Chinese

(魔戒; 指环王三部曲 / 哈比人; 霍比特人 / 精灵宝钻 )

24 LOTR / 9 H / 2 S

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There are two official ways of writing Chinese characters for Mandarin. The Republic of China (Taiwan) uses Traditional characters. The People's Republic of China (Mainland China) uses Simplified characters, in which a couple thousand of the most common characters have been simplified.

How can you tell whether your Chinese copy of LOTR is in Traditional or Simplified characters? If the publisher is in Taiwan, then it's in Traditional characters, otherwise it's in Simplified characters, but the simplest way is to open the books and look at the text. If the text is horizontal, then it's in Simplified characters and read from left to right/top to bottom. If it's vertical, it's in Traditional characters and read from top to bottom/right to left. While that rule doesn't always work for other books or printed materials, for the LOTR publication history, it does (so far). The following scans are from a Traditional text and a Simplified text.

< Traditional

Simplified >

Traditional Characters

魔戒, Lord of the Rings (Chinese)

When I purchased these on ebay they were ex-library copies so the dust jackets, which were just standard movie stills, were quite trashed with library stickers, tears, tape, and other damage. Removing the dust jackets revealed these great Alan Lee paintings on the actual covers (top), which are far superior to the movie stills.

魔戒 (Chinese [Traditional] A), purchased on-line from diversityoflife, Massachusetts, on ebay in 2019 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Linking, 2001), 1, 魔戒現身. ISBN: 957-08-2336-4

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Linking, 2001), 2, 雙城奇謀. ISBN: 957-08-2337-2

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Linking, 2001), 3, 王者再臨. ISBN: 957-08-2338-0

魔戒 (Chinese [Traditional] D), purchased on-line from Multilingual Books in 2021 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Linking, 2002), 1, 魔戒現身. ISBN: 957-08-2336-4

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Linking, 2002), 2, 雙城奇謀. ISBN: 957-08-2337-2

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Linking, 2002), 3, 王者再臨. ISBN: 957-08-2338-0

In the Fall of 2021, I ordered a different Chinese set from Multilingual Books of Seattle. They didn't have the set pictured on their website in stock so they offered to get a set for me from Amazon. The set they acquired and sent was this same Traditional Chinese set as Chinese [Traditional] A, but in new condition with the movie still dust jackets intact (bottom). The volumes without dust jackets, published in 2001, are clearly ready for sale without the dust jackets (and dust jackets are rarely included on paperbacks). This happens (as with some of the Rings of Power paperbacks from Europe) when the publisher wants to ensure high sales by tying the books to a forthcoming major television or film event. In this case stills from the first Peter Jackson movie, The Fellowship of the Ring, were chosen for the dust jackets of all three volumes.

魔戒 (Chinese [Traditional] C), purchased on-line from superbuy.com in 2024 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu, Second Edition (Linking, 2012), 1, 魔戒現身. ISBN: 978-957-08-4100-8

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu, Second Edition (Linking, 2012), 2, 雙城奇謀. ISBN: 978-957-08-4101-5

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu, Second Edition (Linking, 2012), 3, 王者再臨. ISBN: 978-957-08-4102-2

魔戒 (Chinese [Traditional] B), purchased on-line from China Global Mall, Wuhu in 2024 (paperback in box with Hobbit and Legendarium booklet [below])

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Han Li (Shuangxi Publishing, 2024), 1, 魔戒同盟. ISBN: 978-626-97933-5-8

——, 魔戒, trans. by Han Li (Shuangxi Publishing, 2024), 2, 雙塔叛謀. ISBN: 978-626-97933-6-5

——, 魔戒, trans. by Han Li (Shuangxi Publishing, 2024), 3, 王者歸來. ISBN: 978-626-97933-7-2

哈比人 (Chinese [Traditional] [H]), on-line from China Global Mall, Wuhu in 2024 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 哈比人: 又名冒險歸來, trans. by Han Li (Shuangxi Publishing, 2024). ISBN: 978-626-97933-4-1

Simplified Characters

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] Q), purchased on-line from superbuy.com in 2024 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Ding Di (Yilin Publishing House, 2001), 1, 魔戒再现. ISBN: 978-7-80657-250-4

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jinrong Yao (Yilin Publishing House, 2001), 2, 双塔奇兵. ISBN: 978-7-80657-266-5

——, 魔戒, trans. by Dingjiu Tang (Yilin Publishing House, 2001), 3, 王者无敌. ISBN: 978-7-80657-267-2

魔戒, 前传: 霍比特人 (Chinese [Simplified] [H] F), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, 前传: 霍比特人, trans. by Yao Li (Yilin Publishing House, 2002). ISBN: 978-7-80657-190-3

