Where is the Old Forest located in Middle-earth?
The Old Forest lay near the centre of Eriador, a large region of north-west Middle-earth. It covered about 1,000 square miles or some 2,600 km2 and bordered on the east by the Barrow-downs.
Questions about Old Forest
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who is Old Man Willow in the Old Forest?
Old Man Willow was a malign tree-spirit named after the River Withywindle in the centre of the forest. He appeared physically as a large willow tree but spread his influence throughout the entire woodland to trap travelers with hypnosis.
When did the hobbits settle Buckland near the Old Forest?
Gorhendad Oldbuck and his clan of Hobbits settled Buckland and began to encroach upon the Old Forest during the Second Age. They re-awakened hostility that had first been aroused back in the Second Age when they started cutting trees along the Hedge.
What happened to the Great Hedge protecting Buckland from the Old Forest?
Trees began to plant themselves against the Hedge and lean over it before the War of the Ring. To counter this attack, hobbits cleared a narrow strip of land on the outside of the Hedge and felled many trees to create what later became known as the Bonfire Glade.
How does the name Old Forest relate to its meaning in Latin?
The word Forest derives from medieval Latin forestem silvam meaning the outside wood. It comes from Latin foris meaning out of doors which glosses as unfenced woodland yet the Old Forest is very emphatically fenced out by a strip of scorched earth and a high hedge.
In what year did the chapter titled The Old Forest first appear in print?
The chapter titled The Old Forest first appeared in print in 1954 within book one of The Fellowship of the Ring. A fold-out map in the first edition of Unfinished Tales shows the forest on the right side of the Shire with a larger scale than the equivalent map in The Lord of the Rings hardback version.