Hedgehog – Spirit Animal, Totem, Symbolism and Meaning

Animal symbolism might seem uninteresting to some people, but it shouldn’t be overlooked that easily. Sometimes nature can teach us far more about ourselves than we think, because, after all, we all come from nature. Animal behavior is far simpler than ours, but there are some habits and character traits we share.

Hedgehogs are small animals that are widely recognized because of a large number of needles that are covering their backs. Hedgehogs inhabit large portions of our planet, which made their symbolism quite diverse and interesting. If you were ever interesting in finding out more about this peculiar animal’s symbolism, here is your opportunity.

Spirit Animal and Totem

Every animal is someone’s spirit animal and totem. To determine your totem, you need to dig deeper into your subconscious mind and remember which animal was always around you, following your every step. This animal is most likely your spirit animal and this animal leads you through life.

Totem animals are determined by your birth date and each person has its own totem animal. Totem animals also lead us through life, but they are also good representations of our character and personalities.

Spirit animal

As a spirit animal, hedgehog can best be described by these words:

  • Intuition
  • Perception
  • Energy
  • Fertility
  • Defense
  • Curiosity
  • Crone
  • Enjoyment and resourcefulness.

When your spirit animal is the hedgehog, then you are a very resourseceful person who known how to get by in life. You are someone who enjoys making something out of nothing, and you never give up in life. Your desire is to always be on top of every situation, even though you don’t have too much to work with. Some people see you as frugal, but you simply love managing your finances with care.

You are also someone who goes through life with an enormous amount of energy, that doesn’t seem to wear down. People love calling you when they are having a bad day, because you instantly bring them up and make them feel better. This is simply the way you are and you never let the troubles in life wear you down.

Another thing that is very specific to hedgehog spirit animal is defensiveness. In some cases, you tend to become too defensive and people can’t seem to understand you. You don’t like when someone oversteps a boundary or does something that disrupts balance you have created in your life. you are also very defensive when it comes to people you love, because you are afraid something might happen to them or hurt them and you want to protect them from anything like that.

Hedgehog as a spirit animal is also a symbol of intuition, perception and wisdom. Your life’s philosophy is very clear and you are someone who knows how to act in almost every situation. Deep connection you have with yourself is what helps you to be so accurate when it comes to your intuition, and you certainly never leave anything to the case.


As a totem animal, hedgehog makes you a very curious person with a strong defense mechanism. Even though you like sticking your nose into various things, you still know how to protect yourself and avoid danger. When it comes to other traits of your personality, you are a very dear and loving person, always prepared to help those around you and get them out of trouble. Being this way makes you people’s favorite, and a person who has a lot of friends and people to rely on.

Being in the outdoors is another thing you enjoy, especially if it means gardening or doing anything related to agriculture. You are practical and very smart, and you don’t let things surprise you and lead you onto the wrong path. As a negative characteristic, some might mention your frugal nature, but others see you as a very responsible person who handles finances wisely. It is all up to the way people perceive you.

Symbolism and Meaning

Before we even dig deeper into the hedgehog symbolism, it is pretty clear that they are symbols of defensiveness because of their appearance. When we see all the needles on hedgehogs back, we can’t help but to conclude that they are sure symbols of protectiveness and distance. Hedgehog symbolism is very much the same in various cultures, and many of them observed hedgehog symbolism to determine changes in nature.

Romans and Greeks considered hedgehogs to be very intelligent, because they would often come close to grape vines, grabbed grapes and roll them to their hiding place. Ancient cultures in Europe considered hedgehogs to be symbols of victory and overcoming obstacles. In another symbolic sense, hedgehogs were seen as symbols of resurrection.

Hedgehogs are mostly awake during nighttime and we can rarely see them out and about during the day. Because of this fact, people often related hedgehogs to something divine and supernatural. The reason behind this was people’s fear of the dark and night, because they knew they were more exposed when the day ends.

Hedgehogs are universal symbols of calmness, kindness but also intelligence and curiosity. People saw them as smart animals, but rarely had the opportunity to spot them during the day. Because of this, hedgehogs remained a bit strange and their behavior was unexplored, at least as far as our ancestors were concerned.

Dreams about Hedgehogs

Dreams about hedgehogs can be both positive and negative. Animals that appear in our dreams usually send us valuable messages we can apply on our lives in order to improve them or make them better. Dreams about animals can’t be untied from the symbolic meaning of an animal, which means symbolism of each animal has influence on the interpretation of our dreams.

Seeing a hedgehog – If you saw a hedgehog in your dream, this means you are about to experience a business failure. Something you have planned on doing is going to fail, but this doesn’t have to mean you won’t be able to recover from it, if you give it your best.

Hedgehog crossing your road – If you saw a hedgehog crossing the road, this means you are going to experience victory. This dream is sending you some positive vibes and you can expect a lot of positive things to happen to you.

Hedgehog in a ball of thorns – If the hedgehog in your dream was turned into a roll, then you need to be careful. Someone or something might try to hurt you, so you need to be extra careful in the upcoming period.

Hedgehog needles pointing up to the sky – If hedgehog’s spikes were pointing up to the sky, this means you have a defense mechanism built inside you. Be more approachable and let people in without being so afraid.


Hedgehogs are certainly peculiar animals and their symbolism is very clear even on the first glance.

These small animals symbolize defensive nature but also kindness, intelligence and curiosity. When this animal is your spirit animal or totem animal, then you are someone who loves exploring and figuring out solutions to problems. You are also someone who loves being there for the people you love, and you expect the same in return.

Hedgehogs are also symbols of energy, resourcefulness and protection, and this symbolic meaning is something that is very much similar in most cultures across our globe.