Existence of Hobbits Discovered - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Lalwendë · 10-27-2004, 11:30 AM

I've just seen the most peculiar and intriguing item on the 6 o'clock news. Apparently scientists have discovered ancient remains of a strain of human which stood just 3 foot tall, and they are already dubbing this the 'hobbit'. Here is thenews story from the BBC website which also has a link to Nature website. Read it for yourselves, it will make you go ----->

Apparently they found stone tools with the remains, but there was no indication of pipes or tankards.

Mithalwen · 10-27-2004, 12:13 PM

Bet tehy didn't find any shoes

Deathwail · 10-27-2004, 01:32 PM

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/science....ap/index.html

Discuss?

10-27-2004, 01:38 PM

Quote:

a kind of tropical Lost World populated by giant lizards and miniature elephants.

New reports suggest Mumakil were greatly exaggerated in accounts of the War of the Ring.

Indonesia seems like a bit of a far cry from The Shire.

Kransha · 10-27-2004, 02:38 PM

Well, I believe that this whole business about 'new discoveries' is quite a bit of hooplah, as they say. Hobbits have been well known for years, and many were prominent members of society in in the previous centuries. I'm sure, if any of them were around today, they might well be slighted to be included in this futile endeavor to uncover 'hobbits.'

Homo sapiens hobbitus: A member of the homo sapiens genus, standing slightly shorder than the typical member of the sub-group. These "hobbits" share certain generic characteristics with the two other members of the homo sapiens genus, homo numenorius drownius, and homo gondorius normalus. There is also a mild resemblance shared by all members of the genus and the related sub-group, homo leafearius, which includes the legendary, and elusive, often hunted homo legolasus. The Class that includes homo leaferius and sapiens also has distinct relationships to australopithicus wosarensis (Interesting Note: The excavating archaeologist, Ronald Mo-Lanson, found the first preserved skeletal remains of the wosarensis, who he named Ghan-Lucy-Ghan, after a popular Beatles song), australopithicus pettymidgetus, homo nastiorcus, homo bigorcus, and, of course, homo giganticorcwithclubsandnastyteethandstuffus (also called, "bignames").

Hobbits are of substantial less height than the other homo sapiens, but, through adapted intermarraige, can attain a greater height. There are three sub-divisions of the hobbit species: Stores, who have an otherwordly obsession with shopping (from which Prof. Tolkien derived the 'Stoors'), Phallowjives, the infamous Hobbit-Rappers of the Paleolithic Era, (from which Prof. T. derived 'Fallohides') and the ones that nobody remembers...not even me...Otherwise, Hobbits are pretty much the same, and I'm sure you lot can find plenty of scholarly essays on the subject of Hobbits here.

Some notable hobbits:
James Madison: The only hobbit ever to be President of the US
Napoleon Bonaparte: The only French hobbit
Grigori Rasputin: The only Hobbit/Istari/Czarist
Abigail Adams: The only hobbit feminist
Caligula: Still holds the record for "Craziest Hobbit in the History of History"
Darth Vader: Don't ask.

....

Hey, it's mirth, ain't it?

Encaitare · 10-27-2004, 03:17 PM

How great is it that they can just throw in the words "hobbit" and "hobbit-sized" and people know what it means?

Go Tolkien!

Nimrodel_9 · 10-27-2004, 04:08 PM

That`s pretty cool! I was giggling as I was reading through it. Then I came upon my last name which is weird, because it`s not at all common. Hmm... A distant relative of mine discovered a hobbit!

Child of the 7th Age · 10-27-2004, 05:33 PM

Lalwende,

I didn't see this, and also put a thread up in N&N! It's really quite amazing, since they lived at the same time as homosapiens! I'll ask Esty to erase my thread as it came after yours.

~Child

Fordim Hedgethistle · 10-27-2004, 06:14 PM

My father is a retired evolutionary biologist, and a huge fan of Tolkien -- the two books that he insisted I read as a teenager were The Lord of the Rings and The Origin of Species. . .

He is going to absolutely flip when he sees this! Thanks for calling my attention to it!!

turgon · 10-27-2004, 06:31 PM

How's that quote go? "there are more things in heaven and earth then dreampt."

mark12_30 · 10-27-2004, 06:46 PM

Quote:

The 18,000-year-old specimen, known as Liang Bua 1 or LB1, has been assigned to a new species called Homo floresiensis.

LB1, or Lobelia.

