After years of speculation, The Stranger's identity has finally been confirmed in The Rings of Power season 2 finale
One of the big questions about the Stranger’s identity was whether it actually made sense that he is Gandalf. The big issue arises is that according to J.R.R. Tolkien’s Appendix B, Gandalf didn’t actually arrive in Middle-earth until the Third Age – specifically via a ship at the Grey Havens, where he met Cirdan and was given his ring.