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{{good article}}
{{Short description|Race from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium}}
{{Redirect|Glaurung|the genus of fossil reptiles|Glaurung (reptile)}}
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|iu_creator = [[Morgoth]] (Melkor)
|home_world = [[Middle-earth]]
|base_of_operations = [[Ered Mithrin]], [[Withered Heath]], [[Lonely Mountain]]
|sub_races = Fire-drakes<br />Cold-drakes
}}
[[J. R. R. Tolkien]]'s [[Middle-earth]] [[legendarium]] features
Dragons appear in the early stories of ''[[The Book of Lost Tales]]'', including the mechanical war-dragons of ''[[The Fall of Gondolin]]''. Tolkien went on to create Smaug, a powerful and terrifying adversary, in ''[[The Hobbit]]''; dragons are only mentioned in passing in ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.
Tolkien's conception of the dragon has been adopted both in games loosely based on his Middle-earth writings, and by other [[fantasy]] authors. Several taxa have been named after Tolkien's dragons, including both extinct and living species. Several [[taxa]], including girdled lizards, shield bugs, and ants, carry the name ''Smaug''.
== Development ==
[[File:Hylestad I, right - Fafnir and Sigurd.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Sigurd]] kills the dragon [[Fafnir]]. Wood-carving in [[Hylestad Stave Church]], 12th–13th century. Smaug resembles Fafnir in several respects.<ref name="Shippey 2001"/>]]
Dragons are already present in ''[[The Book of Lost Tales]]''. Tolkien had been fascinated with dragons since childhood.<ref name="Fairy-Stories" group=T>[[J. R. R. Tolkien|Tolkien, J. R. R.]] (1947), ''[[On Fairy-Stories]]'', [[Unwin Paperbacks]] (1975), p. 44; {{ISBN|0 04 820015 8}}</ref> As well as "dragon", Tolkien called them "drake" (from [[Old English]] ''draca'', in turn from [[Latin]] ''draco'' and [[Greek language|Greek]] {{lang|grc|δράκων}}), and "worm" (from Old English ''wyrm'', "serpent", "dragon").<ref name="Turambar" group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1984b}}, ch. 2 "[[Túrin Turambar|Turambar]] and the Foalókë"</ref> Tolkien named four dragons in his [[Middle-earth]] writings. Like the [[Old Norse]] dragon [[Fafnir]], they are able to speak, and can be subtle of speech.<ref name="Shippey 2001">{{cite book |last=Shippey |first=Tom |author-link=Tom Shippey |title=[[J. R. R. Tolkien: Author of the Century]] |date=2001 |publisher=HarperCollins |isbn=978-0261-10401-3 |pages=36–37}}</ref><ref name="Lee Solopova 2005">{{cite book |last1=Lee |first1=Stuart D. |author1-link=Stuart D. Lee |last2=Solopova |first2=Elizabeth |author2-link=Elizabeth Solopova |title=The Keys of Middle-earth: Discovering Medieval Literature Through the Fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien |title-link=The Keys of Middle-earth |date=2005 |publisher=Palgrave |isbn=978-
== Characteristics ==▼
In Tolkien's works, dragons are [[quadruped]]al, and may be either flightless, like Glaurung, or winged, like [[Smaug]]. Winged dragons first appeared during the [[War of Wrath]], the battle that ended the [[First Age]].<ref name="War of Wrath" group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1977}}, ch. 24 "Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath"</ref> Some dragons, known as "Fire-drakes" ("Urulóki" in [[Quenya]]), are capable of breathing fire. It is not entirely clear whether the "Urulóki" were only the first dragons such as Glaurung that could breathe fire but were wingless, or to any dragon that could breathe fire, and thus include Smaug.<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1977}}, ch. 13 "Of the Return of the Noldor"</ref> In Appendix A of ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', Tolkien mentions that Dáin I, King of the [[
▲==Characteristics==
