Miffy facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Miffy(nijntje) |
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Miffy
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| First appearance | 1955 |
| Created by | Dick Bruna |
| Voiced by | Eva Poppink (Miffy the Movie) |
| Information | |
| Species | Rabbit |
| Gender | Female |
Miffy is a famous little rabbit from a series of picture books. These books were created by a Dutch artist named Dick Bruna. Miffy's original Dutch name is "nijntje." This name is a shorter way of saying konijntje, which means "little rabbit."
The very first Miffy book came out in 1955. Since then, almost thirty more books have been published. Together, these books have sold over 100 million copies around the world! Miffy also stars in four different TV shows. You can find many items like clothes and toys with her picture on them. In 2013, a movie called Miffy the Movie was released in theaters. Eva Poppink was the voice of Miffy in the film.
Four TV shows have been made about Miffy. They include Dick Bruna's Miffy Storybook Classics from 1984. Then came Miffy: Colors, Numbers, and Shapes in 1996. After that, Miffy and Friends started in 2003. The most recent show is Miffy's Adventures Big and Small, which began in 2015.
Contents
The Story of Miffy
Miffy was created in 1955. Dick Bruna was on holiday at Egmond aan Zee with his one-year-old son, Sierk. He told Sierk stories about a little rabbit they had seen in the sand dunes. This is how Miffy was born! Miffy became a girl because Bruna wanted to draw her in a dress, not trousers. In her stories, Miffy can be a baby or up to four years old.
How Miffy's Look Changed
At first, Miffy looked like a toy animal with floppy ears. But in 1963, her design changed to what we know today. She became a simple, stylish rabbit. Dick Bruna draws Miffy with clear, black lines. He uses only a few colors: black, white, the main colors (red, yellow, blue), green, orange, brown, and gray. Her bright, simple colors make Miffy easy to recognize. This also makes her very popular with young children.
Miffy's Books and Stories
About 32 Miffy books have been published. Dick Bruna has created 124 picture books for children in total. Each Miffy book has twelve pages of story. On each page, there is one picture and four lines of a poem. The second and fourth lines of the poem rhyme. The stories are about things children understand. They cover situations like going to the hospital or starting school. Miffy's stories always have a happy ending. Some books, like Miffy's Dream, have no words at all.
The books are printed in a small size. Bruna felt it was important that children feel the books are for them, not just their parents. Most Miffy books are best for children aged four to eight years.
Miffy Around the World
Miffy's books have been translated into over 50 languages. More than 85 million copies have been sold worldwide. They are even translated into local dialects, like Zeelandic. Dick Bruna won many awards for his books. He received the Golden Brush in 1990 for Boris Bear. He also won the Silver Brush for Miffy In The Tent in 1996. In 1997, he got the Silver Slate for Dear Grandma Bunny. This book was about Miffy's grandmother getting sick and passing away.
Miffy's Friends and Family
Miffy has a loving family. Her parents, Grandma and Grandpa, and Auntie Alice are often in the books. 'Uncle Bob' is a family friend who appears in Miffy Goes Flying. In Miffy And The New Baby, Miffy gets a new brother or sister.
Miffy also has many friends:
- Boris and Barbara Bear: They first appeared in 1989 and are a couple.
- Poppy Pig: She appeared in 1977.
- Grunty: Poppy Pig's niece.
- Snuffy: A female dog who appeared in 1969. She has three puppies.
- Other bunnies: Like Aggie and Melanie.
Miffy as a Symbol
In the early 1990s, Miffy became a symbol for some groups. These groups were working to protect the environment. An image of Miffy holding a wrench was used on their flyers. This showed that Miffy was a mascot for environmental action.
Miffy on Television
Miffy's first TV show was in 1984. It was called Dick Bruna's Miffy Storybook Classics: The Original Series. Each episode was about five minutes long. The show aired in many countries. It was shown in the Netherlands on KRO. In the United Kingdom, it was on ITV. TVOntario showed it in Canada, and ABC in Australia. In the USA, it was part of Cartoon Network's Small World.
From 2003 to 2007, Miffy and Friends aired. This show introduced new characters. These included Melanie's African family. It also showed the family of Boris and Barbara's cousin, Umik. The series was made using stop-motion animation. A female narrator simply told the stories.
Miffy's Global Popularity
Miffy is sometimes thought to be a Japanese character. This is because Sanrio's Hello Kitty, created in 1974, has a similar drawing style. The Miffy brand is very popular in Japan. Many Miffy products made in Japan are sold there. Dick Bruna once said he didn't like Hello Kitty. He felt it was a copy of Miffy. In 1999, Miffy was the ninth best-selling character in Japan. Her products sold for a lot of money.
Legal Dispute and Resolution
In 2010, the company representing Dick Bruna sued Sanrio. They claimed that Hello Kitty's rabbit friend, Cathy, looked too much like Miffy. A Dutch court agreed with Miffy's creators. They ordered Sanrio to stop selling Cathy products in some countries. However, in 2011, after a big earthquake and tsunami in Japan, the two companies made a deal. They decided to stop fighting in court. Instead, they donated the money they would have spent on legal fees to help the earthquake victims.
Miffy's Legacy and Celebrations
In Dick Bruna's hometown, Utrecht, there is a square named after Miffy. It's called the Nijntjepleintje, which means 'Little Nijntje Square'. In 2006, the Centraal Museum opened a special exhibit. It's called the dick bruna huis (Dick Bruna house).
