Despite the many controversies surrounding Snow White’s name origin. But for grammar afficionados, the biggest frustration is that Disney’s title change fails to make a decision on how the studio might pluralize its seven iconic sidekicks for the remake.

While 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs made a rather clear choice on the matter, the spelling “dwarves” has gained increasing popularity in casual use since The Lord of the Rings’ pop culture prominence has led to a growth in the number of Tolkien purists among the general population. And since popular dwarf characters outnumber Snow White actresses by more than half a dozen to one, it’s no surprise that some fans of both franchises have been revisiting the issue ahead of Snow White’s release on March 21, 2025.

Dwarfs & Dwarves Are Technically Both Correct Plurals Of Dwarf

The English Language Lives And Evolves Over Time

It isn’t exceedingly common, but there are a number of words in the English language with multiple plural forms. For instance, more than one referendum can be referred to as either “referendums” or “referenda.” And while grammar historians will be quick to combat anything other than “octopuses,” most people could easily get away with using “octopi” or “octopodes” in casual conversation. So, while Snow White’s dwarf casting controversy will likely haunt the film until the end of time, it’s not surprising that many would consider the movie’s pluralization of dwarf characters as either “dwarfs” or “dwarves” to be equally acceptable.

English is a living language, and words that may have originally had only one plural form or a single definition may evolve to change shape and acquire new meanings as they enter into popular use. Some English speakers will inevitably prefer one word form over another, but a number of armchair Disney critics also preferred Jenna Ortega replacing Rachel Zegler in Snow White, so not everyone gets their preference. However, those who reject grammar in anything but its purest form may rightfully point out that one plural of “dwarf” predates the other in common usage by more than a century.

Dwarfs Is The Older Spelling, Explaining Why Snow White Used It

It’s At Least As Old As The Fairy Tale Itself

Although it’s a common misnomer that Snow White was the first Disney princess, her film’s title reflects the first known references to the lovable gem miners who take her in. “Dwarfs” was the spelling the Brothers Grimm used when they first published their fairy tale in 1812, and it falls in line with most nineteenth-century references to the mythological mountain dwellers featured in Snow White. Unsurprisingly, “dwarfs” is also the typically preferred pluralization across most literary folklore. However, not all adults who grew up on Disney might it this way.

The title of Disney’s 1937 animated film uses the more traditional spelling, decades before Snow White’s controversies would even be considered imaginable. A basic Google search will turn up innumerable articles referencing Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, but this is merely a product of the Mandela effect. It’s no different from spellings such as Froot Loops or The Berenstein Bears. Disney might have altered their fairy tale films to mollify the darkness of some stories, but they still followed classic fairy tale conventions in most other respects. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is no exception.

J.R.R. Tolkien & Lord Of The Rings Popularized The Dwarves Spelling

The Fantasy Phenomenon Led To Familiarity With The Word

It wasn’t until almost 20 years after Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs that Tolkien published The Lord of the Rings in 1954. But The Hobbit released in 1937, just a few months before Snow White’s premiere. So, while “dwarfs” is the older literary spelling, pop culture popularized both spellings at roughly the same time. Parallels between the two franchises didn’t stop there, either. Those who online complaints about the Rings of Power cast can probably connect the dots to realize that, like Snow White, Lord of the Rings has been subject to controversies regarding both race and dwarfism.

With discussions about the more than six-foot-tall John Rhys-Davies returning as Gimli in The Hunt for Gollum still ongoing, there’s every possibility that the controversies about casting taller actors for Disney’s Snow White will affect The Lord of the Rings franchise as well. But thanks to Tolkien popularizing the pluralization “dwarves,” fans of the author’s work will at least let that debate rest. And given that some consider “dwarves” offensive to people with actual genetic conditions, perhaps having a word that clearly differentiates real-life people from fantasy characters isn’t the worst thing in the world.