It isn't time yet. It can't be tea-time even, leastways not in decent places where there is tea-time.
Tea was a beverage that the Hobbits (specifically Shire-hobbits) enjoyed alone or socially.
A time of resting and relaxing, the tea-time[1] was considered a meal on its own, between lunch and dinner.[2] It was customary to offer guests for a cup of tea.[3]
Bilbo Baggins invited Gandalf for a cup of tea when he unexpectedly arrived to Bag End. After his invitation, Gandalf showed up with Thorin and Company.[4]
In a poem written by Samwise Gamgee, the Lonely Troll served Perry-the-Winkle some "fulsome tea" and the two friends regularly met in weekly tea sessions.[5]
Names
In the early stages of the legendarium, Tolkien created two Elvish words for "tea": in Qenya tyé (clearly adapted from English),[6] and in Gnomish suithlas (literally "drink-leaf").[7]
Portrayal in adaptations
2007-: The Lord of the Rings Online:
- Tea leaves can be grown by farmers, and characters with the cooking craft can produce several varieties of tea (including Black, Green, Red, and White Tea).[8] In the introductory quest "Sweet Bilberry Tea", Celandine Brandybuck asks the player to collect bilberries for her medicinal tea.[9]
See also
References
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "Roast Mutton"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "A Long-expected Party"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "Three is Company"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, "An Unexpected Party"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, "Perry-the-Winkle"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "Qenyaqetsa: The Qenya Phonology and Lexicon", in Parma Eldalamberon XII (edited by Carl F. Hostetter, Christopher Gilson, Arden R. Smith, and Patrick H. Wynne), p. 49
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, "I-Lam na-Ngoldathon: The Grammar and Lexicon of the Gnomish Tongue", in Parma Eldalamberon XI (edited by Christopher Gilson, Arden R. Smith, and Patrick H. Wynne), p. 68
- ↑ "Item:Bundle of Tea Leaves" 8 September 2016, The Lord of the Rings Online Wiki, accessed 3 January 2017
- ↑ "Quest:Sweet Bilberry Tea" 17 October 2012, The Lord of the Rings Online Wiki, accessed 3 January 2017