LotR --- Appendix D -- The Calendars

[Estelyn Telcontar]

The translator conceit comes through very strongly in this appendix! It begins with a table showing the Shire Calendar, which remains the same each year, then goes into detailed explanations on the subject, which is said to be of interest to Hobbits. Obviously, it was of great interest to Tolkien himself, since he explains various points at length.

The passage on Elven time reckoning brings up a matter which has been much discussed - the yén, or Elven 'year'. It's interesting that the Elves use a mathematical system based on sixes and twelves; you'd think that a race so logical would have chosen a kind of metric system! I can't help but wonder why the week was "for ritual rather than practical purposes" - was every day the same for Elves? One observation - the Elven week of six days has no relationship whatsoever to the Biblical week, which includes a day of rest after six days of creation. Apparently there was no hallowed day for them?

Tolkien's love for names lead him to invent many different ones for days, months, and seasons - Quenya and Sindarin, to begin with. Interesting is also the fact that he wrote of the Elven day as beginning and ending at sunset.

He also goes to the trouble of finding ways to deal with the astronomical adjustments. However, he conveniently refers to the translator conceit again when unable (or unwilling) to explain a detail - "uncertain", "unknown", "no record".

Next we read of the Númenorean changes, most importantly a seven-day week and a day beginning and ending at sunrise. Again, Tolkien goes into great detail on explaining leap years, etc.

Finally we reach the main object of all that background information - the Shire Reckoning. Though it is based on the Mannish calendar, changes and differences are noted, with even Bree having some of its own idiosyncracies. The 30-day month, with extra days inserted to adjust to the astronomical year, stays the same as far as weekdays are concerned. This leads to a couple of interesting details - the information that Shire folk didn't bother to write the weekday on their letters, since it was always the same for the date, and the fact that no month began on a Friday, leading to the joke about "Friday the first" as a day that will never come.

The usage of our modern day and month names in the narrative of LotR is explained as translation.

Another interesting detail is mentioned - "Yellowskin", the Year-book of Tuckborough. The weekday names listed there start sounding very familiar to us; was Tolkien building a bridge to our own times? The appendix closes with some facts and speculations on holidays in the Shire.

I must confess, this is the first time I have read this section thoroughly, as I'm not deeply interested in the Shire Calendar. When did you first read it and what importance does it have to you? Which details do you find most interesting?


PS - For those who haven't looked at the Barrow-Downs main page for awhile, there is one "practical" usage of the Shire Calendar there: The Barrow-Wight has 'Today's Date in the Shire' at the top right of the page. It's 30 Foreyule today.