What was J.R.R. Tolkien’s academic title at Oxford beginning in 1925?

J.R.R. Tolkien became the Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford in 1925.

The professorship placed Tolkien at the centre of the academic study of Old English, the language of works such as Beowulf. He held the chair from 1925 until 1945, teaching and researching the language and literature that had fascinated him since his student years.

Tolkien later became Merton Professor of English Language and Literature, a post he held from 1945 until his retirement in 1959. Because both titles were Oxford professorships connected with his career, they are sometimes confused.

His scholarship and fiction continually influenced one another. His work on medieval languages, heroic poetry, and mythology informed the texture of Middle-earth, while his imaginative writing helped make his academic interests famous far beyond universities.