“Fascinating for Latin
learners and for Tolkien fans of all ages, The Hobbit has been translated into
Latin for the first time since its publication 75 years ago.
In foramine terrae habitabat
hobbitus. (‘In a hole in the ground, there lived a hobbit.’)
The Hobbit is one of the
world’s most popular classic stories, appealing to adults as much as to the
children for whom J.R.R. Tolkien first wrote the book. Translated worldwide
into more than 60 modern languages, now Hobbitus Ille is finally published in
Latin, and will be of interest to all those who are studying the language,
whether at school or at a higher level.
In the great tradition of
publishing famous children’s books in Latin, professional classicist and
lifelong Tolkien fan Mark Walker provides a deft translation of the entire
book. His attention to detail, including the transformation of Tolkien’s songs
and verses into classical Latin metres, will fascinate and entertain readers of
all ability, even those with only a minimal acquaintance with the language.” –
Amazon.
Yesterday
I got the last of my Christmas books, this Latin translation of “The Hobbit”.
It had been on my Amazon Wish List for years (it was first published in 2012
though I probably didn’t know it right then). When I ordered my Tolkien
Calendar from Walmart, I checked what else Tolkienian they might have available
and to my surprise there was the Latin book, and for a comparable price. I
ordered it then, hoping they would come together, but as it was, they arrived
four days apart.
This beautiful book (5.4 by 7.9 inches; a little smaller in hand than I had imagined) joins my Russian version as a Tolkien volume I can’t really read but somehow must have. The translation is complete, with not only the text but the titles of the illustrations and the words on the maps redrawn in Latin in convincing facsimiles of the original script. And (I checked this) even the runes when translated turn out to be in Latin!
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