If you’re a Lord of the Rings fan, you may be surprised to find out there’s a real Sam Gamgee out there. The real Gamgee felt surprised when he discovered that a fictional character in the LOTR universe shared his name. The real Gamgee actually contacted J.R.R. Tolkien upon learning of the fictitious Hobbit played by Sean AstinOpens in a new tab, who shared his name. The author replied in “letter 184”Opens in a new tab chronicled in the book The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien. TikTok user celebreabirdOpens in a new tab shared the story below.
Gamgee, a man from a borough of South London, learned from friends and family that his name appeared during a 1955 radio presentation of The Lord of the Rings. They told him after hearing it mentioned in the series. Subsequently, on March 15, 1956, Sam Gamgee wrote Tolkien a letter, wanting to know how Tolkien came about a name like his.
Here is an excerpt from Gamgee’s letter:
I hope you do not mind my writing to you, but with reference to your story ‘Lord of the Rings’ running as a serial on the radio…I was rather interested at how you arrived at the name of one of the characters named Sam Gamgee because that happens to be my name. I haven’t heard the story myself not having a wireless but I know some who have…I know it’s fiction, but it is rather a coincidence as the name is very uncommon, but well known in the medical profession.
Tolkien naturally felt very surprised when he received the letter and found himself partially delighted. Only a few days later, on March 18, Tolkien replied. He provided Gamgee with the reason for using his surname. Tolkien lived near Birmingham as a child, and they use the word Gamgee for cotton-wool. Tolkien is somewhat of a linguistics nerd, so he asks Gamgee for more information about his name. Finally, he even offers Gamgee all three of the series volumes signed by him. The letterOpens in a new tab is as follows:
18 March 1956 As from 76 Sandfield Road, Headington, Oxford
Dear Mr Gamgee,
It was very kind of you to write. You can imagine my astonishment, when I saw your signature! I can only say, for your comfort I hope, that the ‘Sam Gamgee’ of my story is a most heroic character, now widely beloved by many readers, even though his origins are rustic. So that perhaps you will not be displeased by the coincidence of the name of this imaginary character (of supposedly many centuries ago) being the same as yours. The reason of my use of the name is this. I lived near Birmingham as a child, and we used ‘gamgee’ as a word for ‘cotton-wool’; so in my story the families of Cotton and Gamgee are connected. I did not know as a child, though I know now, that ‘Gamgee’ was shortened from ‘gamgee-tissue’, and that [it was] named after its inventor (a surgeon I think) who lived between 1828 and 1886. It was probably (I think) his son who died this year, on 1 March, aged 88, after being for many years Professor of Surgery at Birmingham University. Evidently ‘Sam’ or something like it, is associated with the family – though I never knew this until a few days ago, when I saw Professor Gamgee’s obituary notice, and saw that he was son of Sampson Gamgee – and looked in a dictionary and found that the inventor was S. Gamgee (1828-86), & probably the same.
Have you any tradition as to the real origin of your distinguished and rare name? Having a rare name myself (often troublesome) I am specially interested.
The ‘etymology’ given in my book is of course quite fictitious, and made up simply for the purposes of my story. I do not suppose you could be bothered to read so long and fantastic a work, especially if you do not care for stories about a mythical world, but if you could be bothered, I know that the work (which has been astonishingly successful) is in most public libraries. It is alas! very expensive to buy – £3/3/0. But if you or any of your family try it, and find it interesting enough, I can only say that I shall be happy and proud to send you a signed copy of all 3 vols. as a tribute from the author to the distinguished family of Gamgee.
Yrs sincerely
J. R. R. Tolkien.
In case you were wondering, Gamgee wrote back, giving Tolkien more information about his family. Of course, he also accepted the gifts from Tolkien. Funnily enough, Tolkien did not quickly forget this incident as he wrote in his journal later, “For some time I lived in fear of receiving a letter signed S. Gollum. That would have been more difficult to deal with.” I, too, wish I could send Tolkien a letter, then receive signed copies of the entire series, but alas. I’m glad the real Sam Gamgee found his way to his fictional counterpart.
