So, today we're gonna be talking about names. I don't have a problem with seeing the same ones all the time, though that isn't very often, because it's understandable. It's hard to find a nice, fitting name without looking all over the internet for one. In this chapter, I will cover websites you can use to find good names and the origins and meanings of names, as well as a list of names that I would like to see used more.
First, the websites. One that I particularly enjoy is Nameberry, a site that lists just about every name you could think of. What's so great about it is that it groups them into girl, boy, and unisex, it has lists already made (like flower, literary, royal, vintage, German, celebrity, etc.), and users can make their own lists (though I don't do that). When you click on a name, it will usually give you the meaning, the origin, the popularity, famous people with that name, pop culture characters with that name, and possible nicknames and variations for that name.
There are about a million websites you could find by just googling "baby names," and even more by adding a characteristic to it, such as flower or vintage or anything else like that.
When naming your character, you should probably decide on some personality traits of theirs and even their race and ethnicity. Personality traits are good for if you want the name to hold some meaning to them or if there was a reason the parents named the character that. Take Beatrice for example. It means "she who brings happiness." So, if the mother or father or both were very happy to have the character, they could name her Beatrice.
The race and ethnicity also matters because you probably want the name to match the character and their heritage, especially the last name, but we're not focusing on those. Just look up or find a list of names that match their heritage. For Spanish characters, you could use Felicidad or Manolo. For Russians, you could use Ekaterina or Vladimir. But Russian diminutives, patronymics, and surnames are a whole other story so I'm not gonna get into them right now. Definitely look them up if you're writing a Russian character though.
Now, here is a list of names I really enjoy, along with the five I already listed.
For more, please visit my book Kate Wallis // Names
GIRLS
- Ivy
- Rosa
- Guinevere
- Blair
- Twyla
- Abigail
- Juliet
- Liza
- Esme
- Daisy
- Alyssa
- Genevieve
- Holland
- Tessa
- Delilah
- Camila
- Halle
- Athena
- Venus
- Dove
- Caroline
- Hale
- Ingrid
- Gianna
- Fallon
- Bianca
- Heidi
- Cecilia
- Freya
- Quinn
- Sylvia
- Olive
- Lydia
- Margo
- Katrina
- Tatum
- Isabel
- Cora
- Bethany
- Emilia
- Adaline
- Dahlia
- Sage
- Nicola
- Celia
- Irina
- Kenna
- Winter
- Anya
- Alaska
- Opal
- Amma
- Hera
- Hestia
- Alma
- Astrid
- Portia
- Lana
- Greta
- Lila
- Adelaide
- Fauna
- Audrina
- Bronwyn
- Irene
- Daphne
- Stella
- Anastasia
- Victoria
- Blythe
- Gemma
- Hilda
- Lux
- Kara
- Lara
- Lena
- Wendy
- Thalia
- Adele
BOYS
- Charles
- Alexander
- Benjamin
- Alec
- William
- Finn
- Jack
- Oliver
- Kyle
- Theodore
- Lucas
- Thomas
- James
- Sebastian
- Damien
- Eliot
- Miles
- Daniel
- Nathaniel
- Jason
- Roman
- Ares
- Peter
- Magnus
- Clyde
- Abraham
- Mason
- Philip
- Colin
- Hugo
- Jeremiah
- Jedidiah
- Bill
- Klaus
- Adam
- Boris
- Donovan
- Benedict
- Atticus
- Solomon
- Grayson
- Louis
- Salem
- Saint
- Wyatt
- Samuel
- Beau
- Ambrose
- King
- Dawson
- Marcus
- Hardin
- Edmund
- Vincent
- Victor
- Anthony
- Beck
- Carter
- Floyd
- Flynn
- Ford
- Hunter
- Holden
- Levi
- Tate
- Stirling
Let me know if you liked any of those names, and feel free to comment any other names you like.