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Because of its focus on fairy tales, Disney has a long history of depicting royalty in its films, often placing a young heroine front and center. From this trend came the official Disney Princess brand, which has helped Disney earn more than any other company with its licensed products. Over the years, the roster of the Disney Princess brand has changed, with new characters joining the list and less popular ones dropping off.
Despite these changes, the characters who are currently official Disney Princesses are iconic and should be recognizable to die-hard Disney fans. Think you have what it takes to identify all 13? Take this quiz to find out!
More Disney Quizzes:
What Makes a Disney Princess?
The Disney Princess line was conceived in 1999, when the new head of Disney Consumer Products realized how eager young girls were to dress up as their favorite characters. The line-up was formalized in 2000, with 10 official princesses featured.
While it might have seemed like an odd idea at the time, bringing together characters who had never interacted in official media (and, indeed, were from different centuries), this was a spark of business genius. The franchise ended up making more than a billion dollars in just three years.
Since its creation, there have been a few major changes made to the line-up. Tinker Bell (Peter Pan), Esmerelda (The Hunchback of Notre Dame), and Jane Porter (Tarzan) were all removed from the brand around 2005, and newer characters were added as their movies were released. Tiana joined in 2010, Rapunzel in 2011, Merida in 2013, Moana in 2019, and Raya in 2022.
The criteria for inclusion are somewhat vague. Screen Rant broke down the rules in 2021, explaining that eligibility depends on the character being:
- Female
- Primarily human
- A main character of an original movie (no sequels)
In addition, the eligible character typically must either be born royal, married into royalty, or completed an act of heroism (a.k.a. the Mulan exception). Royalty is considered broadly, as several of the characters would outright reject the title of “princess,” despite being the children of leaders.
Most of this is pretty self-explanatory, as it fits the official princesses well. However, there is also a financial element at play, since this line primarily exists for merchandising purposes. Those whose movies were not extremely successful may not be brought into the franchise to preserve its power, while those whose movies were too popular may be more financially successful in their own line-up.
Key examples of this include Anna and Elsa staying with the Frozen brand, Tinker Bell gaining her own Disney Fairies line, and Mirabel being at the heart of a distinct Encanto line.
As time has gone on, the utility of the Disney Princesses line has expanded. What was once a convenient way to get children and parents to spend more money has now expanded to include collections of Disney Princess movies and television appearances, cameo appearances of Princesses on Sofia the First and Ralph Breaks the Internet, and a team-up adventure with Lego Disney Princess: The Castle Quest.
The Disney Princess line, which began for strictly financial reasons, has grown into a cultural phenomenon. While we generally understand that each princess exists in her own time and place, crossover events are now possible. Only time will tell if the princesses will have the opportunity to work together more in the future, transforming the franchise from a simple marketing tactic into a crossover event stronger than any comic book team-up.