by Lisa Star
[This file prints out at about 6 pages on standard American office paper. Also, I have been adding some links to Barnes and Noble, but it is way too much graphics, so I am messing around with it to see how it goes.]
This is a bibliography of Tolkien's books which is especially designed to provide information for those interested in his invented languages and alphabets. This list includes most formally published books by J. R. R. Tolkien, including those books edited by Christopher Tolkien as well as some secondary sources of particular interest but it is not intended as a complete bibliography of all books by or about Tolkien. The books are listed in the order in which they were published and each entry includes information about the relative usefulness of the books for information about particular languages and alphabets. For detailed information about the linguistic information published in less formal sources, see the List of Unpublished and Slightly Published Manuscripts as well as the Sources of Information about Tolkien's invented languages pages.
Most books by Tolkien are published in two editions, one in England, originally published by Allen Unwin, Ltd (which was bought by HarperCollins) and available in the UK, Europe and almost everywhere except the US; and another edition published in the United States by Houghton Mifflin. Some frontispieces are found only in the British (HarperCollins) editions, but were excluded from the American (Houghton Mifflin) editions. The US paperbacks were published by Ballantine Books, though there are many other paperback publishers. One should be careful of Tolkien's maps in LotR as they were redrawn by someone else (and much the worse they are for it) in some of the paperback editions. There are multiple editions of most books, and I have only attempted to list the first edition, plus any which are of particular interest to because of linguistic features. I have also included at the end of each entry the abbreviations widely used by scholars of Tolkien's languages.
The Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien, Allen & Unwin 1937, Houghton Mifflin 1938; many editions are currently available including paperbacks. Apart from a few names, like Elrond, there is no linguistic material here. This book also uses Anglo-Saxon runes which can be studied elsewhere. Abbreviated: Hobbit
Farmer Giles of Ham, by J. R. R. Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1950, 1978 (the best editions have the illustrations by Pauline Baynes), but see the Tolkien Reader (below). No linguistic material. Abbreviated: FGH
The Homecoming of Beorthnoth Beorthelm's Son, by J. R. R. Tolkien, in Essays and Studies by members of the English Association, New Series Volume VI, 1953, pp. 1-18 (London, John Murray), but see the Tolkien Reader (below). No linguistic material. Abbreviated: HBBS.
The Lord of the Rings, by J. R. R. Tolkien, in three volumes. Originally published by Allen & Unwin in 1954-55 and by Houghton Mifflin in 1955-56; published in multiple editions, with many slight variations in the text. The first edition of the third volume includes a few items which were excluded from later editions, such as the name of Aragorn as Vinyatar, and certain statements about manuscripts found at Minas Tirith. LotR is the best source for much of the material that we know of Elvish and other languages and their writing systems, especially since this book was published in Tolkien's lifetime and therefor might show his considered conclusions on the subject. Warning: there are some typographical errors in many editions which render the appendix on writing (both tengwar and cirth) unintelligible. Abbreviated: LotR, usually with volumes I, II, III. Because there are so many editions with variant page numbers and even volume divisions, references are often by the titles of particular chapters. Most people who are interested in Elvish linguistics know every word and phrase by heart anyway, so often no references are used.
The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book, by J. R. R. Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1963 (illustrated by Pauline Baynes), but see the Tolkien Reader (below). There is very little linguistic material here, only a few words which are otherwise unknown. Abbreviated: ATB.
Tree and Leaf, by J. R. R. Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1965, 1989. This volume contained "On Fairy-Stories" and "Leaf by Niggle." Only the 1989 edition included the poem `Mythopoeia'. The first two items are reprinted in the Tolkien Reader (see below). No linguistic material. Abbreviated: TL
The Tolkien Reader, by J. R. R. Tolkien, Ballantine paperback, 1966. This contains the Homecoming of Beorthnoth Beorthelm's Son, Tree and Leaf, Farmer Giles of Ham and the Adventures of Tom Bombadil (see above for descriptions of these) and is widely available in paperback. Abbreviated: TR.
Smith of Wootton Major, by J. R. R. Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1967 (illustrated by Pauline Baynes). No linguistic material. Abbreviated: SWM
The Road Goes Ever On: A Song Cycle, music by Donald Swann, settings of poems by J. R. R. Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1967, 1978; Allen & Unwin, 1968, 1978. This includes some late, very interesting explanations by Tolkien on the poems "Namárié and "Elbereth Gilthoniel" as well as Tolkien's own tengwar transcriptions of the two poems in Elvish, one in the standard mode for Quenya, the second in the mode of Beleriand. Although the first editions are more valuable than later ones, (and some editions are printed with red as the second color, others with green), all include the same information. Take a careful look at the printing registration, however, since the headers and dustjacket are printed with the tehtar in a different color from the tengwar and the two colors are not often lined up correctly which may prove a little confusing when studying the lettering. The images printed all in one color are accurate reproductions of Tolkien's lettering. Abbreviated: RGEO
1973 Calendar with the Silmarillion Map, by Pauline Baynes, Christopher Tolkien and J. R. R. Tolkien, published by George Allen & Unwin, Ltd. The Silmarillion Map includes a few names not seen elsewhere.
