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<blockquote data-quote="ColonelHardisson" data-source="post: 408624" data-attributes="member: 363">Maybe, maybe not. I'm not sure if or why Tolkien would be careful to note that each strain of Hobbit was friendly with another race, give them some of the characteristics of that race, and then not mean to suggest that those Hobbits physically resembled that race. I mean, Tolkien was, ultimately, making this stuff up, not reporting historical fact. He also wasn't above basing the appearance of the Dunedain on descriptions of Atlanteans, which suggests to me that he was willing to make a number of unusual connections in his literature. But, you're right that it may be stretching - but I'm not the only one to make the connection. Halflings in D&amp;D were divided into three strains also - Hairfeet, Stouts, and Tallfellows. Each of them resembles one of the bigger races - human, dwarf, elf - physically and culturally. The point being that seeing such a connection isn't unique to me.I always assumed all Tolkien elves were blonde, and, apparently, so did Peter Jackson and a lot of other Tolkien fans, judging by how prevalent the blonde elf stereotype is. A lot of this has to do with the direct descriptions of Galadriel and Glorfindel, as well as Tolkien's tendency to describe the elves, no matter which strain, with the word &quot;fair.&quot; &quot;Fair&quot; means blonde to lots of English-speakers, but can easily refer to skin color. All in all, I tend to think that the elves are colored thus, hair-wise:Silvan or Wood-elves -&nbsp; Blondish, strawberry blondeSindar - blonde or silverNoldor - dark haired, blonde in the house of Finwe (except Feanor)One could make the assumption that perhaps Tolkien meant for the Noldor to be very different from other elves, and gave them dark hair to physically distinguish them. Of course, this is all just guesswork on my part, based on what I got from Tolkien's writing.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="ColonelHardisson, post: 408624, member: 363"] Maybe, maybe not. I'm not sure if or why Tolkien would be careful to note that each strain of Hobbit was friendly with another race, give them some of the characteristics of that race, and then not mean to suggest that those Hobbits physically resembled that race. I mean, Tolkien was, ultimately, making this stuff up, not reporting historical fact. He also wasn't above basing the appearance of the Dunedain on descriptions of Atlanteans, which suggests to me that he was willing to make a number of unusual connections in his literature. But, you're right that it may be stretching - but I'm not the only one to make the connection. Halflings in D&D were divided into three strains also - Hairfeet, Stouts, and Tallfellows. Each of them resembles one of the bigger races - human, dwarf, elf - physically and culturally. The point being that seeing such a connection isn't unique to me. I always assumed all Tolkien elves were blonde, and, apparently, so did Peter Jackson and a lot of other Tolkien fans, judging by how prevalent the blonde elf stereotype is. A lot of this has to do with the direct descriptions of Galadriel and Glorfindel, as well as Tolkien's tendency to describe the elves, no matter which strain, with the word "fair." "Fair" means blonde to lots of English-speakers, but can easily refer to skin color. All in all, I tend to think that the elves are colored thus, hair-wise: Silvan or Wood-elves - Blondish, strawberry blonde Sindar - blonde or silver Noldor - dark haired, blonde in the house of Finwe (except Feanor) One could make the assumption that perhaps Tolkien meant for the Noldor to be very different from other elves, and gave them dark hair to physically distinguish them. Of course, this is all just guesswork on my part, based on what I got from Tolkien's writing. [/QUOTE]

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