12 World-Building J.R.R. Tolkien Facts (That Surprised Us)

In case you’ve been living under a rock (and not in the Misty Mountains), John Ronald Reuel Tolkien wrote The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and  The (post-humously published) Silmarillion. He’s arguably considered the father of modern fantasy. His friendship-bordering-on-rivalry with C.S. Lewis is in the Creative Friendship Hall of Fame, with the friends influencing each other’s works. Despite being born in the 1800s, he gave us “my precious,” which is quoted about as much if not more than “my wife” from Borat. We’d argue he also gave us the good parts of Harry Potter. And Elon Musk criticized him so you know he’s worth defending. 

As much as we know his work, languages, and deep beautiful world-building, how much do we know about the man? He was a professor at Oxford. He started the literary group The Inklings with C.S. Lewis. He was a linguist. And we also know the following 12 facts…