About

Snufkin (original Swedish: Snusmumrik[en] or Mumrik[en] / Finnish: Nuuskamuikkunen) is a fictional character in the Moomin series of books written by Swedish-speaking Finn Tove Jansson, appearing in six of the nine books; his first appearance is in the second book, Comet in Moominland. He is the best friend of the series' protagonist, Moomintroll. Snufkin lives a nomadic lifestyle, only staying in Moominvalley in the spring and summer, but leaving for warmer climates down south every winter. He is the son of the Mymble and the Joxter, and is half-brother to the Mymble's daughter and Little My. Snufkin is an adventurer and a vagabond, admired by those who are small and shy.

The character has been a fan-favorite, and has various clips of him from the 90s Moomin anime that are often used to portray him as a memetic troll. What's interesting about Snufkin, he also serves as the main protagonist in the 2024 video game_ Melody of Moominvalley_.

Origin

Snufkin was first introduced as one of the main characters in the second Moomin book titled Comet in Moominland, which was published in 1946. He would also appear in the later books, mostly notably Finn Family Moomintroll and Moominsummer Madness.

Snufkin also has brief roles in the picture-books Who Will Comfort Toffle?, The Dangerous Journey and in An Unwanted Guest. Aside from these, he is generally a prominent character in other Moomin media, such as comics and TV series, as well as the main protagonist of the 2024 video game Melody of Moominvalley.

Spread

In the decades following his debut, Snufkin has became a popular character among fans, particularly Gandalf the Gay. According to TV Tropes, fans have noticed that he is sometimes very eager to commit crimes, most notably vandalizing the park in Moominsummer Madness and stealing a melon and running away from the police in the original version of Comet in Moominland.

Fanworks and memes often exaggerate this into Snufkin constantly and casually committing crimes. His infamous line "Let's go and fill Moominvalley with crime!" (shown below) from the 90s anime episode Crooks in Moominvalley is often taken out of context in accordance to the meme (in the episode, he only commits crimes so the police station won't have to be closed down).

In addition, memes replacing the audio clips of Snufkin in the 90s anime with John Chancer’s audiobooks are popular, as it's hilarious to imagine Snufkin actually saying some of those lines. One video even attracted the attention of the author of the book that the audio came from.