魔戒, 起源: 精灵宝钻 (Chinese [Simplified] [S] A), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, 起源: 精灵宝钻, trans. by Yao Li (Yilin Publishing House, 2004). ISBN: 978-7-80657-727-1

魔戒, Lord of the Rings (Chinese)

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] A), purchased on-line from muller boyer, France on ebay in 2019 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Ding Di (Yilin Press, 2002), 1, 魔戒再现. ISBN: 7-80657-250-3

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jinrong Yao (Yilin Press, 2002), 2, 双塔奇兵. ISBN: 7-80657-266-X

——, 魔戒, trans. by Dingjiu Tang (Yilin Press, 2002), 3, 王者无敌. ISBN: 7-80657-267-8

霍比特人 (Chinese [Simplified] [H] E), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒: 霍比特人, trans. by Yao Li (Yilin Publishing House, 2002). ISBN: 7-80657-190-6

精灵宝钻, 魔戒起源 (Chinese [Simplified] [S] B), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 精灵宝钻, 魔戒起源, trans. by Yao Li (Yilin Publishing House, 2004). ISBN: 07-80657-727-0

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] H), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Ding Di (Yilin Publishing House, 2002), 1, 魔戒再现. ISBN: 7-80657-250-3

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jinrong Yao (Yilin Publishing House, 2004), 2, 双塔奇兵. ISBN: 7-80657-398-4

——, 魔戒, trans. by Dingjiu Tang (Yilin Publishing House, 2002), 3, 王者无敌. ISBN: 7-80657-399-2

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] P), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Ding Di (Yilin Publishing House, 2011), 1, 魔戒再现. ISBN: 978-7-5447-1037-4

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jinrong Yao (Yilin Publishing House, 2010), 2, 双塔奇兵. ISBN: 978-7-5447-1038-1

——, 魔戒, trans. by Dingjiu Tang (Yilin Publishing House, 2010), 3, 王者无敌. ISBN: 978-7-5447-1039-8

Revised by Shaobo Guo

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] N), purchased on-line on Amazon in 2024 (hardback in box [below])

ISBN: 978-7-5447-2040-3

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Yilin Press, 2011), 1, 魔戒现身.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Yilin Press, 2011), 2, 双城奇谋.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Yilin Press, 2011), 3, 王者再临.

魔戒, Lord of the Rings (Chinese)

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] B), purchased on-line from Shanghai Store US on Amazon in 2019 (paperback in box)

ISBN: 978-7-208-12165-2

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Shanghai People’s Publishing House, 2013), 1, 魔戒同盟.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Shanghai People’s Publishing House, 2013), 2, 双塔殊途.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Shanghai People’s Publishing House, 2013), 3, 王者归来.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] I), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (paperback)

ISBN: 978-7-5447-3042-6

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Yilin Publishing House, 2013), 1, 魔戒现身.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Yilin Publishing House, 2013), 2, 双城奇谋.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Yilin Publishing House, 2013), 3, 王者再临.

魔戒, Lord of the Rings (Chinese)

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] C), purchased on-line from Love Promotion Ltd on Amazon in 2021 (paperback in box)

ISBN: 978-7-208-11303-9

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Shanghai People’s Publishing House, 2018), 1, 魔戒同盟.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Shanghai People’s Publishing House, 2018), 2, 双塔殊途.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Shanghai People’s Publishing House, 2018), 3, 王者归来.

The back covers and spines for this edition have a rather unusual integrated design. The spines alone are a piece of the usual map of Middle Earth, but just the far eastern edge, east of Barad-dûr.

While this may seem a bit odd, since nothing in the LOTR text occurs in this section of the map, the map on each volume's spine wraps around onto the back cover (below left). This leads to the rather interesting feature that each map is a bit farther east (or west) than its neighbor.

If you compare the image of just the spines with the image of the backs and spines together, you'll see that the spines alone are shown in the opposite order from the image that includes the backs. That's because other editions with integrated art on the spines have the volumes in the left-to-right order of FR, TT, RK. But Chinese sets have the volumes in reverse order, so the spines are in the order of RK, TT, FR. If we look at just the back of RK and the three spines (above right), we see that much of the usual map of Middle Earth from just west of the Shire to the wastes of Rhûn is present.

This is a rather interesting design, but because the volumes are placed in the box in the order RK, TT, FR, the map on the back of RK stretches from the Shire to Barad-dûr, but the map on the back of FR stretches from just west of Weathertop to Rhûn and the Shire and Bree are off the left edge of the cover. Had the volumes been designed to be placed in the usual order of FR, TT, RK then the map on FR would have covered all the lands described in that volume and the map on RK would have focused mainly on the lands described therein. (The Shire and the Grey Havens would be missing from the RK map, but most of the action is in Gondor and Mordor.) Fortunately for the reader, each volume contains a nice set of maps following the text.

