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The Lord of the Rings: 10 Nerdy and Mythological Facts

Background and Inspirations

By Martin ReedPublished 6 years ago 5 min read
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Photo by Thomas Schweighofer on Unsplash

(1) J.R.R. Tolkien was a professor of Anglo-Saxon (Early English) Literature at the University of Oxford; in other words, he was one of the world’s leading experts on stories such as Beowulf. He had a side interest in Norse (Viking) mythologies and stories. A great deal of the background detail of The Lord of the Rings (and The Hobbit, etc.) comes from Norse mythology.

(2) The idea of the ring itself was partly inspired (according to Tolkien’s friends and also his son, Christopher) by a ring which features in Norse mythology called "Andvaranaut." This ring was originally the property (so the myth goes) of a dwarf called Andvari. It had the ability to magic up any treasure that the wearer asked for. Unfortunately, Loki (god of mischief) stole the ring from Andvari, and Andvari then cursed all who might possess or make use of it. Loki subsequently gave it to Odin, the "father" of the gods, to use as a bribe (a "wergild"). Thus Odin became cursed, and this would result, eventually, in "Ragnarok"—the twilight, or death, of the gods.

(3) The ring "Andvaranaut" was said to be made of "red gold." Red gold was simply gold mixed with a great deal of copper. Way back then, copper was very nearly as valuable as "yellow gold."

(4) Another ring which served as inspiration for the one in The Lord of the Rings was that mentioned in Plato’s Republic. Plato said that someone who possessed a ring that would render them invisible (as in the ancient myth of Gyges) might not have any reason to be good—since he/she would be able to get away with anything. Plato was using this idea simply for argument’s sake and concluded that the just man would behave himself anyway—really?

(5) The son of the person Odin paid the ring Andvaranaut to was called Fafnir: a shape-shifter who spent much of his time in the shape of a huge dragon. Fafnir murdered his father in order to get hold of the ring and the other treasures that had come with it, and then spent the rest of his life as a dragon, guarding his horde of treasure—thus becoming an inspiration for the dragon "Smaug" in The Hobbit. Of course, since he possessed the ring, he was cursed, and eventually died at the hands of Seigfried, the principal hero of later Norse myth. Needless to say, Seigfried, becoming cursed himself, also came to a sticky end.

(6) Gollum seems to be a mixture of Andvari and Ottr (another shape-shifter from Norse mythology). Andvari (even before Loki got to him) had been banished by the "Norns" (the dark elves) to live in the dank and cold places of the earth. Ottr was Fafnir’s (the dragon’s) brother and, as his name suggests, spent much of his days in the shape of an otter. He was so greedy that he ate his fish whole while keeping his eyes closed (so as not to see his food disappear), making a "gollum" like swallowing sound as he ate. Also, the word "golem" (from Jewish folklore) means a man created and animated by black magic.

(7) The names of the dwarfs in The Hobbit come from the most comprehensive and ancient source of Norse myth that survives to this day —known in English as The Elder Edda. The names of the principal dwarfs who took part in Norse mythology are listed in the first section, Voluspa, of the Edda. However, the personalities that Tolkien ascribed to them in The Hobbit have no connection with the kind of people (or dwarfs) they were, as described in the Edda.

(8) Tolkien was a Christian (as was his friend C.S. Lewis, who wrote The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, etc.), and wanted The Lord of the Rings to serve as a kind of parable. Overall, it expresses the idea that individual moral strength (as exhibited by Bilbo and then Frodo) is more important than the power of armies, countries, and technology (magic). It has to be said that most people who read the trilogy entirely miss this "moral" which is embedded within it—at least, at first.

(9) The idea of hobbit holes may well have been based on the kind of dwellings which feature in Icelandic Norse sagas. The Icelanders (who were mostly Vikings thrown out of Norway for bad behavior!) traditionally lived in turf houses made of thick walls and even ceilings of turfs. The turfs were dug from the surrounding land and used much like bricks or stones to make the buildings. Very cozy and hobbit-like, they enabled the Icelanders to weather the cruel Icelandic winters. These homes had the disadvantage, however, of being totally impossible to escape from in an emergency. This led to the Icelanders’ habit of "burning in" their neighbors, if they had a problem with them. That is, they set a large fire at the entrance of their enemy’s home and waited for them to asphyxiate from the smoke and/or burn to death—not very hobbit-like at all.

(10) Although Tolkien’s poetry in The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and in other works such as The Adventures of Tom Bombadil rhymed in a very traditional English way, the original songs and poetry of the Norse and Anglo-Saxon peoples did not. In fact, Tolkien produced a number of translations of the much more ancient, "alliterative" poetry. Here’s the beginning of his version of "The Volsung Saga":

Of old was an age

when was emptiness,

there was sand nor sea

nor surging waves;

unwrought was Earth

unroofed was Heaven –

an abyss yawning,

and no blade of grass.

fact or fiction
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About the Creator

Martin Reed

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