This article describes all named characters appearing in J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 book The Hobbit. Creatures as collectives are not included. Characters are categorized by race. Spelling and point of view are given as from The Hobbit.
Dwarves
- Thrain the Old, ancestor of Thorin and first King under the Mountain, finder of the Arkenstone.[T 1] (mentioned only)
- Thror, grandfather of Thorin, King under the Mountain when it was conquered by Smaug. Killed by Azog in Moria.[T 1] (mentioned only)
- Thrain, father of Thorin, whom Gandalf found witless and wandering in the dungeons of the Necromancer.[T 1] (mentioned only)
- Dain son of Nain, a cousin of Thorin, comes to the aid of Thorin's Company at the Battle of Five Armies, leading more than 500 dwarves.[T 5]
Thorin's Company
Thorin's Company consisted of the following thirteen dwarves. Their quest in The Hobbit is the main impetus of the plot.[a] Their quest was joined by Bilbo Baggins (the titular hobbit) and occasionally by the wizard Gandalf. Tolkien took the names of Gandalf and 12 of the 13 dwarves – excluding Balin – from the Old Norse Völuspá.[4][5]
- The Royal House of Durin:
- Thorin Oakenshield, leader of the Company and hereditary claimant of the kingdom of the Lonely Mountain. He possessed the longest beard in the Company, and wore a gold belt and a sky-blue hood with a large silver tassel. Thorin played the harp.
- Fili and Kili, sons of Thorin's sister.[T 6] The youngest dwarves in the Company and therefore useful for their keen eyesight. They wore blue hoods and grew yellow beards.
- Four of Thorin's third-cousins – two pairs of brothers:
- Balin. Older brother to Dwalin. He wore a red hood and had a white beard. Bilbo and Balin later became good friends. Balin returns to Bag End to visit Bilbo after the main events in The Hobbit.[T 2]
- Dwalin. Younger brother to Balin. He wore a dark green hood and a golden belt, had a blue beard tucked into the belt, and, like his brother Balin, he played the viol. He was the first of the dwarves that Bilbo met.
- Oin. Brother to Gloin. He wore a brown hood. He and Gloin were charged with starting the campfires.
- Gloin. Brother to Oin. He wore a white hood. He and Oin were charged with starting the campfires. Gloin openly doubted Bilbo at the start of the quest.[T 1] (Gloin was the father of the character Gimli in The Lord of the Rings.[T 7])
- Three dwarves who were Thorin's remote kinsmen:
- Dori. He wore a purple hood. Dori was tasked with carrying Bilbo in the goblin tunnels. He also played the flute.
- Nori. He wore a purple hood. He also played the flute.
- Ori. He wore a grey hood. He also played the flute.
- Three dwarves which "descended from the Dwarves of Moria but were not of Durin's line":[T 8]
- Bifur. Cousin to Bofur and Bombur. He wore a yellow hood and played clarinet.[6]
- Bofur. Brother to Bombur and cousin to Bifur. He wore a yellow hood and played clarinet.
- Bombur. Brother to Bofur and cousin to Bifur. His primary traits were his fatness and his sympathy for Bilbo's plights. He wore a pale green hood.