Naming Characters

[monsterchic]

On facebook (yeah, I can hear the groans) my friend asked what he should name his character, so I asked him what it was for. Character sketches? He replied yes, but does it matter? Not wanting to offend him, I thought, HELL, YEAH, IT DOES!!!!

So am I the only one when writing not fantasy or anything weird takes a crapton of time to name characters? Names matter even for character sketches, right?

 

[AnyaKimlin]

A lot of the time my characters grow out of a name. I tend to use Behindthename.com 's random renamer and pick a name with a meaning I think works and a sound I like.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Um, for minor characters, I have a look around me, things like titles of books etc and pull something. For major ones, I'll agonise a little longer.

 

[Pyan]

Or you could try this:

Fantasy Name Generator

 

[Warren_Paul]

I looked up name websites which had lists of names used in the era/culture I was mimicking.

Especially for last names, since they have changed quite considerably over the years.

 

[James Coote]

A lot of the time my characters grow out of a name. I tend to use Behindthename.com 's random renamer and pick a name with a meaning I think works and a sound I like.

Conversely, sometimes I construct a character, spend a lot of time fleshing out the details, and a perfect-fit name just pops up from nowhere at the end.

 

[AnyaKimlin]

Conversely, sometimes I construct a character, spend a lot of time fleshing out the details, and a perfect-fit name just pops up from nowhere at the end.

I also have the ones that show up fully dressed with a name and no input from me but they are a totally different issue lol

 

[hopewrites]

Conversely, sometimes I construct a character, spend a lot of time fleshing out the details, and a perfect-fit name just pops up from nowhere at the end.

this.

this is me.

and no your not the only one who agonizes over names. my plant doesnt have one yet and I've had him for almost a year now.
nothing that has grown on me any way.

 

[Luiglin]

I go through a whole gamut of ways to get character names till they feel right for the person, even the minor ones. From real life names, to towns, to a spreadsheet that I created that randomly generates names, to hitting the keyboard keys and seeing what appears. 99% of the time I then tweak the results further to get them so that they 'fit'.

For me the name comes early in the process and has to match my rough ideas on how I want them to be. As such the naming doesn't normally take as long as the fleshing out.

 

[thaddeus6th]

I tend to spend a long time coming up with names, whether for characters, places or chapters.

We do have preconceived ideas about certain names. I suspect most ladies would rather date a Matthew than a Dwayne, even though a date by any other name would be as splendid (or awful).

 

[Jake Reynolds]

My mains have always been kinda stuck since the start, though one has changed quite drastically because of world building (as will, possibly, another).

In some cases, if I have had a name that doesn't fit, I make it fit. For example, I have a character named Landa. She doesn't really match any of the names in my southern provinces, so I just made her name Alandra. Now, since her brother couldn't say the name Alandra properly when she was born, Landa stuck. Good reason to explain the name and give a little realism to the character too.

Generally though, I tend to stick with 'Earth' names, as most of my cultures have a real world counterpart. To that end, I might just google 'German surnames' or 'Japanese girl names', depending on what I'm after and just go from there.

In the case of immortals, I tend to go for angelic or fantasy style names such as Ashmael, Siderias and Heramus, just to set them apart. I usually google 'demon names' for things like this.

As for other fantasy names, I have said here on the forums before that I often look for names in between words. For example, Luiglin's post above can yield:

I go through a whole gamut of ways to get character names till they feel right for the person, even the minor ones. From real life names, to towns, to a spreadsheet that I created that randomly generates names, to hitting the keyboard keys and seeing what appears. 99% of the time I then tweak the results further to get them so that they 'fit'. For me the name comes early in the process and has to match my rough ideas on how I want them to be. As such the naming doesn't normally take as long as the fleshing out.

Olegamu, Ternam, Venthe, Allifen, Asprea, Atrando, Ormethena, Lyinth, Cessandha, Myro, Enami…

Now, not all of these are ideal of course, but they can lead to different spellings and get some juices flowing at least.

 

[Gumboot]

I don't like a character's name to be too "significant", as no one knows how a person's life will end up when they name them as a child.

 

[AnyaKimlin]

I don't like a character's name to be too "significant", as no one knows how a person's life will end up when they name them as a child.

Yeah but no reader is going to know I named Angus because he is big and the youngest son or Socrates because he is protected and kept safe etc. The only slightly obvious one is Thomas who is a twin brother.

 

[Montero]

When I create a name from scratch I always Google it to make sure it doesn't mean something in another language. Remember hearing an author talking about their book going in to Dutch translation and a minor character had a name which meant "Bucket" in Dutch.

 

[Luiglin]

Olegamu, Ternam, Venthe, Allifen, Asprea, Atrando, Ormethena, Lyinth, Cessandha, Myro, Enami…

Now, not all of these are ideal of course, but they can lead to different spellings and get some juices flowing at least.

That's a neat and different way. Will have to give that a go, cheers.

 

[RJM Corbet]

Or you could try this:

Fantasy Name Generator

Oh I like it ... Estofast ... Nenen

 

[Chel]

I don't like a character's name to be too "significant", as no one knows how a person's life will end up when they name them as a child.

I always try to think of names that the parents would actually name their baby. Some will want names that are popular at the time, in that culture, others will want fancy names - maybe the parents imagine the baby will live up to that name and become someone important.

Personally I think characters grow into their names. When I name a character, I try often try out a few different alternatives (unless the name comes to me written in stone, and I know there is no way I'll change it). After some time, the character has settled into the name, it's become part of the package. Just like with real people, I can also start liking a name I originally wasn't thrilled about when I start liking the character.

 

[Luiglin]

I don't like a character's name to be too "significant", as no one knows how a person's life will end up when they name them as a child.

Agree, but who's to say that the character hasn't changed their own name as part of their backstory through choice or necessity?

"I, Alkmaz, demand that you obey me," boomed a voice from the deep darkness of the hood.
In the crowd two plain fellows exchanged glances.
"Ere," said Eric, "Isn't that Francis?"
"Francis?" Bert rubbed his head in concentration.
"Yea, Francis. Remember boarding school, skinny kid, spotty chin, big ears, runny nose, two left feet, bulbous eyes, terrible wind."
"You mean the one we used to test eggs on to see if they were rotten?"
"That's the one," grinned Eric.
"He's gone up in the world since school," mused Bert in pride. "Why the name change?"
"Hmmm ... Francis the Destroyer."
They both looked at each other and responded in unison. "Nah."

Apologies, couldn't help myself, the above image popped into my head as I typed the first sentence

I do think though that in manyways fantasy and sci-fi writers have a greater leeway in the naming of their characters. In deed often mundane modern names tend to stick out like proverbial sore thumbs (unless all the characters are like that )

 

[Warren_Paul]

I do think though that in manyways fantasy and sci-fi writers have a greater leeway in the naming of their characters. In deed often mundane modern names tend to stick out like proverbial sore thumbs (unless all the characters are like that )

Yes. I can't see calling my heroine Jane, or Susan, or Kelly.

Old English names are where my preference lies.

 

[Karn Maeshalanadae]

I steer clear completely of name generators. Not only do they tend to have those ridiculous, cliche, unpronounceable names, I just don't like them in general. It's just as easy to come up with small, simple names that can have an impact on the name if spoken.