Who Is Miffy? The Story Behind Dick Bruna's Iconic Bunny

Simple black lines. Two dots for eyes. A tiny cross-shaped mouth. Bright, bold colours.

Few children's characters are as instantly recognisable as Miffy.

But if you've recently rediscovered Miffy through your own children, you might be wondering where she came from, who created her and how such a beautifully simple little bunny became loved by generations of families around the world.

Who created Miffy?

Miffy was created by Dutch artist Dick Bruna.

The idea began with bedtime stories Bruna told his eldest son, Sierk, about a little white rabbit they had seen around the family's holiday cottage. Those stories eventually inspired the character who would become Miffy. Her official birthday is 21 June, and in 2025 Miffy celebrated her 70th anniversary.

Bruna lived and worked for most of his life in Utrecht in the Netherlands, and his distinctive visual style went on to become recognised far beyond the Netherlands.

Why is Miffy called Miffy?

Dutch readers know the character as nijntje.

The name comes from konijntje, the Dutch word for "little rabbit".

As the books travelled internationally, however, the Dutch name was difficult to pronounce and did not translate naturally into other languages. Dick Bruna and his English translator therefore developed the name Miffy for international readers.

Today, families around the world may know her by different names, but that little white rabbit is unmistakable.

What makes Miffy's design so recognisable?

At first glance, Miffy's design seems incredibly simple.

That simplicity is precisely what makes it so powerful.

Dick Bruna used clear black lines, strong blocks of colour and very few unnecessary details. Rather than filling every illustration with information, he left space for children to focus on the character, the emotion and the story.

Miffy's world uses the same visual language again and again: distinctive lines, expressive simplicity and bright colour.

The result feels remarkably modern even decades after the character was first created.

Why do children love Miffy?

Miffy's stories are built around experiences young children understand.

Family. Friendship. Going somewhere new. Discovering something. Feeling excited, unsure, happy or sad.

The stories don't need enormous adventures to feel important.

Instead, they recognise something parents often see themselves: for a small child, an ordinary day can contain countless discoveries.

That makes Miffy's world reassuring and easy to understand, while still encouraging curiosity.

Why do parents still love Miffy?

This is where things become particularly special.

Miffy is now a genuinely multi-generational character.

Many of today's parents remember Miffy from their own childhood. When they buy a Miffy book, toy or piece of Miffy clothing for their baby, they aren't simply choosing a character their child likes.

They're often reconnecting with something they loved themselves.

That creates a type of nostalgia few children's characters can achieve.

It is one of the reasons we found our Miffy x Zipster collaboration so exciting.

As parents ourselves, we loved the idea of taking something familiar from one generation and reimagining it for the next.

Miffy and Dutch design

Miffy is also closely connected to Dutch visual culture.

Bruna's ability to strip an image back to its essential elements gave his work a clarity that still feels contemporary today.

It also makes Miffy incredibly versatile.

The character can sit naturally in a baby's nursery, on a toddler's pyjamas or on a graphic T-shirt worn by a parent without losing that recognisable identity.

Miffy has become internationally successful, appearing in many countries while retaining the distinctive simplicity of Dick Bruna's original work.

Bringing Miffy into a new generation

Our own Miffy collection takes inspiration from that bold visual world.

We wanted to retain the joy and familiarity of Miffy while combining it with the comfort and practicality Zipster families expect from us.

That means Miffy baby clothes made from our signature bamboo fabric, children's pyjamas, playful daywear, embroidered denim and even matching pieces for parents.

It is our way of celebrating a character many of us grew up with while creating something entirely new for our children.

Because perhaps the most wonderful thing about Miffy isn't simply that she has been loved for generations.

It's that every new child gets to discover her for the very first time.

Discover the Miffy x Zipster collection