Who are gnomes and where do they live? Scientific facts about the existence of gnomes. Bearded peoples in games

About, do gnomes exist, people began to think about it back in the Middle Ages. It was during those troubled times that stories about them began to appear among European peoples. By definition, gnomes are small human-like creatures that wear beards, live underground, and have great wealth. For the first time, this definition, like the word itself, appeared in the 16th century and was spoken by the alchemist of that time, Paracelsus. Dwarves were recognized as one of the main elements for obtaining gold.

The very name of these creatures is relatively new, but their genus is quite ancient. In different nations, gnomes are known by different names. This name is not accidental, since it is translated from Greek as knowledge. No wonder. Paracelsus believed that it was the gnomes who could show the location of a gold mine or diamond mines. For this service, people must help the mountain spirit and give him what he wants. Small gifts that have little value to humans can make great gifts for gnomes.

Do gnomes exist: a human view

Creatures living in the mountains and forest wilds seem very evil to people. In fact, gnomes are kind people, but they have suffered greatly from the greed and deceit of man. People wanted to take away their wealth and destroy their guardians. The offended gnomes hid all the gold and went away from human eyes. When they go out in deserted places and meet a lost traveler, they scream very loudly and scare him.

The relationship between gnomes and people is very tense, but they have an even greater enemy - the grimturs, who live underground and are monsters. There are constant wars between them. The world of gnomes and dragons does not take into account.

Those who have seen these creatures claim that they are very small with thick, large beards, and they have no question do gnomes exist. Their growth is comparable to the growth of a child. Despite their small size, gnomes are very strong. They have unique abilities and talents. The clothes of the gnomes are very bright, despite the fact that they constantly work underground.

They say that the most flexible “hard workers” remained on earth and mixed with people in order to teach them all the intricacies of blacksmithing and jewelry making.

The spirits of caves are accustomed to living alone and only in their own company. They do not allow strangers to approach them and have a rather bad character. Dwarves are very capricious and spoiled. If something happens against their will, then they get offended and think through plans for revenge, which are mainly aimed at people.

Dwarves are the guardians of countless riches hidden in dark dungeons. All these treasures are made by the small hands of hardworking creatures.

Dwarves make beautiful jewelry from precious stones and metals, forge chain mail and weapons. Everything made by the hands of mountain spirits is an object of desire for bloodthirsty dragons, so they are connected with each other. These creatures wage constant wars invisible to humans. The right to own jewelry, kept under the watchful eye of the dwarves, is always at stake.
Question, do gnomes exist, not only ordinary people, but also writers ask themselves. They very often describe these creatures in their works. The gnomes themselves and their attributes are found in Eastern European fairy tales and legends. A striking example of a literary masterpiece about mountain spirits is “The Song of the Nibelungs.” This work tells them everyday life, woven from struggle and wars for treasures.

ABOUT real existence Not a single fact speaks of the gnomes, but perhaps somewhere in the bowels of the earth, the small hammers of the eternal smiths of untold riches may indeed be knocking.

Dwarves - In European medieval mythology, different nations have creatures that live in the mountains, in caves, under the ground of which they are also called gmurs and homozuli. These are great master blacksmiths who know the secrets of the mountains. They were the first to learn how to mine ore and smelt metals. In general, they are kind and hard-working people, but they have suffered greatly from human greed, and therefore they do not like people. They hide in deep mountain caves, where they built underground cities and palaces.

Sometimes they come to the surface, and if they meet a person in the mountains, they scare him with a loud cry. Gmurs fight in dungeons with mountain monsters (grimturs) and dragons. Gmurs are similar to people, only smaller in stature, so it is more convenient for them to walk through caves. Some of the gmurs mixed with people, and from them people received knowledge about blacksmithing and jewelry.

Gnomes are spirits of the earth and mountains. In the mythology of the peoples of Europe, small, human-like creatures live underground, in the mountains or in the forest. They are the size of a child, but endowed with supernatural strength, wear long beards and live much longer than humans.

Dwarves are extremely touchy, quarrelsome and capricious. In the depths of the earth, gnomes store treasures - precious stones and metals; They are skilled artisans and can forge magic rings, swords, chain mail and other magical items. Inseparable from dragons. Dragons hunt for the treasures of the gnomes and the gnomes are therefore in constant war with them.

In mythology and literature, a gnome is a collective image. It is presented differently in different mythologies and works. But almost everywhere, gnomes are depicted as small humanoid creatures. Usually, dungeons are the habitat of gnomes. In caves, gnomes accumulate treasures of gold, silver and precious stones, and devote themselves to creating unique weapons and armor. They are famous as miners and blacksmiths, but, like people, they are versatile.

Dwarves are a mythological race, spirits of the mountains and the earth. You can read about gnomes in fairy tales from almost all European countries.

