What up Gnomies

Gnomes have taken over and I think I am quite alright with that. They are just the cutest things and they can range in many sizes. Most commonly seen colors, such as red, blue or green, make the newer gnomes seem to be more traditional in attire. While shopping at TJ Maxx, I stood still in my tracks as my eyes glanced, then froze to the wall where the gnomes have made their home... for now.

I can’t quite remember when I first started seeing gnomes in Christmas decor. It might have been through-out my whole life, but I do believe there has been an increase with peoples new found love for these creatures. I wonder if any of the consumers know where the gnome began and why it is that you can only see a nose, beard and hat on its noggin.

They are such short statured creatures, often thrown into the same realm as goblins, faeries, elves and the like. The mythological and legendary creatures are known throughout Europe and the United States and often are referred to as small men that live in darker places, such as forests, gardens and underground. They are also said to be able to travel underground as easily as, us, humans travel atop the Earth’s crust. As the legend says, the gnomes are akin to helping plants and animals and some even helping humans out every now and again.

Gnomes look like dwarves. Are they the same thing? It is said that gnomes and dwarves were interchangeable at some point in history, but the gnomes that you see today in stores are more Dutch-like in features than Scandinavian. The split causing the two, gnome and dwarf, to be in two different categories was due to the difference between German and Dutch traditions, with the Dutch-like features molded after the Norse dwarves.

As for when the gnome became popular in the garden area was sometime in the mid-1800’s in Germany. They were created in the town of Grafenroda in Thuringia by Phillip Griebel. He first made the decorations out of terracotta and would enjoy telling the stories of the gnomes willingness to help the humans in the garden during the night.

So, now we see these little guys hanging around at the stores, waiting to be picked up and taken home. They might give you a bit of magic or even help you out around your abode.

“Gnomes live ten times faster than humans. They’re harder to see than a high-speed mouse. That’s one reason why most humans hardly ever see them.” — Terry Pratchett

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