Jonathan Evans is a professor of medieval languages and literature at the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

. He is known as a

Tolkien scholar The works of J. R. R. Tolkien have generated a body of research covering many aspects of his High fantasy, fantasy writings. These encompass ''The Lord of the Rings'' and ''The Silmarillion'', along with Tolkien's legendarium, his legendarium t ...

, including for his 2006 book ''Ents, Elves, and Eriador'' and his contributions to '' The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia''.

Life

Jonathan Evans studied English at Asbury College, earning his B.A. in 1976. He gained an M.A., also in English, in 1978 at Indiana University, where he completed his Ph.D. in British Literature in 1984. That year he joined the faculty at the

, where he is a professor of medieval languages and literature. Courses he has taught include early English, medieval languages and literature, and both environmental and fantasy literature. In addition, he researches and teaches on

Tolkien studies The works of J. R. R. Tolkien have generated a body of research covering many aspects of his High fantasy, fantasy writings. These encompass ''The Lord of the Rings'' and ''The Silmarillion'', along with Tolkien's legendarium, his legendarium t ...

, with topics including the

languages of Middle-earth Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing. Human language is ch ...

. Evans lives with his wife in

Athens, Georgia Athens is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Downtown Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta. The University of Georgia, the state's flagship public university and an Research I university, ...

. They have three children.

Writing

''Ents, Elves, and Eriador''

Brian McFadden, reviewing ''Ents, Elves, and Eriador'', finds the book's argument plausible, Christianity notwithstanding, since "the basic principles of stewardship that Dickerson and Evans lay out are in line with those of many environmental writers", while their

ship was right up to date.

''An Introduction to Old English''

Caroline Batten, reviewing Evans's ''An Introduction to

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

'' in '' The Medieval Review'', writes that it offers "a well-designed, substantive, and entirely authoritative course plan" for teaching the language, including both its historical and its linguistic contexts. She finds Evans's use of the ''

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the ninth century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of ...

'' "especially commendable".

''Tolkien the Medievalist''

Shaun Hughes, reviewing ''Tolkien the Medievalist'' in ''

Tolkien Studies The works of J. R. R. Tolkien have generated a body of research covering many aspects of his High fantasy, fantasy writings. These encompass ''The Lord of the Rings'' and ''The Silmarillion'', along with Tolkien's legendarium, his legendarium t ...

'', writes that Evans's essay "The anthropology of Arda", on humans in Tolkien's world of

Middle-earth Middle-earth is the Setting (narrative), setting of much of the English writer J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy. The term is equivalent to the ''Midgard, Miðgarðr'' of Norse mythology and ''Middangeard'' in Old English works, including ''Beowulf'' ...

, is "long and densely argued". Hughes disagrees with Evans's restriction of this to Tolkien's "Men", as Tolkien, he writes, followed the

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

conception of treating all the humanoid races as ''menn'', whether they were ''mennskir'' (human) or not. But he finds the essay useful in exploring Tolkien's humans, as this was the one "race" that Tolkien did not "invent", even if dwarves and elves existed (in some form) and hobbits are "counted under human kind". Hughes notes that Evans compares how Tolkien and Milton addressed "parallel problems" like the

fall of man The fall of man, the fall of Adam, or simply the Fall, is a term used in Christianity to describe the transition of the first man and woman from a state of innocent obedience to God in Christianity, God to a state of guilty disobedience. * * * * ...

in their Bible-related stories.

Works

Books

* 2006 ''Ents, Elves, and Eriador: J.R.R. Tolkien's Environmental Vision'' (with Matthew Dickerson) * 2008 ''Dragons: Myth and Legend'' * 2020 '' An Introduction to Old English''

Chapters

Evans has contributed chapters to books including: * 1987 ''Mythical and Fabulous Creatures: A Sourcebook and Research Guide'' * 1990 ''

Dictionary of Literary Biography The ''Dictionary of Biography in literature, Literary Biography'' is a specialist biographical dictionary dedicated to literature. Published by Gale (Cengage), Gale, the 375-volume setRogers, 106. covers a wide variety of literary topics, periods ...

'' * 1993 ''Medieval Scandinavia: An Encyclopedia'' * 2000 ''J.R.R. Tolkien and His Literary Resonances'' * 2000 ''The Encyclopedia of Medieval Folklore'' * 2003 ''Tolkien the Medievalist'' * 2006 '' The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia'' – 10 entries, inc. '

Dragons A dragon is a magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in Western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depict ...

', ' Dwarves', '

Mirkwood Mirkwood is any of several great dark forests in novels by Sir Walter Scott and William Morris in the 19th century, and by J. R. R. Tolkien in the 20th century. The critic Tom Shippey explains that the name evoked the excitement of the wildness ...

', '

Monsters A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...

', and '

Saruman Saruman, also called Saruman the White, later Saruman of Many Colours, is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is the leader of the Istari, wizards sent to Middle-earth in human form by the go ...

' * 2008 ''The Facts on File Companion to Pre-1600 British Poetry'' * 2014 ''Arda Inhabited: Environmental Relationships in The Lord of the Rings''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Jonathan Tolkien scholars 1950s births Living people University of Georgia faculty