Monday, December 2, 2013

B is for Blitzen

Today in my A to Z trip through December, we are on B! To check out the earlier posts, click here!

I've just discovered something and I'm going to share it with you!  Blitzen wasn't one of Santa's original reindeer and neither was Donder! 

I know.  I'm shocked, too. 

I've read Twas the Night before Christmas annually for my whole life. I probably have at least seven different illustrated copies of it.  And all this time, those two poor reindeer have been called by the wrong name!

According to Huffington post, the original version of the poem has a Blixem and a Dunder instead. To verify this (ha ha), I checked Wikipedia, where I learned Donner is derived from the Germanic word for thunder and Blitzen is from lightning. That paints a great picture... them flying through the air like thunder and lightning.

Isn't it fascinating how little things get altered over time?  One of the books I'm working on is a paranormal romance... Hmm... I wonder if I could introduce a name or a myth that is important but has been misremembered over time.

Santa's Reindeer



Can you recite all the reindeer names?  There are eight (plus one).


marymforbes said...

I just love these fascinating tidbits of information. (Just like I love playing trivial pursuit). Yes - if you're writing a fantasy - maybe a wrong piece of information - corrected could be an interesting idea. Then people will read it - think you're wrong. You could even make that a trade-mark of your writing. If people know - they will look for it. My tidbit - Cinderella was originally called Cinder-slut - meaning dirty because she slept in the fireplace. But political correctness kinda stopped that eh?

Donna Cummings said...

How fun! I like that it means Thunder and Lightning -- those would definitely come in handy while zipping across the sky. :)

patonlorraine said...

Mary - Cinder-slut? Yikes! That does lend a different interpretation to the fairy tale, doesn't it? LOL

patonlorraine said...

Donna - That's what I thought! :)