Troll and gnome
A long time ago there lived a gnome in the same cave. He had a lot of gold and gold mines. The cave was intended for life. There was very tasty and clean water. Next to the cave there was fertile soil in which root gnomes could be grown. In general, this gnome's life was very good.
There was also a troll who lived next to the cave. Every day he saw the life of a gnome and envied him. The troll really wanted to have a lot of gold, delicious food, and a cozy home. Since trolls were not very smart, he could not come up with a normal plan and did what they had done to him. He gave the gnome a map of an abandoned mine. The dwarf, of course, went in search of this mine because he wanted to have more gold.
While the gnome was away, the troll entered the cave, took all the gnome's gold and occupied the cave. By the time the dwarf returned, the troll had changed the entire cave by adding skulls and all sorts of other trophies. Returning, the gnome saw a cave occupied by a troll, got angry, and threatened
troll and went somewhere. The troll just laughed at this.
The next day the dwarf again came to the cave and said to the troll:
- “You have a lot of gold now. But there is a place where there is much more gold than in the cave. This place is in my mine - in the magma.”
The troll laughed slyly and ran into the mine. Having reached its end, the troll saw the magma and jumped into it. There was a troll and there was no troll.
It's bad to steal someone else's property. Like this.

The myth of the mithril city
One day, a group of gnomes, led by the gnome miner Merl, began to dig a mine in a mountain that had been abandoned for some reason. Previously, the dwarves remembered why, but by that time they had already forgotten.
So here it is. Merl's team continued the long-term work of the dwarves. After long hours of work, the dwarves noticed that when they hit the wall with pickaxes, a dull sound was heard. Marot realized that there was emptiness behind the wall. After a violent knock, the wall came loose. appeared before the dwarves stone city. Harpies began to fly out of the houses. The gnomes managed to hide behind the stones. The harpies did not notice them and flew into a hole that was high in the mountain.
While the harpies were gone, the dwarves began to inspect the city, but suddenly the sounds of harpies arriving were heard. Merle took a big big stone and threw it into the hole. The hole closed, but the harpies did not even think of giving up. They began to get the stone. They did it.
- “That’s it.” - thought the dwarf - “Everything is gone. Only a miracle will save us.”
And a miracle happened. The stone fell. The impact shook the entire mountain. Small stones began to fall from the houses. When all the pebbles slept, everyone saw that the houses were made of methril. The harpies were frightened by the bright light and flew away.
It turned out that the harpies had found a dwarf city in the methril mountain. They thought this place was convenient for living and cast a spell in the form of stones hiding the bright light. Because the spell was so old that it fell apart at the first blow.
Now this mountain is called Everest, and there is a dwarven city in it.

Legend of the Dwarven Alliance clan
One day a dwarf, while digging his mine, came across someone else's gallery. Surprisingly, the walls of this gallery were completely made of gold and diamonds.
The gnome, having forgotten that the mine was someone else’s and could even belong to goblins, began desperately knocking on the diamond walls with his pickaxe. Even after a few minutes, the gnome had not chipped off a single diamond. He was tired of the useless work and decided to catch his breath. While catching his breath, the gnome noticed an unknown device near the turn. The device was a large piece of iron with a handle and a point at the end.
The dwarf guessed that this was a “pickaxe” for mining gold and diamonds. As soon as he went to take it, the hand of an unknown gnome appeared from behind the handle, wielding the so-called “pickaxe” and disappearing.
The dwarf realized that he was not alone in this mine. Carefully, he looked around the corner and saw hundreds of gnomes working there. They mined gold, ore, diamonds and crystals. There were sleepers all over the shaft. Dwarves rode back and forth in carts and collected the extracted resources. As soon as the cart was filled, the gnomes in them rode somewhere deep into the mine.
Then the owner of the mine approached the gnome. He explained to the gnome that in order to survive they had to become one team and asked him to join it. The Dwarf agreed and suggested calling it the Dwarf Alliance.

There are countless legends about gnomes...

They are considered a race related to elves and fairies. Like the vultures of Hellenic and Eastern beliefs and the Germanic dragons, their duty is to guard hidden treasures.

One legend says that gnomes are fairy shoemakers. Fairies love to dance, and by dancing they wear out their shoes quite quickly. The shoemakers make them new shoes... for a fee, of course.

According to another legend, gnomes (gmurs) fight in dungeons with mountain monsters (grimturs) and dragons.

Since gnomes are similar to people, only smaller in stature (it is more convenient for them to walk through caves), some of the gnomes mixed with people: from them people received knowledge about blacksmithing and jewelry.

