forum I'll Find Names For Your Characters!

Started April 14, 2021 by @Blossom_Utonium

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• The more info you can give me the better, but you don't have to do all these things. Here's what helps me: first, middle, or last, time period, location, ethnicity of the character, preferred ethnicity of the name itself, gender, the overall vibe, specific meanings, letters, sounds or syllables. If it's too vague, I'll let you know.
• I will also do surnames if needed!
• If you're aiming for historical accuracy, please let me know, because that requires checking archives, social security, etc., but I'm happy to do it!!
• No more than 3 characters per person, per post because I'm in college and you're going to get as many names as I can give you.
• Let me know if this helps! I absolutely adore the naming process, so if you want my sources, I'm more than happy to share them. Also, if you don't like your list, let me know! I'm happy to adjust if needed, it won't hurt my feelings ;)
• I am also down to just explain my process to you or give you helpful tips if you don't want a list of names.

Hey. I'm looking for a first name for my female, dystopian character. Her vibe is kind of bulldogish. She's independent and determined, but also super caring and has a ton of curiosity. She's a researcher, and loves it. She's supposed to be the main heroine/the one who upsets the balance of the dystopian world, so if her name could be a sort of prophecy for her role/personality in the world, that would be awesome, but not necessary.
Thank you :)

THANK YOU, YOU'RE A SAINT
I'm looking for a name for a 30-40 year old white guy living in the current day and age. He has a big dad vibe and he's a VERY well-known superhero in his world who develops a habit of taking in random enhanced teenagers over the course of the story. He's a fun guy who's just about fluent in sarcasm, but he's also really down to earth and well-meaning with all of his sass. His powers have to do with creating these light frisbees (?) and his alias is Captain Halo, if that helps. If possible, I would like a name that isn't too common, like John or something, and I would like it if the name DIDN'T start with the letter M as that's the first letter of his daughter's name.
Thank you again! <3

Hey. I'm looking for a first name for my female, dystopian character. Her vibe is kind of bulldogish. She's independent and determined, but also super caring and has a ton of curiosity. She's a researcher, and loves it. She's supposed to be the main heroine/the one who upsets the balance of the dystopian world, so if her name could be a sort of prophecy for her role/personality in the world, that would be awesome, but not necessary.
Thank you :)

Alexandra (defender of mankind), Xandra (defender of men), Drina (defender of mankind), Zita (seeker), Ophelia (help), Vala (chosen one), Colina (victory of the people), Amity (friendly), Serafina (fiery, angel), Alastrina (avenger), Thira (untamed), Eurayle (wanders far), Nola (fair champion), Riane (small ruler), Valere (strength), Heloise (famous in war), Avice (warlike), Willa (resolute), Edrea (powerful), Moira (exceptional), Nealie (champion), Kaie (combat, battle), Brina (defender), Bixenta (victory), Esme (kind defender), Ardith (good war), Isa (strong-willed), Veronica (she who brings victory), Signe (new victory), Glory, Ottilie (prosperous in battle)

I need a first name for one of my characters! he's a 40-50 year old white werewolf man, it would say he's heroic but a little aggressive, and he lives in a little cabin in the woods and the time period is modern. (though some of my monster characters have old school names so crazy with it if you want.)

@writer-of-amethyst

So what I went ahead and did for your character is check the top 200 names of the 80s and 90s and then checked them for meanings, as well as throwing in some random "dad-ish" names. Hope these help!

Alan (handsome, cheerful), Hector (holding fast), Frank (free man), Xavier (new house, bright), Grant (large), Chad (battle warrior), Julian (youthful), Oscar (champion warrior), Raymond (wise protector), Dillon (loyal), Felix (happy, fortunate), Arthur (Bear), Archie (truly brave), Harvey (battle-worthy), Ira (watchful), Albert (happy, bright), Chester (fortress), Everett (brave as a wild boar), Alexander (defends men), William (resolute protector), Simon (good listener), Isaac (he who laughs), Cody (helpful), Titus (title of honor).

I need a first name for one of my characters! he's a 40-50 year old white werewolf man, it would say he's heroic but a little aggressive, and he lives in a little cabin in the woods and the time period is modern. (though some of my monster characters have old school names so crazy with it if you want.)

For you, I went ahead and searched for names with meanings that could be associated with a wolf, as well as names that mean fighter, and names with an anti-hero vibe. I also (as a fun historical nod) leaned more towards Scottish and Irish names, because they have a lot of ancient werewolf mythology.

Sullivan (dark-eyed one), Donovan (dark warrior), Dougal (dark stranger), Ferdinand (bold voyager), Ralph (wolf-counsel), Asier (the beginning), Tristan (sorrowful), Huxley (inhospitable place), Cain (spear), Acacius (innocent one, not evil), Odysseus (wrathful), Angus (one strength), Montgomery (man-power), Andre (strong), Channing (wolf cub), Randall (shield-wolf), Arwood (from the forest), Holt (son of the forest), Foster (keeper of the forest), Shandy (boisterous), Braen (corrupted), Errol (wandering), Giles (kind), Breen (sadness), Coridan (ready to fight), Sloane (fighter), Kane (fighter), Marcus (warlike), Lennox (lives near the trees), Alastair (avenger), Ranger (ward of the forest), Varden (from the green hill), Farrell (brave), Darcy (dark), Teon (harms), Ryce (powerful), Farmon (traveler), Brogan (terror)

@writer-of-amethyst

So what I went ahead and did for your character is check the top 200 names of the 80s and 90s and then checked them for meanings, as well as throwing in some random "dad-ish" names. Hope these help!

