The Smurfs movie was released in Pakistan in 3D just last week. And while it has opened to mixed reviews globally, its performance at the box office has resulted in a sequel being announced for release in 2013.

The movie centres on the five smurfs (Clumsy, Papa Smurf, Smurfette, Grouchy, Brainy and Gutsy) accidentally reaching New York City in an attempt to escape from the clutches of their arch enemy, the evil wizard Gargamel.

Once there, they meet a couple (played by Neil Patrick Harris [who enacted the titular character in Doogie Houser, MD in the 1980s and can be seen exclaiming “Suit up!” as Barney Stintson on How I Met Your Mother] and Glee’s Jayma Mays) who are expecting a baby, who help them return to the Smurf Village. But not before they encounter the evil Gargamel, of course.

However, while it remains to be seen how well the movie does in Pakistan, there is no doubt that there has been a renewed interest in the blue creatures that are “three apples high”, and not just among children. The movie’s release can safely be said to have aroused waves of nostalgia among people who watched the Hanna-Barbara cartoons that were aired in the 1980s.

But although it was these cartoons that truly propelled the smurfs into mass popularity, the fact is that the smurfs were created much before that. In fact, they were first introduced in a comic strip way back in 1958 and created by Belgian cartoonist Pierre Culliford, known simply as Peyo. (On a side note, I’d like to point out here that Tintin was created by another Belgian cartoonist, Herge and the film adaptation of Herge’s comic books will make its 3D debut later this year.)

But I digress.

The smurfs made their first appearance in Peyo’s comic strip Johan et Pirloiut in 1958 and the next year stories just about the smurfs began to appear in the Belgian newspaper Spirou.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

The blue creatures were then featured in a total of 29 smurf magazines (comic books), 16 of which were by Peyo.

The smurfs then appeared in animated movies and the cartoon television series which propelled them well and truly into the spotlight. After that, smurfs’ merchandise in the shape of figurines were created which continue to be made to this day; they also have theme parks to claim as their very own, been featured in a UNICEF advertising campaign, not to mention video games, and even an application for iPhones just last year. In fact, it is estimated that the entire smurfs franchise is now worth at least four billion dollars, and makes at least 10 to 12 million dollars a year.

Characterised by their blue skin, and the fact that they use the word smurf in their conservations sporadically, the smurfs live in mushrooms in Smurf Village (where else?) and are constantly trying to outwit Gargamel and his nasty cat Azriel who can well give Mrs Norris of Potter fame a run for her money.

There are innumerable smurfs, (according to some estimates there are all of 105) and most of them are after traits that most people possess, such as gutsy, snappy, grumpy and brainy. All the smurfs (at least the male ones) wear white caps and briefs (a little like Superman’s, go figure); the caps, according to some fans are in actuality Phrygian Caps, which were worn by slaves who had been freed – or those who had fought for their freedom in ancient Rome.

Most of the smurfs are male save three, the first of which was Smurfette – who was created by Gargamel as a means to cause havoc among the male smurfs; however, Gargamel’s plan backfired, since as it turned out, smurfette was far from beautiful. In fact, truth be told, she turned out to be rather hideous and it was only when Papa Smurf, the ‘father’ of all the smurfs, took pity on her that he transformed her into her pretty state. It was only much later that two other female smurfs came into being – Sassatte Smurfling and Nanny Smurf, although the latter two came into being in the cartoons and not in the original comic books designed by Peyo.

Interestingly enough, it is rumoured that Peyo was a bit of an anti-feminist and described the Smurf Bombshell as: "She seduces, she uses trickery rather than force to get results. She is incapable of telling a joke without blowing the punch line. She is a blabbermouth but only makes superficial comments. She is constantly creating enormous problems for the Smurfs but always manages to blame it on someone else."

Of course, one of the questions that arises time and again about the smurfs is – how on earth did the word come into being?

Thankfully, the answer is no longer a mystery – but we now know that the word ‘smurf’ was created out of accident, when Peyo asked a friend to pass the salt in French.

However, he mispronounced the word and said ‘schtromph’ by mistake. This caused the friend in question to laugh, and to retort, here is your ‘schtromph’. The two are said to have spent an entire weekend using the word ‘schtromph’, which was later translated into dutch as the word smurf, as part of their vocabulary.

This practise of using the word ‘smurf’ at any given moment continues, even in the movie, the best example of which is when the smurfs exclaim, “Where the smurf are we?” when they reach New York City.

Clearly, given the fact that they continue to reinvent themselves well after half a century, it is safe to say that these blue creatures will be around for many years to come.