Miffy turned 50 years old in 2005. This was celebrated in cities all over the world. For example, there was an event at the Manchester Art Gallery in England. Miffy also helps Unicef as a "celebrity character spokesperson."
A new type of booklouse from Peru was named after Miffy in 2008. Its scientific name is Trichadenotecnum miffy. This is because a part of its body looks like a small rabbit.
In July 2014, Dick Bruna announced he was retiring. The rights to the Miffy character were not sold.
Miffy's Adventures Big and Small started on October 2, 2015. It has six seasons and airs on the Nick Jr. Channel in the USA.
Dick Bruna passed away on February 16, 2017, at the age of 89.
In 2021, Miffy worked with Converse to create a clothing line for men. This celebrated Dick Bruna's work.
In December 2022, Tommy Hilfiger announced a new collection. Miffy was the main focus for this partnership. It celebrated the Lunar New Year of the Rabbit.
In October 2023, a fifth Miffy TV series was announced. It will start in 2025 on Canal+ in France. This new series will also introduce Miffy's younger brother, Bun.
Miffy's Friends and Family
- Miffy: Miffy is a little girl rabbit. She loves to draw and play with her friends.
- Miffy's school friends: Miffy and her school friends have known each other for a long time.
- Dan: A new boy in Miffy's class. He sits next to Miffy at school and has a floppy ear.
- Uncle Pilot: Miffy's uncle is Father Bunny's brother. He owns his own airplane.
- Father and Mother Bunny: They live in a small white house with a red roof. They often take Miffy to fun places like the zoo or playground.
- Grandpa and Grandma Bunny: They are Father Bunny's parents. They often visit Miffy.
- Auntie Alice: Auntie Alice is Father Bunny's sister. She really loves making music.
- The New Baby: This is Miffy's tiny new baby brother or sister.
- Melanie: Melanie is Miffy's pen friend.
- Snuffy: Snuffy is a female dog with three puppies.
- Boris Bear: Boris Bear lives in a small wooden house near the woods with his girlfriend, Barbara Bear.
- Barbara Bear: Barbara Bear is Boris Bear's girlfriend.
- Poppy Pig: Poppy Pig lives in a lovely little house with plants under the windows.
- Grunty: Grunty is Poppy Pig's niece.
- Farmer John (Human): A human character in the series.
- Farmer John (Bunny): A brown bunny who is a farmer.
- Lottie: Lottie is a little girl who uses a wheelchair.
Miffy Storybooks
- 1955 Miffy, Miffy at the Zoo (first version of Miffy)
- 1963 Miffy, Miffy at the Zoo, Miffy in the Snow, Miffy at the Seaside
- 1969 Snuffy, Snuffy and the Fire
- 1970 Miffy Goes Flying, Miffy's Birthday
- 1975 Miffy at the Playground, Miffy in Hospital
- 1977 Poppy Pig, Poppy Pig's Garden
- 1979 Miffy's Dream
- 1980 Poppy Pig Goes to Market
- 1982 Farmer John, Miffy's Bicycle
- 1984 Miffy at School
- 1986 Through the year with Boris Bear, Poppy Pig's Birthday, Snuffy's Puppies
- 1988 Miffy Goes to Visit/Miffy goes to stay/Miffy on a visit, Grandpa and Grandma Bunny/Grandpa and Grandma Rabbit
- 1989 Boris Bear, Boris and Barbara, Boris on the hill/Boris on the mountain
- 1990 Lottie, Miffy is Crying/Why Miffy Cried, Miffy's House
- 1992 Auntie Alice's Party/The Party of auntie Alice
- 1994 Boris in the Snow, Boris, Barbara and benny, Poppy Pig is sick
- 1995 Miffy in the Tent
- 1997 Lieve Oma Pluis (Dutch)
- 1996 Miffy at the Gallery
- 1997 Miffy and Melanie
- 1999 Miffy the Ghost, Miffy the Fairy
- 2001 Miffy Dances
- 2002 Miffy's Letter, The New Baby
- 2003 Miffy's Garden
- 2004 Miffy in Lolly Land, A Flute for Miffy
- 2005 Hangoor (Flopear); in Dutch only
- 2006 Queen Miffy
- 2008 Nijntje en de seizoenen (Miffy and the Seasons), Nijntje is Stout (Miffy is Naughty); in Dutch only
- 2009 Een cadeau voor Opa Pluis (A Gift for Grandpa Bunny); in Dutch only
- 2014 Miffy on Holiday
- 2015 Miffy and the Royal Baby; A Lift-the-Flap Book
- 2017 Miffy is Naughty
- 2018 Dear Grandma Bunny (English version of "Lieve Oma Pluis")
Published by Big Tent Entertainment
- 2005 Miffy Loves New York City
Published by The Tate Gallery, London
- 2007 Miffy the Artist
Published by Mercis Publishing bv Amsterdam & Rijksmuseum Amsterdam
- 2019 Miffy x Rembrandt
- 2023 Miffy x Vermeer
Where Miffy is Shown Around the World
- United States: Cartoon Network (1996), Noggin
- The Netherlands: KRO
- Germany: Super RTL (1995-2013) as part of Toggolino
- United Kingdom: Sky Kids, Tiny Pop, ITV
- Australia: ABC
- Japan: NHK
- Korean: EBS, Tooniverse
See also
- Musti
- Hello Kitty, another mouth-less animal character
