The 5 known Istari wizards all had different colors (Saruman the White, Gandalf the Gray, Radagast the Brown and two blue ones, with the later changes of Gandalf to white and Saruman to 'many colors').
Is there a (preferably in-universe) explanation for the reason/symbolism behind the specific colors? The LotR Fandom article linked above doesn't list any.
I found the "Valar color alignment theory" intriguing, so I decided to do some research (it helps to have a PDF version of the professor's works). Unfortunately, The Silmarillion does not corroborate and even contradicts this theory.
For example, the color grey is not associated with Manwë or Varda anywhere in the Canon, but with other Valar such as Nienna:
And Nienna arose and went up onto Ezellohar, and cast back her grey hood, and with her tears washed away the defilements of Ungoliant
The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch 9, "Of the Flight of the Noldor"
and Estë:
Estë the gentle, healer of hurts and of weariness, is [Irmo's] spouse. Grey is her raiment; and rest is her gift.
The Silmarillion, Valaquenta: "Of the Valar"
As for the color white, the only passages where this color is mentioned in association with the Valar is:
At times [Ulmo] will come unseen to the shores of Middle-earth, or pass far inland up firths of the sea, and there make music upon his great horns, the Ulumúri, that are wrought of white shell
ibid
[Oromë] is a hunter of monsters and fell beasts, and he delights in horses and in hounds; and all trees he loves, for which reason he is called Aldaron, and by the Sindar Tauron, the Lord of Forests. Nahar is the name of his horse, white in the sun, and shining silver at night.
ibid
Telperion [created by Yavanna] was the elder of the trees and came first to full stature and to bloom; and that first hour in which he shone, the white glimmer of a silver dawn, the Valar reckoned not into the tale of hours, but named it the Opening Hour, and counted from it the ages of their reign in Valinor.
The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch 1, "Of The Beginning of Days"
Also by Yavanna: Nimloth, the White Tree of Númenor
A reference to white that has "conflicting interests" as it refers to snow (of which Ilúvatar himself said it was the joining of the works of Ulmo and Aulë):
Taniquetil the Elves name that holy mountain, and Oiolossë Everlasting Whiteness, and Elerrína Crowned with Stars, and many names beside
ibid
As for the color blue, there are references to Manwë and Varda, but not to Oromë:
His raiment is blue, and blue is the fire of his eyes, and his sceptre is of sapphire, which the Noldor wrought for him
ibid
It is told that even as Varda ended her labours, and they were long, when first Menelmacar strode up the sky and the blue fire of Helluin flickered in the mists above the borders of the world, in that hour the Children of the Earth awoke, the Firstborn of Ilúvatar.
The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Ch 3, "Of The Coming of the Elves and the Captivity of Melkor"
There are no references to brown in The Silmarillion.
The only color association that The Silmarillion somewhat validates is therefore Gandalf by his association with Nienna — it is stated she wore a grey hood. Given that Gandalf was her student, this might have some relevance to his title.
So I did some further digging, and found another possible relation - the etymology of the color names in Quenya and Sindarin:
White: from the root glân (S and Q) originally meaning pure. However, I don't believe the word pure implies Saruman (whose original name Curunír translates as cunning) but to the White Council he preceded. The White Council was formed to challenge Dol Guldur, the lair (dol) of the Necromancer (guldur), literally "perverted or evil knowledge". It therefore stands to reason that the name White Council was chosen not for the color, but the implied purity of knowledge protected by that council.
Grey: mith (S), Gandalf was called Mithrandir, Grey Pilgrim, by the Eldar.
Blue: The Blue Wizards Pallando and Alatar are called the Ithryn Luin because it is said they arrived in Middle-earth by boat dressed in sea-blue (luin). However, luin stems from lhun, which also means boat.
Brown: no translation for Radagast is provided by Tolkien. However, a possible root for the name may be the Old English rudugást, meaning brown spirit.
An in-universe reason for the colors may be that each Istari's color reflect which Vala he was aligned with.
Saruman - Aulë
Gandalf - Manwë
Radagast - Yavanna
Alatar - Oromë
Pallando - Oromë
This theory is supported by the fact that both Alatar and Pallando (the two Blue Wizards) are aligned with the same Vala.
Another reason (and my personal interpertaion when I read the book) could be that the colors had to do with rank (either official or symbolic). The three wizards featured in the Lord of the Rings trilogy are Saruman the White, Gandalf the Grey, and Radagast the Brown. It could be argued that these colors be ranked based on their "purity" and therefore relative power. When Saruman declared himself as Saruman of Many Colors, he was claiming to have ascended beyond White which characterized his arrogance. Similarly, when Eru intervened to restore Gandalf's life, Gandalf was "promoted" to White. Gandalf the White later claims that he is "Saruman as he should have been".
I suspect that The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales may have more detail on this subject.
Actually the only Istari whose original color can be said to derive from his time as a Maiar, is Gandalf. It is flashed on the color he wore when the Istari were being chosen.
From "Unfinished Tales":
But two only came forward: Curumo, who was chosen by Aulë, and Alatar, who was sent by Oromë. 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. Manwë replied that he wished Olórin to go as the third messenger to Middle-earth...
There may be another reason though. It could be because ash is grey in color. And so the grey of his robes is analogous to ash clothing the fire he has within him. As stated from this passage in "Unfinished Tales":
Warm and eager was his spirit (and it was enhanced by the ring Narya), for he was the Enemy of Sauron, opposing the fire that devours and wastes with the fire that kindles, and succours in wanhope and distress; but his joy, and his swift wrath, were veiled in garments grey as ash, so that only those that knew him well glimpsed the fire that was within.
I think their color has less to do with Valar and more with their work in Middle-earth.
Saruman is white because he's the head of the order — white being the "pure" color. See e.g. the Roman Catholic Pope. Later it's revealed that his cloak is actually multicolored, i.e. that he has fallen and betrayed, that he is a liar.
Gandalf's grey to me symbolizes his humility (grey can be seen as an old and dirty white) and also characterizes him as a portent of bad tidings (Láthspell), grey being the color of storm clouds. Later he of course acquires the white of rebirth, purity and possibly as a leader of Istari.
Radagast's brown shows his connection with earth and things living and growing in Arda.
Alatar and Pallando — I don't know, but perhaps it's because of their vanishing in the distant lands, in "blue yonder" (e.g. remote mountains look bluish).
I prefer the explanation of Tolkien Professor Corey Olsen from this YouTube clip (queued to the right spot).
His theory is that the colour signifies the role of the Wizard, not the rank or power. Having more power makes you eligible to take on more responsible roles.
| Colour | Role |
|---|---|
White |
Head of the forces of good against Sauron (SEO) |
Grey |
Head of people management (HR) |
Brown |
Head of flora and fauna management (Birds and Beasts) |
Unfortunately Corey doesn't cover what Blue means. My best guess is that is more of a "Team Lead" sort of role.
Alas, Olsen does not provide any reasons for his theory (the video is quite brief). I suspect he is presenting his personal theory based on his own breadth of knowledge of the Tolkien Universe. The overall video is quite compelling though, and worth a watch in it's totality.
Could it not be that the Blue Wizards are blue because they came to Middle-earth by boat from the sea? Or possibly in order to get those who rebelled against Sauron to trust them? Since no servant of Melkor or Sauron would deign to wear blue, as well as since blue signifies loyalty, truth, and calmness, and other stuff? And could it also be that Oromë wore blue himself? Or that Manwë commanded them to wear blue to signify their allegiance to Eru and himself?
