What was the name of J.R.R. Tolkien’s mother?

J.R.R. Tolkien’s mother was named Mabel Suffield.

Mabel Tolkien was born Mabel Suffield and married Arthur Reuel Tolkien in 1891. She gave birth to John Ronald Reuel Tolkien in Bloemfontein in 1892 and later to his younger brother, Hilary. After Arthur Tolkien died in 1896, Mabel raised the boys in England.

She played an important role in Tolkien’s education. Mabel taught her children languages, literature, drawing, and other subjects, and Tolkien later remembered her intellectual influence with affection. Her interest in language and stories helped encourage the abilities that became central to his career.

Mabel died in 1904, when Tolkien was 12. Tolkien and Hilary were subsequently cared for under the guardianship of Father Francis Morgan. Mabel is sometimes confused with Edith Bratt, Tolkien’s future wife, but Edith was not his mother.