Mithrandir

J R R Tolkien had an extraordinary talent for naming. There are countless words and names in Lord of the Rings, in one of the languages he himself invented, which, once you have assimilated them, never seem anything else than utterly appropriate for the object or person in question. At Fazeley, for an enjoyable weekend with other members of the BCF, we came across this boat.

Mithrandir is an Elven name for Gandalf, which translates roughly as "Grey Pilgrim", "Grey Wanderer". It's not used a lot in the book(s), but both as a description of Gandalf and on the tongue it feels perfect. The first syllable "mith" means grey, and is also found in the word "mithril" – the silver grey metal of which was made the coat of mail that Bilbo was given, and which he passed on to Frodo.

Why, therefore, NB Mithrandir should be painted blue is a mystery! But it is yet another to add to my collection of Tolkien-themed boat names, which has now grown by three this year.

Arwen Evenstar
Aragorn
Bilbo Baggins
Brandywine
Earls of Rohan
Frodo’s Dream
Galadriel
Gandalf
Goldberry
Hobbit
Lord of the Rings
Lóthlórien
Many Meetings
Mithrandir
Pippin
Radagast
Riddles in the Dark
Rivendell
Shadowfax
Silmaril
Smaug
Strider
The Arkenstone
There and Back Again
Thorin
Tom Bombadil