Alatar

Alatar
Maia
Biographical Information
Other names	Morinehtar or Rómestámo[1]
Coming to Arda	T.A. 1000
Date of death	Unknown
Duty/Appointment	Istari
Physical Description
Robe Color	Sea blue
Gender	Male

Alatar (Q, pron. [ˈalatar]) was one of the five Wizards who came to the northwest of Middle-earth in the Third Age; he journeyed into the east with Pallando as a Blue Wizard, and never returned to the western lands.

Alatar, chosen by Oromë, was one of the original three Wizards selected by the Valar for the journey from Valinor to Middle-earth (the other two being Curumo and Olórin; Saruman and Gandalf).

Alatar and Pallando arrived in Middle-earth dressed in sea blue. For this reason, they were together given the name Ithryn Luin, the "Blue Wizards". With Saruman, they journeyed into the far east of Middle-earth, but while Saruman returned to the west, Alatar and Pallando did not. Of their fate, we know almost nothing.^[1]

Tolkien mentioned in his letters that he did not know what happened to them, and that the evil power in the east was likely too great, and they probably succumbed like Saruman and founded evil cults.^[2] It is also likely that they perished in the east, or they had a permanent task to complete. This supposition was, however, contradicted in a later writing, stating that they probably had a great influence for the better on the War of the Ring, and without them the West might not have won.^[1]

[edit] References

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Peoples of Middle-earth, "Last Writings"
2. ↑ J.R.R. Tolkien; Humphrey Carpenter, Christopher Tolkien (eds.), The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter 211, (dated 14 October 1958)