Did Glaurung have seven tongues?

[Vorondil]

I just came across the part were it says that there were seven tongues of fire in Glaurungs gob, are they real tongues, or just flames, and if so, why seven? Its on page 236 of The Children Of Hurin, if you want to check before answering.

 

[Ent]

Sir Aethelwulf... Ent can only answer from the research he's done to date.
In brief: no, I don't believe so at this time.
In no other place yet found, are Dragon tongues referred to in any way.
Fire is frequently spoken of in terms of "tongues" so its use is natural... "seven tongues of fire."
The more specific rendering if it were referring to actual tongues would be "seven fiery tongues" or "seven tongues burining with fire" if he wanted to be specific.

A "gob" is "a lump or clot of a slimy, viscous substance" so whatever the seven fiery tongues are, they are connected wiith some substance within him, not a part of his physical body.

At first I thought this might turn out to be another 'do Balrogs have wings" type of thing, but especially as it's related to the 'gob', I think it doesn't rise quite to that level of speculation. Whatever the gob is, it is emitting 7 tongues of fire.

 

[Vorondil]

By gob I actually meant the slang word for mouth, gob. but I think you are right about the rest of it.

 

[Ent]

By gob I actually meant the slang word for mouth, gob

oh sorry, Ent thought that was part of the quote from the book.

If 'gob' is not part of that, then Ent fears this does fit the fatiguing 'Balrogs and Wings' scenario, and while Ent would still hold to his thoughts that the simple, normal 'tongues of fire' was ment, not actual tongues, well then... there will be two camps of belief forever.

Feel free to flip a coin to choose this week, and flip it again for next... as with the Balrogs, one can be neither right nor wrong...but just put weight on what evidence suits their fancy.

This is why our language remains so difficult. We are simply not precise with it, thus personal interpretation reigns.

 

[Vorondil]

I think the tongues being flames makes more sense than actual tongues.

 

[Eljorahir]

I think the 'seven tongues of fire' is just creating the imagery in our minds' eye of a dragon's mouth seething with constrained flame before it sends forth the blast:

Turin watches from below:
"...huge shadow of his head against the stars..."
"...his jaws gaped..."
"...seven tongues of fire..."
"...sent forth a blast..."
"...all the ravine was filled with a red light, and black shadows flying among the rocks..."

He really knows how to paint a picture with words.

Speaking of painting pictures...
In this illustration by JRRT himself, Glaurung (the dragon formerly known as Glorund) appears to have one tongue "of the flesh" and three tongues of fire.

The caption reads: "Glorund Sets Forth to Seek Turin".