Dwarves are extremely touchy, quarrelsome and capricious. In the depths of the earth, gnomes store treasures - precious stones and metals; They are skilled artisans and can forge magic rings, swords, chain mail and other magical items. Any person who meets a gnome tries to get his gold and silver, which is accumulated by the diligent gnome through continuous, hard work. But gnomes can disappear as soon as a person blinks his eyes.

According to the same legends, gnomes resist diseases and poisons well, but they really dislike water and cannot swim at all. They can see in complete darkness. They have highly developed facial expressions (sometimes even caricatured), and a long and sharp nose serves as proof of belonging to an old and noble race.

Less is known about the life of gnomes as a people, and therefore all statements will be more controversial. The most ancient race and, apparently, the smallest; live in labor, ignoring the problems of the world.

The magic of the gnomes is too different from the magic of people and, perhaps, they have cults of ancestors: progenitors, heroes and gods associated with mountains, crafts and war. In all likelihood, all the legendary swords of this world came from the Dwarven forges. Dwarves tempered their swords in flames and made them openwork to reduce weight. The creators of the legendary swords themselves become formidable opponents during battle.

Legends about the origin of gnomes

Aule created them...

Tolkien tried to tell where the gnomes came from.

The gnomes owe their appearance to Aula, who created them in the darkness of Middle Earth.

“...Aule so strongly desired the arrival of the Children in order to pass on his knowledge and his skill in crafts to his students that he could not wait for the completion of Ilúvatar’s plan. And Aule created the dwarves - such as they are now, because the images of the Children who were to appear were unclear to him. And since the Earth was still under the rule of Melkor, Aule tried to make his creations strong and resilient.

Fearing that the other Valar might condemn his plan, he worked in secret. And first he created seven fathers of the dwarves in a cave under one of the mountains of Middle-earth. However, Ilúvatar knew what was happening. And at that very hour, when Aule's work was completed, to his satisfaction, and Aule began to teach the dwarves the speech that he had invented for them - at that very hour Ilúvatar spoke to him, and Aule, hearing his voice, fell silent.

And Ilúvatar said to him: “Why did you do this? Why are you trying to create something that you know is beyond your power and not in your control? From me you, as a gift, received only your own existence, and nothing more, and therefore the creatures created by your hand and your mind can not live, but exist, moving only when you mentally tell them to move, and if your thought busy with something else, they will remain motionless. Is this what you wanted?”

Then Aule replied: “I didn’t want this. I wanted to create beings unlike me in order to love and teach them, so that they too could comprehend the beauty of Ea that you created. Because Arda seems to me to be a huge place for many creatures who could enjoy life in it. Moreover, for the most part it is not yet inhabited and voiceless. In my impatience I was reckless, but nevertheless the desire for creativity hidden in my heart was laid down at my creation by you yourself. A foolish child who turns his father's plans into a game can do this without malice, but only because he is his father's son. But what should I do now so that you don’t get completely angry with me?

As the son of my father, I offer you these creatures, the creations of hands created by you yourself. Do with them as you wish. But shouldn’t I destroy my imperfect work?“

And Aule raised his great hammer to smite the dwarves, and he wept. But, touched by his submission, Ilúvatar felt compassion for Aula and his desire, and the dwarves recoiled in horror from the hammer, bowed their heads and begged for mercy. And then Ilúvatar said to Aula: “I accepted your creation as you created it. Don't you see that these creatures now have their own lives and speak with their own voices! But they didn’t shy away from the blow, they didn’t challenge the decision you made.”

And Aule, rejoicing, threw away his hammer and thanked Ilúvatar, saying: “May Eru bless my work and correct it!”

But Ilúvatar spoke again: “As I gave birth to the plans of the Ainur at the creation of the world, so now I will fulfill your desire and give them life, but in no other way will I correct the work of your hands. And as you created them, that is how they will remain. But I will not allow these creatures to appear before the Firstborn of my plan. Not that your creation will be rewarded. They will sleep in darkness under a stone and will not appear until the First Born awaken on Earth. And until that hour comes, you and your creatures will wait, even if it’s for a long time. But when the time comes, they will awaken and become like your children to you, and there will be frequent clashes between your creatures and mine, the children I have adopted and the children I have chosen.”

And then Aule took the seven dwarf fathers and put them to rest in a secluded place, and he himself returned to Valinor and waited while the long years dragged on.

Since the dwarves were to appear in the days of the power of Melkor, Aule created them strong and hardy, and therefore they are hard as stone, stubborn, strong in friendship and enmity, and endure the hardships of exhausting labor, hunger and bodily wounds more steadfastly than all others who have the speech of the peoples. And gnomes live a long time, much longer than people are given to live - but not forever.

