Hobbits
written by Jessica Scamander
"Hobbits really are amazing creatures, as I have said before. You can learn all that there is to know about their ways in a month, and yet after a hundred years they can still surprise you at a pinch." —Gandalf, in The Fellowship of the Ring Hobbits, also known as Halflings, were an ancient mortal race that lived in Middle-earth. Although their exact origins are unknown, they were initially found in the northern regions of Middle-earth and below the Vales of Anduin. At the beginning of the Third Age, Hobbits moved north and west. Most of their race eventually founded the land of the Shire in about the year TA 1601, though one type of Hobbit known as Stoors remained in the Anduin Vale (the type of Hobbit Sméagol was).
Last Updated
05/31/21
Chapters
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History
Chapter 2
The exact origins of the Hobbits are unknown and it is also unknown what Age the Hobbits first appeared. Hobbits are known to have originated somewhere in the Valley of the Anduin River. During their early history, there were three sub-species of Hobbit. By the time they were discovered by the other peoples of Middle-earth, they had already been around for many generations. The earliest known group of hobbits lived in the Valley of Anduin, in the region of Wilderland between Mirkwood and the Misty Mountains. According to The Lord of the Rings, they have lost the genealogical details of how they are related to the Big People. At this time, there were three breeds, or tribes, of Hobbits, with different physical characteristics and temperaments: Harfoots, Stoors and Fallohides. While situated in the valley of the Anduin River, the Hobbits lived close by the Éothéod, the ancestors of the Rohirrim, and this led to some contact between the two. As a result, many old words and names in "Hobbitish" are derivatives of words in Rohirric.
About the year TA 1050, they undertook the arduous task of crossing the Misty Mountains. Reasons for this trek are unknown, but it possibly had to do with Sauron's growing power in nearby Greenwood, which was later named Mirkwood because of the shadow that fell on it, as Sauron was searching the area for the One Ring. The Hobbits took different routes in their journey westward, but as they began to settle together in Bree-land, Dunland, and the Angle formed by the rivers Hoarwell and Loudwater; the divisions between the Hobbit-kinds began to blur.
In the year 1601 of the Third Age, two Fallohide brothers named Marcho and Blanco gained permission from the King of Arnor at Fornost to cross the River Baranduin and settle on the other side. Many Hobbits followed them, and most of the territory they had settled in the Third Age was abandoned. Only Bree and a few surrounding villages lasted towards the end of the Third Age. The new land that they founded on the west bank of the Brandywine was called the Shire. The crossing of the Brandywine, as the hobbits called it, was the event that led to the settlement of the Shire, thus the Shire Reckoning began. Originally, the Hobbits of the Shire swore nominal allegiance to the last Kings of Arnor, being required only to acknowledge their lordship, speed their messengers, and keep the bridges and roads in repair. During the final fight against Angmar at the Battle of Fornost, the Hobbits maintain that they sent a company of archers to help, but this is recorded nowhere else. After the battle, the kingdom of Arnor was destroyed, and in absence of the king, the Hobbits elected a Thain of the Shire from among their own chieftains.
The first Thain of the Shire was Bucca of the Marish, who founded the Oldbuck family. However, the Oldbuck family later crossed the Brandywine River to create the separate land of Buckland and the family name changed to the familiar "Brandybuck". Their patriarch then became Master of Buckland. With the departure of the Oldbucks/Brandybucks, a new family was selected to have its chieftains be Thain: the Took family (Indeed, Pippin Took was son of the Thain and would later become Thain himself). The Thain was in charge of Shire Moot and Muster and the Hobbitry-in-arms, but as the Hobbits of the Shire led entirely peaceful, uneventful lives, the office of Thain was seen as something more of a formality. The major political power in the Shire was actually held by the Mayor of Michel Delving (the Shire's chief township). His duties included overseeing the post and the "police" force (Shirriffs); he was also obliged to preside at banquets. The Hobbits' numbers dwindled, and their stature became progressively smaller after the Fourth Age. However, they are sometimes spoken of in the present tense, and the prologue "Concerning Hobbits" in The Lord of the Rings states that they have survived into Tolkien's day.
About the year TA 1050, they undertook the arduous task of crossing the Misty Mountains. Reasons for this trek are unknown, but it possibly had to do with Sauron's growing power in nearby Greenwood, which was later named Mirkwood because of the shadow that fell on it, as Sauron was searching the area for the One Ring. The Hobbits took different routes in their journey westward, but as they began to settle together in Bree-land, Dunland, and the Angle formed by the rivers Hoarwell and Loudwater; the divisions between the Hobbit-kinds began to blur.
In the year 1601 of the Third Age, two Fallohide brothers named Marcho and Blanco gained permission from the King of Arnor at Fornost to cross the River Baranduin and settle on the other side. Many Hobbits followed them, and most of the territory they had settled in the Third Age was abandoned. Only Bree and a few surrounding villages lasted towards the end of the Third Age. The new land that they founded on the west bank of the Brandywine was called the Shire. The crossing of the Brandywine, as the hobbits called it, was the event that led to the settlement of the Shire, thus the Shire Reckoning began. Originally, the Hobbits of the Shire swore nominal allegiance to the last Kings of Arnor, being required only to acknowledge their lordship, speed their messengers, and keep the bridges and roads in repair. During the final fight against Angmar at the Battle of Fornost, the Hobbits maintain that they sent a company of archers to help, but this is recorded nowhere else. After the battle, the kingdom of Arnor was destroyed, and in absence of the king, the Hobbits elected a Thain of the Shire from among their own chieftains.
The first Thain of the Shire was Bucca of the Marish, who founded the Oldbuck family. However, the Oldbuck family later crossed the Brandywine River to create the separate land of Buckland and the family name changed to the familiar "Brandybuck". Their patriarch then became Master of Buckland. With the departure of the Oldbucks/Brandybucks, a new family was selected to have its chieftains be Thain: the Took family (Indeed, Pippin Took was son of the Thain and would later become Thain himself). The Thain was in charge of Shire Moot and Muster and the Hobbitry-in-arms, but as the Hobbits of the Shire led entirely peaceful, uneventful lives, the office of Thain was seen as something more of a formality. The major political power in the Shire was actually held by the Mayor of Michel Delving (the Shire's chief township). His duties included overseeing the post and the "police" force (Shirriffs); he was also obliged to preside at banquets. The Hobbits' numbers dwindled, and their stature became progressively smaller after the Fourth Age. However, they are sometimes spoken of in the present tense, and the prologue "Concerning Hobbits" in The Lord of the Rings states that they have survived into Tolkien's day.
