(If there's already a thread for this, please let me know so I can take this one down.)
How do you come up with names for your characters? Do you take inspiration from something else? Do you get them off a website? Do you make up your own character names, or use random words?
When you name a character, do you like their name to have some kind of meaning attached (i.e. a name that references the kind of person they are, or what they are)?
Do you normally use the first name you think of, or do you often change the name several times before you find one you like?
How does your character feel about their own name? Do you like it, or dislike it (and if so, why)?
Just share some of your characters and how you decided on their names! Feel free to go as in-depth as you like.
For most of my characters, I follow the method of 'use the first name I think of whether it suits them or not', and in some cases those names coincidentally suit the characters very well.
For Anastasia, I learned (after naming her) that it means resurrection, which is fitting because she's a witch who has the ability to raise and control ghosts! Also, in one RP I used her in, she was killed by someone else's character and later revived as an undead dragon.
Sometimes I name characters based on their design, and other times just because I came up with a name
I used to pick names for my characters that somehow reflect their personality or history but it's been years and nowadays I just pick the first name that feels right to me. I usually just go search through this name list (or any other that is appropriate for the naming convention I go for) and keep browsing until something just feels right. I don't really put much thought into it but I definitely don't use names that don't feel "perfect" like it has to be a name that feels like it always belonged to the character.
I also keep a list of pretty names I see in books or social media or hear irl and then either design based on the name or conduct the list when I think I might have something there that could fit the character.
I decided to pick Claude as my example since his first name is something I just picked out of a gut feeling, but for once I actually put some conscious thought into his surname! His proto surname was Chevalier but I didn't want his initials to be the same letter. I like the surname Lovelace it just sounds ~ aesthetic ~ and it also belonged to my hero Ada Lovelace who was a kickass lady so I thought that would be more appropriate for him + lovelace sounds a little like "loveless" and I suppose you could sort of claim it reflects his character too haha
I mean, it depends on the character??
I recently got a character that screamed my mom’s aesthetic so I named the character after her (or a version of her name at least). And characters (mainly male characters) that scream my aesthetic get named after me in a way? Like, one is my initials and another one is my name spelled backwards.
My girl Avery was actually named after a mint plant that I got! I couldn’t think of any names so I decide why not. And it actually fits really well— (my gf named one of her characters after my other mint plant too) My plants are random names that I think of at the time I buy them (Avery, Tyrese, Callahan, Stark, etc.)
I have a set of triplets— decided to name them all after spices because I wanted to relate them back to each other some how.... and then couldn’t think of a last name so I made it spice because I’m generic and they’re named after spices. (Ginger Spice)
Characters that remind me of more than one friend ends up with their ship name (Amy + Sarah = Amarah)(Nadia + Jessi = Nessi)
I have two meme character somewhere that I named after the weird childhood nicknames my brother gave me— so like, Ruppert Levvings/Levron Goodman are good beans that really shouldn’t exist, but they do. (Ruppert is also my go to game alias when games ask for a name)
When none of the above apply, I go to random name generators, or google something that relates back to the character in some way (I.e “Demon Names” or “Names that mean Blue”)
I generally find names that are symbolic of my character in someway, be it their ethnic background, what inspired creation of the character, or their personality.
Most of the time I use names that I think sound good, and if it works with the design. Mainly the former though lol. Although some names I have seem common, I also have a number of random words that I made into names that probably no real parent would name their kid lol (or maybe they would, you never know XD) like Casanova, Saccharin, Argent, Caviar, etc. xD For a few others, I looked up names on behind the name website for ideas. I remember holding a IG poll to pick Petras's name since I had 4 choices and couldn't pick one lol. Also Lysande's name was supposed to mean bright white in two different languages lol (but this was before I found out Iceland had a strict naming system oof). And a couple of other ocs got help from others when being named :D I remember Nico's and Vincent's full names were suggestions that I've used ^^
Last names are much harder now for some reason, maybe because they seem to need more is a background to it than the first name. Though mainly I use a last name that sounds really good with the first name ^^;
i usually give my characters names that i feel fit their general vibe. like ivette valentine is a fancy name for a fancy character. sometimes their names give me more ideas. for example, ivette is a french name so i decided to make ivette french!
//whoops posted from trade account! here's my main lordsatin
Some of my baes have names related to their stories, like Hagane (meaning steel to reflect his tough and terrible personality); sometimes I just go by whatever popped up in my mind and sounded nice, and for other times...baby naming sites are my best pals
gravesight - Ah, I get the thing about using placeholder names but then getting attached to them... it's happened with a few of my characters. I meant to give them a different name later but then I just got used to the placeholder one I gave them and I couldn't change it. XD
Caine - Same here about collecting a list of names I like for future use, except that I never end up making any characters who fit the names. I currently have quite a lot of names I really like but can't find any use for.
I either really get the idea somehow and roll with it, or draw inspiration from something I enjoy, be it directly, or a little less obvious.
Or go over to Wikitionary and use their names by language pages. Such a handy tool. Not perfect, but a good start. 20,000 names (Though the layout on that site is hot garbage and it will hurt your eyes) and Behind the Name are also fantastic.
Or I stay up until like 2am trying to think of a new Xbox gamertag in like 2011 and end up with Vincent Vangoat who only became a character like 6 years later. That works too :p
It depends. I usually either look up male, female, or just cool names and pick from those or I use names that work with their personality or outward appearance.
For example, Umi's name means the sea in Japanese, which she loves (I mean, she's half narwal and lived most of her life near and in water). I found a way to incorporate her biggest interest into her name!
With the other option, I just look up names on baby sites and see what sticks and what I like. Sometimes, I just remember names I like. I like the name Vincent so I have a Vincent. I like the name Beau so I have a Beau. It has to fit them obviously but tbh a big part of it is, "Ooo I like that name! Let's go with it!" Lmao