In the old days, the Elves of Middle-earth believed that dead gnomes turned into the earth and stone from which they were created, but the gnomes themselves did not believe in this. They say that Aule the Creator, whom they call Mahal, cares for them and gathers them in Mandos in separate halls, that when the end of the World comes, he will give them a blessing and place them among the children. And then their business will be to serve Aul and help him rebuild Arda after the Last Battle. And they also say that the seven dwarf fathers will rise again and again in their tribe and will again bear their ancient names. Of these, in subsequent eras, the most famous became Darin, the founder of the most friendly tribe to the Elves, whose residence was in Khazad-Dum.”

The Silmarillion, J.R. Tolkien

ABOUT Dean created them...

The Scandinavian peoples have their own legends about the origin of gnomes.

“...From the day when the sun first lit up in the sky, life on earth became more fun and joyful. All the people worked peacefully in their fields, everyone was happy, no one wanted to become more noble and richer than the other. In those days, the gods often left Asgard and wandered around the world. They taught people to dig the earth and extract ore from it, and also made for them the first anvil, the first hammer and the first tongs, with the help of which all other tools and instruments were later made. Then there were no wars, no robberies, no thefts, no perjuries. A lot of gold was mined in the mountains, but they did not save it, but made dishes and household utensils from it - that’s why this age is called “golden”.

Once, while rummaging in the ground in search of iron ore, Odin and Vili Ve found worms in it that had infested Ymir’s meat. Looking at these clumsy creatures, the gods couldn’t help but think.

What should we do with them, brothers? - Ve finally said. - We have already populated the whole world, and no one needs these worms. Maybe they should just be destroyed?

“You’re wrong,” Odin objected. - We inhabited only the surface of the earth, but forgot about its depths. Let's better make little gnomes or black elves out of them and give them ownership of the underground kingdom, which will be called Svartalfheim, that is, the Land of the Black Elves.

What if they get tired of living there and want to go up to the sun? - asked Vili.

“Don’t be afraid, brother,” Odin answered. - I will make sure that the sun's rays turn them into stone. Then they will always have to live only underground...

The other gods agreed with him. This is how elves and gnomes and two new countries appeared in the world: Svartalfaheim and Llesalfaheim.”

"Elder Edda"

Relationships between gnomes and humans

From the end of the 17th century. until the beginning of the 19th century. The rocky areas and moorland plains of Cornwall were covered with industrial buildings with smoking chimneys and deep mines where prospectors extracted tin, lead and silver. The workers, holding tightly to the rope, with candles attached to their headdresses, descended underground, knowing that they were not alone there. “Someone” constantly kept them company, and with this “someone” they had to behave carefully so as not to offend.

These were gnomes who lived and worked in the mines, also known as “knockers” (English) - knocking. There is a natural association here with the poltergeist phenomena that our contemporaries encountered back in the 20th century. In addition, underground creatures are not the exclusive property of Western European mythology. Suffice it to recall the wonderful book “Ural Tales” by the Russian writer Bazhov, which mentions such characters as the Emerald Snake, the Mistress of the Copper Mountain, etc. - V. Sh.).

Often, miners could hear the sounds of their tools crushing rock very close by, as if just around the corner or in a nearby tunnel. It was believed that one should not interfere with the work of gnomes. It was advised to listen to their blows, since the nockers had a wonderful ability to discover the richest deposits of ore. Anyone who tried to keep an eye on the dwarves or steal their prey was faced with a serious illness sent by the knockers - something like rheumatism, when a person remained lame for the rest of his life.

However, one old man decided to try his luck. His name was Trenwith. He mined ore in the Bockles area. One summer night, he and his son lay in the grass waiting for the gnomes to appear, patiently peering into the darkness hour after hour until they noticed a group of little men trying to pull their cargo to the surface. Taking off his hat and apologizing for disturbing the gnomes, Trenvit offered them a deal. Why should the gnomes suffer all night pulling out ore if they and their son could help? In return, the old man asked the knockers to indicate places rich in metals and promised to give them a tenth of the production every day. The dwarves, after consulting among themselves, agreed.

For a long time, both parties were satisfied with the agreement: the dwarves enjoyed a lot of free time, and the old man gave them their due portion every day. Trenwith soon became rich. But he did not live forever and when he died, the mine passed to his son. The heir, considering himself too burdened with his father's obligations, began to reduce the share of the dwarves. But knockers were not the type to be easily deceived. Angry at their son’s treachery and greed, they, in turn, also stopped fulfilling their obligations. Behind a short time Ore production at the mine decreased sharply, and the son, who quickly squandered his father's money, was forced to look for work. But everyone knew that he had already deceived the dwarves once, and did not want to have anything to do with him. Soon, rejected by everyone, this man died penniless.

