Tolkien referred to the Old English origins of the word "orc", observing that "the word is, as far as I am concerned, actually derived from Old English orc 'demon', but only because of its phonetic suitability" and "I originally took the word from Old English orc (Beowulf 112 orc-neas and the gloss orc = þyrs ('ogre'), heldeofol ('hell-devil')).
Толкин је по старом енглеском реч орк, надајући се “да је реч заправо из старог енглеског”заправо “демон”, али само због своје пхонетичке сличности and "I originally took the word from Old English orc (Беовулф 112 orc-neas and the gloss orc = þyrs ('ogre'), heldeofol ('hell-devil')).