Beorn is a fictional character created by J. R. R. Tolkien. He appears in The Hobbit as a shape-shifter (or, in the actual text, a "skin-changer"), a man who could assume the appearance of a great black bear. == Appearances == The Man named Beorn lived with his animal retinue (horses, dogs, sheep, and cows, among others) in a wooden house between the Misty Mountains and Mirkwood, to the east of the Anduin. According to Gandalf, Beorn "does not eat them; neither does he hunt or eat wild animals". Beorn was of immense size and strength for a man, and retained his size and strength in bear-form. He...