Post by Vanya Calathiel on Nov 24, 2007 18:27:15 GMT
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Hobbits are a diminutive race that inhabit the lands of Arda.
According to the author, Hobbits are a "variety"[1] or separate "branch"[2] of the race of Men (Homo sapiens), but they consider themselves a separate race. They live in the Shire and in Bree in northwestern Middle-earth.
In the introduction to The Lord of the Rings Tolkien said that Hobbits are between two and four feet (0.6-1.2 m) tall, the average height being three feet six inches (1 m). They tend toward stoutness and have slightly pointed ears.[3] Tolkien himself describes Hobbits thus:
"I picture a fairly human figure, not a kind of fairy rabbit as some of my British reviewers seem to fancy: fattish in the stomach, shortish in the leg. A round, jovial face; ears only slightly pointed and 'elvish'; hair short and curling (brown). The feet from the ankles down, covered with brown hairy fur. Clothing: green velvet breeches; red or yellow waistcoat; brown or green jacket; gold (or brass) buttons; a dark green hood and cloak (belonging to a dwarf)." [4]
Elsewhere he wrote that they dress in bright colours, favouring yellow and green. Nowadays (according to Tolkien's fiction), they are very shy creatures, but they are and have been capable of amazing things. They are adept with slings and throwing stones.
Their feet are covered with curly hair (usually brown, as was the hair on their heads) with leathery soles, so most Hobbits hardly ever wear shoes. They are fond of an unadventurous bucolic life of farming, eating, and socializing. Hobbits can sometimes live for up to 130 years, although their average life expectancy is 100 years. The time at which a young Hobbit "comes of age" is 33. Thus a fifty-year-old Hobbit would only be middle-aged.
Hobbits enjoy at least seven meals a day, not including snacks,[5] when they can get them - breakfast, (arguably) second breakfast, elevenses, luncheon, tea, dinner and later, supper. They like simple food such as bread, meat, potatoes, and cheese, have a passion for mushrooms, and also like to drink ale, often in inns — not unlike the English countryfolk, who were Tolkien's inspiration.
Hobbits also enjoy an ancient variety[6] of tobacco, which they referred to as "pipe-weed", something that can be attributed mostly to their love of gardening and herb-lore. We can also see that in the name Tolkien chose for one part of Middle-earth where the Hobbits live, "the Shire" is clearly reminiscent of the English Shires.
The Hobbits of the Shire developed the custom of giving away gifts on their birthdays instead of receiving them.[7] They use the term mathom for old and assorted objects, which are invariably given as presents many times over or are stored in a museum (mathom-house).
Some Hobbits live in "hobbit-holes", which were the original places where they dwelt underground. They were found in hillsides, downs, and banks. By the late Third Age, they were replaced by brick and wood houses, however, some older style Hobbit-holes are still in use by more established Shirefolk, such as Bag End and Great Smials. Like all Hobbit architecture, they are notable for their round doors and windows, a feature more practical to tunnel-dwelling that the Hobbits retained in their later structures.
Hobbits (and derivative Halflings in other fantasy settings) are often depicted with large feet for their size, perhaps to visually emphasize their unusualness. This is especially prominent in the influential illustrations by the Brothers Hildebrandt and the large prosthetic feet used in the Peter Jackson films. Tolkien does not give this as a generic trait, but makes it the distinctive trait of a hobbit clan.
According to the author, Hobbits are a "variety"[1] or separate "branch"[2] of the race of Men (Homo sapiens), but they consider themselves a separate race. They live in the Shire and in Bree in northwestern Middle-earth.
In the introduction to The Lord of the Rings Tolkien said that Hobbits are between two and four feet (0.6-1.2 m) tall, the average height being three feet six inches (1 m). They tend toward stoutness and have slightly pointed ears.[3] Tolkien himself describes Hobbits thus:
"I picture a fairly human figure, not a kind of fairy rabbit as some of my British reviewers seem to fancy: fattish in the stomach, shortish in the leg. A round, jovial face; ears only slightly pointed and 'elvish'; hair short and curling (brown). The feet from the ankles down, covered with brown hairy fur. Clothing: green velvet breeches; red or yellow waistcoat; brown or green jacket; gold (or brass) buttons; a dark green hood and cloak (belonging to a dwarf)." [4]
Elsewhere he wrote that they dress in bright colours, favouring yellow and green. Nowadays (according to Tolkien's fiction), they are very shy creatures, but they are and have been capable of amazing things. They are adept with slings and throwing stones.
Their feet are covered with curly hair (usually brown, as was the hair on their heads) with leathery soles, so most Hobbits hardly ever wear shoes. They are fond of an unadventurous bucolic life of farming, eating, and socializing. Hobbits can sometimes live for up to 130 years, although their average life expectancy is 100 years. The time at which a young Hobbit "comes of age" is 33. Thus a fifty-year-old Hobbit would only be middle-aged.
Hobbits enjoy at least seven meals a day, not including snacks,[5] when they can get them - breakfast, (arguably) second breakfast, elevenses, luncheon, tea, dinner and later, supper. They like simple food such as bread, meat, potatoes, and cheese, have a passion for mushrooms, and also like to drink ale, often in inns — not unlike the English countryfolk, who were Tolkien's inspiration.
Hobbits also enjoy an ancient variety[6] of tobacco, which they referred to as "pipe-weed", something that can be attributed mostly to their love of gardening and herb-lore. We can also see that in the name Tolkien chose for one part of Middle-earth where the Hobbits live, "the Shire" is clearly reminiscent of the English Shires.
The Hobbits of the Shire developed the custom of giving away gifts on their birthdays instead of receiving them.[7] They use the term mathom for old and assorted objects, which are invariably given as presents many times over or are stored in a museum (mathom-house).
Some Hobbits live in "hobbit-holes", which were the original places where they dwelt underground. They were found in hillsides, downs, and banks. By the late Third Age, they were replaced by brick and wood houses, however, some older style Hobbit-holes are still in use by more established Shirefolk, such as Bag End and Great Smials. Like all Hobbit architecture, they are notable for their round doors and windows, a feature more practical to tunnel-dwelling that the Hobbits retained in their later structures.
Hobbits (and derivative Halflings in other fantasy settings) are often depicted with large feet for their size, perhaps to visually emphasize their unusualness. This is especially prominent in the influential illustrations by the Brothers Hildebrandt and the large prosthetic feet used in the Peter Jackson films. Tolkien does not give this as a generic trait, but makes it the distinctive trait of a hobbit clan.