Mark T Hooker

The Tolkiennymicon Mark T Hooker

Part I of this volume (Linguistic Masques) looks at Tolkien's 'speaking names.' These names do more than just identify the character to whom they are attached; they say something about them as well. Here, the reader will learn more about the names Strider (who has a Celtic Theonym as an antecedent), Míriel, Finwë, & Fëanor (whose names show the power of lenition as a story telling device), The Black Breath & Kingsfoil (a pun, the disease, and the cure), and Gong (a pejorative name for Orcs that only a philologist could dig up).

Part II (The Story Behind the Name) explores the myths and literary baggage of such names as those of the Sun Maiden, the Horned Moon, the full moon, the Man in the Moon, the Walls of the World, the concept of white, the Divine Mannus, and how Homo Loquens found a home in Middle-earth.

Part III (Bones of the Oxen in Tolkien's Linguistic Soup) looks more closely at Tolkien's linguistic creations from a linguistic perspective. On the one hand, Tolkien complained that commentators analyzing his names normally had no idea how a philologist would go about creating them, adding that the "source, if there was one," for his names only provided the sound silhouette of the name, "and its purport in the source is totally irrelevant, except in the case of Earendil." (L.380)

On the other hand, a number of commentators with a knowledge of philology, including both Christopher and the senior Tolkien, have pointed out many more exceptions than just Earendil.

This volume is, therefore, an excursion into the 'leaf-mould' of Tolkien's mind, to see how Tolkien recut and repolished old words to make them new.

Includes bibliographic references and index. B& W illustrations.

Also from this author:

Tolkien Through Russian Eyes (Walking Tree Publishers, 2003), published simultaneously in Russian "Frodo's Batman," Tolkien Studies, No. 1 (2004) The Hobbitonian Anthology (Llyfrawr, 2009) "Reading John Buchan in Search of Tolkien," Tolkien and the Study of His Sources, Jason Fisher (ed.). (McFarland, 2011) Tolkien and Welsh (Llyfrawr, 2012) The Tolkienaeum (Llyfrawr, 2014) Iter Tolkienensis (Llyfrawr, 2016) Tolkien and Sanskrit (Llyfrawr, 2016) An American Forger in Wales (Llyfrawr, 2017) The Tolkiennymicon (Llyfrawr, 2018)