Santa's famous reindeer all have names that sound like movement and light, and any new recruit to the team needs one too. This reindeer name generator makes classic sleigh-team names, cute ones for a toy reindeer, and funny ones for the reindeer that always lands on the wrong roof.
Where Santa's reindeer names come from
Santa's reindeer were named in a poem: A Visit from St. Nicholas, better known as 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, published in 1823.
- The eight: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen. The poem first called the last two Dunder and Blixem, Dutch for thunder and lightning.
- Rudolph came much later, in 1939, when Robert L. May wrote his story for a booklet given away by the Montgomery Ward department store.
- New names follow the same pattern: speed, light and movement. That's why the classic style has names like Frosthoof and Windlight. The famous nine are left out, so every name is new.
Real reindeer facts
Reindeer are the only deer where both males and females grow antlers.
- Santa's team is probably female: males drop their antlers in late autumn, while females keep theirs through the winter. A reindeer with antlers on Christmas Eve is most likely a female.
- Same animal, two names: in North America wild reindeer are called caribou.
- Built for snow: their hooves spread wide on snow and their noses warm the cold air before it reaches their lungs.
For the snowman in the garden, try the Snowman Name Generator.
For the rest of the season, see all the Christmas name generators.