Who published J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit in 1937?

George Allen & Unwin published J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit in 1937. The London publishing house issued the first edition on 21 September 1937.

The book’s publication followed strong encouragement from Stanley Unwin, the company’s chairman. Unwin’s young son Rayner read Tolkien’s manuscript and gave it a favorable report, helping persuade the publisher to take it on. Tolkien also supplied illustrations and designed the book’s maps and visual presentation.

The publisher is sometimes identified simply as Allen & Unwin. That shorter form refers to the same firm, whose name was George Allen & Unwin. Houghton Mifflin became important for American editions, but it was not the original British publisher.

The Hobbit was immediately successful and went through multiple printings. Its success encouraged Tolkien’s publisher to ask for a sequel, which eventually became The Lord of the Rings, a much longer and darker work than the original children’s adventure.