Eight reindeer are named in the poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas.”
First published in 1823, the poem lists Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner (originally written in variant forms such as Donder or Dunder), and Blitzen. These names became the foundation of the familiar Santa Claus sleigh team.
Rudolph is not part of the poem’s original eight. He was created much later by Robert L. May for a 1939 Montgomery Ward booklet and became widely famous through Johnny Marks’s 1949 song. That is why modern illustrations often show nine reindeer, while the poem itself names only eight.
A common mix-up concerns the final two names: different historical versions use different spellings, but the number remains eight. The poem is also commonly known as “The Night Before Christmas.”