▲In Tolkien's works, dragons are [[quadruped]]al, and may be either flightless, like Glaurung, or winged, like [[Smaug]]. Winged dragons first appeared during the [[War of Wrath]], the battle that ended the [[First Age]].<ref name="War of Wrath" group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1977}}, ch. 24 "Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath"</ref> Some dragons, known as "Fire-drakes" ("Urulóki" in [[Quenya]]), are capable of breathing fire. It is not entirely clear whether the "Urulóki" were only the first dragons such as Glaurung that could breathe fire but were wingless, or to any dragon that could breathe fire, and thus include Smaug.<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1977}}, ch. 13 "Of the Return of the Noldor"</ref> In Appendix A of ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', Tolkien mentions that Dáin I of [[Durin's folk]] and his son Frór were killed by a "Cold-drake", prompting their people to leave the Grey Mountains.<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1955}}, Appendix A, "Durin's Folk"</ref> It is commonly assumed that this indicates a dragon which could not breathe fire. Dragon-fire (even that of [[Dragon (Middle-earth)#Ancalagon the Black|Ancalagon the Black]]) is described as not being hot enough to melt the [[One Ring]]; however, four of the [[Rings of Power#The Seven|Dwarven Rings]] are consumed by Dragon-fire.<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1954a}}, book 1, ch. 2 "[[The Shadow of the Past]]"</ref> All Tolkien's dragons share a love of treasure (especially [[gold]]), subtle intelligence, immense cunning, great physical strength, and a [[hypnosis|hypnotic]] power called "dragon-spell". They are extremely powerful and dangerous but mature very slowly. Because of this, [[Melkor]]'s first attempts to use them against his enemies failed, as they were not yet powerful enough to be useful in battle.<ref name="War of Wrath" group=T/>
== Named dragons ==
Tolkien named only four dragons in his Middle-earth writings. Another, [[Chrysophylax Dives]], appears in ''[[Farmer Giles of Ham]]'', a story separate from the Middle-earth corpus. Chrysophylax is a fire-breathing dragon, described as "cunning, inquisitive, greedy, well-armoured, but not over bold".<ref name="Tolkien Baynes" group=T>{{cite book |
=== Glaurung ===
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=== Ancalagon the Black ===
{{main|Ancalagon The Black}}
[[File:BlalockAncalagontheBlack.jpg|thumb|upright|A painting of Ancalagon the Black]]
Ancalagon the Black ([[Sindarin]]: ''rushing jaws'' from ''anc''
=== Scatha ===
Scatha was a mighty "long-worm" of the [[Ered Mithrin|Grey Mountains]].<ref group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1955}}, Appendix A, "The House of Eorl"</ref> Little is known of Scatha except that he was slain by [[Fram (Middle-earth)|Fram]] in the early days of the [[Éothéod]], the ancestors of the [[Rohan, Middle-earth|Riders of Rohan]]. Scatha's name was likely taken from [[Anglo-Saxon language|Anglo-Saxon]] ''sceaða'', "injurious person, criminal, thief, assassin".<ref group=T>[[J. R. R. Tolkien|Tolkien, J. R. R.]] (1967), ''[[Translations of The Lord of the Rings#Tolkien's Guide to the Names in The Lord of the Rings|Nomenclature of The Lord of the Rings]]'', in [[Wayne G. Hammond]] & [[Christina Scull]] (2005), ''[[The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion]]'', HarperCollins, p. 762; {{ISBN|0 00 720308 X}}</ref> After slaying Scatha, Fram's ownership of his recovered hoard was then disputed by the [[Dwarf (Middle-earth)|Dwarves]] of that region. Fram rebuked this claim, sending them instead Scatha's teeth, with the words, "Jewels such as these you will not match in your treasuries, for they are hard to come by." This led to his death in a feud with the Dwarves. The Éothéod retained at least some of the hoard, and brought it south with them when they settled in [[Rohan (Middle-earth)|Rohan]]. The silver horn that [[Éowyn]] gave to [[Merry Brandybuck]] after the [[War of the Ring]], crucial in [[The Scouring of the Shire#Wish-fulfilment|The Scouring of the Shire]], came from this hoard.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Drout |first1=Michael D. C. |author-link=Michael Drout |last2=Hitotsubashi |first2=Namiko |last3=Scavera |first3=Rachel |title=Tolkien's Creation of the Impression of Depth |journal=[[Tolkien Studies]] |volume=11 |issue=1 |year=2014 |pages=167–211
=== Smaug ===
[[File:Smaug par David Demaret.jpg|thumb|[[Smaug]] in fan art]]
{{main|Smaug}}
{{further|Beowulf and Middle-earth#Smaug}}
