Jonathan Evans is a professor of medieval languages and literature at the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

. He is known as a Tolkien scholar, including for his 2006 book ''Ents, Elves, and Eriador'' and his contributions to ''

The J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia The ''J. R. R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment'', edited by Michael D. C. Drout, was published by Routledge in 2006. A team of 127 Tolkien scholars on 720 pages cover topics of Tolkien's fiction, his academic works, his ...

''.

Life

Jonathan Evans studied English at Asbury College, earning his B.A. in 1976. He gained an M.A., also in English, in 1978 at Indiana University, where he completed his Ph.D. in British Literature in 1984. That year he joined the faculty at the

, where he is a professor of medieval languages and literature]. Courses he has taught include early English, medieval languages and literature, and both environmental and fantasy literature. In addition, he researches and teaches on Tolkien studies, with topics including the languages of Middle-earth. Evans lives with his wife in

Athens, Georgia Athens, officially Athens–Clarke County, is a consolidated city-county and college town in the U.S. state of Georgia. Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta, and is a satellite city of the capital. The University of Georgia, the sta ...

. They have two children.

Writing

''Ents, Elves, and Eriador''

Brian McFadden, reviewing ''Ents, Elves, and Eriador'', finds the book's argument plausible, Christianity notwithstanding, since "the basic principles of stewardship that Dickerson and Evans lay out are in line with those of many environmental writers", while their Tolkien scholarship was right up to date.

''An Introduction to Old English''

Caroline Batten, reviewing Evans's ''An Introduction to

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

'' in ''

The Medieval Review ''The Medieval Review'', formerly the ''Bryn Mawr Medieval Review'', is a peer-reviewed online academic journal that was established in 1993. Originally the journal was published at the University of Washington, from 1995 to 2007 by Western Michiga ...

'', writes that it offers "a well-designed, substantive, and entirely authoritative course plan" for teaching the language, including both its historical and its linguistic contexts. She finds Evans's use of the ''

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...

'' "especially commendable".

''Tolkien the Medievalist''

Shaun Hughes, reviewing ''Tolkien the Medievalist'' in '' Tolkien Studies'', writes that Evans's essay "The anthropology of Arda", on humans in Tolkien's world of Middle-earth, is "long and densely argued". Hughes disagrees with Evans's restriction of this to Tolkien's "Men", as Tolkien, he writes, followed the

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

conception of treating all the humanoid races as ''menn'', whether they were ''mennskir'' (human) or not. But he finds the essay useful in exploring Tolkien's humans, as this was the one "race" that Tolkien did not "invent", even if dwarves and elves existed (in some form) and hobbits are "counted under human kind". Hughes notes that Evans compares how Tolkien and

Milton Milton may refer to: Names * Milton (surname), a surname (and list of people with that surname) ** John Milton (1608–1674), English poet * Milton (given name) ** Milton Friedman (1912–2006), Nobel laureate in Economics, author of '' Free t ...

addressed "parallel problems" like the fall of man in their Bible-related stories.

Works

Books

* 2006 ''Ents, Elves, and Eriador: J.R.R. Tolkien's Environmental Vision'' (with Matthew Dickerson) * 2008 ''Dragons: Myth and Legend'' * 2020 '' An Introduction to Old English''

Chapters

Evans has contributed chapters to books including: * 1987 ''Mythical and Fabulous Creatures: A Sourcebook and Research Guide'' * 1990 ''

Dictionary of Literary Biography The ''Dictionary of Literary Biography'' is a specialist biographical dictionary dedicated to literature. Published by Gale, the 375-volume setRogers, 106. covers a wide variety of literary topics, periods, and genres, with a focus on American an ...

'' * 1993 ''Medieval Scandinavia: An Encyclopedia'' * 2000 ''J.R.R. Tolkien and His Literary Resonances'' * 2000 ''The Encyclopedia of Medieval Folklore'' * 2003 ''Tolkien the Medievalist'' * 2006 ''

'' – 10 entries, inc. ' Dragons', ' Dwarves', '

Mirkwood Mirkwood is a name used for a great dark fictional forest in novels by Sir Walter Scott and William Morris in the 19th century, and by J. R. R. Tolkien in the 20th century. The critic Tom Shippey explains that the name evoked the excitement of t ...

', '

Monsters A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...

', and '

Saruman Saruman, also called Saruman the White, is a fictional character of J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is leader of the Istari, wizards sent to Middle-earth in human form by the godlike Valar to challenge Sauron, t ...

' * 2008 ''The Facts on File Companion to Pre-1600 British Poetry'' * 2014 ''Arda Inhabited: Environmental Relationships in The Lord of the Rings''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Jonathan Tolkien scholars 1950s births Living people University of Georgia faculty