Which publishing company released J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit in 1937?

George Allen & Unwin released J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit in 1937.

The London publishing house accepted the manuscript after a reader, Stanley Unwin’s son Rayner, reviewed it and gave an enthusiastic assessment. Stanley Unwin then asked Tolkien for a report on whether the book would sell. The resulting first edition became a major success for the company.

The publisher also issued The Lord of the Rings in three volumes between 1954 and 1955. Tolkien’s relationship with George Allen & Unwin was important to the publication history of both works, although disagreements later arose over editions, royalties, and American publishing arrangements.

The company’s name is sometimes shortened incorrectly to Allen & Unwin when identifying the original publisher. George Allen & Unwin was the formal name used for the firm during Tolkien’s key publishing years. It later became part of the publishing history leading to the modern Allen & Unwin company.