Estelyn Telcontar · 10-28-2004, 01:52 AM

I have not complied with Child's request to delete or merge her thread in the N&N forum (Headline News: We Have Hobbit Ancestors); I think since this one is exploring the mirthful aspects of the topic (thanks for a great laugh, Kransha!), the other one can be there for serious responses. You can choose which approach you prefer...

Lalwendë · 10-28-2004, 06:54 AM

If they find any gold rings near the remains...well..........

So, if remains of exceptionally tall people are found, will they claim to have found elves? And what would Ent remains look like?

Quote:

My father is a retired evolutionary biologist

I love the way you say this so casually - that's amazing! Although, bet he never got arrested for sneaking onto a top secret Vulcan bomber like my dad did.

**The Saucepan Man** · 10-28-2004, 07:15 AM

I thought that it was just Hobbits' feet that were unusually hairy?

(btw I was quite astonished to see that this made the front page of my regular newspaper today - and no it's not a "red-top" before you ask.)

mark12_30 · 10-28-2004, 08:02 AM

According to the National Geographic article linked to by CHild (in the other thread), Homo Floresiensis and the Dwarf Mumakil both became extinct because of a volcanic eruption. Doggone that Mount Doom, anyway.

mark12_30 · 10-28-2004, 08:33 AM

Good hair day for Hobbit Hunters

Bêthberry · 10-28-2004, 08:39 AM

Quote:

The myths say Ebu Gogo were alive when Dutch explorers arrived a few hundred years ago and the very last legend featuring the mythical creatures dates to 100 years ago.

I have a really bad feeling about this ...

mark12_30 · 10-28-2004, 08:52 AM

Makes the idea of their descending from the Sackville Bagginses even stronger-- did Lotho have any children? Oh, wait, nevermind-- Wormtongue ate Lotho, not the other way around....

eeeew

Bêthberry · 10-28-2004, 09:20 AM

Well, just wait for the evidence of the first umbrella. They probably were used as ancient parachutes, for a quick drop out of those high trees once the Komodo Dragons wandered away.

And homo hobbitus does sound much better than homo lilliputus.

Child of the 7th Age · 10-28-2004, 09:31 AM

This whole thing is getting a little eerie for the Mirth forum: 3-foot hobbits who seem to have enough hair to leave some behind and were destroyed by a volcano! (This book ends differently than the one I read.)

Want to get even stranger? I looked through the articles linked through Mark12_30's post. Apparently, these Hobbits also had prodigious appetites. Dutch settlers said they left out food for the little people, which was promptly devoured. But not only did the Hobbits eat the food--they also ate the gourd bowl in which the food was served! Those little guys obviously liked to chow down.....

At least we've solved that vexing question that has long been raised on this forum: exactly where did Hobbits come from. The next time anyone posts such a question I will definitely refer them to the Isle of Flores (an appropriate origin for a flower-loving people!).

For anyone who'd like to speculate on what all this implies for our "collective folk memory", please follow the gourd-lined trail up to the hobbit ancestors' thread in Novices and Newcomers.....

Lalwendë · 10-28-2004, 12:48 PM

Quote:

This whole thing is getting a little eerie for the Mirth forum: 3-foot hobbits who seem to have enough hair to leave some behind and were destroyed by a volcano! (This book ends differently than the one I read.)

Whoa! This is getting a bit scary!

I thought this could possibly be some kind of joke at first, especially when I heard the term 'Ebu Gogo', but I'm not sure if this could be an angram of anything in particular, as it suggests it might be.

I was watching Richard and Judy earlier (I watch all the best TV shows...) and Richard Dawkins (Hawkins?) was on and he got most annoyed at the fact the media - and all the Tolkienites - have dubbed the find 'hobbits'. Well, it just goes to show how far the idea of 'hobbits' has sunk into our minds - maybe in two thousand years people will think Middle Earth actually existed. Oh wait, we do this now, don't we?

Laitoste · 11-07-2004, 08:20 PM

Quote:

- maybe in two thousand years people will think Middle Earth actually existed. Oh wait, we do this now, don't we?

You betcha!

This is quite odd and endlessly fascinating. Makes me actually think about and remember evolution discussions from AP Biology last year...

Eönwë · 02-03-2009, 02:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

And what would Ent remains look like?

Coal

alatar · 02-03-2009, 10:41 AM

Sorry for Mr. Dawkins that the world has Tolkien on the brain, as seen here.

10-27-2004, 11:30 AM	#1
Lalwendë A Mere Boggart Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: under the bed Posts: 4,737	Existence of Hobbits Discovered I've just seen the most peculiar and intriguing item on the 6 o'clock news. Apparently scientists have discovered ancient remains of a strain of human which stood just 3 foot tall, and they are already dubbing this the 'hobbit'. Here is thenews story from the BBC website which also has a link to Nature website. Read it for yourselves, it will make you go -----> Apparently they found stone tools with the remains, but there was no indication of pipes or tankards. __________________ Gordon's alive!

