Tolkien Gleanings #424

* Just published as an ebook, an English translation of an Italian book from 2023, The Warriors of Middle-earth – Armies, Equipment and Clothing: Vol.1: Hobbits, Bardings and Dunlendings (2026). It’s been properly translated by a human, not an automated system, and has a sumptuous photographic page for each costume along with its detailing and accessories.

“Drawing on extensive research, this volume sheds light on some lesser-known aspects of Middle-earth’s material culture, offering readers a deeper and more realistic understanding of this world and its history. […] intended not only for scholars and admirers of Tolkien’s work, but also for enthusiasts of historical costume and military history, as well as illustrators, costume designers and historical re-enactors.”

Two other books by the same author can be had in Italian, as yet untranslated.

* A forthcoming book from Bloomsbury, Tolkien’s Material Culture: (Extra)ordinary Objects in Middle-earth and Beyond. According to Amazon UK this is set for release in February 2027, to be priced at the ‘university libraries only’ price of £75.

* An undergraduate dissertation, newly published as an ebook, Tolkien’s Medieval Naming Methods (2026). Examines medieval naming principles, as they appear to have fed into Tolkien’s personal names, place names, and even things like the “names of swords or calendars” and other material items. (I assume calendars could have been material, in the form of wooden clogg almanacs, notched stave tallies and suchlike).

* The Mexican scholarly journal Euphyia has a new special-issue on ‘Paradise Lost: Myth, Knowledge and Action’. Includes, in Spanish, the article “Nostalgia for paradise: Exile and redemption in the mythology of J.R.R. Tolkien”. Freely available online, in open-access.

* Now published by De Gruyter, Tolkien Spirituality: Constructing Belief and Tradition in Fiction-based Religion (2026). I’m uncertain if it’s an updating and expansion of the author’s PhD thesis The Spiritual Tolkien Milieu: a study of fiction‐based religion (2014), or not.

* The Tolkien Society will host a one-day online seminar on Tolkien’s Invented Languages, an event set for 21st November 2026. Not to be confused with America’s 11th International Conference on Tolkien’s Invented Languages which is set for 30th July – 2nd August 2026.

* Shawn Marchese has an online report from Westmoot 2026. I was especially interested to hear of these talks…

   — Jeremy Edmonds, who trekked through fanzines to share a glimpse of the early years of Tolkien fandom in the 1950s.

   — Chad Bornholdt, who presented exhaustive research conducted with Bill Fliss of Marquette University, tracking the movements of each of the nine Ringwraiths across the Shire and beyond during the hunt for the Ring.

* The recent Tolkien Days 2026 festival, in Geldern-Pont in Germany, is reported to have been a success. The major four-day Tolkien festival at the end of May 2026, attracted… “around 14,000 visitors and combined Tolkien-themed activities, art shows, LARPs, live entertainment and concerts for attendees from across Europe”. The headline music act for 2026 was Italian power-metal band Wind Rose, their first appearance at the festival.

* Crowdfunding now, a screen documentary about the Tolkien Society Forodrim of Sweden.

* And finally, just a reminder that 2027 will mark the 50th anniversary of the publication of the Silmarillion in mid September 1977. Now might be the time to start planning special events and publications, if the anniversary is not already on your calendar. 1977 was also the year of the Carpenter Biography.