"I'm a gnome, and this is my home!"
"Do you like my abode fair? Does that explain your blankest stare?"

—Gnome in Tozus

Gnomes (小人, Kobito^?, lit. "Dwarf" or "Small person"), also called Midgets in some translations, are a diminutive race of people who live in the tiny forest village of Tozus in Final Fantasy III. Nearly undetectable by the naked eye, they are so small that their home cannot be seen or entered without first casting the spell Mini.

When the Warriors of Light are forced to flee from the dragon Bahamut, they leap from his mountain home and become stranded in a valley where their only choice is to shrink down to Gnome size and take a hidden forest path to continue their journey. Before they can use it, however, they must first help cure the village doctor, Shelco, who became sick himself after eating dubious berries he found in the woods.

EtymologyEdit

A gnome is a diminutive spirit in Renaissance magic and alchemy, first introduced by Paracelsus and later adopted by more recent authors including those of modern fantasy literature. Its characteristics have been reinterpreted to suit the needs of various story-tellers, but it is typically said to be a small, humanoid creature that lives underground. Paracelsus uses Gnomi as a synonym of Pygmæi, and classifies them as earth elementals. He describes them as two spans high, very reluctant to interact with humans, and able to move through solid earth as easily as humans move through air.

TriviaEdit

• Tozus Village is one of the lost Wonders in Final Fantasy Tactics. Its description refers to the Gnomes as "Lilliputians", a reference to similarly tiny beings from Jonathan Swift's 1726 novel Gulliver's Travels.