forum Resources for naming your characters
Started by @Mercury Beta Tester
tune

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@Mercury Beta Tester

Not entirely sure if this fits here, but posting it again since this got lost in the 'Characters' board.

There have been lots of posts asking what to name characters, so I'm consolidating together all the mentioned and any other websites and resources into this post.


20 000+ Names
http://www.20000-names.com

(Thanks to FantaPop)
An older site with almost as many options as Behind the Name, mostly in list form. Also with lists of names sorted by meaning as well.


Behind the Name
https://www.behindthename.com
https://surnames.behindthename.com

Website for the history and etymology of first names and surnames. Find names of multiple nationalities here!

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Behind the Name random generator
https://www.behindthename.com/random/

Part of the above website, and makes a random name depending on nationality, mythology, or fantasy creatures


Chaotic Shiny
http://chaoticshiny.com/namegen.php

(Thanks to FantaPop)
Large website with multiple name generators. You can also buy cheap packs to use as an offline generator!


Donjon: RPG Tools
http://donjon.bin.sh

(Thanks to FantaPop)
A few name generators, though mainly map and dungeon generators. Really useful website either way


Fantasy Name Gen
https://www.fantasynamegen.com

(Thanks to FantaPop)
For fantasy names, with a ton of options ranging from the standard Noun-Verb surnames, to a place name generator. Better for non-human characters


Fantasy Name Generators
http://www.fantasynamegenerators.com

(Thanks to multiple people on this forum for mentioning it)
Huge website for fantasy names of all kinds, not just characters. Includes character names depending on nationality, fantasy creatures, or books, TV shows, and anime!


Mithril and Mages
http://www.mithrilandmages.com

(Thanks to FantaPop)
Name gen website more geared towards older editions of D&D, but it's also got an anagram maker and a collection of both medieval and modern names


Nameberry
https://nameberry.com

(Thanks to Celestial-B)
Baby names website, includes nationalities and names inspired by royalty, animals, flowers, and more!


Name that Character!
http://www.writing-world.com/romance/names.shtml

A resource on choosing effective character names, and pitfalls to avoid in order to write a good story. You may take some points with a pinch of salt though!


Seventh Sanctum
http://www.seventhsanctum.com/index-name.php

Large website for names of all kinds, not just characters. Includes character names based on fantasy creatures and supernatural creatures!


Social Security Administration
https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/decades/index.html

(Thanks to FantaPop)
Government website to find out which names were most popular in the US, by decade, including popular names by state, territory, and overall


Springhole

(Thanks to Chandreyee Chakraborty)
http://springhole.net/writing_roleplaying_randomators/namegens.htm

Large website with multiple name generators and guidance on writing stories and roleplaying


If anyone knows any other websites or resources for names, link them in the discussion and I'll add them to the main post!

@FantaPop

A couple more:

https://www.fantasynamegen.com/ For fantasy names, with a tonne of options ranging from the standard Noun-Verb surnames, to a place name generator. I mostly use it for non-human characters.

http://www.20000-names.com/ An older site with almost as many options as behindthename, mostly in list form, though it's got lists of names sorted by meaning as well. Was my go-to as a young spawn.

http://www.mithrilandmages.com/ More geared toward older editions of D&D, but it's got an anagram maker and a collection of both medieval and modern names.

http://donjon.bin.sh/ A few name generators, though the main draw is the map and dungeon generators. Super cool site either way.

@Ace's Places

Keyboard smash and then add a few vowels somewhere. Example: ecscub becomes Esucube- which could make for a very interesting flora, creature, deity, or race!