What was the name of the Tolkien society founded in 1969 to study J.R.R. Tolkien’s work?

The Tolkien Society was founded in 1969 to study and promote J.R.R. Tolkien’s work.

The organization began as an informal group of Tolkien enthusiasts and developed into an international literary society. Its activities include publishing journals and newsletters, organizing lectures and conferences, supporting research, and bringing together readers interested in Tolkien’s languages, fiction, biography, and scholarship.

The society is distinct from the Inklings, the informal Oxford literary discussion group that included Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. It is also distinct from the Mythopoeic Society, which was founded in the United States in 1967 and studies myth and fantasy more broadly.

The Tolkien Society received charitable status in the United Kingdom in 1979. Its continuing work reflects the lasting academic and cultural interest in Tolkien, whose books have generated research across literature, linguistics, medieval studies, religion, and popular culture.