolkien's thoughts on interpretations of his work.]

Tolkien's Languages Where can I learn more about Tolkien's languages? Where can I find fonts for Tolkien's writing systems? Were the languages presented in The Lord of the Rings real languages? [Several questions on Tolkien's languages and invented names.]

Miscellaneous Story External Questions Which are "The Two Towers"? Are there electronic versions of Tolkien's books? What audio versions of Tolkien's works are available? Where can I report copyright violations that I observe? In The Hobbit , Bilbo called the spiders Attercop, Lazy Lob, Crazy Cob, and Old Tomnoddy. What do the words mean? How did the One Ring compare to Wagner's Ring of the Nibelung? When was Bilbo and Frodo's Birthday? To what date on our own calendar does it correspond?

Story Internal Questions

Specific Characters See also the section on Eventual Fates of Races and Characters What was Tom Bombadil? Was Glorfindel of Rivendell the same as Glorfindel of Gondolin? Who was Gil-galad's father? Gandalf bore the Ring of Fire. Is that how he made his fireworks? What happened to Radagast? What is known about the Blue Wizards? When was Bilbo and Frodo's Birthday? To what date on our own calendar does it correspond? Was Gollum a hobbit? Who was Queen Beruthiel (who was mentioned by Aragorn during the journey through Moria)? Did Sauron have a physical form during LotR? Was Sauron visible when wearing the Ring? In the Third Age, having lost the Ring, why wasn't Sauron weaker than before he had made it? Who killed the Witch-king, Merry or Eowyn? What were the names of the Nazgul? What was Gothmog (the lieutenant of Morgul)? What are the names of the Balrogs? [Several questions about characters in Middle-earth]

Natures and Origins of the Races Were Hobbits a sub-group of Humans? Where did the Southrons come from? Were they part of the Atani? What were the origins of the Dwarves? If, as has been told, only Seven Fathers of the Dwarves were created, how did the race procreate? Who were the Istari (Wizards)? What was the origin of Orcs? How did Orcs reproduce? Were there female Orcs? What was the relationship between Orcs and Goblins? What was the origin of Saruman's Uruk-hai? What was the origin of Trolls? What were the giants (seen by Bilbo in The Hobbit )? What IS a Balrog? How many Balrogs were there? [Several questions on the nature of races in Middle-earth]

Eventual Fates of Races and Characters What happened to Elves after they died? What became of the Entwives? Did Sam follow Frodo into the West? Did Frodo and the other mortals who passed over the Sea eventually die, or had they become immortal? What happened to Radagast? What is known about the Blue Wizards? Were Orcs immortal, and what happened to them after death? [Several questions about the nature of beings in the mythology]

Creatures' Characteristics Did Elves have pointed ears? Did Elves have beards? Did Hobbits have pointed ears? Did Dwarf women have beards? Was there "telepathy" in Middle-earth? Did Sauron have a physical form during LotR? Did Balrogs have wings? Could Balrogs fly? Can Balrogs change their shapes? Could Balrogs speak? And why would we even ask such a question?

LotR Events and History (roughly chronological) [Many questions about LotR story elements] Did Elves and Dwarves generally get along? Who was aware that a Balrog lived in Moria? Was the Balrog of Moria under Sauron's command? When was Bilbo and Frodo's Birthday? To what date on our own calendar does it correspond? Were the Nazgul wearing their Rings at the time of The Lord of the Rings ? How could Sauron trust the Nazgul not to claim the Ring? When he sent the Nazgul after Frodo, wasn't Sauron afraid someone would use the Ring against them? Why didn't the Nazgul take the Ring at Weathertop? Why didn't Saruman take Gandalf's Ring from him? In Rivendell, who put Frodo's Ring on a chain? Why didn't they just have an Eagle fly the Ring to Mt. Doom? Who killed the Witch-king, Merry or Eowyn? When Frodo put on the Ring at the Cracks of Doom, could Gollum see him? What would have happened when Frodo claimed the Ring if Gollum hadn't interfered? Who could have beat Sauron by using the Ring? Why didn't Gollum and Bilbo die when they lost the Ring? What ultimately happened to the Seven and the Nine Rings? What ultimately happened to the Three Rings? Did Sam follow Frodo into the West? Did Frodo and the other mortals who passed over the Sea eventually die, or had they become immortal?

Earlier Events and History (roughly chronological) Who was the oldest inhabitant of Middle-earth? How were Eldar in Valinor named? What is the etymology of 'balrog'? What is its plural form? Did Elves and Dwarves generally get along? Who was Gil-galad's father? Where did the Southrons come from? Were they part of the Atani? What exactly happened at the end of the First Age? Who made the Rings, and when? Were the Seven and Nine Rings originally intended for Dwarves and Men? Who bore the One Ring, and when? When did the Nazgul arise? How could Ar-Pharazon of Numenor defeat Sauron while Sauron wielded the One Ring? Where was the Ring when Numenor was destroyed? What happened to it? So why didn't Ar-Pharazon take the Ring away from Sauron? What brought on the sinking of Numenor? In terms of the larger worldview, what exactly took place at the Fall of Numenor? What became of the Entwives? What is known about the Blue Wizards? Why hadn't Gollum turned into a wraith long ago?

Objects of Interest [Note that the FAQ of the Rings sorts questions by Ring rather than by topic, which may be more convenient for some searches.] Were the barrow blades magical? In what way? Who made the Rings, and when? How many Rings were there? Why would Sauron make himself vulnerable by transferring his power to the One Ring? Why wasn't Sauron much weaker in the Third Age, since he didn't have the Ring? Who inscribed the verse in the One Ring? What were the names of the Three Rings, and what were they made of? The Elves were good so the Three Rings were good, right? Why didn't Sauron make more Rings? Were the Rings originally intended for Dwarves and Men? What was Saruman's ring? Could the One Ring think, feel, and make choices? Did the One Ring speak on Mount Doom? What were the powers of the Rings? Did the Rings give the ability to read minds? What were the special powers of the One Ring? How did Sauron's Ring control Rings that were created earlier? What special powers did the Three Rings have? How did the Seven and the Nine differ? What if an Elf or Wizard had put on one of the Seven or the Nine? Did the Dwarves' Rings make them wealthy? [A full list of RingFAQ questions about invisibility.] Why did the Rings make their wearers invisible? Who could see an invisible Ring-wearer? Why were Frodo's and Bilbo's clothes invisible while they wore the Ring? Then why were the Black Riders' clothes visible? Did the Dwarves' Rings make them invisible? Would the Dwarves' Rings make a Man invisible? Why isn't Galadriel invisible, since she wears a Great Ring? Was Sauron visible when wearing the Ring? Who bore the One Ring, and when? Who bore the Three Rings? Were the Nazgul wearing their Rings at the time of The Lord of the Rings ? Why didn't Sauron use the same Nine Rings to make more Nazgul? Why hadn't Gollum turned into a wraith long ago? Then why didn't Gollum and Bilbo die when they lost the Ring? Gandalf bore the Ring of Fire. Is that how he made his fireworks?

If you have not found what you are looking for here, consider reading over the full list of questions in The Letters FAQ by Mike Brinza: it has not been possible to include all of its questions or even all of its general sections in this list. You might also consider looking at the links on my Tolkien FAQs and Information page. If none of those are helpful, then feel free to visit the Tolkien newsgroups on Usenet: rec.arts.books.tolkien and alt.fan.tolkien and ask us! (Or, just search through our old discussions using the Google Groups archive.)