Bard are known as "the Bard of Avon" (often simply "the Bard") and "the Bard of Bengal" respectively. The word is a Celtic loan word from Scottish Gaelic "bàrd", Irish "bard", Welsh "bardd". In 16th-century Scotland, it was a derogatory term for an itinerant musician; nonetheless it was later romanticised by Sir Walter Scott. In medieval Gaelic and Welsh society, a "bard" (Scottish and Irish Gaelic) or "bardd" (Welsh) was a professional poet, employed to compose eulogies for his lord (see planxty). If the employer failed to pay the proper amount, the bard would then compose a satire (c.f. "fili", "fáith").
Bard the Bowman Bard was voiced by John Stephenson. Stephenson also voiced the Dwarf Dori and The Great Goblin. In the 1985 Russian television film, Bard (or "Berd") was played by Boris Sokolov. In Peter Jackson's "The Hobbit" film series, Welsh actor Luke Evans portrays Bard, appearing in the latter two films of the trilogy, "" (2013) and "" (2014). Evans was cast in June 2011. Bob Strauss of "Los Angeles Daily News" felt that Evans' portrayal managed to expand on the character, while Erik Kain of "Forbes" felt that his portrayal was "solid", but was "never given quite enough breathing room". In