IllustrationSanta · the reindeer
Santa's reindeer names, in order
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen — the eight from “'Twas the Night Before Christmas” — and Rudolph at the front. Nine in all.
All nine, and what their names mean
No. 1
Dasher
One who dashes — the fast one.
The first name Santa calls in "'Twas the Night Before Christmas": "Now, Dasher! now, Dancer!"
No. 2
Dancer
Light on its feet.
Paired with Dasher in the poem's first line of names.
No. 3
Prancer
One who prances, lifting its hooves high.
Prancer has its own 1989 Christmas film about a girl who nurses an injured reindeer.
No. 4
Vixen
A female fox — quick and clever.
The only name in the list that is a word for a female animal.
No. 5
Comet
Streaks across the sky like a comet.
"Now, Comet!" opens the second line of names in the poem.
No. 6
Cupid
Named after the Roman god of love.
The only reindeer named after a god.
No. 7
Donneralso Donder, Dunder
Thunder (German "Donner", Dutch "donder").
The 1823 poem called him Dunder; Donder came in 1844; the 1949 Rudolph song made "Donner" the everyday spelling.
No. 8
Blitzenalso Blixem
Lightning (German "Blitz"; Dutch "bliksem").
Called Blixem in 1823 — thunder and lightning were a Dutch exclamation, "Donder en bliksem!"
Leads the team
Rudolph
The red-nosed reindeer who guides the sleigh through fog.
Created in 1939 by Robert L. May for a Montgomery Ward Christmas booklet — more than a century after the other eight.
Quick game
Can you put Santa's reindeer in order?
Tap them in the order Santa calls them in “'Twas the Night Before Christmas”.
Start with the first name Santa shouts.
1823 → 1939 → 1949
Where the names come from
The eight names first appeared in the poem A Visit from St. Nicholas — better known as “'Twas the Night Before Christmas” — printed anonymously in the Troy Sentinel in New York on December 23, 1823. It's the poem that gave Santa a sleigh pulled by “eight tiny reindeer”.
The last two were different then: Dunder and Blixem, from the Dutch exclamation “donder en bliksem” — thunder and lightning. In the 1844 version the author changed them to Donder and Blitzen. “Donner”, the German word for thunder, took over after the 1949 song.
Rudolph came 116 years after the others. Robert L. May wrote him in 1939 for a Montgomery Ward Christmas booklet; Johnny Marks turned the story into the 1949 song, and the 1964 stop-motion TV special gave Rudolph his family — his father is Donner.
Real reindeer: six things that make them perfect for Santa
- Reindeer and caribou are the same species, Rangifer tarandus. In North America the wild ones are called caribou.
- Both males and females grow antlers — the only deer where that is true.
- Their eyes change with the seasons: golden in the bright Arctic summer, deep blue in the dark winter, to catch more light.
- Their feet click as they walk — a tendon slipping over a bone — a sound that helps the herd stay together in a snowstorm.
- Their noses warm the freezing air before it reaches their lungs.
- Their hooves change too: soft pads in summer for the wet tundra, harder rims in winter to cut into ice and snow.
Questions people ask
What are the names of Santa's reindeer in order?
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen — the order Santa calls them in "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" — with Rudolph leading at the front.
What are all 9 of Santa's reindeers' names?
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner (Donder) and Blitzen, plus Rudolph — nine in all. The first eight come from the 1823 poem; Rudolph was added in 1939.
What are the 10 reindeer names?
Santa has nine named reindeer, not ten. A list of ten usually adds an invented extra from a book, game or toy; the traditional team is the eight from the poem plus Rudolph.
What is the name of the 12 reindeers in order song?
There isn't a song with twelve reindeer. "The Twelve Days of Christmas" counts gifts, not reindeer, and the reindeer in the poem number eight (nine with Rudolph). The order the poem calls them is Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donder and Blitzen.
How many reindeer does Santa have, 8 or 9?
Nine, if you count Rudolph. The 1823 poem names eight; Rudolph joined in 1939 and leads the team on foggy nights.
Is it Donner or Donder?
Both. The poem's author changed it himself: Dunder in 1823, Donder in his 1844 version. "Donner" (German for thunder) became the usual spelling after the 1949 song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer".
Who is Rudolph's daddy (dad)?
Donner — in the 1964 stop-motion TV special "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", Rudolph's father is Donner, who at first hides Rudolph's glowing nose with a fake black one.
Is Blitzen Rudolph's dad?
No. In the 1964 TV special his father is Donner. Blitzen is one of the eight reindeer in the poem.
Are Santa's reindeer boys or girls?
Probably girls. Male reindeer drop their antlers in late autumn, while females keep theirs through the winter — so a team with antlers on Christmas Eve is most likely female. Names like Vixen fit.
Where do the reindeer names come from?
From the poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" ("'Twas the Night Before Christmas"), first printed on December 23, 1823, in the Troy Sentinel in New York. Rudolph comes from Robert L. May's 1939 story and the 1949 song by Johnny Marks.
Sources: Wikipedia — Santa Claus's reindeer · Snopes — the true names of Santa's reindeer · Grammarist — Donner or Donder. Checked 2026-09-30.