<P> Middle - earth is the north continent of Earth ( Arda ) in an imaginary period of the Earth 's past ( Tolkien placed the end of the Third Age at about 6,000 years before his own time ) , in the sense of a `` secondary or sub-creational reality '' . Its general position is reminiscent of Europe , with the environs of the Shire intended to be reminiscent of England ( more specifically , the West Midlands , with Hobbiton set at the same latitude as Oxford ) . </P>
when did the events of the hobbit take place
Tolkien placed the end of the Third Age at about 6,000 years before his own time