Westron

E218720

Westron is the common tongue of Middle-earth in J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium, serving as the primary language of most peoples in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

All labels observed (9)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf constructed language
fictional language
language of Middle-earth
alsoKnownAs Adûni
Common Speech
Common Tongue
Sôval Phârë
creator J. R. R. Tolkien
exampleWord Banazîr (translated as Samwise)
Kalimac (translated as Meriadoc)
Labin-nec (translated as Lobelia)
Maura (translated as Frodo)
functionInLegendarium serves as the lingua franca of Middle-earth
hasFeature contains loanwords from Elvish
has regional dialects such as Shire-talk
influencedBy Adûnaic
Elvish languages
languages of Middle-earth Men
metaStatus partially documented with limited vocabulary by Tolkien
narrativeRole primary language of most characters in The Hobbit
primary language of narration in The Lord of the Rings
origin developed from Adûnaic of Númenor
linked to: Westron
region Bree-land
linked to: Harad

Eriador
Gondor
Rohan
The Shire
parts of Rhovanion
setting Middle-earth
spokenBy Dwarves of Durin’s Folk
linked to: Dwarves of Erebor

Dúnedain of the North
Hobbits
Men of Gondor
linked to: Dúnedain of Gondor

Men of Rohan (with their own tongue as well)
Orcs (in debased forms)
linked to: Orcs

many Men of Middle-earth
some Elves for communication with Men and Hobbits
timePeriod Third Age of Middle-earth
early Fourth Age of Middle-earth
translationConvention represented as modern English in Tolkien’s published texts
usedInWork The History of Middle-earth
The Hobbit
The Lord of the Rings
The Silmarillion (appendices and notes)
linked to: The Silmarillion

Unfinished Tales
writingSystem Cirth (occasionally)
Tengwar

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (75)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Smaug languageSpoken Westron
Aragorn language Westron
Gimli languageSpoken Westron
Legolas languageSpoken Westron
Middle-earth hasLanguage Westron
Frodo Baggins languageSpoken Westron
Gollum language Westron
Samwise Gamgee language Westron
Bilbo Baggins language Westron
Faramir languageSpoken Westron
Denethor II languageSpoken Westron
Éowyn speaksLanguage Westron
Company of Thorin languageContext Westron (Common Speech)
linked to: Westron
Bard the Bowman language Westron
Lake-town language Westron
Westron origin developed from Adûnaic of Númenor
linked to: Westron
Grey Pilgrim languageOfOrigin Westron (in-universe common speech)
linked to: Westron
Istari primaryLanguageSpoken Westron
Éomer languageSpoken Westron
Elrond languageSpoken Westron
Gilraen languageSpoken Westron
Théoden languageSpoken Westron
Strider languageSpoken Westron
Elfstone languageOfName Westron
Eldarion languageSpoken Westron
Prince of the Woodland Realm languageOfName Westron (Common Speech translation)
linked to: Westron
Gondor officialLanguage Westron
The Shire languageSpoken Westron
Angmar languageUsed Westron
Men (Middle-earth) languageFamilies Westron
subject linked to: Men
Hobbits language Westron
Shire language Westron
Hobbiton languageSpoken Westron
Crickhollow languageOfName Westron (represented by English)
linked to: Westron
Drogo Baggins language Westron
Déagol languageSpoken Westron
Déagol nameLanguage Westron
Ents alsoSpeak Westron
Hamfast Gamgee language Westron