There is one last unusual feature of this edition. Not all editions include the Appendices following the text of RK, but those that do make no visual distinction between the pages of the narrative and the pages of the Appendices. This edition, however, uses yellow paper for the Appendices in RK.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] D), purchased on-line on Amazon in 2022 (hardback in box)

ISBN: 978-7-208-16671-4

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Horizon, 2020), 1.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Horizon, 2020), 2.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Horizon, 2020), 3.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Horizon, 2020), 4.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Horizon, 2020), 5.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Horizon, 2020), 6.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng, Zhongge Shi, and Yunci Du (Horizon, 2020), Appendix.

This is a deluxe set apparently designed for a market outside China because there is more English on the covers, title pages, and chapter headings than usual in editions designed for Chinese markets. Another telltale sign that this edition is for the international market is that the volumes are placed in order from left to right rather than the usual Chinese order of right to left. It is specifically labelled "Deluxe Edition". There is a deluxe preservative coating over the cloth of the covers and the box that gives it a leather-like feel, there is a folded map included inside the box, there is a 4x6 reproduction of an Alan Lee painting inside each volume, there is a 4x6 photo of J.R.R. Tolkien inside the Appendix in lieu of an Alan Lee print, there are folded maps inside most of the volumes relevant to that Book, and there is a special page with a bookplate already attached (with the gates of Moria design) inside the front cover of Volume 1. This is, by far, one of the very best produced editions in my collection.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] K), purchased on-line on Temu, 2024 (paperback in box [below])

ISBN: 978-7-208-18336-0

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng (Horizon, 2024), 1.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng (Horizon, 2024), 2.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng (Horizon, 2024), 3.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng (Horizon, 2024), 4.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng (Horizon, 2024), 5.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng (Horizon, 2024), 6.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jiawan Deng (Horizon, 2024), A.

霍比特人 (Chinese [Simplified] [H] D), purchased on-line from Temu in 2024 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 霍比特人, trans. by Gang Wu (Horizon, 2024). ISBN: 978-7-208-18663-7

Copyright Expiration and 2024 in China and Taiwan

With the expiration of the copyright to LOTR in China on 2 September 2023 (50 years past the death of Tolkien), the number of new Chinese editions exploded (this includes Chinese [Traditional] B above). Each publishing house uses a different translation, which means that the titles of each of the three volumes may vary, both in meaning an in the characters used. Thus for RK, Chinese [Simplified] E has 王者再临, "The King Returns"; F has 王者归来, "The Return of the King"; and G has 王者无双, "King of Kings" (all translations from Google Translate). This has led to reprints of existing translations, but also six new translations, five Simplified and one Traditional. In 2025, two further new translations into Simplified characters were added, one below and the other under a new title here.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] E), purchased on-line on Amazon in 2024 (hardback in box)

ISBN for set: 978-7-5327-9321-1

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Shanghai Translation Publishing House, 2024), 1, 魔戒现身.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Shanghai Translation Publishing House, 2024), 2, 双城奇谋.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Xueheng Zhu (Shanghai Translation Publishing House, 2024), 3, 王者再临.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] F), purchased on-line on Amazon in 2024 (paperback in box)

ISBN: 978-7-213-11320-8

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Weihua Tian (Zhejiang People’s Publishing House, 2024), 1, 护戒使者.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Weihua Tian (Zhejiang People’s Publishing House, 2024), 2, 双塔奇兵.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Weihua Tian (Zhejiang People’s Publishing House, 2024), 3, 王者归来.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] G), purchased on-line on Temu in 2024 (paperback in box [below])

ISBN: 978-7-5139-4574-5

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Jinhua Wang (Democracy and Construction Press, 2024), 1, 魔戒传奇.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jinhua Wang (Democracy and Construction Press, 2024), 2, 双塔奇谋.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jinhua Wang (Democracy and Construction Press, 2024), 3, 王者无双.

霍比特人 (Chinese [Simplified] [H] G), purchased on-line from superbuy.com in 2025 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 霍比特人, trans. by Qianxun Xue (Democracy and Construction Press, 2025). ISBN: 978-7-5139-4454-0

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] J), purchased on-line on Temu in 2024 (paperback)

ISBN plus Hobbit (below): 978-7-5501-8929-4

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Ding Di (Nanfang Publishing House, 2024), 2, 魔戒再现.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Jinrong Yao (Nanfang Publishing House, 2024), 3, 双塔奇兵.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Dingjiu Tang (Nanfang Publishing House, 2024), 4, 王者无敌.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] [H] C), purchased on-line on Temu in 2024 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Jin Wang (Nanfang Publishing House, 2024), 1, 霍比特人.

