What was the name of J.R.R. Tolkien's fictional innkeeper in The Lord of the Rings?

Barliman Butterbur is J.R.R. Tolkien's fictional innkeeper in The Lord of the Rings.

Butterbur runs the Prancing Pony in Bree, an important stopping place on the road east of the Shire. Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin stay at the inn while travelling toward Rivendell, and Butterbur becomes involved after a message intended for Gandalf is delayed.

The character's surname evokes the butterbur plant, while his first name has a rustic, old-fashioned sound suited to the innkeeper's role. Butterbur is forgetful and hurried, but he is not malicious. The Prancing Pony also introduces readers to Bree-land, a region where Men and Hobbits live together outside the Shire.