What was J.R.R. Tolkien’s first published work of fiction?

J.R.R. Tolkien’s first published work of fiction was The Hobbit. It was published as a book by George Allen & Unwin on 21 September 1937.

Tolkien had written imaginative stories and poems privately for years, including early versions of the mythology later associated with The Silmarillion. Those manuscripts were not published during the period when he was developing them. The Hobbit was the first major fictional work to reach the public in book form.

The novel began as a children’s fantasy about Bilbo Baggins and gradually connected with Tolkien’s broader mythology. Its success created pressure for a sequel, but Tolkien’s response became a much more ambitious narrative: The Lord of the Rings.

Some readers name The Book of Lost Tales because it contains early mythological material, but those texts were edited and published posthumously by Christopher Tolkien. Farmer Giles of Ham and Leaf by Niggle were also published later than The Hobbit.