The dwarfs of the world unite, defend themselves and announce their bisexuality

The German city of Chemnitz has been declared the homeland of garden gnomes, where from now on the annual congress “Gnomes of all countries - unite!” will be held. At the already held congress, the rights of gardening people were primarily discussed, which, according to the chairman of the first congress and the chairman of the association for the protection of gnomes Fritz Friedman, are especially brutally abused by drunken lawnmowers. The chairman put forward a demand - exams for “herbal hairdressers”, and he asked nature for more sunny days to brighten up the lives of little people.

Currently, a real scandal has erupted in Germany and Switzerland in connection with the “dwarven” problem, which is very important for world civilization. The “bone of contention” between the board of the International Association for the Protection of Garden Gnomes, which is located in Basel, and one of the traditional producers of these figurines in red caps for decorating summer cottages, especially in the Nordic countries and Canada, was the release of a gnome in Thuringia. women. The aforementioned Fritz Friedmann said that Reinhard Griebel, who, despite severe prohibitions from Basel, Switzerland, has been producing a female version of the gnome called “Countess Rhoda” for two years now, “has encroached on the honor and dignity of garden gnomes.” Friedman fined the “rebellious” German 75 euros. The punished paid them, without, however, stopping producing his truly “unique” product. The world of wizards has arrived. From now on, along with gnomes, little “gnomes” will protect the garden plots of Europe, joyfully praising the 21st century, which has allowed such emancipation.

Oddly enough, there are several problems... Are there underground inhabitants created by Odin (let’s leave Tolkien with fairy tales and the numerous “sword-mash” fans with their gatherings, disputes, gossip), but with Odin everything is not so simple.

Odin is a god, and the gods came from heaven.

If, according to the author of the book “We are Aliens” by Valery Iosifovich Kratochvil, the ancestors of the main four earthly races came: Caucasians - from the star “Upsilon” of the constellation Bootes, Mongoloids - from the star “Zeta” of the constellation Ursa Major, Negroids - from the star “Alpha” constellations Canis Major(“Sirius”), and the australoids are from the star Maya, the Pleiades star cluster, then why not assume that the diversity of both races and visits was much greater, and the spheres of distribution of the aliens were not limited to the earth’s surface, but among them there were inhabitants of underwater and underground worlds.

Little underground spirits in different countries called differently. Sometimes they look like peaceful brownies, but in the mountains they live in underground caves and protect earthly riches. The most famous characters from this series are gnomes. They received their name relatively recently, in the 16th century. The word is of Latin-Greek origin - "genomos" translated from Latin means "underground inhabitant", and translated from Greek "gnosis" - "knowledge". It is believed that the word "gnome" was invented by the alchemist Paracelsus in order to designate the spirit of the earth as a primary element or as an earth elemental. But this name is firmly established for fairy-tale dwarfs, primarily from Germanic and Scandinavian myths. Their historical name in Old Norse is door, in German - miniature, in English - dwarf. And also their ancient prototypes were the Nibelungs, the lower Alvas and the Kobolds. They all live underground and in caves, wear beards and often caps, and are famous for their wealth and skill as jewelers and blacksmiths.

But the most ancient mentions of them are known in Egypt and Phenicia. In Egypt they are small pateks represented a reduced hypostasis of Ptah, the god underworld and death, at the same time, he, accordingly, knew everything about underground treasures. Pateks, they are also called pateikos, mastered magic, the art of transformation, and they also created magical jewelry, which in Egypt were necessarily endowed with special properties. Amulets in the form of small bow-legged dwarfs were very widespread and, among various protective functions, also protected against snakes. Pateks, like lizards, served Hathor, the turquoise mistress. . So it is possible that little sorcerers came with people to the north of Europe and Scandinavia from Africa itself. And along the way they left a trail throughout the Eurasian north.

Underground dwarfs are also known under other names. Gnome inIreland - leprechaun, in England - brownie, in Belgium - kabouter(in Flemish - kleinmanneken), in Holland - skritek, in Germany they are also called erdmanein. In Poland - scrat or dwarf, in Serbia and Croatia - patulyak or kerek, In Bulgaria - duje, Hungary - mano, Spain - duende. Prussian gnomes were called kaukis, Icelandic gnomes were called vuttir, and in Japan they were called tengu. Barbegazi - gnomes with large feet in France and Switzerland. Norwegian zettes, Irish sid, and Lapland chakli are also popular. Megalithic structures- dolmens in the Caucasus were built by the Bicent Lilliputians. There are also Gmurs and Homozuli. Legends about underground dwarfs are widespread on almost all continents, right up to Australia and Polynesia. I'm sure I haven't named everyone yet. Russian ethnographer A.N. Afansyev in his work “The Tree of Life” wrote “among Lusatians, dwarfs are called lyudki: these are underground spirits that live in mountains, hills and dark caves.. Lyudki are skilled musicians, love dancing and appear on rural holidays. they give gifts to their services, and when they are irritated, they repay them with cruel jokes.” Everyone's favorite brownies are their siblings))

