The simple answer is that Gandalf did not have a home — at least, not a permanent one. Ever since his arrival in Middle-earth, he was a wanderer. In the section “The Istari” from Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth, Tolkien stated, “He dwelt in no place, and gathered to himself neither wealth nor followers, but ever went to and fro in the Westlands from Gondor to Angmar, and from Lindon to Lórien, befriending all folk in times of need.” In The Lord of the Rings, Gandalf compared Tom Bombadil to a stone gathering moss and himself to a rolling stone. Even the name by which most Elves knew him, Mithrandir, meant “Grey Pilgrim” or “Grey Wanderer” in the Sindarin language. But if the other Wizards had personal abodes, why did Gandalf go without one?
Gandalf Made Connections With Many in Middle-earth
Wizards’ Homes in The Lord of the Rings
Owner
Location
Name Meaning
Isengard
Saruman
Gap of Rohan
Iron Fortress
Rhosgobel
Radagast
Southern border of Mirkwood
Russet Village
Gandalf frequented numerous locations across Middle-earth, including the Shire, Rivendell, Lothórien, Edoras and Minas Tirith. When he needed to rest somewhere for the night, he either relied on the hospitality of his friends, such as Bilbo and Elrond, or stayed at an inn. One such inn that he visited on at least a semi-regular basis was The Prancing Pony in Bree. It was there that he coincidentally met Thorin Oakenshield prior to the events of The Hobbit, and in the novel version of The Lord of the Rings, he left a message for Frodo with the inkeeper. Despite Tolkien’s quote about Gandalf not gathering wealth, he did use money upon occasion, including some of the gold from the trolls’ cave in The Hobbit, so he could have paid to stay at the inn like any other patron.
There were two main reasons that Gandalf wandered Middle-earth. The first was to gain information about the Dark Lord Sauron and his minions. For example, he briefly left Thorin’s Company in The Hobbit to investigate the Necromancer of Dol Guldur. Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey showed him similarly exploring the tomb of the Witch-king of Angmar, which did not occur in Tolkien’s novels. The second reason was to make new friends and form strong alliances. Thanks to his friendly visits to the Shire, Gandalf had a pre-established relationship with both Bilbo and Frodo, which became useful when it came time to reclaim Erebor or destroy the One Ring. Gandalf wanted to meet as many people as he could so that he knew upon whom he could rely to help defeat the forces of evil.
Gandalf’s Wandering Had Mythological Origins
Gandalf visited Minas Tirith when Boromir and Faramir were young.
According to Faramir in The Lord of the Rings, Gandalf had been to the northern, western and southern portions of Middle-earth, but not the Eastern portion.
Gandalf’s other names included Tharkûn and Incánus.
The other Wizards’ permanent homes were representative of their failures. Saruman was proud and arrogant, so he lived in the giant, imposing metal tower of Orthanc. He also oversaw giant factories in Isengard, for unlike his fellow Wizards, he did not respect the natural world. Radagast was quite the opposite. He lived in a hut along the edge of Mirkwood because he was a recluse who only cared about his forest and the animals who lived there. Though he did not turn evil like Saruman, Radagast neglected much of Middle-earth because of his narrow focus. Gandalf’s mission came first, so as much as he loved places like the Shire, he did not let himself grow too attached to one particular location.
As with much of The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien based Gandalf in part on Norse mythology. The god Odin was a wanderer who traveled the realms in search of knowledge. While in Midgard, or Earth, he often took the form of an elderly beggar or vagabond. He did so both to hide his true identity and to benefit from the generosity of strangers. Ancient depictions of Odin often showed him with a long beard, a cloak and a wide-brimmed hat, which influenced Tolkien’s descriptions of Gandalf. However, unlike Odin, Gandalf served higher powers: Eru Ilúvatar and the Valar. Where Odin sought knowledge for his own sake, Gandalf sought knowledge for the betterment of Middle-earth.
Gandalf Once Lived in the Undying Lands
Saruman did not build Isengard or Orthanc; they were originally a Gondorian stronghold.
One of Odin’s other names was Gangari, meaning “Wanderer.”
After the One Ring’s destruction, Gandalf visited Tom Bombadil in the Old Forest.
Though Gandalf did not have a home during The Lord of the Rings or for over 2,000 years prior, he did at one point, and it was not in Middle-earth but the Undying Lands. Gandalf was an immortal spirit known as a Maia who took on the form of an elderly Man to guide the people of Middle-earth. Before he was a Wizard, Gandalf was known as Olórin. He lived in the gardens of Lórien, not to be confused with the Elven realm of Lothórien from The Lord of the Rings. Lórien was a place of healing, and it was home to Irmo, the Vala of dreams. But even then, Olórin did not settle down in one place. He spent much time visiting the Halls of Nienna, another region of the Undying Lands. Nienna taught him the importance of pity, a lesson that he passed on to Frodo in The Lord of the Rings.
Olórin was even traveling right before the Valar chose him to be one of the Wizards. In “The Istari,” Tolkien wrote, “Then Manwë asked, where was Olórin? And Olórin, who was clad in grey, and having just entered from a journey had seated himself at the edge of the council, asked what Manwë would have of him.” Even if Gandalf could have had a permanent home without jeopardizing the success of his mission, he seemingly did not want one. Whether he was in Middle-earth or the Undying Lands, he enjoyed roaming. At the end of The Lord of the Rings, he returned to the place that was once his home, but that was surely not the end of his wandering.
