As we start a new year and (depending on how you count it) a new decade, Tolkien fans will symbolically join together all over the world to honor the man who brought us Middle-earth and all of Arda. On January 3, the Tolkien Society invites Tolkien fans everywhere to join in the tradition of the annual Tolkien Birthday Toast, in honor of J. R. R. Tolkien’s birthday. The beloved author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings was born on January 3, 1892, in Bloemfontein, South Africa, making 2020 the 128th anniversary of Tolkien’s birth.
Here is how the Tolkien Birthday Toast works. At 9 pm your local time on January 3, do the following:
- Stand,
- Raise a glass of your choice of drink (it does not need to be alcoholic),
- Say “The Professor!”
- Take a sip of your drink.
You may then sit back down and enjoy the rest of your drink, perhaps sharing your thoughts on what the Professor’s work means to you with your friends or reading favorite passages from his work. I will think of all the wonderful people I have met through our common love of Tolkien’s work, and how much they have brought to my life. The Tolkien fandom is, in the end, a Fellowship.
For all of us who cherish Tolkien’s work, the annual Tolkien Birthday Toast is an opportunity to gather in spirit to honor the man who created the wonderful universe of Arda. Many locations have special gatherings to honor Tolkien on his birthday. Please tell us in the comments if you know of an event in your area, so other fans near you can join in!
How will you honor the Professor on his twelfthty-eighth (I think) birthday? You can tell us in the comments below. I know that I will once again, with deep gratitude, raise my glass to “The Professor!”
