Did Bilbo Baggins Have Any Children?

Q: Did Bilbo Baggins Have Any Children?

ANSWER: Yes, Bilbo Baggins formally/legally adopted Frodo Baggins as his son and heir. Of course, Bilbo was also Frodo’s cousin and it is this blood relationship that is most often referred to between the two Hobbits. Sometimes readers refer to Bilbo as Frodo’s uncle — a reference Tolkien himself used of Bilbo in several passages with respect to all the younger hobbits to whom he was related. For example, “…Indeed, in one corner some of the young Tooks and Brandybucks, supposing Uncle Bilbo to have finished (since he had plainly said all that was necessary), now got up an impromptu orchestra, and began a merry dance-tune…”; and “For ANGELICA’S use, from Uncle Bilbo, on a round convex mirror. She was a young Baggins, and too obviously considered her face shapely.”

Frodo’s own reference to “uncle Bilbo” is found in “Many Meetings”, where Tolkien writes:

Looking in a mirror he was startled to see a much thinner reflection of himself than he remembered: it looked remarkably like the young nephew of Bilbo who used to go tramping with his uncle in the Shire; but the eyes looked out at him thoughtfully.

The fact of Frodo’s adoption, however, is established early in the story, in “A Long-expected Party”, where Tolkien writes:

But so far trouble had not come; and as Mr. Baggins was generous with his money, most people were willing to forgive him his oddities and his good fortune. He remained on visiting terms with his relatives (except, of course, the Sackville-Bagginses), and he had many devoted admirers among the hobbits of poor and unimportant families. But he had no close friends, until some of his younger cousins began to grow up.

The eldest of these, and Bilbo’s favourite, was young Frodo Baggins. When Bilbo was ninety-nine, he adopted Frodo as his heir, and brought him to live at Bag End; and the hopes of the Sackville-Bagginses were finally dashed. Bilbo and Frodo happened to have the same birthday, September 22nd. ‘You had better come and live here, Frodo my lad,’ said Bilbo one day; ‘and then we can celebrate our birthday-parties comfortably together.’ At that time Frodo was still in his tweens, as the hobbits called the irresponsible twenties between childhood and coming of age at thirty-three.

The relationship between Bilbo and Frodo was certainly complex, since both of Frodo’s parents were Bilbo’s cousins. But as far as the general question goes — does Bilbo Baggins have any children — we can see that he adopted Frodo.

Of course, a related question is “Why Did Bilbo Baggins Never Get Married?” But there are all sorts of interesting questions about Bilbo Baggins, if you ask me (and you have).

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