When J.R.R.Tolkien laid aside "The Silmarillion" in 1937 the extension of the original "mythology" into later Ages of the world had scarcely begun. It was inthe Appendices to The Lord of the Rings that there emerged a comprehensivehistorical structure and chronology of the Second and Third Ages, embracing allthe diverse strands that came together in the War of the Ring. The difficulty hefound in providing these Appendices, leading to delay in the publication of "TheReturn of the King", is well known; but in "The Peoples of Middle-earth" Christopher Tolkien shows that early forms of these works already existed yearsbefore, in essays and records differing greatly from the published forms. Hetraces the evolution of the Calendars, the Hobbit genealogies, the Westronlanguage or Common Speech (from which many words and names are recordedthat were afterwards lost), and the chronological structure of the later Ages.
Other writings by J.R.R.Tolkien are included in this final volume of "TheHistory of Middle-earth", chiefly deriving from his last years, when new insightsand new constructions still freely arose as he pondered the history that he hadcreated. The book concludes with two soon-abandoned stories, both unique inthe setting of time and place: "The New Shadow" in Gondor of the Fourth Age,and the tale of "Tal-elmar", in which the coming of the dreaded Numenoreanships is seen through the eyes of men of Middle-earth in the Dark Years. Это и многое другое вы найдете в книге The Peoples of Middle-Earth (J. R. R. Tolkien)