A Tolkien Compass, edited by Jared Lobdell, Open Court Publishing Company, 1975 in both hardback and paperback. This includes J. R. R. Tolkien's "Guide to the Names in the Lord of the Rings" (prepared for publication by Christopher Tolkien). The Guide to Names includes Tolkien's own commentary on some of the forms and meanings of names in various languages of Middle-earth. Abbreviated: TC, but also referred to as either "Compass" for the book or "Guide" for the particular section of the book.
The Silmarillion, by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1977, etc. This has some rather difficult linguistic material, primarily in a special appendix. There are also a few sentences or phrases. Abbreviated: Silm. or just S.
The Father Christmas Letters, by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Baillie Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1976; Allen & Unwin, 1976. This includes the "Arctic" sentence (widely recognized as being in a form of Quenya) and the Goblin Alphabet. Abbreviated: FC
Pictures of J. R. R. Tolkien, introduction and notes by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1979. There are a very few words not otherwise known, plus the examples of tengwar and cirth (for English) in the Book of Mazarbul and some other Quenya tengwar inscriptions. This was republished in 1992, but I believe this edition is also out of print now. Abbreviated: Pictures
Unfinished Tales by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1980. There are many words in a variety of languages and several interesting phrases or sentences, including material on the language of the Drûg. The material is very difficult to date however. Only the dust jacket of the book includes the word karma and an illustration by Tolkien of this type of Númenorean helmet. Abbreviated: UT
The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien, selected and edited by Humphrey Carpenter with the assistance of Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1981. This has recently been republished with a more detailed index provided by Wayne Hammond and Christina Scull. There is some very interesting material consisting of words and roots not otherwise known and Tolkien's descriptions of some of the languages. Some of the letters were published incompletely however and complete transcriptions (of particular linguistic interest) are being privately circulated. Abbreviated: Letters
Here follow the books of the History of Middle-earth (HoMe) Series.
The Book of Lost Tales, Part One (HoMe Vol 1), by J. R.
R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin, 1984,
1986. The page numbers in the index of the paperback published by
Ballantine Books do not match the text. There are quite a few words
and phrases in the text. Abbreviated: LT1
The Book of Lost Tales, Part Two (HoMe Vol 2) , by J. R.
R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin, 1984,
Houghton Mifflin 1986. Again, the page numbers in the index of the
paperback published by Ballantine Books do not match the text. There
are quite a few words and phrases in the text. Abbreviated: LT2.
The Monsters and the Critics and Other Essays, by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1984. This is the source of the essay "A Secret Vice" which includes several poems by Tolkien mostly in Quenya (one is in an early grey-elven language, but it is largely uninterpretable), with translations and some linguistic explanations. The poems are Nieninque, Earendel, Damrod and Oilima Markirya, the last in three versions. Some of the poems are quite late. [This book also contains the superb essays "Beowulf: the Monsters and the Critics" and "On Fairy-Stories" which have nothing to do with Elvish linguistics but are well worth reading anyway.] Abbreviated: MC
The Lays of Beleriand (HoMe Vol. III), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1985, 1988. There is relatively little linguistic information here, mainly some names in the early languages, but there is a single verse in late form Sindarin which is quite lovely. Abbreviated: LB
The Shaping of Middle-earth: The Quenta, The Ambarkanta and The Annals (HoMe Vol IV), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1986. There is not a great deal of linguistic information, mostly individual words in early form, but some of the explanations of the cosmology are necessary for understanding later material. Abbreviated: SM.
