What is the difference between orcs and goblins?

Question

In Tolkien"s books, both words are used, often interchangebly. Are orcs and goblins the same? I am just curious about this.

Answer 1

“Orc” was a term for demon in some Old English texts, and Tolkien liked it. So he used it in some of his early unpublished writing for a warlike and evil race. He occasionally referred to them as goblins.

When he wrote “The Hobbit”, Tolkien used the common, modern term goblin instead. But in “The Lord of the Rings'' he used “Orc” again, alongside “goblin''.

From “Letter of J.R.R. Tolkien”, letter 151:

“Your preference of /goblins/ to /orcs/ involves a large question and a matter of taste, and perhaps historical pedantry on my part. Personally I prefer /Orcs/(since these creatures are not ‘goblins’, not even the goblins of George MacDonald, which they do to some extent resemble). Also I now deeply regret having used Elves, though this is a word in ancestry and original meaning suitable enough. But the disastrous debasement of this word, in which Shakespeare played an unforgiveable part, has really overloaded it with regrettable tones, which are too much to overcome. I hope in the Appendices to Vol. III to be able to include a note ‘On translation’ in which the matter of equivalences and my uses may be made clearly. My difficulty has been that, since I have tried to present a kind of legendary and history of a ‘forgotten epoch’, all the specific terms were in a foreign language, and no /precise/ equivalents exist in English. ....”

I get the impression that in Westron we are to imagine that “orc” derives from an Elvish borrowing (compare Quenya “orco” and Sindarin “orch”) while “goblin” is supposed to be a native Westron word. I supposed “goblin” could also be somewhat vaguer in meaning. But both are in use for the same people. “Orc” has rather a more learned and “higher” tone.

Answer 2

In dungeons and dragons and in warcraft Orcs are bigger and stronger

as in lord of the rings. Both are evil and not very bright

In war craft Orcs remain evil ( also big and strong ) while Goblins become smarter and Neutral ( grubby merchant types )

Answer 3

Orc were once elves that were turned and crazed over the ring.

Golbins are a different creature,they a just evil and currupt.

Answer 4

Orcs were created with magic and Goblins evolved from Elves

Answer 5

orcs and goblins are not  the same.

orcs are hotter!!!

jk

Answer 6

i agree with reaper.

Answer 7

Generally they are the same race and are not two different creatures, but the conceptual distinction was present in the Hobbit. The goblinoid race was bred by the fallen Vala Morgoth from captured Elves during the First Age, long before the time of the Rings- Sauron never knew how to continue corrupting Elves, had lost the ability to, or just didn't need to as the goblinoid race was self-perpetuating. By the time of LotR, the two breeds were somewhat conceptualized as that "goblins" were a smaller, weaker breed, usually living underground and may simply have referred to location, as the chief in the northern Misty Mountains was the "Great Goblin", and definitely was a large, bipedal, goblinoid creature compatible with physical descriptions of orcs and uruks later. The orcs seem to have been a more versatile breed or group, generally stronger and larger, and used to breed the Uruk-Hai. The Uruks could operate in the sunlight with no penalty, but it dazed, blinded, and confused the lesser goblinoids. Even though Tolkien really does not distinguish between these two terms, he injects enough of a conceptual difference that the writers of the movies picked up on it and worked it into the story.

Answer 8

In the Tolkien book's they are different. In a lot of the video games I play, they are different too. Orcs are big and green. Goblins are small, and brown. But the do seem to hang out together. Orcs just kill people. Goblins do too, but they also like to trade with people.

Answer 9

Orcs are more cultured and educated.They prefer quiet nights at home with a cup of tea and a good read.

Goblins are more of the free spirit types.They usually live life on impulse and are well know for making rash financial decision.

They are also prone to casino binges.