This is part of a single numbered set with Chinese [Simplified] J, above. Hobbit is Volume 1 and LOTR are Volumes 2-4.

This set (LOTR and Hobbit) may be sold in a box with the Manual for Tolkien Fans booklet [above]. My set did not arrive in a box, however.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] L), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (paperback in box [below])

ISBN for set: 978-7-02-018431-6

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Yong Yan (People’s Literature Publishing House, 2024), 1, 魔戒同盟.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Hongjuan Xin (People’s Literature Publishing House, 2024), 2, 黑白双塔.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Danjun Lu (People’s Literature Publishing House, 2024), 3, 王者归来.

The backs of these three volumes form a continuous map of Middle Earth, each volume featuring a section of the map that corresponds to at least half (if not all) of the action in that volume. As with most Chinese editions, the order of books on the shelf and in the box is 3, 2, 1.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] M), purchased on-line from China Global Mall, Hong Kong, in 2024 (hardback in box [below])

ISBN for set: 978-7-5541-7313-8

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Guowei Liu (Xi’an Publishing House, 2024), 1, 魔戒同盟.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Nana Shan (Xi’an Publishing House, 2024), 2, 双塔殊途.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Nana Shan (Xi’an Publishing House, 2024), 3, 王者归来.

This set is advertised as the "70th Anniversary Edition" and the box includes several nice items with a number of original black and white ink drawings of scenes and characters from LOTR. They are credited to the Wenlu Illustration Studio. This includes three "Ex Libris" bookplates shown below.

These covers contain colored foil embossing of a ring around the central figure and the title in the same color below the main image, as can be seen (barely) in the central volume. My home scanner was unable to successfully capture the color of the foils on these. The first volume's foil color is yellow, the second's red, and the third's green. Even just holding them in your hand, the foils can almost disappear from view when tilting them in different ways relative to the light source in the room.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] O), purchased on-line on superbuy.com in 2024 (paperback)

ISBN for set: 978-7-5762-4428-1

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Fei Long (Jiangxi University Press, 2024), 1, 护戒使者.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Fei Long (Jiangxi University Press, 2024), 2, 双塔奇兵.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Fei Long (Jiangxi University Press, 2024), 3, 王者归来.

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] R), purchased on-line on superbuy.com in 2025 (paperback)

ISBN for set: 978-7-5455-8626-8

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Hua Sun (Tiandi Press, 2025), 1, 魔戒传说.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Hua Sun (Tiandi Press, 2025), 2, 双塔阴谋.

——, 魔戒, trans. by Hua Sun (Tiandi Press, 2025), 3, 王者归来.

霍比特人 (Chinese [Simplified] [H] H), purchased on-line from superbuy.com in 2025 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 霍比特人, trans. by Hua Sun (Tiandi Press, 2025). ISBN: 978-7-5455-8625-1

Every other translation of LOTR into Chinese, from both Mainland China and Taiwan, has the title 魔戒 (mó jiè), "Lord of the Rings". This 2025 translation from Mainland China in Simplified characters, however, has the title 指环王三部曲 (zhǐ huán wáng sān bù qū), "Lord of the Rings Trilogy". 魔戒 isn't used anywhere for "Lord of the Rings" in this translation. 指环王 is the "Lord of the Rings" part of this title.

指环王三部曲 (Chinese [Simplified] S), purchased on-line from superbuy.com in 2025 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 指环王三部曲, trans. by Weiqing He (Jinan Publishing House, 2025), 1, 指环同盟. ISBN: 978-7-5488-6875-0

——, 指环王三部曲, trans. by Weiqing He (Jinan Publishing House, 2025), 2, 双塔. ISBN: 978-7-5488-6876-7

——, 指环王三部曲, trans. by Weiqing He (Jinan Publishing House, 2025), 3, 王者归来. ISBN: 978-7-5488-6877-4

魔戒 (Chinese [Simplified] T), purchased on-line from Temu in 2026 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒, trans. by Sen Chen (Popular Science Press, 2025). ISBN: 978-7-110-10965-6

This is an abridged and simplified translation.

霍比特人 (Chinese [Simplified] [H] B), purchased on-line from Superbuy, Hong Kong, in 2024 (paperback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 魔戒 (前传): 霍比特人, trans. by Yao Li (Yilin Publishing House, 2002). ISBN: 7-80657-190-6

The cover art depicts the multiracial Fellowship of the Ring from the first volume of LOTR rather than the band of dwarves (plus one hobbit) from Hobbit.

霍比特人 (Chinese [Simplified] [H] A), purchased on-line from Amazon in 2022 (hardback)

Tolkien, J. R. R., 霍比特人: 插图详注本, trans. by Gang Wu (Horizon, 2020). ISBN: 978-7-208-16437-6

This is a translation of the annotated edition of The Hobbit.

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