North Moors
The North Moors lay along the northern border of the Shire in the Northfarthing.[1]
Geography[edit]
The North Moors was located roughly fifty leagues (150 Númenórean miles) north of the Marshes in the south.[1] No elm trees grew in the North Moors,[2] and it was the one region within the bounds of the Shire where heavy snowfalls were common.[3]
History[edit]
Around the spring of T.A. 3018, Samwise Gamgee heard a rumor that his cousin, Halfast Gamgee, reported seeing Tree-men or giants away beyond the North Moors.[2]
Inspiration[edit]
Assuming that Halfast's story is not a fanciful fabrication and indeed he saw something strange, fans have connected the "tree-man" to the Ents (or Entwives) that appear later in the story. However Tolkien specifically mentioned that he had not invented the Ents before the moment he reached the chapter Treebeard[4] and the "tree-man" reference was written before it.[5] It is unknown whether Tolkien himself consciously considered such a connection, revisited the matter subsequently,[6] or decided that Halfast should not be taken at his word.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, "Prologue", "Concerning Hobbits"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Shadow of the Past"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Ring Goes South"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 231, (dated 4 October 1961)
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Return of the Shadow, pp. 253-254
- ↑ WDBL, Paul Adams, Mark Gordon, "What became of the Entwives?", Tolkien FAQ (accessed 24 March 2023)
