Mat Heathertoes: Difference between revisions
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'''Mat Heathertoes''' was | {{quote|All good fellows, and they're missed|[[Barliman Butterbur]]<ref name="Bound"/>}} | ||
'''Mat Heathertoes''' (died [[Third Age 3019]]) was a [[Bree-men|Man of Bree]]. | |||
__NOTOC__ | |||
==History== | |||
With the [[War of the Ring]] raging in the South-east, many refugees came up the [[Greenway]] to [[Bree]]. Not all these refugees came with the same intentions: a group [[ruffians]] was ousted from the town near the end of [[Third Age 3018|T.A. 3018]]. With the help of [[Bill Ferny]] and [[Harry Goatleaf]], they returned soon after New Year, and a fight ensued. The number of casualties on the side of the ruffians was not recorded, but five of the Bree-folk, three Men and two Hobbits, were killed. Mat Heathertoes was one of them.<ref name="Bound">[[J.R.R. Tolkien]], ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', ''[[The Return of the King]]'', "[[Homeward Bound]]"</ref> | |||
[[Category:Bree-men]] | ==Etymology== | ||
''Mat'' was a name employed by [[J.R.R. Tolkien|Tolkien]] to translate the common (but untranslated) Hobbit name '''Matta'''.<ref name="AppF">[[J.R.R. Tolkien]], ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', ''[[Appendix F]]'', "II: On Translation"</ref> The name '''Heathertoes''' was, like all surnames of the Men of Bree, a plant name,<ref name="Pony">[[J.R.R. Tolkien]], ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', ''[[The Fellowship of the Ring]]'', "[[At the Sign of the Prancing Pony]]"</ref> though this seems to have escaped Tolkien: when he write [[Nomenclature|a list for translators]], he said ''Heathertoes'' was a Hobbit name, and was given in joke to the unshod Hobbits. While walking, they would gather twigs and moss between their toes.<ref name="nomen"> [[J.R.R. Tolkien]], "[[Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings]]", published in: ''[[The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion]]'' (eds. [[Wayne G. Hammond]] and [[Christina Scull]]), page 759</ref> However, Mat was most certainly a Man: given that two of the five were Hobbits<ref name="Bound"/>, and the last two named victims - [[Willie Banks]] and an [[Underhill Family|Underhill]] were both positively identified as Hobbits as well.<ref name="Pony"/><ref name="nomen"/> | |||
==Portrayal in adaptations== | |||
'''1981: ''[[The Lord of the Rings (1981 radio series)|BBC Radio's The Lord of the Rings]]'':''' | |||
:Though the "set-to" with the ruffians is mentioned by Butterbur, he does not give the names of the casualties.<ref>[[Brian Sibley]], [[Michael Bakewell]], ''[[The Lord of the Rings (1981 radio series)|The Lord of the Rings]]'', "[[Homeward Bound (episode)|Homeward Bound]]"</ref> | |||
==References== | |||
<small><references/></small> | |||
[[Category:Bree-men]][[Category:Characters in The Lord of the Rings]] |
Revision as of 19:35, 19 November 2008
- "All good fellows, and they're missed"
- ― Barliman Butterbur[1]
Mat Heathertoes (died Third Age 3019) was a Man of Bree.
History
With the War of the Ring raging in the South-east, many refugees came up the Greenway to Bree. Not all these refugees came with the same intentions: a group ruffians was ousted from the town near the end of T.A. 3018. With the help of Bill Ferny and Harry Goatleaf, they returned soon after New Year, and a fight ensued. The number of casualties on the side of the ruffians was not recorded, but five of the Bree-folk, three Men and two Hobbits, were killed. Mat Heathertoes was one of them.[1]
Etymology
Mat was a name employed by Tolkien to translate the common (but untranslated) Hobbit name Matta.[2] The name Heathertoes was, like all surnames of the Men of Bree, a plant name,[3] though this seems to have escaped Tolkien: when he write a list for translators, he said Heathertoes was a Hobbit name, and was given in joke to the unshod Hobbits. While walking, they would gather twigs and moss between their toes.[4] However, Mat was most certainly a Man: given that two of the five were Hobbits[1], and the last two named victims - Willie Banks and an Underhill were both positively identified as Hobbits as well.[3][4]
Portrayal in adaptations
1981: BBC Radio's The Lord of the Rings:
- Though the "set-to" with the ruffians is mentioned by Butterbur, he does not give the names of the casualties.[5]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, "Homeward Bound"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Appendix F, "II: On Translation"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "At the Sign of the Prancing Pony"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, "Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings", published in: The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion (eds. Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull), page 759
- ↑ Brian Sibley, Michael Bakewell, The Lord of the Rings, "Homeward Bound"