Gnomes

A gnome is a mythical creature characterized by its extremely small size and subterranean lifestyle. The word gnome is derived from the New Latin gnomus. It is often claimed to descend from the Greek gnosis, "knowledge", but more likely comes from genomos "earth-dweller", in which case the omission of e is, as the Oxford English Dictionary calls it, a blunder. Another possibility is that it comes from the Arabic (Noum), which means sleep. It is also possible that Paracelsus simply made the word up. Paracelsus, born in Einsiedein, Switzerland in 1493, was an alchemist, physician, astrologer, and general occultist.

Paracelsus includes gnomes in his list of elementals, as earth elementals. He describes them as two spans (one span equals 9") high, and very silent or not wanting to talk.

There is some belief that Gnomes are in fact real, such as the Gnome sightings in Argentina, though these are disputed as hoaxes by skeptics.

Garden Gnomes

The first garden gnomes were made in Gräfenroda, a town known for its ceramics in

Thuringia, Germany in the mid-1800s. Phillip Griebel made terracotta animals as decorations, and produced gnomes based on local myths as a way for people to enjoy the stories of the gnomes' willingness to help in the garden at night. The garden gnome quickly spread across Germany and into France and England, and wherever gardening was a serious hobby. Gnome manufacture spread across Germany with numerous other large and small manufacturers coming into and out of the business, each one having its own particular style of design. World War II was hard on the industry and most producers gave up then. Griebel's descendants still make them and are the last of the German producers, all others having moved production to Poland or China.

Traditional gnomes are made from a terracotta clay slurry poured into molds. The gnome is removed from the mold, allowed to dry, and then fired in a kiln until it is hard. Once cooled the gnome is painted to the level of detail desired and sent to stores to be sold to consumers. More modern gnomes are made from resins and similar materials.

Garden gnomes were first introduced to the United Kingdom in 1847 by Sir Charles Isham, when he brought 21 terracotta figures back from a trip to Germany and placed them as ornaments in the gardens of his home, Lamport Hall in Northamptonshire. Only one of the original batch of gnomes survives: Lampy, (pictured right) as he is known, is on display at Lamport Hall, and is insured for one million pounds.

Garden gnomes have become a popular accessory in many gardens. They are often the target of pranks, known collectively as gnoming: people have been known to return garden gnomes "to the wild", most notably France's "Front de Liberation des Nains de Jardins" and Italy's "MALAG" (Garden Gnome Liberation Front). Some kidnapped garden gnomes have been sent on trips around the world (the traveling gnome prank; this later became the basis for Travelocity's "Roaming Gnome").

The practice of stealing garden gnomes is also sometimes referred to as "Gnome Hunting".

Gnomes are often depicted as having beards and are typically males, and usually wear red hats and are known to smoke pipes. They are made in various poses and pursuing various pastimes, such as fishing or napping.

Gnomes have become controversial in serious gardening circles in the UK, and have been banned from the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show as the organizers claim that they detract from the garden designs. Gnome enthusiasts accuse the organizers of snobbery because they are popular in working class and suburban gardens.

Gnomes In Popular Culture

Gnomes are often used in fantasy stories for their cunning roles, normally as an inventor. Other reasons that gnomes are used in many games and stories are because of their funny nature, appearance, and awkward behaviors, so Fantasy authors will sometimes employ gnomes, as elementals, in their fiction.

Particularly noteworthy is the phonetically spelled Nome King of the Oz books. Although the Wicked Witch of the West is the most famous of Oz's villains (thanks to the popular 1939 film The Wizard of Oz), the Nome King is the closest the book series has to a main antagonist. He appears again and again to cause trouble for the Land of Oz.

In modern fantasy games such as Dungeons & Dragons, EverQuest, and World of Warcraft, gnomes are often included as a playable race. They are commonly portrayed as large-headed humanoids about a meter in height, displaying characteristics such as a cheery temperament, a high degree of intelligence coupled with curiosity and poor judgment, and an unusual talent when it comes to either using magic or inventing and building technology, depending on the setting. These attributes not found in traditional stories about gnomes largely originated with the playable gnomes in Dungeons and Dragons, as well as the tinker gnome variant in the Dragonlance setting. World of Warcraft takes a similar approach with gnomes as inventors. RuneScape has gnomes as a race of both malevolent and benevolent small-sized inventors who have been known to study ogres.

In the Harry Potter series, gnomes are considered garden pests and appear to be more akin to animals than intelligent beings. In the second book, Ron scoffs at the garden gnome statues that Muggles keep, saying that they're chubby "Father Christmases" holding fishing rods, and generally depicted as doing things that real gnomes would never do. In Harry Potter gnomes often told Ron in the garden to "burn things" around his family's house in the Burrow. A "text book" written by J.K. Rowling to resemble the books that Harry uses in school (Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them) states that they can be ridden of if swung around in circles until dizzy and then thrown over the garden wall. They could also be eaten by a Jarvey, which is a ferret-like creature. Gnomes are said to only reach a foot in height and have a large head with bony feet.

In Sydney, Australia, Gnomes are known not only for their garden based oppression, but for their cricketing prowess. A famous Sydney-based institution is The Gnomes Cricket Club. Operating within the North Shore Comp, this band of 'cricketers' have for years now closely followed many Gnomish traits - such as indulging in ale and card games, whilst simultaneously attempting to play the popular Australian game of cricket. These Gnomes are commonly known as Crisps.

