: Another thing I remember is the medieval Scandinavian legend of Siegfried the Dragonslayer: The mightiest warrior of his day, but with a dark doom upon him that he heedlessly ignored; that in the end overtook him, in spite of all his valor and skill. This reminds me, of course, of Turin - both a dragonslayer and with a dark doom looming above him.

The Finnish myth cycle the Kalevala should not be ignored, Tolkien was especially moved by this especially by the tale of the "hapless" (Tolkien's phrase, not mine - though I agree) Kullervo, who according to the letters was one of the original inspirations for Turin.