This fountain is dedicated to the Cologne gnomes, found

The legends about the Chud are still not fully understood - and yet, in addition to the legendary underground Chud, who had witchcraft abilities, there was also a people who lived over a large territory and left a memory of themselves in toponymy, let us at least remember Lake Peipsi. Maybe the legends bizarrely mixed up ideas about the people and their beliefs? In the North of the Urals, and throughout the Eurasian north, archaeologists find Chud dugouts and bronze castings; first of all, Chud is associated with the development of copper mines, and like all the ancient miners, there are many legends around Chud in which they are spoken of as sorcerers and experts underground world. In one of the Ural reserves - Taganay there is Mount Kruglitsa, which is considered esoteric, it seems that underground dwarfs can be found there. I'm not even talking about Bazhov, the collector of Ural tales and the Mistress of the Copper Mountain. And in Mongolia, by the way, there is still a custom according to which special altars are erected for the Masters of mountains and roads - obos, building hills of stones and decorating them with high shafts and bright blue cloth. And today these funny characters continue to inspire writers, sculptors and artists.

Gnome from Mirabell Park in Salzburg from here

Lemprechauns are Irish gnomes. Their ancestor is the god Lak. They went underground when the Celts came. Each leprechaun owns a pot of gold coins. The sacred tree is the thorn bush.

Outwardly, Dwarves are very small creatures. Usually they do not reach even a meter in height. However, this does not affect the size of their heads. By default, it has a fairly large volume. The physique of gnomes is not very large, but in general they are very similar to Dwarves. Dwarves' hair can have completely different colors, and their noses and ears are quite large. But the skin has a pinkish tint. Their tools, which are always tucked into their belts, will help identify the Gnome. By the way, Dwarves live for about 150 years.

The heroes of Old Norse and Germanic mythology were dvergar/Zwerg, in the English version - dwarves (dwarf), in the academic translation into Russian - dwarfs or dwarfs. The word “gnome” only appeared in the 16th century. Its invention is attributed to the alchemist Paracelsus. “Gnosis” in Greek means knowledge. Dwarves know and can reveal to humans the exact location of metals hidden in the earth. The gnomes of Paracelsus are spirits of the earth and mountains, in contrast to them the miniatures and dwarves are completely material creatures

The word “gnome” came into Russian at the end of the 18th century. It merges the meanings that are conveyed in English by two different words, “gnome” and “dwarf”. In Russian, both words are usually translated as “gnome”. This is true for everyday speech and translations of children's fairy tales, but is controversial for translations of Tolkien's works, which are based on ancient and medieval texts (Tolkien used both English words in his works, and with different meanings)

This approach is also erroneous when translating works of other authors writing in the fantasy genre, and in the case of translating various computer and board games in fantasy worlds. However, due to tradition, translators continue to use the word “gnome”.

The Dwarves invented their runic script a long time ago and have since used it to keep detailed records of all their discoveries and trade affairs. Each fortress had its own historical library, created by scribes, mainly relating to the affairs of that particular fortress. Over the years, some of these huge books have been lost or badly damaged, but even so, the history of the Dwarves is carefully documented and extremely long, compared to, say, the history of Men.

The first literary sources to mention dwarves were the Icelandic heroic songs of the 13th century from the collection “Elder Edda”, as well as the text of the “Younger Edda”, compiled by the skald poet Snorri Sturluson, who lived at the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries. Both literary works contained mythological tales of the 8th-10th centuries, as well as elements of the German heroic epic of the early 13th century. Let us make a reservation that the word “gnome” itself appeared much later, and we will talk about the legality of its use later. The heroes of the ancient texts are the doors (singular “dvergur”, plural “dvergar”), which in Russian translations of the Edda are traditionally called “dwarfs”. This word contains the same root as tribal names in other Germanic languages: compare with German “Zwerg” and English “dwarf”.

In the Edda, dvergs are sometimes also called black elves, in contrast to light elves (prototypes of Tolkien's elves). The peaceful dwarves of Snow White are what the heroes of German folklore have turned into in Hollywood.
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In the “Younger Edda” it is explained that dwarfs were first born in the body of the slain giant Ymir (or Brimir). They were worms, but by the will of the gods they acquired human intelligence and took on the appearance of people, albeit a bit of a parody. They were the size of a child, but had great physical strength, wore long beards, and had faces of a deathly gray color. They were afraid of the sun: its light turned dwarfs to stone.
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The Doors steadfastly endured any hardship, were extremely resilient and incredibly hardworking. They lived much longer than humans, but still not forever. The dwarfs did not have women and continued their race by carving their offspring out of rocks. They had a bad character: they were stubborn and quarrelsome, touchy and hot-tempered, greedy, and also possessed witchcraft and were the guardians of the riches of the earth's bowels. The Dvergi were predominantly hostile towards people and gods, however, not without reason: the gods constantly encroached on protected treasures.

