J.R.R. Tolkien's academic subject was Anglo-Saxon when he became Oxford's Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon.
Tolkien held the Rawlinson and Bosworth Professorship from 1925 to 1945. The post was based at Pembroke College, Oxford, and focused on Old English language and literature. His scholarly work included major studies of texts such as Beowulf.
He later became Merton Professor of English Language and Literature at Oxford, a position he held from 1945 until his retirement in 1959. His academic career strongly influenced his fiction, especially its invented languages, historical depth, and use of legendary material.
“Anglo-Saxon” is the traditional academic term used here for Old English studies. It should not be confused with Tolkien's later professorship, which covered the broader English language and literature field.