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Originally Posted by PrinceOfTheHalflings
I1. How much was known in Gondor about the Dunedain of the North?
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To the vast majority of Gondorians at the time of the war of the Ring, probably not much. It would have been known to their historians that the last king, Arvedui, had died and Arnor so reduced in numbers that his son had not bothered to claim the sceptre.
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Originally Posted by PrinceOfTheHalflings
2. Was there any curiosity about the Dunedain of the North in Gondor? Gondor was very much in need of allies at this time.
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Certainly they needed help, but they apparently only saw the Rohirrim as allies who would come at their call. The Dúnedain of Arnor had been in the shadows so long they had been forgotten by nearly everyone outside Eriador. Even the Men of Bree, who themselves had once been subjects of the Kingdom of Arnor, didn't realise that the 'Rangers' whom they scorned were the last remnant of the Dúnedain of the North.
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Originally Posted by PrinceOfTheHalflings
3. Did anyone other than Denethor guess Thorongil's true origin/identity? It must have been screamingly obvious that Thorongil was of Numenorean descent - so where else could he have come from, other than Umbar? Thorongil's existence certainly implied that there were others like him ... somewhere. Didn't anyone wonder where Thorongil went when he left? Didn't they ever wonder if he'd come back some day?
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Aragorn was disguised in some way when he was 'Thorongil', so maybe his bloodline was not as obvious as that. Denethor's interest in him was due to jealousy, so he likely spent more time thinking about Thorongil than the average soldier in Minas Tirith. I'm sure they
did wonder why he was leaving, but the last Thorongil was seen, 'his face was towards the Mountains of Shadow'. With the impression that he was going to Mordor, most probably wrote him off for dead.
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Originally Posted by PrinceOfTheHalflings
4. If Thorongil was advising Ecthelion to be wary of Saruman and to trust instead in Gandalf, then that means that Aragorn had known for quite some time that Saruman was not to be trusted. Why then did Aragorn not advise Gandalf of his suspicions? Gandalf rode into a trap at Isengard because he still trusted Saruman.
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I think Gandalf had shared some of his own concerns about Saruman with Aragorn, such as Saruman's reluctance to act against Dol Guldur. Aragorn completely trusted Gandalf, so it doesn't seem strange to me he would have said such things to Ecthelion, even with nothing more than Gandalf's vague misgivings driving the suspicion.
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Originally Posted by PrinceOfTheHalflings
Another thing - Thorongil had also served Thengel. Now, that was many years ago, but the people of Rohan seemed most surprised to see Aragorn show up, despite the fact that he had served Thengel. You'd think they'd be used to tall, mysterious guys from the North showing up! Especially when it's the same guy.
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Again, Aragorn was disguised as 'Thorongil'. And would they have necessarily known he was from the North? As you note, also a lot of time had passed.
The Tale of Years says that from 2957 through 2980, 'as Thorongil [Aragorn] serves in disguise both Thengel of Rohan and Ecthelion II of Gondor'. Since Thorongil had appeared in Rohan first, there was a span of more than 38 years before Aragorn showed up in Rohan as himself. Éomer himself wasn't born until 2991. I don't think it's all that remarkable Aragorn wasn't recognised.