Is Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer a male?

star_gazer

While Rudolph is a male name: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolph_Valentino http://www.nyc.gov/html/records/rwg/html/bio.html This site claims that Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer is most certainly female: http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-is-actually-a-female_100269328.html Dec 22 09, 3:51 PM

looney_tunes

Or, according to star_gazer's link, the team may be a mix of castrated males and females. That would certainly help explain why their number never seems to grow! Alternatively, the time of shedding antlers is related to the breeding season (it occurs after the breeding season finishes), which may be later at the North Pole than it is elsewhere - perhaps they all shed their antlers in January. http://www.buzzle.com/articles/why-do-reindeer-shed-their-antlers.html Dec 22 09, 7:31 PM

dj168

Yes Star's idea is what got me thinking about this because male reindeer lose their antlers in December, so Rudolph must be female scientifically. And then the author wrote the joke, " This clearly explains why Santa doesn't get lost at Christmas. Females are never reluctant to ask for directions."- Jeanne Phillips http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/20091219_Dear_Abby__Word_is_out__Rudolph_s_red_nose_may_just_be_makeup.html Dec 22 09, 8:48 PM

rfcneil

Male reindeer shed their antlers by December so Rudolph must be female, as she is always shown with antlers. http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/bl_santas_reindeer.htm Dec 23 09, 8:57 AM

star_gazer

The male pronoun is used to apply to both sexes. ... "Most languages, including English, observe the standard of using the masculine pronoun in situations like this. However, in some circles today the idea of choosing the masculine pronoun sounds discriminatory against women. If this usage bothers you, or if you think it may bother your audience, there are two possible ways to work around this and still use standard English." http://englishplus.com/grammar/00000027.htm [Full text added from provided link -- Zb] Dec 23 09, 11:13 AM

Datsmeharse

Samwise Gamgee was a male hobbit. He was played by Sean Astin, who, though having a unisex first name, is currently male. Sean Astin, as a male, played Rudy, also a male, in the movie "Rudy." Admittedly, "Rudy" features few, if any, reindeer, but it does prove my point. I'll post later as to what my point was. And what about Olive, the other reindeer? In the movie of his/her story, Olive was voiced by Drew Barrymore, who appeared in the movie "50 First Dates" with.....Sean Astin. Quod Elf Demonstrandum. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0227173/ Dec 23 09, 2:01 PM

astro57

Not sure about Rudolph but Randolph the brown nose reindeer was short sighted and when they pulled up suddenly he always banged into the backend of the other reindeers, hence the color. Jan 17 10, 11:04 AM