Which Oxford college did J.R.R. Tolkien serve as a professor at for much of his career?

J.R.R. Tolkien served as a professor at Merton College, Oxford, for much of his later career.

Tolkien became Merton Professor of English Language and Literature in 1945, succeeding C.S. Lewis's friend and fellow scholar George Gordon. The professorship was attached to Merton College, and Tolkien held it until his retirement in 1959. He had previously taught at the University of Leeds and at Oxford's Exeter College.

Merton provided the academic setting in which Tolkien continued his research and developed major works of fiction. His Oxford friendships and literary discussions, including those involving C.S. Lewis and the Inklings, formed an important part of the intellectual background to his writing.

Tolkien is often simply described as an Oxford professor, which is correct but less specific. Exeter College was his earlier Oxford base, whereas Merton College is the answer for the senior professorship he held from 1945 to 1959.