The Encyclopedia of Arda - an interactive guide to the world of J.R.R. Tolkien
Location
East of the Shire, at the crossroads of the East-West Road and the Greenway
Race
Settled by Men and Hobbits
Culture
Settlements
Bree on the west, Staddle on the east
Meaning
Bree means 'hill', so 'Bree-hill' actually means 'Hill-hill'1

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About this entry:

  • Updated 17 August 2020
  • Updates planned: 1

Bree-hill

The centrepoint of the Bree-land

Map of Bree-hill
Map showing the Bree-hill and the Bree-land (somewhat conjectural)
Map showing the Bree-hill and the Bree-land (somewhat conjectural)

The most prominent point in the Bree-land, on the slopes of which stood the villages of Bree itself (to the west) and Staddle (to the east).


Notes

1

This is not so strange as it sounds. Duplication of elements like this often occurs in real place names, with perhaps the most extreme example being Torpenhow Hill in Cumbria, England, one possible interpretation of whose name would be 'Hill-hill-hill Hill'. More directly relevant to our topic here is Brill on the border of Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, whose name comes from Bre hyll. That's literally 'Bree-hill', and Tolkien acknowledges a connection with his own 'Bree-hill' in Middle-earth.

Indexes:

About this entry:

  • Updated 17 August 2020
  • Updates planned: 1

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