Anyone who thinks they know the true names of the hobbits from “The Lord of the Rings” is mistaken! Westron is spoken in the Shire and in this language Frodo and Co. are called completely differently.
The Lord of the Rings: Sam and Frodo (Source: Themoviedb.org)
JRR Tolkien loved languages - that’s no secret and you wouldn’t expect anything less from a professor of English linguistics. It is therefore not surprising that languages play a major role in “The Lord of the Rings” and that Tolkien put a lot of thought into every name and designation from Middle-earth.
According to Tolkien, the versions of “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings” that we know are only the translations of the “true” story that Tolkien translated from Westron into English. So you know the hobbits from Middle-earth, but probably not their real names in their own language.
Well thought out from start to finish Sméagol aka Trahald (Source: Warner Bros. / New Line Cinema / Amazon Prime Video screenshot: Netzwelt)
In the appendices to The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien makes it clear that the hobbits in the Shire speak Westron, it is the native language of the hobbits and most people in Middle-earth. Dwarves and elves also knew this language and conversations generally took place primarily in Westron.
Although Westron was not developed by Tolkien to the point where a complete version of “The Lord of the Rings” exists in this language, we do at least know some names from Middle-earth in their real form:
| German | Westron |
|---|---|
| Bilbo Baggins | Bilba Labingi |
| Frodo Baggins | Maura Labingi |
| Samwise “Sam” Gamgee | Banazir “Ban” Galbasi |
| Meriadoc “Merry” Brandybock | Kalimac “Kali” Brandagamba |
| Peregrin “Pippin” Tuk | Razanur “Razar” Tuk |
| Smaug | Tragu |
| Smeagol | Trahald |
| Rivendell | Karningul |
| Bag end | Labin neg |
| Shire | Suza |
The Lord of the Rings: Names in German and Westron
According to Tolkien, these names largely correspond to direct translations, so both Banazîr and Samwise mean “half-wise” in the sense of “simple”. Tolkien first made Banazîr Galbasi Samwís Gamwich, then in modern English it became Samwise Gamgee. Meanwhile, Bilbo’s real name Bilba was only changed because the A ending was more common in female names in English.
Since Westron plays no role in the story of “The Lord of the Rings,” the language actually only adds to the understanding and makes Tolkien’s Middle-earth universe seem even more realistic. Of course, Tolkien simply enjoyed creating another new language, at least in part.
Lord of the Rings Quiz: How well do you know Middle-earth?
(Source: TMDB.org)
What else are the people of dwarves called?
| The Lord of the Rings: Reviewing the Rings of Power | |
| genre | Drama, Action & Adventure, Sci-Fi & Fantasy |
| First broadcast | September 1, 2022 |
| First broadcast in Germany | September 2, 2022 |
| Homepage | amazon.com |
| Other sources | |
| network | Amazon |
production | Amazon Studios, New Line Cinema, Harper Collins Publishers, Tolkien Enterprises |
| Squadrons |
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