Our Sponsor Sideshow Send us News
Lord of the Rings Tolkien
Search Tolkien
Lord of The RingsTheOneRing.net - Forged By And For Fans Of JRR Tolkien
Lord of The Rings Serving Middle-Earth Since The First Age

Lord of the Rings Movie News - J.R.R. Tolkien

  Main Index   Search Posts   Who's Online   Log in
The One Ring Forums: Tolkien Topics: Main:
pronounciation

dangle
Registered User

Jun 13 2014, 5:05pm

Post #1 of 16 (1786 views)
Shortcut
pronounciation Can't Post

Appologies all for any miss spelling. Not my fault my english teacher was a hippy. Does any one know the correct pronouncistion of thorin and of gollum in my 1968 bbc radio drama of the hobbit thorin is pronounced torin and gollum is pronounced golloom . Cheers all


Glassary
Rivendell


Jun 13 2014, 6:20pm

Post #2 of 16 (1646 views)
Shortcut
Try YouTube [In reply to] Can't Post

Hiya dangle
Go to YouTube and look for 'Tolkien reads' and you can hear the professor pronounce many of the names in his works. Don't know if he is recorded as saying Thorin but there are quite a few of his reading of the riddle scene. Gollum is pronounced as it was in the films so think it's safe to say PJ took his pronunciations from these recordings.


Bracegirdle
Valinor


Jun 13 2014, 7:43pm

Post #3 of 16 (1636 views)
Shortcut
Well.... [In reply to] Can't Post

I've always pronounced the two names as they appear..

"Thor" (as in The Hammerer) "in" as in - "in" - Thorin.
Could the "h" actually be silent? Anyone...??

And Gollum as in "golly" - "um" as in "gum"... Gollum

"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth." -Albert Einstein


Elarie
Grey Havens

Jun 13 2014, 8:03pm

Post #4 of 16 (1631 views)
Shortcut
Thorin pronunciation [In reply to] Can't Post

In one of the movie interviews, at some point, and I can't remember where or when, someone said that in the dwarvish language the "Th" in Thorin was pronounced as "T", so that might explain the "Torin" pronunciation.

Also, (I don't think I've heard anyone else mention this before) when Gandalf wakes Thorin on the Carrock at the end of AUJ, it always sounds to me as though he is saying "Torin" not "Thorin", but maybe it's just the way I'm hearing it.


And once again the world has not arranged itself just for me.


dangle
Registered User

Jun 13 2014, 8:13pm

Post #5 of 16 (1621 views)
Shortcut
Thorin or Torin [In reply to] Can't Post

Cheers all
my mate Thom spells his name as Thom
And it is said as Tom.


Rembrethil
Tol Eressea


Jun 13 2014, 8:24pm

Post #6 of 16 (1620 views)
Shortcut
Gollum is like the films and Thorin... [In reply to] Can't Post

Well, I'm guessing that it is much like the Norse pronunciation taken from the Edda. In that case, it is written with the 'thorn' character, a rough corespondant to our modern 'th' as in 'thorn'. There are a few different ways to pronounce this digraph, but try to say 'Thorin' with the 'th' from 'the' or 'this'. I think it unlikely, so I stick with the 'thorn' sound.

Call me Rem, and remember, not all who ramble are lost...Uh...where was I?


dernwyn
Forum Admin / Moderator


Jun 13 2014, 9:12pm

Post #7 of 16 (1615 views)
Shortcut
You may be thinking of [In reply to] Can't Post

Richard Armitage, who said the Scandinavian pronunciation is "Torin", but for the story they use the English-style "Thorin".

A youngster at my school is Scandinavian, and all pronounce his "Thorin Larson" as "Torin Larson".


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I desired dragons with a profound desire"






Dwarewien
Rohan


Jun 13 2014, 10:04pm

Post #8 of 16 (1606 views)
Shortcut
Same here... [In reply to] Can't Post


In Reply To
I've always pronounced the two names as they appear..

"Thor" (as in The Hammerer) "in" as in - "in" - Thorin.
Could the "h" actually be silent? Anyone...??

And Gollum as in "golly" - "um" as in "gum"... Gollum

except I don't pronounce Gollum as "golly" "um", just Gollum. I had the hardest time pronouncing Gollum's original name, Smeagol. When I first read the books, I pronounced it as SMAY-GOL but in the movies, it's pronounced as SMEE-GOL, so this is the way that I now pronounce it. I think the mark above the "e" is what threw me off. Those darn accents! Just try to pronounce "Barad-dur" right, though the books kind of clear that up. I even had troubles pronouncing the name of my main RPing character on the LotR Fanatics Plaza (you'll know me as the Lady of Shadow). Her name is Naelia, but I always pronounced it as NAY-LEE-AH, but I think the proper pronunciation is NIE-LEE-AH, since she is part Elvish. It may in fact be part Elvish, but it doesn't have a nice meaning, so it's perfect for a Black Numenorean with Moriquendi blood (who's not proud of her Elven heritage, since if she could rip that part out of her, she would).

I thought that too about how Gandalf pronounces Thorin's name at the end of AUJ, but when I watched it again and listened more carefully, I noticed that Gandalf does pronounce the "h", so maybe it was just the way you were hearing it.

Don't confuse me, I'll pronounce the names of my favorite characters the way I like, proper or not, If I'm wrong, let the character (or the actor that portrays him) correct me.Wink

Far over the Misty Mountains cold
To dungeons deep and caverns old
We must away, ere break of day
To find our long-forgotten gold.





