Treants appear to have been inspired by the talking trees of many of the world's folklores, as well as the Ent from J. R. R. Tolkien's world of Middle Earth. The name "treant" comes from combining "tree" and "giant,". Treants are based on Ents from Tolkien's work. The creature was called an ent in the original Dungeons & Dragons, and its name was later changed to treant.