THE ORIGIN OF CHRISTMAS ELVES

WHERE DID THESE CREATURES COME FROM?

The Christmas season is one which comes packed with lots of magical stories and fabulous traditions. One of such
stories or traditions is that of Santa Claus’ magical elves. You might have heard about these magical elves, but do you
really know their origins and their relevance to the Christmas tradition?
Well, we shall take our time to enlighten you on the origins of these wonderful creatures and what they do during
the Christmas season.
WHAT ARE CHRISTMAS ELVES?
Christmas elves, commonly known as elves are undersized (dwarf-like) beings that live with the legendary
Christmas figure Santa Claus (also known as Father Christmas) at the North Pole where they help Santa in his workshop.
These magical creatures, who are youthful in nature, come in both genders and appear in pointy hats and red and green
clothing. They have very pointy ears and long noses. In Santa’s workshop, these elves assist Santa in manufacturing toys
for good children all over the world. Besides helping Santa in his workshop, the elves are also responsible for taking good
care of Santa’s reindeer as well as his sleigh.
It is believed that these elves are immortal and possess powers that are capable of influencing the things that you
see, do or experience.
No one can really tell where elves in general live, but it is believed they live in places such as forests and
mountains. It is also believed that you can find elves residing in wells and springs. However, Christmas elves, which are
distinct from other elves, are widely believed to live with Santa Claus at the North Pole.
ORIGIN OF CHRISTMAS ELVES
The origin of elves is rooted in Germanic, Scandinavian and British folklores. In the past, many believed that
these tiny beings possessed magical powers to protect the homes of people who were good from bad things. And as for
bad people, elves dealt with them by playing hostile pranks on them. Some of these pranks included giving them bad
dreams, hiccups and making their milk taste sour, among others. In fact it was concluded that your level of friendliness
depended on how well these creatures related to you. Legends surrounding elves tell that one of the best ways to avoid the
troubles of these creatures was to place a bowl of porridge in front of your door at night.
The name “Christmas elf” came into existence around the mid 19th century when famous Scandinavian writers of
the era began associating elves with Santa Claus portraying them as good creatures. It was around that time that most of
the traditional festivities associated with Christmas today began widely being accepted. Around this same time, a number
of renowned writers, including Abraham Viktor Rydberg wrote extensively about these creatures in their works,
portraying them only as helpers of Santa Claus (Father Christmas) and not the troublesome tricksters’ people thought
them to be. This portrayal played an instrumental role in giving birth to the phrase, “Christmas Elves”.
According to historians, one of the first appearances of the phrase “Christmas elf” in literature was found in
American poet and novelist Louisa May Alcott’s unpublished 1850 book Christmas Elves. As for the visual image of
Christmas elves, it became famous in 1873 after an illustration of the elves and Santa in their workshop was plastered on
the front cover of the American women’s magazine Godey’s Lady’s Book. Austin Thompson’s The House of Santa Claus,
a Christmas Fairy Show for Sunday Schools published in 1876 also played an instrumental role in further popularizing the
image of Santa’s elves to the world.
Away from literature, film and television also contributed in a very significant way in promoting elves and their
role as Santa’s helpers. Some good examples of such films include the 1932’s Santa’s Workshop and 2003’s Elf starring
Will Ferrell.
 DUTIES OF CHRISTMAS ELVES
Like was said at the beginning of this post, the primary job of Christmas elves is to assist Santa Claus. In assisting
Santa, these elves perform a lot of important roles that make the Christmas season more fun and interesting. Some of the
most important duties of elves include the following:
Helping Santa prepare his “Nice and Naughty” list by visiting households across the world few days before
Christmas and secretly watching children in order to find out if they are being naughty or nice and reporting back to
Santa.
Designing and making toys for good children in the world.
Taking good care of all Santa’s reindeer.
Maintaining Santa’s sleigh and preparing it for flight.
Making sure that their village remains hidden from the world’s view.

HOW MANY ELVES ARE HELPING SANTA?

The exact number of elves living with Santa and helping him at the North Pole is unknown. Some claim Santa has
thirteen elves, whereas others say the number is nine. Some even say Santa has only six elves assisting him. Here are
the names of Santa’s most famous elves and their respective duties:
Alabaster Snowball is the elf that is in charge of Santa’s “Naughty and Nice” list.
Pepper Minstix is the elf responsible for guarding the secret village of Santa Claus and ensuring that it remains
hidden.
Sugarplum Mary (also known as Mary Christmas) is the one in charge of all the sweets that Santa delivers to the
children of the world. She also offers assistance to Mrs. Claus in the kitchen.
Bushy Evergreen is the proud creator of the toy-making machine which makes all the toys that Santa delivers to
children all over the world.
Wunorse Openslae is the architect and maintainer of Santa’s sleigh. Besides maintaining Santa’s sleigh, Openslae
also takes care of the reindeer.
Shinny Upatree is believed to be Santa’s oldest friend as well as a co-founder of the hidden village where Santa,
Mrs. Claus and all the elves live.

CHRISTMAS ELVES IN OTHER COUNTRIES

In countries where English isn’t the main language spoken, Christmas elves (Santa’s helpers) are often referred to
by different names.
The following is a list of some names given to Santa’s helpers in some countries across the globe:
In Germany Santa’s helpers are called Knecht Ruprecht.
In Iceland, they are referred to as Yule Lads.
In the Netherlands, Santa’s helper is called Zwarte Piet (also known as Black Peter).
In many Nordic countries such as Finland, Sweden, Denmark, etc, Santa’s helpers aren’t elves; they are referred
to as nisser.