North Moors

From Tolkien Gateway

The North Moors lay along the northern border of the Shire in the Northfarthing.[1]

Geography[edit | edit source]

The North Moors was located roughly fifty leagues (150 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 | edit source]

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 | edit source]

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