Gerontius Took: Difference between revisions
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{{hobbit | {{hobbit | ||
|image=[[File:Liz Danforth - Gerontius took.jpg|250px | |image=[[File:Liz Danforth - Gerontius took.jpg|250px]] | ||
|name=Gerontius Took | |name=Gerontius Took | ||
|othernames=Old Took | |othernames=Old Took | ||
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==Etymology== | ==Etymology== | ||
He was called ''The Old Took'' not because of his age, but because of his numerous younger relatives.<ref name="RC">{{HM|RC}}, p. 54</ref> | |||
Gerontius was also a Latin name of the Late Roman Empire, and is one of the very few Greco-Latin names appearing in Hobbit lore. | The word element ''geron'' is Greek for ''old''. [[Wikipedia:Gerontius|Gerontius]] was also a Latin name of the Late Roman Empire, and is one of the very few Greco-Latin names appearing in Hobbit lore. | ||
Gerontius is rendered as ''[[Wikipedia:Geraint|Geraint]]'' in [[Welsh]], found as a royal name in ''The [[Wikipedia:Mabinogion|Mabinogion]]'' and in Tennyson's ''[[Wikipedia:Geraint_and_Enid#Geraint_and_Enid|Geraint and Enid]]''.<ref>[[Mark T. Hooker]], [[Tolkien and Welsh]], p. 133</ref> | |||
==Inspiration== | ==Inspiration== | ||
In a letter to Mr. and Mrs. Kloos, Tolkien | In [[Mr. and Mrs. Kloos 18 April-6 May 1963|a letter to Mr. and Mrs. Kloos]], Tolkien stated that when he wrote ''[[The Hobbit]]'', he had imagined Bilbo's grandfather to be old, because both of his grandparents were around a hundred years old when they died.<ref name="RC"/> | ||
{{references}} | {{references}} | ||
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[[Category:Thains]] | [[Category:Thains]] | ||
[[Category:Took]] | [[Category:Took]] | ||
[[Category:Greco-Roman names]] | |||
[[de:Alter Tuk]] | [[de:Alter Tuk]] | ||
[[fi:Gerontius Tuk]] | |||
[[fr:encyclo/personnages/hobbits/touque/gerontius_touque]] | [[fr:encyclo/personnages/hobbits/touque/gerontius_touque]] | ||
Revision as of 19:39, 20 February 2013
Gerontius Took | |
---|---|
Hobbit | |
Biographical Information | |
Other names | Old Took |
Location | Great Smials, Tuckborough |
Birth | S.R. 1190 |
Death | S.R. 1320 |
Family | |
Parentage | Fortinbras Took I |
Physical Description | |
Gender | Male |
Gallery | Images of Gerontius Took |
Gerontius Took (S.R. 1190 - 1320, died aged 130), also known as The Old Took, was a renowned Hobbit and twenty-sixth Thain of the Shire.
History
Gerontius was the only son of Fortinbras I. He married Adamanta Chubb, who gave birth to twelve children: Isengrim III, Hildigard, Isumbras IV, Hildigrim, Isembold, Hildifons, Isembard, Hildibrand, Belladonna, Donnamira, Mirabella and Isengar.
After the death of his father in 1248, Gerontius became the twenty-sixth Thain of the Shire.[1] He was a friend of Gandalf, who gave him a pair of magic diamond studs.[2]
Gerontius Took reached the impressive age of 130, which made him the oldest Hobbit until his grandson Bilbo Baggins celebrated his 131st Birthday.[3] He also held the record of most offspring, until Samwise Gamgee bested him with Tom's birth in S.R. 1442.[4]
Etymology
He was called The Old Took not because of his age, but because of his numerous younger relatives.[5]
The word element geron is Greek for old. Gerontius was also a Latin name of the Late Roman Empire, and is one of the very few Greco-Latin names appearing in Hobbit lore.
Gerontius is rendered as Geraint in Welsh, found as a royal name in The Mabinogion and in Tennyson's Geraint and Enid.[6]
Inspiration
In a letter to Mr. and Mrs. Kloos, Tolkien stated that when he wrote The Hobbit, he had imagined Bilbo's grandfather to be old, because both of his grandparents were around a hundred years old when they died.[5]
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix C, "Took of Great Smials"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "An Unexpected Party"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, "The Grey Havens"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix C, "The Longfather-tree of Master Samwise"
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull (eds), The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion, p. 54
- ↑ Mark T. Hooker, Tolkien and Welsh, p. 133
Preceded by: Fortinbras Took I |
26th Thain of The Shire S.R. 1248 - 1320 |
Followed by: Isengrim Took III |