Lexbuzz Edition #40: Hidden History of "Hobbit"

[lexulous]

Hello, Word Lovers!

Did you ever wonder where the word Hobbit came from?

In 1937, Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien introduced it to the world in a wonderfully ordinary sentence — “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit” — while correcting student papers. That little word became the title of his novel The Hobbit, and eventually led readers into the much larger world of The Lord of the Rings.

A curious little beginning for two of the most beloved works of fantasy literature and for a word that would eventually find its way into dictionaries and onto word-game boards.

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🌀 Weekly Word Wonder: Depone

Pronunciation: dee-POHN

Part of speech: Verb

Definition: To give evidence or testimony under oath; to make a formal statement, especially in a legal setting.

Origin: From Latin dēpōnere, meaning “to put down” or “to lay aside.” The word entered English through legal usage.

Usage:

1. The witness was asked to depone about what he had seen that night.
2. Several experts were asked to depone about the circumstances surrounding the case.

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📖 More Three Words

i. Smial — Tolkien created smial for a Hobbit's underground home, drawing on an old English dialect word meaning a burrow.

ii. Orc — Tolkien incorporated orc into his mythology, while drawing on older Germanic/Old English linguistic material rather than simply inventing the sound from nothing. His early invented languages already contained Elves, Orcs, trolls and other creatures.

iii. Mithril — Tolkien-created word for the precious silver-like metal found in Middle-earth. It became so recognizable that mithril is now used outside Tolkien's fiction as a fantasy term.

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🔎 Community Puzzle

Jumbled Letters: Unscramble these words.

1. LYOLERGA —
   (Extended metaphor that conveys a deeper moral or political truth)

2. PALRABE —
   (Short narrative illustrating a moral lesson through symbolic characters)

3. TONMEMY —
   (Substitution of a related word or phrase for another concept)

4. UAEQTANYRR —
   (Relating to the number four)

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Last Week's Answers (Edition #39)

Jumbled Letters

1. TANOILE — ELATION
2. AUHPORIE — EUPHORIA
3. BNLITJUA — JUBILANT
4. PERUTAR — RAPTURE
5. COLIFR — FROLIC

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