Rip Van Winkle Name Game Trivia Quiz

Answer: Judith Gardenier

Although it is mentioned early in the story that Rip Van Winkle has children, only his son is described as a child. Judith Gardenier (nee Van Winkle) appears at the end of the story where Irving describes her as a fresh comely woman carrying a chubby child. Judith herself reveals she was a young girl when Rip went into the mountains and tells us what happened to Dame Van Winkle.

Judith takes Rip home to live with her family and there Rip recognizes her husband as one of the village boys he used to play with.

Answer: Peter Vanderdonk

Old Peter Vanderdonk is the village historian and descendant of an earlier Peter Vanderdonk who held the same position years earlier. Vanderdonk is described as the oldest member of the village, perhaps even older than Rip, and well versed in the events and traditions of it.

He is one of two people to see the Rip the village had known twenty years before in the old man standing before them. And he confirms Rip's story of running into the crew of the Half Moon.

Answer: Hendrick Hudson

Henry Hudson, known in Dutch as Hendrick Hudson, is said by Peter Vanderdonk to return to the area every twenty years with the crew of the Half Moon to keep watch over the lands he'd discovered. Rip isn't the only one to have laid eyes on Hudson and his crew. Vanderdonk explains that his father once saw them playing nine pins up in the mountains. He even goes on to say he heard them playing himself one summer afternoon. Perhaps this was the same time Rip had encountered them.

Irving describes Hudson as "a stout old gentleman, with a weather-beaten countenance; he wore a laced doublet, broad belt and hanger, high-crowned hat and feather, red stockings, and high-heeled shoes, with roses in them."

Answer: Peter Stuyvesant

Peter Stuyvesant is one of the few real people mentioned in the story. He was the last Director-General (basically governor) of New Netherlands, serving from 1647 to 1664 when the Dutch colony was first surrendered to the British.

The Siege of Fort Christina Irving mentions in the story happened in the summer of 1655. Fort Christina, the first settlement in New Sweden, was originally an earthen works fort built in 1638 in present day Wilmington, Delaware. The Dutch had claimed the area south to the Delaware River as part of New Netherlands, so having the Swedes establish New Sweden in the area caused a certain amount of friction between the two. Stuyvesant established Fort Casimir in New Castle, Delaware in 1651 as part of an attempt to reassert Dutch control over the region. Fort Casimir was captured by Johan Risingh, the last governor of New Sweden, in 1654. This may have spurred Stuyvesant to retaliate the following year with the ten day long Siege of Fort Christina. This siege led to the end of New Sweden.

Answer: Young Rip

Young Rip Van Winkle, perhaps Rip Van Winkle Jr., as a boy is said to be seen like a colt at Dame Van Winkle's heels wearing a pair of his father's old galligaskins. Which he was forced to hold up with one hand while holding Dame Van Winkle's hand with the other. As the story is set in the 18th century, the definition for galligaskins as a type of loose trousers is most likely what Irving was referring to in this case. Though he may have also meant leggings, as leggings is another definition for the term.

As a young man Young Rip resembles his father in both appearance and character. In fact when Old Rip asks if anyone knows Rip Van Winkle and the villagers point to his son, Old Rip believes he is seeing himself rather than his son. We learn that Young Rip works on his brother-in-law's farm but like his father before him would tend to other people's work rather than his own.

Answer: Wolf

Rip Van Winkle's faithful companion was described as being and honorable dog and one of the most courageous animals to scour the woods. But at home Dame Van Winkle's evil eye and tongue turned him into a coward. Whenever he entered the Van Winkle house his tail would either droop or curl up between his hind legs and if she should flourish a broom or ladle he would bolt for the door. Dame Van Winkle considered Wolf to lead Rip astray.

Answer: Rip Van Winkle

Rip encountered one of the crew of the Half Moon around twilight one autumn day and they bade him to help carry a keg of some alcohol to the amphitheater-like hollow in the mountains. It was here where Rip would witness Hudson and the rest of the crew playing nine-pin.

Irving describes the alcohol as tasting like some excellent Hollands to Rip. This probably means it was jenever, a juniper-flavored liquor from the Netherlands. Also known as Hollands or Dutch Gin, among other names, jenever is traditionally credited to Dutch chemist Franciscus Sylvivus who was born in 1614 and died fifty-eight years later. As Sylvivus was born after Hudson disappeared and most likely died in 1611, it seems unlikely that Hudson and his crew would have been drinking something tradition credits him with inventing. However, historic evidence suggests that jenever existed as far back as the 1500s. And records show the Dutch taxing jenever in 1606, eight years before Sylvivus was born and three years before Hudson and discovered the Hudson River. So maybe Rip was trying some truly ancient jenever.

Answer: Nicholas Vedder

Besides being the landlord of the village inn, Nicholas Vedder is also one of the patriarchs of the village. He'd sit outside the door to the inn from morning to night and his neighbors could use him to tell time as he slowly moved his chair so as to stay in the shade all day long.

Though Vedder didn't talk much, those who knew him well could get his opinion on a subject by how he smoked his pipe. If something upset or displeased him, he was seen to vehemently smoke the pipe and release short, angry puffs of smoke. If it pleased him he'd smoke the pipe slowly and tranquilly, releasing light, placid clouds of smoke.

Answer: Dame Van Winkle

We don't know Dame Van Winkle's first name and it's not really important to the story that she be known as anything other than Dame Van Winkle. Irving doesn't cast Rip's wife in a good light and this is made clear very early in the story as it's said that the good wives of the village always placed the blame for any squabbles the Van Winkles had on Dame Van Winkle's shoulders.

She constantly henpecked Rip, forcing him to seek refuge out of his home. And Rip wasn't the only target of her tongue and tart temper. She blamed Wolf for leading Rip astray. She verbally attacked the men who gathered at the village inn, calling them good for nothings. Nicholas Vedder she blamed for leading Rip to being idle. And she had recently died of a broken blood vessel attacking a New England peddler when Rip finally wakes up.

Answer: Derrick Van Bummel

Derrick Van Bummel is mentioned three times as the village schoolmaster. First is early in the story when Irving is discussing the group of men who gathered at the village inn. Here Van Bummel is described as a learned man who was not daunted by even the largest words in the dictionary. He was the one to read the newspaper to this group.

The second time is after Ichabod wakes up and first arrives in the village. At is at this point that we learn the crowd has gathered because it is an election day. Rip is specifically said to look among the crowd for the sage Nicholas Vedder and the schoolmaster Van Bummel. At this point Irving also reveals that the newspapers Van Bummel would read to the group of men were ancient newspapers. Though this may simply mean the papers were several months old.

The final time is when the crowd ask Rip to name some of the men who might have known him Rip asks "Where's Van Bummel, the schoolmaster?" At this point we learn Van Bummel served in the Revolution where he became a great militia general. After the war Van Bummel was elected to Congress, though no mention whether as a senator or a representative.