The Ring of Words Tolkien and the Oxford English Dictionary

by Gilliver, Peter; Marshall, Jeremy; Weiner, Edmund

• ISBN13: 9780199210763
• ISBN10: 0199210764
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2099-11-30
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Tolkien's first job, on returning home from World War I, was as an assistant on the staff of the OED. He later said that he had "learned more in those two years than in any other equal part of his life." The Ring of Words reveals how his professional work on the Oxford English Dictionary influenced Tolkien's creative use of language in his fictional world. Here three senior editors of the OED offer an intriguing exploration of Tolkien's career as a lexicographer and illuminate his creativity as a word user and word creator. The centerpiece of the book is a wonderful collection of "word studies" which will delight the heart of Ring fans and word lovers everywhere. The editors look at the origin of such Tolkienesque words as "hobbit," "mithril, "Smeagol," "Ent," "halfling," and "worm" (meaning "dragon"). Readers discover that a word such as "mathom" (anything a hobbit had no immediate use for, but was unwilling to throw away) was actually common in Old English, but that "Mithril," on the other hand, is a complete invention (and the first "Elven" word to have an entry in the OED). And fans of Harry Potter will be surprised to find that "Dumbledore" (the name of Hogwart's headmaster) was a word used by Tolkien and many others (it is a dialect word meaning "bumblebee"). Few novelists have found so much of their creative inspiration in the shapes and histories of words. Presenting archival material not found anywhere else, The Ring of Words offers a fresh and unexplored angle on the literary achievements of one of the world's most famous and best-loved writers.

Author Biography

Peter Gilliver is an Associate Editor of the Oxford English Dictionary and is also working on a history of the OED. Jeremy Marshall is an Associate Editor of the Oxford English Dictionary and co-author of Questions of English. Edmund Weiner is Deputy Chief Editor of the Oxford English Dictionary. He has written several books on English grammar and usage and teaches an annual course in the history of English.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Tolkien as Lexicographer

Tolkien as Word User

Word Studies Epilogue: Tolkien's influence on the English Language

Bibliography

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.