The Lost Road and Other Writings: Language and Legend before The Lord of the Rings (HoMe Vol V), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1987. This contains several poems and sentences in Quenya. Abbreviated: LR. The book also contains:
The Return of the Shadow: The History of the Lord of the Rings, Part One (HoMe Vol VI), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1988. This includes a few words and explanations of material that is seen in LotR including early versions of some poems. Abbreviated: RS
The Treason of Isengard: The History of the Lord of the Rings, Part Two (HoMe Vol VII), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1989. This includes some explanations and alternative forms of material that appears in LotR including a little bit of the Dwarvish language, and earlier versions of poems and phrases in Quenya and Sindarin; it also includes a series of cirth alphabets for writing Doriathrin, Noldorin and Old Noldorin. Abbreviated: TI
The War of the Ring: The History of the Lord of the Rings, Part Three (HoMe Vol VIII), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin, 1990. This includes some words and explanation of material that is seen in LotR including a little more Dwarvish and some Orkish. Abbreviated: WR
Sauron Defeated: The History of the Lord of the Rings, Part Four (HoMe Vol IX), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1992. This book has two versions of the King's Letter, the only substantial text in the Sindarin language. It also includes a great deal of entirely new material about Ad&#ucirc;naic including vocabulary, grammar and syntax, and a specially adapted form of the tengwar. It also has a color frontispiece of the Lament for Númenor in both American and British editions. Abbreviated: SD
Morgoth's Ring: the Later Silmarillion, Part One (HoMe Vol X), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, HarperCollins 1993, Houghton Mifflin 1993. This has a color frontispiece of the first page of the Tale of Years in Tolkien's calligraphy, found in both editions. There is relatively little linguistic material in this book but there is a specialized vocabulary for some Christian religious concepts if you are interested. Abbreviated: MR
The War of the Jewels: the Later Silmarillion, Part Two (HoMe Vol XI), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mifflin 1994 This includes everything that is known about Valarin the language of the gods, as well as quite a bit of vocabulary and some phrases in various Elvish languages including Telerin. Abbreviated: WJ
The People's of Middle-earth, (HoMe Vol XII), by J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, HarperCollins 1996. This is the last volume in the History of Middle-earth series and is of particular linguistic interest because it has chapters addressing the Appendix on Languages in the third volume of LotR, and includes quite a bit of additional vocabulary, mostly in Quenya. The HarperCollins edition has a color frontispiece of the first page of the Dangweth Pengolodh in Tolkien's own calligraphy but this is not in the Houghton Mifflin edition, though it is referred to in the text of both books (at the beginning of Ch XIV). Abbreviated: PM
Tolkien: Artist and Illustrator, edited with text by Wayne Hammond and Christina Scull, 1995. This includes a few items of interest concerning the languages and alphabets, such as variant forms of the Doors of Moria (analyzed in TT No. 13, published Dec. 1998, see contents), and some small inscriptions, mostly the names of flowers or plants. The editors have made quite a few mistakes in the transcriptions and translations of the Elvish, although this is still a very beautiful book with 200 pictures most of them in color. Includes accession numbers of the items. Abbreviated: T:A&I, or just TAI.
There have been a number of exhibits of Tolkien's art and manuscripts and some of the exhibit catalogues contain important information about Tolkien's languages and alphabets. (Some information and inscriptions were copied from manuscripts while they were on display, and this information has mostly been published in fanzines.) Most of the catalogues can be ordered from Rene Rossenberg at the Tolkien Shop in the Netherlands, called Tolkienwinkel. I have also seen some of them listed on Thornton's website, but you will probably pay a lot more especially if you are overseas relative to England. Make sure that you order exactly the catalogue that you want; some contain useful information about linguistics, but many do not and they often have the same title since there have been several exhibits at Marquette and several exhibits at the Bodley.
Marquette Exhibits
The Manuscripts of JRRT, (Catalogue of an Exhibit), catalogue prepared by Taum Santoski, (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) September 12-23, 1983. This was a small pamphlet of 31 pages and included an early version of the Moria Gate inscription, a tengwar transcription of the Ring-inscription in English and the Heru i Million inscription in tengwar. I believe this catalogue is for sale at Marquette Library.
Selections from the Marquette J. R. R. Tolkien Collection, Marquette University Library, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 1987. This is a small pamphlet of 25 pages with essays or notes by Taum Santoski, Charles Elston, Jared Lobdell and Verlyn Flieger, and it includes descriptions of some items of interest to linguists, though it does not contain a publication of the items.
Bodley Exhibits
J. R. R. Tolkien: Life and Legend, introduction by Judith Priestman, 1992 (catalogue for an exhibit at the Bodleian Library in 1992). This contains examples of Tolkien's calligraphy, a variant form of the poem Namárië and other items of interest. It has almost 250 pictures, many in color and includes the accession numbers of the items. Usually referred to as the Bodley Catalogue, though this is rather misleading, since there are at least two other catalogues from exhibits at the Bodley, but I do not believe they contain any unique information about the languages and alphabets.
Liege exhibit
There should be a catalogue for this, though I can find nothing about it at the moment.
