Disney Facts: How the Seven Dwarfs got their names

Drawings of the Seven Dwarfs from the press booklet for the 1967 re-release of the movie.

Their names now echo through generations, yet the original telling of Snow White by the Brothers Grimm left her seven companions nameless. However, as Walt Disney embarked on bringing “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” to the silver screen in 1937, a pivotal realization dawned. The dwarfs, he recognized, held the key to the film’s heart.

“Snow White was a charming but standard heroine; the prince appeared only briefly; and the witch was a fairy tale villainess. The dwarfs would have to provide most of the comedy and human interest,” according to the 1967 press booklet created for the 30th anniversary re-release of the movie.

Walt wanted names that would reflect the personalities they were creating for the dwarfs. Some of the names proposed were Jump, Gabby, Wheezy, Nifty, Sniffy, Lazy, Puffy, Stubby, Shorty and Burby.

Snow White animator Woolie Reitherman said in the press booklet, “For the leader we wanted a special kind of personality, a self-appointed bumbler who tries to take command but gets all tangled up. We called him Doc. It was a good handle for a per­son in authority, and it suited his personality. The strongly identifying names were a beautifully simple way of establishing character.”

Many voices were tried to help spark character names. Actor Billy Gilbert had a terrific sneeze and inspired Sneezy. Other names came through the process of elimination. Happy and Grumpy provided a perfect bal­ance. Sleepy and Bashful came natu­rally.

“Dopey was the toughest of all,” re­members Ham Luske, another Snow White animator. “The boys tried to make him too much of an imbecile, which wasn’t what we really had in mind. We wanted to pattern him after Charlie Chaplin and tried many ap­propriate voices. The voice that came closest to what we wanted, sounded too much like Doc.”

“Then somebody suggested that maybe he shouldn’t talk at all. That was the answer,” he said in the press booklet. “We decided that per­haps Dopey could talk but that he never really tried.”

Once the characters were established, their faces followed relatively smoothly. In fact, their names heavily influenced their facial expressions.

The dwarfs proved to be immensely popular. Within days of the premiere, Grumpy and Dopey were receiving fan mail at Walt Disney Productions (the Disney Studios).