[ejonesie22]

I remember reading that there was a “hobbit” like group out there some where.

Never did ascertain if Tolkien got the idea for “Hobbits” from that race or if the scientific community named them after Tolkien’s work...

Of course the don't live in the Shire...

[mamelukesabre]

It’s hard to say. But it is possible that tolkien heard of the stories of the ebu gogo. He seemed to have a lot of knowledge of extinct people and foreigners’ legends of unusual peoples. So it is possible.