10-27-2004, 12:13 PM	#2
Mithalwen Pilgrim Soul Join Date: May 2004 Location: watching the wonga-wonga birds circle... Posts: 9,458	Bet tehy didn't find any shoes __________________ “But Finrod walks with Finarfin his father beneath the trees in Eldamar.” Christopher Tolkien, Requiescat in pace

10-27-2004, 01:32 PM	#3
Deathwail Haunting Spirit Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Door of Night Posts: 99	And people say its fantasy! http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/science....ap/index.html Discuss? __________________ He who arises in Might.

10-27-2004, 02:38 PM	#5
Kransha Ubiquitous Urulóki Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: The port of Mars, where Famine, Sword, and Fire, leash'd in like hounds, crouch for employment Posts: 747	Hooplah (a word I love, and you should to) Well, I believe that this whole business about 'new discoveries' is quite a bit of hooplah, as they say. Hobbits have been well known for years, and many were prominent members of society in in the previous centuries. I'm sure, if any of them were around today, they might well be slighted to be included in this futile endeavor to uncover 'hobbits.' Homo sapiens hobbitus: A member of the homo sapiens genus, standing slightly shorder than the typical member of the sub-group. These "hobbits" share certain generic characteristics with the two other members of the homo sapiens genus, homo numenorius drownius, and homo gondorius normalus. There is also a mild resemblance shared by all members of the genus and the related sub-group, homo leafearius, which includes the legendary, and elusive, often hunted homo legolasus. The Class that includes homo leaferius and sapiens also has distinct relationships to australopithicus wosarensis (Interesting Note: The excavating archaeologist, Ronald Mo-Lanson, found the first preserved skeletal remains of the wosarensis, who he named Ghan-Lucy-Ghan, after a popular Beatles song), australopithicus pettymidgetus, homo nastiorcus, homo bigorcus, and, of course, homo giganticorcwithclubsandnastyteethandstuffus (also called, "bignames"). Hobbits are of substantial less height than the other homo sapiens, but, through adapted intermarraige, can attain a greater height. There are three sub-divisions of the hobbit species: Stores, who have an otherwordly obsession with shopping (from which Prof. Tolkien derived the 'Stoors'), Phallowjives, the infamous Hobbit-Rappers of the Paleolithic Era, (from which Prof. T. derived 'Fallohides') and the ones that nobody remembers...not even me...Otherwise, Hobbits are pretty much the same, and I'm sure you lot can find plenty of scholarly essays on the subject of Hobbits here. Some notable hobbits: James Madison: The only hobbit ever to be President of the US Napoleon Bonaparte: The only French hobbit Grigori Rasputin: The only Hobbit/Istari/Czarist Abigail Adams: The only hobbit feminist Caligula: Still holds the record for "Craziest Hobbit in the History of History" Darth Vader: Don't ask. .... Hey, it's mirth, ain't it? __________________ "What mortal feels not awe/Nor trembles at our name, Hearing our fate-appointed power sublime/Fixed by the eternal law. For old our office, and our fame," -Aeschylus, Song of the Furies

10-27-2004, 04:08 PM	#7
Nimrodel_9 Ghost Prince of Cardolan Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Utah Posts: 734	That`s pretty cool! I was giggling as I was reading through it. Then I came upon my last name which is weird, because it`s not at all common. Hmm... A distant relative of mine discovered a hobbit! __________________ .:A friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your heart:.

10-27-2004, 03:17 PM	#6
Encaitare Bittersweet Symphony Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: On the jolly starship Enterprise Posts: 1,814	How great is it that they can just throw in the words "hobbit" and "hobbit-sized" and people know what it means? Go Tolkien!

10-27-2004, 05:33 PM	#8
Child of the 7th Age Spirit of the Lonely Star Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 5,133	Lalwende, I didn't see this, and also put a thread up in N&N! It's really quite amazing, since they lived at the same time as homosapiens! I'll ask Esty to erase my thread as it came after yours. ~Child __________________ Multitasking women are never too busy to vote.

10-27-2004, 06:14 PM	#9
Fordim Hedgethistle Gibbering Gibbet Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Beyond cloud nine Posts: 1,844	My father is a retired evolutionary biologist, and a huge fan of Tolkien -- the two books that he insisted I read as a teenager were The Lord of the Rings and The Origin of Species. . . He is going to absolutely flip when he sees this! Thanks for calling my attention to it!! __________________ Scribbling scrabbling.