During the 1980s a high profile bulletin board running on a bank of PC's was called The Gnome At Home. It was unusual in the fact that it had multiple lines in, and was a subscription service.

The final episode of the cult British TV comedy series Citizen Smith came as a joy to all those who loathe garden gnomes. After stealing a British Army tank from a firing range, the would-be, joke revolutionary, Smith, hides it in a friend's garage. Whilst away, one of the family, curious as the what is this vast vehicle, parked amongst the garden tools, climbs down inside and accidentally steps on the fire button. The result is that their neat garden is raked with high caliber, heavy machine gun fire, and the spectacular, slow motion, annihilation of the 30 or so garden gnomes scattered about it.

David the Gnome, a popular 1980's animated television series, featured the adventures of a tree-dwelling gnome and his wife, based on the children's books The Gnomes and The Secret of the Gnomes by Rein Poortvliet and Wil Huygen.

Wil Huygen's books, Gnomes, Secrets of the Gnomes and The Complete Gnomes

describes gnomes as such:

Gnomes are very widespread species, known to a number of human races. Germans name them Erdmanleins, except in the Alpine areas, where they are called Heinzemannchens. In Denmark and Norway they are Nisse; Nissen is a Swedish variation. In Denmark and Norway they are Nisse; Nissen is a Swedish variation. In Brittany they are called Nains. Tontti to the Finns and Foddenskkmaend is their name in Iceland. The Polish call them by the familar Gnom. Bulgaria and Albania, however, use Dudje. In Hungary, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia, Gnomes are called Mano. The Dutch use Kabouter and the Belgian, Skritek. Switzerland and Luxembourg use the same name, Kleinmanneken, which means "little men." Domovoi Djedoes is used in western Russia.

Race: Gnomes consist of a number of different types. The most common is the Forest Gnome who rarely comes into contact with man. The Garden Gnome lives in old gardens and enjoys telling melancholy tales. Dune Gnomes are slightly larger than their woodland brethren and choose remarkably drab clothing. House Gnomes have the most knowledge of man, often speaking his language. It is from this family that Gnome Kings are chosen. Farm Gnomes resemble their House brethren, but are more conservative in manner and dress. Siberian Gnomes have been more interbred than other Gnomes and associate freely with trolls. They are much larger than the other types and have an infinitely more nasty nature. It is best never to evoke the ire of such Gnomes for they delight in revenge.

Origin: Originating in Scandinavia, Gnomes later migrated to the lowlands some 1500 years ago.

Description: Gnomes are usually an average of 15 centimeters tall, but with its cap on it appears much taller. Their feet are somewhat pigeon toed which gives them an extra edge on speed and agility through the wood and grass. The males weigh 300 grams, and female is 250-275 grams.

The male wears a peaked red cap, a blue brown-green pants, and ether felt boots, birch shoes, or wooden clogs. Around his waist is a belt with a tool kit attached, holding a knife, hammer, etc. They are fair of face, though they boast rosy red cheeks. Long beards adorn their faces and turn gray far sooner than their hair.

The female wears gray or khaki clothing, consisting of a blouse and skirt (to ankles). She also has black-gray knee socks and high shoes or slippers. Before she is married, she dons a green cap.

Prior to marriage her hair in hanging down, the outfit is complemented by a green cap and braids with which later disappear under a scarf while the green cap is replaced by more somber tones after she marries.

Friends/Foes: Males are the guardians of animal kind and show little preference for their animal friends, not withstanding their aversion to cats both wild and domesticated. They are known for freeing wildlife from man's traps and for operating on farm animals whose owners have neglected them or who are simply too poor to afford a veterinarian. Their enemies are mainly Trolls, and other beings who would try to destroy them or their homes. Otherwise, they are mostly peaceful beings.

Lore: Gnomes tend to live in hilly meadows and rocky woodlands. In Huygen's book, it says they live in three trees, the house itself, with a hidden entrance from another tree, and then a third is the supply room, with grains, beans, potatoes and everything else the gnomes may need during the winter.

Powers: Most Gnomes are 7 times stronger than a man, can run at speeds of 35 miles per hour, and have better sight than a hawk. These abilities help the Gnome to do many things, such as find wounded, dying animals for which they feel they are responsible for. Because of their love for animals, all the animals of the forest are the Gnome's friends and are willing to help him at any time. Many people say that gnomes have elevated practical jokes to an art form. But most especially they love gems and jewelry and are considered by many to be the best gem cutters and jewelers in existence.

Element: Earth

They are generally vegetarian and never worry. The main meal consists of: Nuts (hazelnuts, walnuts, beechnuts, etc), mushrooms, peas, beans, a small potato, applesauce, fruit, berries (all kinds), tubers, spices, vegetables, and preserves for dessert. As a beverage, the gnome drinks mead dew (fermented honey), fermented raspberries (which have a very high alcohol content), and spiced gin as a nightcap. The gnome eats no meat, so often consumes the nectar of the high rotein plant called 'Vicia Sepuim'. fluffy willow catkins, dressing them up like dolls.

Protect your garden now with these frolicking little creatures

Just click on images below