Smaug was the last named dragon of Middle-earth. He was slain by [[Bard the Bowman|Bard]], a descendant of Girion, Lord of Dale. A deadly winged fire-breathing dragon, he was red-gold in colour and his underbelly was encrusted with many gemstones from the treasure-pile he commonly slept upon once he had taken control of [[Erebor]] (the Lonely Mountain). The Arkenstone was buried right in the pile he slept on, but Smaug never noticed it. Smaug had only a single weakness: there was a hole in his jewel encrusted underbelly on his left breast area. The hobbit [[Bilbo Baggins]] discovered this weakness, and the information led to Smaug's death above [[Esgaroth]].<ref name="The Hobbit" group=T>{{harvnb|Tolkien|1937|loc=ch. 14 "Fire and Water" and throughout}}</ref>
== Analysis ==
{{further|Smaug|Beowulf and Middle-earth#Smaug}}
Tolkien's dragons were inspired by medieval stories, including those about [[Fafnir]] in [[Germanic mythology]]
The scholar of Icelandic literature [[Ármann Jakobsson]] writes that with the encounter with Smaug, the story in ''The Hobbit'' becomes "more unexpected, entangled, [[Tolkien's ambiguity|ambiguous]], and political". He argues that Tolkien was effectively translating the subtext of his Old Norse sources, creating in his dragon a far more subtle, uncanny, and frightening monster than those in the earlier, more or less unconnected, travel narrative episodes.<ref name="Jakobsson 2009">{{cite journal |last=Jakobsson |first=Ármann |author-link=Ármann Jakobsson |title=Talk to the Dragon: Tolkien as Translator |journal=[[Tolkien Studies]] |volume=6 |issue=1 |year=2009 |doi=10.1353/tks.0.0053 |pages=27–39|s2cid=170310560 }}</ref>
▲representative of ''draconitas'' (i.e. the vice of avarice)."<ref name="Honegger 2009">{{cite book |last1=Honegger |first1=Thomas |author1-link=Thomas Honegger |editor1-last=Chen |editor1-first=Fanfan |editor2-last=Honegger |editor2-first=Thomas |title=Good Dragons are Rare. An Inquiry into Literary Dragons East and West |date=2009 |series=Arbeiten für Literarisches Phantasie ("ALPH") |publisher=Peter Lang |location=Frankfurt |isbn=978-3631582190 |pages=27-59 |chapter=A good dragon is hard to find or, from ''draconitas'' to ''draco'' }}</ref> The use of dragons as an [[allegorical]] device lasted until the early 20th century. Tolkien makes clear that he prefers the actual dragon, ''draco'' (just meaning "dragon" in [[Latin]]<ref>{{cite dictionary |entry=draco |url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/resolveform?type=exact&lookup=draco&lang=latin |last1=Lewis |first1=Charlton T. |last2=Short |first2=Charles |year=1879 |title=A Latin Dictionary |publisher=[[Clarendon Press]]}}</ref>), to any kind of abstract or moralising usage, which Tolkien names ''draconitas''. In Honegger's view, Tolkien's innovation, seen best in Smaug, is his creation of "a distinct 'dragon personality'". Whereas Glaurung is a mythical element, and Ancalagon is merely ferocious, Smaug and Chrysophylax Dives "go beyond both the 'primitive' ''draco ferox'' ("fierce dragon") of myths and legends as well as the whimsical ''draco timidus'' ("timid dragon") of contemporary children's literature."<ref name="Honegger 2009"/> Thus, Honegger concludes, Tolkien's "good dragons" admit their mythical ancestry but are at the same time recognisably modern characters.<ref name="Honegger 2009"/>
== Legacy ==
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=== In games and novels ===
When [[Iron Crown Enterprises]] gained the licensing rights for games made from Tolkien's books, they expanded the selection of named dragons beyond the [[Middle-earth canon]] in both [[Middle-earth Role Playing]]<ref>{{cite book |first1=Ruth Sochard |last1=Pitt
Honegger writes that Tolkien's conception of dragons "as intelligent beings with a distinct personality" has been adopted by [[fantasy]] authors with a wide range of styles, including [[Barbara Hambly]], [[Ursula K. Le Guin]], [[Anne McCaffrey]], [[Christopher Paolini]], and [[Jane Yolen]].<ref name="Honegger 2009"/>
=== In science ===
{{further|List of things named after J. R. R. Tolkien and his works#Named after animals}}
Several taxa have been named after Tolkien's dragons. Two extinct genera have been named after Ancalagon
== References ==
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=== Primary ===
{{reflist|group=T|28em}}
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