Beautiful princesses, prince charmings, evil queens, treacherous witches – what would fairy tales be without these characters? But there are also some others that stay with you long after the fairy tale ends. The seven dwarfs from Snow White are one of the most famous bunch of supporting characters of a fairy tale. But do you know their names? Introduce yourself to the eponymous characters from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
WHAT’S IN A NAME
Originally the seven dwarfs in Snow White were unnamed. Their names have changed in different versions of the story. The most popular names of the dwarfs are from the 1937 Disney movie. They are Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, and Sneezy.
Once upon a time, in a land we call Germany today, there lived two brothers, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. They were so fascinated by the tales of the times gone by that they spent their lives collecting folklore from all over the world. During their literary adventures, they heard a story about a young, beautiful princess, her evil stepmother (the Queen), the jealousy the Queen felt towards the princess, the princess’ poisoning and apparent death, and her revival (by means of a kiss) by a prince who fell in love with her. This story was eventually published by the brothers as Little Snow White in their book Kinder- und Hausmärchen.
The story of Snow White is one that we are all familiar with. But what we don’t know is that the popular story that we heard as kids has undergone several transformations in the past two hundred years or so. The version that the Brothers Grimm published in their book was inspired by the Bavarian version that featured the magic mirror, the poisoned apple, the coffin made of glass, and of course, the seven dwarfs.
Naming the Dwarfs: The Saga
Imagine Snow White without the seven dwarfs. Impossible, isn’t it? And to think that in the original version of the tale the dwarfs had no names. The dwarfs were first given names in the 1912 Broadway play, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Of course, they are most well-known by the names that the Disney movie gave them. What is astonishing though is that the dwarfs have had different names in as many as eleven versions of the story.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Broadway Play
Year of Debut: 1912
Blick
Flick
Glick
Snick
Plick
Whick
Quee
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Animated Film
Year of Release: 1937
Bashful
Doc
Dopey
Grumpy
Happy
Sleepy
Sneezy
Schneewittchen (German)
Live Action Film
Year of Release: 1961
Huckepack
Naseweis
Packe
Pick
Puck
Purzelbaum
Rumpelbold
Little Snow White
Animated Television Episode
Year of Telecast: 1965
Axlerod
Bartholomew
Cornelius
Dexter
Eustace
Ferdinand
George
Snow White
Musical Feature Film
Year of Release: 1987
Biddy
Diddy
Fiddy
Giddy
Iddy
Kiddy
Liddy
Snow White*
Direct to Video
Year of Release: 1991
Grouchy
Klutzy
Lazy
Sloopy
Smiley
Tubby
*There were only six dwarfs
Happily Ever After
Animated Film
Year of Release: 1993
Blossom
Critterina
Marina
Moonbeam
Muddy
Sunburn
Thunderella
Snow White
Feature Film
Year of Release: 2001
Friday
Monday
Saturday
Sunday
Thursday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Schneewittchen (German)
TV Movie
Year of Telecast: 2009
Gorm
Knirps
Niffel
Quarx
Querx
Schrat
Wichtel
Mirror Mirror
Feature Film
Year of Release: 2012
Butcher
Chuckles
Grimm
Grub
Half Pint
Napoleon
Wolf
Snow White and the Huntsman
Feature Film
Year of Release: 2012
Beith
Muir
Quert
Coll
Duir
Gort
Nion
The Seven Dwarfs were also…
… robbers in certain European versions of the story. In the same tale, the dialog that the evil Queen has is not with a magic mirror but the sun or the moon.
… dragons in an Albanian version which was collected by Johann Georg von Hahn. The number of dragons increased from seven to forty in this one.
… giants in the 1980 animation film A Snow White Christmas. So, instead of the seven dwarfs, Snow White lived with the seven giants.
… toads in Super Mario’s Snow White, an adaptation made in Japan. Snow White herself was renamed Princess Peach in this variation.
The seven dwarfs represent the many characteristics that we as humans display. They are the good in us and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly. Fairy tales, to some adults, may seem unfashionable and childish. But to those of us who still believe, these are the stories that keep the magic alive.