Two libraries are especially important for the study of Tolkien's languages and alphabets because they have collections of his original manuscripts. They are the Bodleian Library at Oxford and the Memorial Library at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (USA) which is usually just called the Marquette Library. The inventories for these libraries do not themselves contain linguistic information but would be very useful for the understanding of such information as we have, since much of what we have is published without accession numbers.
As I understand it, the Bodleian Library catalogue or inventory of Tolkien's manuscripts is not accessible, but it may be privately circulated based on copies which were available at one time on the website. In any case, a fully descriptive catalogue is being reconstructed based on such information as we have and will be made available on the web.
The library at Marquette has an inventory of the Tolkien manuscripts in its holdings. It is not very descriptive but it is available on line, and at the library. A much more detailed description of the manuscripts is being published in installments in TyaliE Tyelelliéva, again, see contents of issues 15, 16 and 17.
A Guide to Middle-earth by Robert Foster, Ballantine Books, New York, 1971. Although this book does not take a specifically linguistic approach it includes translations of many of the proper names and explanations of such things as the languages and alphabets and some concepts which are difficult to translate. Although it is very old it still would prove useful to those who are newly come to Tolkien's world, and the information is mostly quite accurate. It also contains the information that an early form of the name of Melkor was Melchar. There is a new edition dated 1993, but I don't believe there is any "encyclopedic" type of guide that covers anything after the Silmarillion. Abbreviated: GME
Tolkien & The Silmarillion by Clyde S. Kilby, Harold Shaw Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois, 1976. This book includes an explanation of the intensive of the verb in Adunaic.
Tolkien: A Biography by Humphrey Carpenter, Houghton Mifflin 1977. This contains several references to and some quotations from Tolkien's early languages but the material is not very accurate, especially the transcription of the 4 lines from the poem Narquelion.
An Introduction to Elvish: and to other tongues and proper names and writing systems of the Third Age of the Western Lands of Middle-earth as set forth in the published writings of Professor John Ronald Reuel Tolkien. Edited and compiled by Jim Allan from his own researches and from those of Nina Carson [and others], Bran's Head Books, Ltd., 1978. This has been out of print in the US for decades but was reprinted in England in 1995. This was long considered a standard in the field, but it is completely out of date since it was written before the publication of The Silmarillion and has never been updated. It did make use of information in the Marquette Library however, and it also provides the correct text of the Appendix on the tengwar and cirth. Abbreviated: ItE
The New Tolkien Companion, by J. E. A. Tyler, illustrated by Kevin Reilly, St. Martin's Press, NY, 1979. Like the Guide to Middle-earth (above) this book does not take a specifically linguistic approach but it includes translations of many of the proper names and explanations of such things as the languages and alphabets and some concepts which are difficult to translate. Although it is very old it still would prove useful to those who are newly come to Tolkien's world, and the information is quite accurate. Abbreviated: NTC
The Road to Middle-earth by T. A. Shippey, Houghton Mifflin 1983, updated and republished most recently in 1992. This book includes four poems by Tolkien (with Tom Shippey's translations) in old Germanic languages which actually represent Tolkien's earlier conception of the speech of the Rohirrim and the Men of Dale and of the Anduin in Middle-earth. It does not include information about such Middle-earth languages as Quenya and Sindarin, however it is the only book of specifically literary criticism which takes a linguistic or philological approach to Tolkien's work and is extremely valuable for that reason.
The Languages of Tolkien's Middle-earth by Ruth S. Noel, first published in 1984 with many errors and continually in print since then (Houghton Mifflin). The section on Anglo-Saxon names is good, but there are many errors in the Elvish and the book has never been updated, nor the errors corrected since it was published but the price just keeps going up.
The Annotated Hobbit, annotated by Douglas A. Anderson; Houghton Mifflin, 1988. There are a few words in the annotations which were otherwise unattested for a long time, but these have since been published in other sources, for example, Etymologies.
A list of the journals devoted to Tolkien's invented languages and alphabets can be found at List of Unpublished Manuscripts. This is includes much information about Tolkien's languages not available in more formally published books.
FINAL NOTE: I do not recommend any books by David Day if you are interested in studying Tolkien's work because they include many inaccuracies (although I like the artwork, myself).
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Thanks to everyone who will point out mistakes in this file as soon as I put it up on the web :-). Please send them to LisaStar@earthling.net, where they will be gratefully acknowledged. Also this list includes some information which was originally collected and published by William Loos.
Lisa Star LisaStar@earthling.net
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Tyalie Tyelellieva / LisaStar@earthling.net / written January 2002, updated August 2004
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