| Poems by J.R.R. Tolkien | |
| Over Old Hills and Far Away | |
|---|---|
| Poem Information | |
| Other names | Ʒeond fyrne beorgas ⁊ heonan feor, Over old Hills and Far Away,[1] Over old Hills and far away,[1] Over old Hills & far away[2] |
| Written | Between January and February of 1916 |
| Revised | 1927 |
| Published | The Book of Lost Tales Part One, The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien |
| Subject(s) | Tinfang |
Over Old Hills and Far Away is a poem written by J.R.R. Tolkien that features Tinfang, much like another poem. It was published and commented in The Book of Lost Tales Part One, where Christopher Tolkien compares the earlier readings.[3]
Poem excerpt
It was early and still in the night of June,
And few were the stars, and far was the moon,
The drowsy trees drooping, and silently creeping
Shadows woke under them while they were sleeping.
I stole to the window with stealthy tread
Leaving my white and unpressed bed;
And something alluring, aloof and queer,
Like perfume of flowers from the shores of the mere
That in Elvenhome lies, and in starlit rains
Twinkles and flashes, came up to the panes
Of my high lattice-window. Or was it a sound?
I listened and marveled with eyes on the ground.
For there came from afar a filtering[4] note
Enchanting sweet, now clear, now remote,
As clear as a star in a pool by the reeds,
As faint as the glimmer of dew on the weeds.[3]
Background
Between January and February of 1916,[5] Tolkien wrote the first four drafts of Over Old Hills and Far Away at Brocton Camp in Staffordshire. The earliest of which was given the name Ʒeond fyrne beorgas ⁊ heonan feor in Old English and "an apparently contemporaneous note"[5] which said "Jan[uary]-Feb[ruary] 1916"[6], dating the poem. A typescript[6] made later[6] had an inscription which said "Brocton Camp, Christ[mas]-Jan[uary] 1915-16"[5]. Later in 1927, Tolkien rewrote the poem while at Oxford. The latest draft of the poem was posthumously published in 1983 as part of The Book of Lost Tales Part One, where Christopher Tolkien compared it to some earlier readings.[3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 J.R.R. Tolkien; Christina Scull, Wayne G. Hammond (eds.), The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien, "Appendix III. Poem Lists"
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien; Christina Scull, Wayne G. Hammond (eds.), The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien, "Illustrations", "Over Old Hills and Far Away (no. 43, text C)"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Book of Lost Tales Part One, "IV. The Chaining of Melko", Over Old Hills and Far Away, pp. 108-10
- ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien; Christina Scull, Wayne G. Hammond (eds.), The Collected Poems of J.R.R. Tolkien, "43. Over Old Hills and Far Away (1916-27)"
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond (2006), The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: II. Reader's Guide, p. 693 (entry "Over Old Hills and Far Away")
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Christina Scull and Wayne G. Hammond (2006), The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide: I. Chronology, p. 76 (entry "?January-February 1916")