Apparently everyone here missed the movies. Middle Earth is in New Zealand! 
Middle Earth is, if I remember correctly, derived from Midgard, the name for the mortal realm (earth in other words) in Norse mythology.
Tolkien was trying to make his mythology sort of mirror the mythology of Northern Europe, and this was just one of the ways.
He also took the name Mirkwood from Norse mythology, and I believe he may have based his idea for dwarves and elves off of Norse or Germanic mythology as well. Although there are definitely differences between the two (dwarves are more evil in Norse mythology), I think that’s probably the basis.
Threadjack here, but I figured since there were a lot of knowledgable tolkein-ites here…
I remember reading a long, long, -long- time ago something about the order of wizards that Gandalf was part of. and how there were… Let’s see… Sauroman, Gandalf, Radagast… And two others. Are the two others -mentioned- anywhere? I keep having the feeling that the soul mention of them was “And they didn’t get involved in the story. Ta da!” or something to that effect. Why even write them if they’re that insignificant / unimportant?
(I obsessed over it as a young 'un. I wanted to be a wizard when I grew up. :))
That would be Alatar and Pallando, the Blue Wizards. Shortly after arriving in Middle-Earth they travelled into the far east with Saruman and did not return. They’re barely mentioned in the text or the appendices, but in one of his letters, Tolkien says the following about them:
IMHO:
Geologically, Middle Earth is sort of western europe, with vast deserts to the way far south, deserts and tundra-like plains to the east, an ocean to the west, and to the immediate south is a sea connected to the ocean. The mountain ranges and rivers are all different, of course, and geologically not possible.
Culturally, Middle Earth is pretty much all English. The Shire and extending as far as Bree is pretty much rural England from about the 1890s, only pre-technology. In contrast, Mordor and Isengard are urban England from the 1890s, post-technology, and with lots of imported foreign labor.
Rohan are Vikings on horses.The elven centers and Moria are pure fantasy, drawing from lots of medieval and later sources, but Celtic and Druid figure heavily. Gondor, I dunno, sort of a degenerated London (maybe War of the Roses era, or thereabouts? drawing on post-Arthurian legend, waiting for the King to return?)
Brill Hill, a few miles away from where I grew up, is apparently where Tolkein made his notes for the Hobbit. The hill is in the middle of beautiful Oxfordshire countryside, is topped with a windmill, and is the site of a medieval brick quarry, which has resulted in really gnarly landscape. Accordint to what I’ve read, and a museum in Oxford (IIRC - it was several years ago), this is supposed to have been his inspiration for the Shire.
Jeeez you guys missed the hype evidently. Middle Earth is in Wellington. Peter Jackson said so. Which is why the premier of the next film will be there…he is ever such the patriotic boy.
I’m sorry i haven’t seen any of the films and probably never will but they sure are bringing in the tourist dollar.
I had the same idea, but thought Frodo’s adventures took place after the break-up, which occurred when Númenor sank and the “seas were bent” - i.e., the Earth changed from flat to round.
In an interview, Tolkien once said he thought Mordor was roughly where the Balkans are now. Seems obvious to me: Mordor = Transylvania. If only the Carpathians faced the other way…
No, no, no, you’ve all got it wrong.
Middle - medi
Earth - terra
Middle Earth - Mediterranean.
That explains why the Hobbits ate spaghetti all the time.