Like I said, you're a SAINT. These are perfect!! Currently between Oscar, Isaac, Arthur, and Simon. Thank you so much! <3 <3 <3

For you, I went ahead and searched for names with meanings that could be associated with a wolf, as well as names that mean fighter, and names with an anti-hero vibe. I also (as a fun historical nod) leaned more towards Scottish and Irish names, because they have a lot of ancient werewolf mythology.

Thank you so much! This list is amazing, props for the good work.

I'm glad you guys like them! I love doing this!

@Blossom_Utonium

Those are amazing! Thank you!!
If you don’t mind sharing your process, I would love to hear it. :)

• I almost always head straight for nameberry.com's lists section (https://nameberry.com/baby-name-lists) because they have lists of names organized by meaning, sound, syllable, time period, etc. It's a really easy way to gather up a lot of ideas in a relatively short amount of time. Also, nameberry is just a fantastic website in general and it's usually the first place I go when I'm looking for names.
• If I'm wanting to find names with similar meanings, I bounce on over to meaning-of-names.com and use their search by meaning tool (https://meaning-of-names.com/search/). A word of warning, though: the tool is really helpful, sometimes the meanings that they provide for the names are dead wrong. That is why if I find a name there, I always cross-check with nameberry.com to make sure that the meaning is correct.
• For historical names, if the book is set in the US, I check the Social Security names by decade list (https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/decades/). It allows you to select any decade from the 2010's all the way back to the 1800's, and it pulls up a list of the top 200 baby names for both boys and girls from that decade. Though it doesn't provide meanings, it's great if you're aiming for historical accuracy.
• Wikipedia has whole categories of surnames organized by era and location. Very helpful.
• If you use an actual baby name or writers name book, check it with the internet, especially if it's old.

• Always, always, always cross-check names for meanings, especially if the website you found the name on looks a little janky.
• Be realistic: would a parent actually name their child that name? Especially if you're writing realistic, normal fiction. If your character is going to have a weird name, you need to explain why, otherwise it's just jarring for the reader.
• A good rule to follow for your characters is one letter per character. For my fantasy novel, I have six characters that are used the most. Their names start with L, J, F, D, N, & A. By keeping their names varied, you help ensure that your readers won't get confused.
• If your readers cannot look at the name and correctly guess how it's pronounced, do not give your character that name. Chances are, they'll never hear it aloud. Keep it simple, stupid.
• If you are a white person writing a character of color, be extra careful. Research and if possible, talk to people of color as well. And, as always, be respectful and ask questions.
• Don't just consider names by country, consider names by region too! For example: my great-aunt grew up in Texas and is named Shirlene. While that name is right at home in the deep south, Shirley is the much more common variant on the west coast where I live.
• Decide if your world has naming systems. For example: in my fantasy world, the rich and royalty are given traditional European nobility names (Louise, Richard, Edward, etc.), middle class are given more unique names (Fayne, Cordelia), and lower class are given nature names (Aspen, Hawthorne, Rose, etc.). I personally think it gives a world more depth.
• Don't neglect surnames and middle names!
• Vary the syllables too. Using my characters as an example again: Louise (2), Nicholas (3), Fayne (1), Aspen (2), Delia (3), Joanna (3).
• Vary the end sounds also. It's really easy to think you have a bunch of unique names and then realize they all end with the letter A.
• Think about nicknames! Some names, such as Alexander, lend themselves well to nicknames (Alex, Xander, Lex, Al), and this really adds depth to your characters. Maybe they hate nicknames, or maybe they have one that only a close family member uses.
• Don't forget that people associate certain names with certain types of people. For example: Mildred may mean "brave battle maiden" but I automatically think of an old woman.
• Try using variations of common names to give your characters a fun twist. Alice can easily become Alys.
• If your character is named after someone who is present throughout your story, make sure you have some way of distinguishing them.
• And my ultimate pro-tip: pretend that you are a parent naming a newborn child. It really helps you get in the right headspace because names are so important. They're part of how you present yourself to the world, and they effect how people will see your characters. Take time to really think about it. Let it percolate in your mind.
• But as a counter to the above point: sometimes, happy accidents happen. My villain, Nicholas, is named that because I was using it as a placeholder. Little did I know that it means "people of victory," which is perfect since his whole arc is about how he's trying to claim victory for his kingdom.
• And finally, if the above tips are preventing you from doing actual writing: pick a placeholder and move on. You can always change it later.

@Blossom_Utonium

That list is amazing! And those tips!!! BEAUTIFUL!!! Thank you so much; this is AWESOME!!!
You are a marvel!
I can’t express my gratitude to you enough. Thank you so much. You’re amazing!