Realistic Mythology

In my freewrite today, I was talking about how Tolkien took a lot of ideas from The Prose Edda about how to write a really good mythology and make it seem real. I think all of the descriptions and back-stories and family trees definately add the depth to the characters that make them seem like real people. One thing I thought he might have gotten from here (or at least a similarity between the two) was how the author of the Prose Edda would say how some people had different names. I think that actually adds to the reality of the people (although it's very confusing!). Behind each of the different names that one person has is another story: another place he went that gave him a different name or some great deed he did that left him with a new name. Each of the names gives us a little more insight into their lives and it makes them seem real. I also thought that the verse that was in The Prose Edda might have influenced Tolkien adding verse to the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit. I think these verses also add to the reality of the myth because the verses tell a history of the people from the perspective of people in the past. It is a glimpse into a history that we can then believe in. Each of these ideas or themes adds depth to Tolkiens' works and makes them more believable for the reader.