J.R.R. Tolkien was born on 3 January 1892 in Bloemfontein, then the capital of the Orange Free State. His birth name was John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, and he was the first child of Arthur Reuel Tolkien and Mabel Tolkien.
Tolkien spent his earliest years in southern Africa, but his family moved to England after his father died in 1896. He grew up mainly in the Birmingham area, where the English countryside and local place-names later influenced aspects of his imaginative work.
The date is sometimes confused with Tolkien’s wedding anniversary or with the date of his death, 2 September 1973. Tolkien’s birthday is also commemorated by Tolkien Reading Day, held annually on 25 March, the date associated with the fall of Sauron in The Lord of the Rings.