Tolkien

//ˈtɒlkiːn// name

name ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname. countable
  2. 2
    A surname.; British author J. R. R. Tolkien countable

Synonyms

All synonyms
john ronald reuel tolkienjrrt

Example

More examples

"Quenya, a constructed language, was created by Tolkien."

Etymology

Likely from Middle Low German Tolkin (literally “son of Tolk”), which is probably also related to Polish Tołkiny and German Tolksdorf, names for a Prussian town; the nickname Tolk is connected to Middle Low German tolk (“interpreter”), from Proto-Slavic *tъlkъ. J. R. R. Tolkien subscribed to a folk etymology that connected the name with German tollkühn (“foolhardy”).

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.