Letter to Iona and Peter Opie: Difference between revisions

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*'''Authenticity''': Very high (held at the archive of Tolkien Papers, [[Bodleian Library]]).
*'''Authenticity''': Very high (held at the archive of Tolkien Papers, [[Bodleian Library]]).
*'''Publication:''' Excerpts from the letter were published in ''[[The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren]]''. A small excerpt was published in ''[[The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide]]: Chronology'', p. 379.
*'''Publication:''' Excerpts from the letter were published in ''[[The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren]]''. A small excerpt was published in ''[[The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide]]: Chronology'', p. 379.
*'''Background and contents:''' On the occasion of several letters, concerned with the word 'faynights'{{ref|1}}, having been published in ''Sunday Times'', Iona and Peter Opie sent a letter to the newspaper, explaining the use of the word (published on 25 November 1951). Tolkien read their letter, and wrote a long letter in reply, discussing the etymology of 'faynights'. He wrote that he read their letter "''today, just as I had been puzzling over a curious [[Geoffrey Chaucer|Chaucer]] usage''" apparently connected with the issue.<ref>[[Wayne G. Hammond]] and [[Christina Scull]], ''[[The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide]]: Reader's Guide'' (2006), p. 379</ref>. In their work ''[[The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren]]'', Iona and Peter Opie quoted from Tolkien's letter, that states, amongst other things, that the terms 'fains I', 'fains' and 'fainites' are survivals of [[Middle English|medieval English]] from the 14th Century.<ref>''An Illustrated Tolkien Bibliography'' at Tolkienbooks.net</ref>
*'''Background and contents:''' On the occasion of several letters, concerned with the word 'faynights',<ref group="note">''Faynights!'' (also: ''fainits!; fain I!; fains!; fain it!; fainites!''): A shout (often accompanied by crossed fingers) used by UK schoolchildren to call a playground truce. (Source: Tom Dalzell, Terry Victor (Eds.), (2007), ''The Concise New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English''.)</ref> having been published in ''Sunday Times'', Iona and Peter Opie sent a letter to the newspaper, explaining the use of the word (published on 25 November 1951). Tolkien read their letter, and wrote a long letter in reply, discussing the etymology of 'faynights'. He wrote that he read their letter "''today, just as I had been puzzling over a curious [[Geoffrey Chaucer|Chaucer]] usage''" apparently connected with the issue.<ref>[[Wayne G. Hammond]] and [[Christina Scull]], ''[[The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide]]: Reader's Guide'' (2006), p. 379</ref>. In their work ''[[The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren]]'', Iona and Peter Opie quoted from Tolkien's letter, that states, amongst other things, that the terms 'fains I', 'fains' and 'fainites' are survivals of [[Middle English|medieval English]] from the 14th Century.<ref>[http://www.tolkienbooks.net/php/details.php?reference=51415 Lore and Language of Schoolchildren. 1973] at [http://www.tolkienbooks.net/ Tolkienbooks.net] (accessed 26 November 2011)</ref>


==Notes==
{{references|note}}
# <small>{{note|1}} ''Faynights!'' (also: ''fainits!; fain I!; fains!; fain it!; fainites!''): A shout (often accompanied by crossed fingers) used by UK schoolchildren to call a playground truce. (Source: Tom Dalzell, Terry Victor (Eds.), (2007), ''The Concise New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English''.)</small>
[[Category:Letters]]
{{references}}
[[CATEGORY:Letters]]

Revision as of 18:38, 26 November 2011

Iona and Peter Opie 25 November 1951 is a letter from J.R.R. Tolkien to Iona and Peter Opie, written on November 25th, 1951.

  • Authenticity: Very high (held at the archive of Tolkien Papers, Bodleian Library).
  • Publication: Excerpts from the letter were published in The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren. A small excerpt was published in The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: Chronology, p. 379.
  • Background and contents: On the occasion of several letters, concerned with the word 'faynights',[note 1] having been published in Sunday Times, Iona and Peter Opie sent a letter to the newspaper, explaining the use of the word (published on 25 November 1951). Tolkien read their letter, and wrote a long letter in reply, discussing the etymology of 'faynights'. He wrote that he read their letter "today, just as I had been puzzling over a curious Chaucer usage" apparently connected with the issue.[1]. In their work The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren, Iona and Peter Opie quoted from Tolkien's letter, that states, amongst other things, that the terms 'fains I', 'fains' and 'fainites' are survivals of medieval English from the 14th Century.[2]

Notes

  1. Faynights! (also: fainits!; fain I!; fains!; fain it!; fainites!): A shout (often accompanied by crossed fingers) used by UK schoolchildren to call a playground truce. (Source: Tom Dalzell, Terry Victor (Eds.), (2007), The Concise New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English.)

References