10-27-2004, 06:31 PM	#10
turgon Haunting Spirit Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Annagroth Posts: 57	interesting How's that quote go? "there are more things in heaven and earth then dreampt." __________________ "What I have left behind I count now no loss, needless baggage on the road it has proved. Let those that cursed my name, curse me still, and whine their way back to the cages" " MIGHT IS RIGHT, DISSENT IS INTOLERABLE"

10-28-2004, 01:52 AM	#12
Estelyn Telcontar Princess of Skwerlz Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: where the Sea is eastwards (WtR: 6060 miles) Posts: 7,500	I have not complied with Child's request to delete or merge her thread in the N&N forum (Headline News: We Have Hobbit Ancestors); I think since this one is exploring the mirthful aspects of the topic (thanks for a great laugh, Kransha!), the other one can be there for serious responses. You can choose which approach you prefer... __________________ 'Mercy!' cried Gandalf. 'If the giving of information is to be the cure of your inquisitiveness, I shall spend all the rest of my days in answering you. What more do you want to know?' 'The whole history of Middle-earth...'

10-28-2004, 07:15 AM	#14
The Saucepan Man Corpus Cacophonous Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: A green and pleasant land Posts: 8,390	He hairy ... I thought that it was just Hobbits' feet that were unusually hairy? (btw I was quite astonished to see that this made the front page of my regular newspaper today - and no it's not a "red-top" before you ask.) __________________ Do you mind? I'm busy doing the fishstick. It's a very delicate state of mind!

10-28-2004, 08:02 AM	#15
mark12_30 Stormdancer of Doom Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Elvish singing is not a thing to miss, in June under the stars Posts: 4,349	According to the National Geographic article linked to by CHild (in the other thread), Homo Floresiensis and the Dwarf Mumakil both became extinct because of a volcanic eruption. Doggone that Mount Doom, anyway. __________________ ...down to the water to see the elves dance and sing upon the midsummer's eve.

10-28-2004, 08:33 AM	#16
mark12_30 Stormdancer of Doom Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Elvish singing is not a thing to miss, in June under the stars Posts: 4,349	Good hair day for Hobbit Hunters __________________ ...down to the water to see the elves dance and sing upon the midsummer's eve.

10-28-2004, 08:52 AM	#18
mark12_30 Stormdancer of Doom Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Elvish singing is not a thing to miss, in June under the stars Posts: 4,349	Makes the idea of their descending from the Sackville Bagginses even stronger-- did Lotho have any children? Oh, wait, nevermind-- Wormtongue ate Lotho, not the other way around.... eeeew __________________ ...down to the water to see the elves dance and sing upon the midsummer's eve.

10-28-2004, 09:20 AM	#19
Bêthberry Cryptic Aura Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 5,996	Well, just wait for the evidence of the first umbrella. They probably were used as ancient parachutes, for a quick drop out of those high trees once the Komodo Dragons wandered away. And homo hobbitus does sound much better than homo lilliputus. __________________ I’ll sing his roots off. I’ll sing a wind up and blow leaf and branch away.

10-28-2004, 09:31 AM	#20
Child of the 7th Age Spirit of the Lonely Star Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 5,133	This whole thing is getting a little eerie for the Mirth forum: 3-foot hobbits who seem to have enough hair to leave some behind and were destroyed by a volcano! (This book ends differently than the one I read.) Want to get even stranger? I looked through the articles linked through Mark12_30's post. Apparently, these Hobbits also had prodigious appetites. Dutch settlers said they left out food for the little people, which was promptly devoured. But not only did the Hobbits eat the food--they also ate the gourd bowl in which the food was served! Those little guys obviously liked to chow down..... At least we've solved that vexing question that has long been raised on this forum: exactly where did Hobbits come from. The next time anyone posts such a question I will definitely refer them to the Isle of Flores (an appropriate origin for a flower-loving people!). For anyone who'd like to speculate on what all this implies for our "collective folk memory", please follow the gourd-lined trail up to the hobbit ancestors' thread in Novices and Newcomers..... __________________ Multitasking women are never too busy to vote. Last edited by Child of the 7th Age; 10-28-2004 at 09:37 AM.

02-03-2009, 10:41 AM	#24
alatar Doubting Dwimmerlaik Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Heaven's basement Posts: 2,466	Sorry for Mr. Dawkins that the world has Tolkien on the brain, as seen here. __________________ There is naught that you can do, other than to resist, with hope or without it.