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In the art of processing precious stones and metals, the Dvergs had no equal - they managed to make truly magical things. And the gods themselves were forced to turn to them for help, using flattery and cunning. It was the black elves, according to legend, who forged for Odin (the main god of the Scandinavian pantheon) the spear Gungnir, which strikes, without knowing any barriers, the warlike god Thor - the hammer Mjolnir for the battle with giants (the thrown hammer returned to the owner’s hand like a boomerang), the fetters Gleipnir for the dire wolf Fenrir..

With the development of civilization on the surface of the earth, the underground inhabitants also change. In German heroic songs and ballads of the tswergs (German analogues of the Scandinavian dvergs), the development of feudal relations underground is traced. Noble knights visit underground kingdoms filled with treasures, make friends or enmity with dwarf kings, and fight with dwarf knights. As in ancient times, miniatures supply mortals with magical items and weapons of extraordinary power.

In “The Song of the Nibelungs,” the king’s beautiful and brave son Siegfried uses the help of the dwarf Alberich and fights with a sword forged by underground craftsmen. From other sources we learn how the same Siegfried is visiting the immensely rich dwarf king Egwald, and a thousand dwarfs, all dressed up and in armor, offer him their service.

Over time, dwarf gnomes practically disappear from the pages of literature, continuing to live in folklore. Popular fantasy represents them in the form of suspicious creatures, old men with beards, sometimes on bird legs. They can help people and be grateful to them, but they are often suspicious and angry. Some gnome-like characters live peacefully with people, although they are capricious: this is the Scottish Brownie and the Irish drinker Claricon. The Irish leprechaun and the Neapolitan monaciello are persecuted by people because they hide treasures from them. And the Scottish Red Hood, who lives in abandoned castles where crimes were once committed, attacks people himself.

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The gnomes owe their return to literature to the brothers Grimm, major scholars of German antiquity and nationality, and experts in ancient German literature. In 1812, they published their “Children's and Household Tales”, in some of them the main characters were gnomes. The dwarves of the Brothers Grimm bear little resemblance to the dwarfs of the Edda, but they are not cartoonish shorts in red caps. They are moderately good-natured, mischievous, sometimes openly evil and hostile to people, although they lack the insidious belligerence of their ancestors.

The further evolution of the gnomes leads to the appearance of a good-natured little man, friendly to people and a disgrace to the proud name of the dwarf..

J. R. R. Tolkien is not only the founder of the fantasy genre, but also a famous philologist. It is not surprising that Tolkien’s universe is based on the images and beliefs of ancient northern myths.
Tolkien calls the underground people in all his books (including the “children’s” Hobbit) the word “dwarves” (plural of “dwarf”), and not “gnomes”. It is interesting that the word “gnomes” appears in the Professor’s working manuscripts: this is how he names one of the elven tribes. When domestic translators got to the working materials describing Middle-earth, they encountered a problem. How to translate the word “gnomes” if the variant “gnomes” was originally reserved for the translation of the word “dwarves”? .

Any inhabitant of Middle-earth knows about the mutual hostility between dwarves and elves. It can be assumed that the enmity of the two peoples is due to cultural differences between them: elves love trees, open sky and hunting in the light of the stars, for gnomes trees are just combustible material, and they prefer the stone vaults of their underground palaces to the sky and stars. However, it is more likely that the enmity between the two peoples is explained by the excessive greed of the Dwarves and the sick arrogance of the Elves. Nothing will give a gnome greater joy than the opportunity to appropriate a jewel that belonged to the elves, and a proud elf will take great pleasure in calling the gnome race “a flattened people.”

Hostility between elves and gnomes can either result in open hostility (the murder of the elven king by the gnomes) or be replaced by true friendship. The best example of sincere friendship was the relationship between the dwarf Gimli, son of Gloin, and the elf Legolas, son of Thranduil, king of the elves of Blackwood...

The real, original enemies of the gnomes are dragons. From time immemorial, these fire-breathing creatures have been hunting for the treasures of the gnomes and often go to conquer their settlements. Usually such battles end in failure: the dragon, as a rule, wins, and the surviving and impoverished gnomes leave wherever they look. The exile lasts until a hero is found who can defeat the dragon. Such a hero most often becomes one of the people (remember, for example, “The Hobbit”, in which the enemy of the dwarves, the dragon Smaug, was killed by a man named Bard). By the way, this is where the roots of unfriendliness between gnomes and people are hidden. After all, people, as a rule, having killed a dragon, appropriate its treasures for themselves, and the gnomes, continuing to consider these treasures theirs, stop at nothing to return their former property.

