Which publishing company first released J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit?

George Allen & Unwin first released J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit.

The London publisher George Allen & Unwin published The Hobbit, or There and Back Again on 21 September 1937. Stanley Unwin, the company’s chairman, asked his ten-year-old son Rayner to read the manuscript and provide an opinion. Rayner’s enthusiastic report helped persuade the publisher to accept the book.

The first edition was illustrated by Tolkien himself and quickly attracted attention. Its commercial success led Allen & Unwin to ask Tolkien for another book about hobbits. That request contributed to the creation of The Lord of the Rings, although the sequel grew far beyond the lighter tone and scale of The Hobbit.

The company later published Tolkien’s major Middle-earth books, including The Lord of the Rings. Readers may encounter the name Allen & Unwin in different forms because the business changed through mergers and ownership changes, but George Allen & Unwin is the correct original publisher for The Hobbit.