Hobbits would play great roles in the events
of the late Third Age of Middle-earth. From A Quest against a dragon, to
killing the Lord of the Nazgul, to the very destruction of the One Ring. But
where did this race of short beings come from? And how did they come to settle
in the land we know as The Shire? Today, on Nerd of the Rings, we
cover the History of Hobbits. If you’re familiar with Middle-earth
at all, you’ll know the basics of a hobbit’s appearance - they’re short, usually
around 3 foot 6, have slightly pointed ears, and furry feet with leathery soles. What you
may not know is that the earliest hobbits were divided into three groups - each
with their own unique characteristics. One is known as the Stoors - the only group
of hobbits said to have grown facial hair. They enjoy water, and would often go swimming and
use boats. They also are said to have worn boots. The second group, known as the Fallohides,
were taller and slimmer than the other two groups - some growing to four feet
or more in height. For reference, they would be only slightly shorter than Merry
and Pippin after drinking the Ent Draught, causing them to be the tallest hobbits in
history - somewhere over four foot five. The Fallohides were said to be fair in both their
skin and hair, and they never grew beards. The final group is the Harfoots, who would
have many of the traits and practices that we would come to see as typical for hobbits. They
were shorter and smaller than the other groups, had no beards, were browner of skin
than the others, and went barefoot. They enjoyed highlands and hillsides and
began the practice of living in hobbit holes, also known as smials. They tended to find comfort
in settling in one place for a longer period of time, and were known to be friendly with the
Dwarves who travelled through the High Pass. While they are often referred to as a
separate race, hobbits are generally believed to be related to Men, and thus were
descended from the second children of Iluvatar. Sometime in the Elder Days, that
is before the end of the First Age, it is believed the halflings branched out from
the race of Men. Their exact origin is unknown, and hobbits don’t even appear in
the histories of the elves. In fact, they remain unknown to any of the other races of
Middle-earth until at least the early Third Age. At this point, the hobbits live in the Vales
of Anduin, between Greenwood and the Misty Mountains. The Harfoots are believed to live
in the lower foothills of the Misty Mountains, north of the Gladden River. The Fallohides dwelt
under the southern eaves of the great forest, and the Stoors in the southern vales of Anduin. It is in this time where they are known
to the Northmen - the ancestors of the Rohirrim. During The Lord of the Rings, we learn
that the Rohirrim have ancient legends of the hobbits - and share many words that sound alike
and share similar meanings. Theoden would refer to Merry as Holbytla, meaning “hole-builder”,
very similar to their proper name - Hobbit. As time goes by in the early Third Age, the hobbit clans grow uneasy, for around
1000 TA, Sauron takes over Amon Lanc, which becomes Dol Guldur. This growing evil
leads the forest to be called Mirkwood, and causes Easterlings to move into Rhovanion
and attack the Northmen near the Vales of Anduin. And this is where we have the first known
historical event of the hobbits, which they refer to as The Wandering Days. Alarmed at the rise
of Dol Guldur, and the influx of his servants, the hobbits begin to travel Westward. The
Harfoots are the first to leave their homes, coming to Eriador, where they are first
recorded in the Arnorian records around 1050 TA. These hobbits are called Periannath or
Halflings, by the Dunedain of Arnor. Around 100 years after the departure of their
kin, the Fallohides followed into Eriador. By the year 1300, the Fallohides
come to join the Harfoots, who take the Fallohides as their
leaders, since they were a bolder breed of hobbit. It is also by this time that
the hobbits had settled as far west as Bree, which would remain the westernmost
settlement of hobbits for quite some time. During this time, the Stoors would follow in the
migration roughly 100 years after the Fallohides, in 1150 TA. Rather than taking the northern
route, the Stoors take the Redhorn Pass - the pass of Caradhras the Fellowship would attempt
to travel nearly 2000 years later. As the Stoors follow a southern route along the Bruinen, some
break away and move to the Angle of Eriador, south of Rivendell, many settle between
Tharbad and Dunland, while most of the Stoors move to Dunland, specifically Swanfleet - a
marshy area that most resembled their former home. Here, the Stoors would come into
contact with the Dunlendings, causing their speech to become slightly different
than their hobbit kin further west. In 1356, Angmar begins its war against
the men and elves of Eriador, with Rivendell itself coming under attack in
1409. Sometime during this 53-year period, the Stoors of the Angle flee due to the threat
of war. While some would join their southern kin, others would return to Rhovanion, to their home
in the Vales of Anduin. It is from these Stoor hobbits that we would get Smeagol. I talk more
about these particular hobbits in my Gollum video. In 1601, two Fallohide brothers - Marcho
and Blanco lead a group of hobbits further Westward from their homes near Bree. Crossing what
would later be known as the Brandywine Bridge, they settle in an empty land within Arthedain, one
of the last remnants of the kingdom of Arnor. The King of Arthedain, Argeleb II, granted the hobbits
permission to settle in what was once a great region of farms, vineyards, and woods in Arnor -
and the hunting grounds of its king. The hobbits begin the process of colonizing this fertile
land that would come to be known as The Shire Roughly 30 years later (1630),
the Stoors of Dunland move north, joining the other hobbits in colonizing the Shire.
The Stoors are specifically said to settle in the Eastfarthing and Southfarthing. While all the
hobbits would intermingle and merge over the years and become a single group, there would be
glimpses of some of their old differences from the Harfoots, Fallohides, and Stoors. For
instance, due to their time in Dunland, some hobbits in the Southfarthing and Buckland would
have some Stoorish characteristics and words. Those of Fallohide descent were long found to
be leaders among the hobbits. Certain families were known to have particularly strong Fallohidish
lines, such as the Tooks, Bolgers, and Brandybucks - maintaining their more bold and adventurous
nature, and being great leaders among hobbit-folk. Of the Harfoots, as noted earlier, we know that
they were the most numerous to colonize the shire. And their ways would live on in the traditions and
practices of their people - going barefoot and of course, living in holes in the ground. While
only coming into the stories of men and elves in the Third Age, relatively late in the history of
Middle-earth, there would be many great triumphs and tragedies among the hobbits. In 1636, the
Great Plague, which affects much of Middle-earth claims the lives of many. In 2747,
goblins of Mount Gram invade the shire but are driven out by Bullroarer
Took in the Battle of Green Fields. In 2758, Gandalf the Grey would
come to the aid of the Shire-folk during the Great Winter, where he would
learn of their hardiness, as they would fight to outlast the following famine known as
the Days of Dearth (2759-2760). 150 years later, a second terrible winter would follow - the Fell
Winter, when White Wolves entered into the Shire and Gandalf and the Rangers of the North once
again aided their allies to stave off hunger. Through it all, the hobbits of the
Shire, while not the mightiest of beings, would prove among the most hearty. The descendants
of these great folk would go on to play pivotal roles in the reclamation of Erebor and of course,
the War of the Ring - being among the bravest, greatest, and oldest of hobbits ever to live. Now for a fun audience question - who is your
favorite hobbit of all-time? Let me know who and why in the comments!