Elarie
Grey Havens

Jun 14 2014, 2:31am

Post #9 of 16 (1604 views)
Shortcut
Thorin pronounced 'Torin' [In reply to] Can't Post

Well, after racking my brain for awhile, I found the reference I was thinking of. It's the book, "Hobbit AUJ Chronicles II" and the dialect coach, Roisin Carty, says that Thorin is pronounced 'Torin' in Kuzdul (page 97) so maybe the BBC radio drama decided to go with the Kuzdul version of Thorin's name for some reason.

Anyway, I'm glad I found it - it was driving me crazy. Smile


And once again the world has not arranged itself just for me.


Bracegirdle
Valinor


Jun 14 2014, 3:39am

Post #10 of 16 (1580 views)
Shortcut
Opps... By gosh, by golly.... [In reply to] Can't Post

I should have been more clear. I just meant the vowel sound in "golly". Gollyum is just too far off the mark, by golly!

And Smeagol and Deagol I've always pronounced "Smee-gol" and "Dee-gol" (long "o"). Except at times of lazyness - maybe Smeegel (hard 'g' of course).


In Reply To
Don't confuse me, I'll pronounce the names of my favorite characters the way I like, proper or not, If I'm wrong, let the character (or the actor that portrays him) correct me.

Me too,, except for the actors - are they truly the "end-all" compared to we who have been in the "Tolkien business" for 30-40 years?

I'm glad we cleared up the "Torin" "Thorin" issue...Smile
As "Queen of Erebor I'm sure you're having the Arkenstone well guarded (as well as the body of THorin!).

Cheers BG

"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
-Albert Einstein


Bracegirdle
Valinor


Jun 14 2014, 3:49am

Post #11 of 16 (1579 views)
Shortcut
Ahh.. [In reply to] Can't Post


In Reply To
Cheers all
my mate Thom spells his name as Thom
And it is said as Tom.

The exception to the rule. As Thomas is pronounced "Tomas" (no "h" sound) your friend has chosen to spell his shortened first name "Thom" instead of the usual "Tom" - Cool Cool

"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
-Albert Einstein


Elthir
Grey Havens

Jun 14 2014, 3:49pm

Post #12 of 16 (1567 views)
Shortcut
Thorin and Appendix E [In reply to] Can't Post

I'm not sure why however, as Thorin is not a Dwarvish name. Thorin is an outer name, and Tolkien's advice in Appendix E is: 'The 'outer' or Mannish names of the Dwarves have been given Northern forms, but the letter values are those described.'

And th as described is: as in English thin, cloth [voiceless].


(This post was edited by Elthir on Jun 14 2014, 3:50pm)


Kim
Valinor


Jun 14 2014, 5:04pm

Post #13 of 16 (1547 views)
Shortcut
I hear it too [In reply to] Can't Post


Quote
Also, (I don't think I've heard anyone else mention this before) when Gandalf wakes Thorin on the Carrock at the end of AUJ, it always sounds to me as though he is saying "Torin" not "Thorin", but maybe it's just the way I'm hearing it.



I hear the same thing, although it's almost like it's halfway between Thorin and Torin. I just assumed some people might pronounce it like the English pronunciation of the Thames. I've also heard a couple of interviewers pronounce it that way - one was from Northern England and one from Ireland.


I imagine Thorin might say, "I don't care what you call me, just don't call me late for dinner." Seriously, the dwarf never gets to eat! Tongue





"Jagatud rõõm on topelt rõõm - a shared joy is a double joy". ~Estonian saying


“As such, you will address His Majesty as His Majesty, the Lord of Silver Fountains, the King of Carven Stone, the King Beneath the Mountain, the Lion of Erebor, the High King of the Dwarves, the True Treasure of Erebor, the Face that Launched 10,000 Sighs, or Thorin the Majestic..."


http://newboards.theonering.net/...forum_view_collapsed


Elthir
Grey Havens

Jun 14 2014, 5:20pm

Post #14 of 16 (1558 views)
Shortcut
Christopher Tolkien [In reply to] Can't Post

As I noted elsewhere in the thread, Thorin is not a Dwarvish name, it's an outer name, and Tolkien's advice in Appendix E is: 'The 'outer' or Mannish names of the Dwarves have been given Northern forms, but the letter values are those described.'

And th as described is: as in English thin, cloth [voiceless].

And at the following link you will hear Christopher Tolkien pronouncing Gollum... and also Mithril for example, which differs from the films.

http://www.youtube.com/...amp;feature=youtu.be


Rembrethil
Tol Eressea


Jun 15 2014, 1:01am

Post #15 of 16 (1537 views)
Shortcut
Interesting...Thanks for posting!! [In reply to] Can't Post

I just loved CT's running commentary on the typescript!Laugh

Is the whole recording available, perchance?

Call me Rem, and remember, not all who ramble are lost...Uh...where was I?


Elthir
Grey Havens

Jun 16 2014, 1:17pm

Post #16 of 16 (1516 views)
Shortcut
Not that I know of right now Rembrethil... [In reply to] Can't Post

... but I too would love more!

 
 

Search for (options) Powered by Gossamer Forum v.1.2.3

home | advertising | contact us | back to top | search news | join list | Content Rating

This site is maintained and updated by fans of The Lord of the Rings, and is in no way affiliated with Tolkien Enterprises or the Tolkien Estate. We in no way claim the artwork displayed to be our own. Copyrights and trademarks for the books, films, articles, and other promotional materials are held by their respective owners and their use is allowed under the fair use clause of the Copyright Law. Design and original photography however are copyright © 1999-2012 TheOneRing.net. Binary hosting provided by Nexcess.net

Do not follow this link, or your host will be blocked from this site. This is a spider trap.