INKLINGS Q & A: When the Riders of Rohan in LOTR offer each other greetings such...

INKLINGS Q & A: When the Riders of Rohan in LOTR offer each other greetings such as "Westhu hal," and "Ferthu hal," what language are they speaking? (Good guess, but wrong: "Rohanese.")

A: This is Anglo-Saxon. "Westhu hal" is "Be thou hale (well)" and "Ferthu hal" is "Fare thou hale (well)." Tolkien was a great scholar and lover of Anglo Saxon language and culture; he was still upset about the Normans' conquest over the Anglo-Saxons in 1066 nearly nine centuries after the event!


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