The Rings of Power: What Is an Istar in Lord of the Rings Canon?

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2.

Characters have been throwing around the word “Istar” in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power since Season 1. So, what exactly is an Istar according to J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings canon, and how many of them are there?

What Is an Istar in The Rings of Power?

In The Rings of Power (as in Tolkien’s lore), “Istar” is the Elvish word for Wizard. In the Quenya language, Istari—the plural of Istar—translates as “ones who know,” which tracks with the legendary wisdom and knowledge of The Lord of the Rings‘ Wizards. It’s also a useful label when trying to keep track of Middle-earth’s various cosmic entities. If a character is identified as an Istar, it means they’re an angelic Maia spirit in physical form, given the specific goal of opposing Sauron by the even more angelic Valar.

We’ve only encountered two Istari in The Rings of Power so far: the Stranger and the Dark Wizard. Whether any additional members of the order are slated to appear in future seasons remains unconfirmed for now. The true identities of the Prime Video series’ current crop of Istari are similarly unclear. That said, clues littered through The Rings of Power Seasons 1 and 2 strongly hint that the Stranger is secretly The Lord of the Rings‘ most iconic Istar, Gandalf.

How Many Istari Are There in Lord of the Rings Canon?

Tolkien listed just five Istari in The Lord of the Rings and associated works: Saruman, Gandalf, Radagast, and the two Blue Wizards (whose names he never settled on). Is there room for any others? Not really, if an exchange between Saruman and Gandalf in The Two Towers is any guide. Here, Saruman references “the rods of the five”wizards”—strongly suggesting that’s the total number of Istari active in Middle-earth.

What about in The Rings of Power continuity? That’s possibly a very different story. In Season 2, Episode 4, Tom Bombadil confirms that the Dark Wizard is a legit Istar, not some self-styled pretender. This leaves us with three possibilities: he’s a prematurely evil Saruman, a palette swapped Blue Wizard, or a sixth Istar invented specially for the series!

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2 is currently streaming on Prime Video, with new episodes dropping Thursdays.