GNOMES
It is not sheer coincidence that the word GNOME is derived from Kuba-Walda, which means " home administrator" or "home spirit" in the ancient Germanic language, as they work at night in the woods and sometimes in human dwellings.
In rural areas these home administrators often live in the rafters of barns, where, if they are treated well, they keep an eye on the livestock as well as crops.
Another variant of their name translates as "to put in order" or "do odd jobs" - with or without an apron.
Gnomes are reported to exist in North America, however, the difficulty with establishing to a certainty that gnomes do indeed live on the continent has been that no sighting or encounter can be confirmed unless witnessed by two observers - the same criteria are used by bird watchers.
It can be surmised, however, that American gnomes (whose geographical range corresponds to their fellow’ climate and life zones in Europe) do adopt the same dress, life styles, and behavior patterns as their cousins across the sea.
There are different types of Gnomes:
Woodland Gnome
The woodland, or forest, gnome is probably the most common. But this is difficult to verify, as he is not fond of showing himself to man and has many escape routes. His physical appearance resembles that of the ordinary gnome.
Dune Gnome
The dune gnome is a fraction larger than the woodland gnome. He, too, avoids contact with man. His clothing sometimes is remarkable drab. The female of this gnome type does not wear gray clothes; hers are khaki-colored.
Garden Gnome
The garden gnome belongs to the general type. He lives in old gardens, even those hemmed in between the new houses of modern "model" cities.
His nature is on the somber side, and he rather enjoys telling melancholy tales.
If he begins to feel too closed in , he simply goes to the woods. But, as he is quite learned, he sometimes feels out of place there.
Farm Gnome
The farm gnome resembles the house gnome but is of a more constant nature and is conservative in all matters.
House Gnome
The house gnome is a special sort. He resembles an ordinary gnome but he has the most knowledge of mankind.
Owing to the fact that he often inhabits historic old houses, he has seen both rich and poor, and heard a great deal. He speaks and understands man’s language; gnome kings are chosen from his family.
These gnomes (Farm and House) are good-natured, always ready for a lark or to tease; they are never malevolent, with a few exceptions, of course. If a gnome is really wicked "which happens only once in a thousand," it is due to bad genes that result from crossbreeding in faraway places.
Siberian Gnome
The Siberian gnome has been the most affected by crossbreeding. He is centimeters larger than the European type and associates freely with trolls.
In certain regions there is not a single gnome to be trusted. The Siberian gnome takes revenge for even the slightest offense by killing cattle, causing bad harvests, droughts, abnormally cold weather, and so forth. The less said about him, the better.
