A Silly Question: Why are wizards always depicted as old with long white hair?

LOL -=-that's a cute response...My way of thinking was much more complex I was perhaps thinking..maybe it's suppose to depict widsom??? But yours seems to be more practical

Just did a quick search about the Dresden Files which is fashioned after the books by Jim Butcher's series of the same name..mm have to get those books..but Butcher's still a young author..in fact the bio on him lists that his influence was none other than JRR Tolkien...T.A. Barron does a whole series of books about Merlin as a young boy..good reads..

I did a quick search and this is what I found about the hat : "For those who enjoy hats, traditional pointed hats will be available in wool and velvet. These latter are not traditional for practitioners of Druidry, of course, but are traditional among wizards since the middle ages and harken back to the Phrygian cap of Mithras. In addition a flat cap will also be available for those who prefer a non-pointy look. It is worth noting that the pointed hat of wizard and witch has a history that goes further back than Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling chose this fashion for her wizarding folk precisely because it is one of the things that comes down to us from the medieval period when practically everyone wore headgear. There are many theories about the point of these kinds of hats. One of the best is that the cone shape imitates the cone of power generated by magical actions. Pointing upward to the heavens, the hat might be considered a nod to the old helio-phallic cultus that some old outdated scholars thought was the inspiration and core of all religions. There is something of a kinship between the wizard hat and the dunce cap. The implication seems to be that the shape of the hat draws down the cosmic wisdom from on high, for those who wish to cultivate it, or for those whose need a bit of a boost. The pointed hat is the proverbial thinking cap." - http://www.avaloncollege.org/ROBES.HTML And I also seen on another site that Wizard meant in old English "Wise Man". :)

No problem! I think it's cool about your room. It sounds really neat.

Wow...thank you for that response...I did actually hear about the pointed hat as being the "cone of power" in relation to witches...which is why we see witches costumes at Halloween complete with the tall black pointy hats...would you believe I have one of those hanging up from the ceiling in my bedroom..In fact I have my bedroom decorated in a very magical kind of way And thinking back..yes, in medieval times, women often wore pointed hats as part of their regular attire as it was the fashion then, but it wasn't related to any kind of magical meaning to it.

Well there are probably stories long long time ago about wizards wearing pointed hats...but the only one right now I can think of and is an early book, so to say is none other than JRR Tolkien himself in describing Gandalf This is from THE HOBBIT "....All that the unsuspecting Bilbo saw that morning was an old man with a staff. He had a tall pointed blue hat, a long grey cloak, a silver scarf over which his long white beard hung down below his waist, and immense black boots. ..." Mmm..here's a nice challenge...to find out a story older than JRR Tolkien's that describes a wizard!!