Now that The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has finally made its debut on Amazon’s Prime Video, there are a lot of questions swirling as to where the series will go. Along with the shift in narrative, which sees the TV show taking place thousands of years before the events of the original trilogy, there are a lot of new faces for the audience to get to know. Some of those are the Harfoots, but what are they, and are they the same as the Hobbits many know and love from the Lord of the Rings series?
Are Harfoots the same as Hobbits in The Rings of Power?
Harfoots are indeed one particular type of Hobbit. In Tolkien’s works, they have been described as having browner skin than other Hobbits, along with no beards, and a lack of footwear. Tolkien wrote in the Prologue to The Lord of the Rings, that “their hands and feet were neat and nimble; and they preferred highlands and hillsides.” He also explained how Harfoots and the Dwarven race got along very well, having “much to do” with one another.
In The Rings of Power, we are introduced to a number of different Harfoots. They include the Brandyfoot family, made up of mother and father duo Marigold and Largo, as well as their daughter Nori. There’s also Nori’s best friend, Poppy Proudfellow, and Sadoc Burrows, who works as a soothsayer. Many other Harfoots appeared on screen, though haven’t at this point been named. We haven’t yet seen them come across any Dwarves, but we’re sure that the future of the series will hold a meeting of the two races.
Where do Harfoots come from?
As the most common type of Hobbit, Harfoots were found in a number of different locations throughout the years. These include the lower foothills of the Misty Mountains, as well as the Vales of Anduin, and by the Gladden River in the south. They would later migrate westward into Arnor, where they would be officially named halflings by the Dúnedain.
Though they’re clearly not against moving from one location to another, Tolkien wrote that they are “the most inclined to settle in one place, and longest preserved their ancestral habit of living in tunnels and holes.” He was also very clear in the race not doing anything of note before the events of the Third Age, when Frodo and his loyal companions were integral to the destruction of the One Ring. Despite that, it looks as though they will be playing an important part in the future of this series.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power continues Fridays on Amazon Prime Video.
