Does anyone know anything more about this? I just read AG for the 2nd time and am intensely curious. I think I remember Garrison Keelor (sp?) mentioning this very thing on "A Prairie Home Companion" which broadcasts from Minnesota. Any input would be greatly appreciated!!

There's a website that sort of catalogues the gods from AG. This is under "Hinzelman"



Hinzelmann:
Hinzelmann is the name of the most famous German Kobolds. He allegedly haunted the castle of Hudemühlen from the years 1584-1588.

Also: "Hinzelmann" is a german folktale written down by the brothers Grimm.

Additionally, the tales that Hinzelmann tells, i.e., the buck jumping out of his skin, Hinzelmann's grandfather freezing his family during the winter, the music from a trumpet freezing then thawing, etc., are generally drawn from the Adventures of Baron Munchausen, a popular book series first printed in 1785. More information can be found here.

I often wonder if Neil got the inspiration for this little story from Vermont. That story is actually a local legend in the Northeast, it is documented in many places, one of them being a book by Joe Citro called "Green Mountains, Dark Tales" Amusingly enough apparently this story is so hard to put to rest that the University of Vermont gets calls regarding "Vermont Cryogenics Experiments" from far flung places to this day.

Though given that Hinzelmann is freezing kids maybe there is more relevance to him telling Shadow this story than simply an aside.