But all these strife between the dwarves and other peoples are forgotten in the face of a common enemy, and then a real alliance is formed. .

Dwarves are known for their military prowess, and their great and pure love of ale (dwarves drink before battle to lift their spirits, and afterwards to wash off a brilliant victory). On the contrary, they do not like magic, but at the same time they are able to resist its effects. Dwarves are friendly only to those who can win their trust (and this is not at all easy to do); only to them can they give any of their treasures, which they guard so carefully. Dwarves love hard work and don't understand jokes at all, one can only wonder how they manage to get along well with funny gnomes. In addition to gnomes, dwarves are friendly towards humans, halflings, and half-elves. Sometimes they even respect elves, although they usually consider them eccentric and unpredictable. Dwarves tend to be good, so they hate orcs and goblins.

Anatomically, dwarves are described as robust, broad-shouldered humanoids, standing between 120 and 140 cm in height, with light brown or reddish skin and dark eyes and hair. An indispensable attribute of a dwarf is a gorgeous beard. They mature around 50 years of age and have a total lifespan of about 400 years.

The dwarven kingdoms are deep underground. It is there, in the underground forges, that wonderful dwarven products are born, and in the mines they extract precious stones and metals, among the latter mithril (which in D&D is written as: mithral) is especially valued. What dwarves cannot obtain themselves, they acquire through trade.

They worship Moradin, the Forger of Souls, speak the Dwarven language and use runes for writing. .

Dwarves are known as excellent technicians, alchemists and inventors. Probably, the gnomes managed to achieve such impressive results in all of these crafts thanks to their own curiosity. Dwarves dream of trying everything out on their own; they constantly invent useful things. The curiosity of gnomes is not limited to scientific research; sometimes, following their own interests, gnomes stage various pranks just to observe the behavior of the victim. Often this kind of joke does not go unpunished for them - not everyone is able to appreciate the sophisticated humor of gnomes. The most mischievous gnomes are called “tricksters.” Many people mistakenly believe that they are evil, but this is not true, rather, they are simply too chaotic.

Unlike dwarves, gnomes are more tolerant of witchcraft, preferring to work with illusion magic. Many famous bards and magicians come from the tribe of gnomes.

Despite their outward friendliness, gnomes are truly close only with dwarves, with whom they share a love of jewelry and mechanics, as well as with halflings, who can appreciate their mischief. Most gnomes are suspicious of those taller than them, namely humans, elves, half-elves and, especially, half-orcs.

Gnomes are smaller in size than dwarves, about 90-110 cm, have skin color from gray-brown to red-brown, their hair is blond, and their eyes are blue. A disproportionately large nose is a distinctive feature for representatives of this people. The beard of gnomes is not held in such esteem as that of dwarves, and many shave it off. Dwarves mature at the age of 40 and live up to 350 years. .

Dwarves live in wooded areas, underground, but they love to be on the surface, enjoying the living world around them. It is not at all easy to discover a gnome's house; usually the home is securely hidden with the help of illusions, so the entrance to the gnome's house is open only to invited guests - enemies have nothing to do there.

The main god of the gnomes is Garl Shining Gold, the Vigilant Protector. Dwarves speak a language slightly different from Dwarven.

The D&D developers were among the first to divide the foothill people into two races: dwarves and gnomes. Moreover, each of the resulting races turned out to be original, possessing memorable, unique properties, customs and character. .

Dwarves, being a very hot-tempered and touchy people, have been waging bloody wars for more than 4,000 years. Some of these wars were started due to the fault of the dwarves themselves (for example, the war with the elves), and some are unconditional aggression from other races. As a result of precisely this ongoing struggle with goblins and skaven (ratmen), the Dwarf Empire gradually began to decline. Many dwarf strongholds fell and passed into the hands of the enemy. But despite this, the dwarves continue to fight, and their empire is still quite strong.

Dwarves are as popular among fans of the fantasy genre as elves or orcs. And perhaps even more! And let them not be as beautiful as the first ones, and not as colorful as the second ones. Maybe hard life taught them to keep a low profile? There were too many people who wanted to profit from their treasures and use their skills for their own selfish purposes!

In this article, we tried to trace the evolution of gnomes: from primitive miniatures and dwarf kings, through Tolkien’s Khazads, to dwarves and gnomes from D&D and computer games.

To write this article, I had to read big amount material, thoroughly understand the dwarven history and their current life. As a result, I began to have much more respect for this small but proud people. And you?

From an article by Daria Boukreeva from the website "WORLD OF SCIENCE AND FANTASY"