How do you choose name for main character?

[ivan530]

I creating my first visual novel. Unfortunately my main character still don't have name.

How do you give name for your character?

[Kato]

I tend to just keep writing the story until they name themselves. Whether it be meaningful to the character or just a 'This guy feels like a Toby to me' the names tend to jump out one way or another.

[dramspringfeald]

I tend to just keep writing the story until they name themselves. Whether it be meaningful to the character or just a 'This guy feels like a Toby to me' the names tend to jump out one way or another.

Yep, Until then, their name is (Male) or (Female) Or John, Jane.


Though if push comes to shove I have 3* lists or The United census names and "Digital Dice"

Male, Female, Last names

[arachni42]

For any character name, I usually go to http://www.behindthename.com/ for ideas. I usually go for names with some sort of meaning (which also requires me to know something about the character), but it's not bad to just pick a name you like, either.

[Tsundere Lightning]

I generally try to pick a name that has some symbolic meaning for a character.

For example, a character who's an eternal optimist I named Yuuki - from a root meaning "Hope." Or naming a catgirl archer Sekhmet Jatuu, the latter literally meaning "Lion" in Malinese and the former being the name of a warrior lioness goddess.

[ivan530]

For any character name, I usually go to http://www.behindthename.com/ for ideas. I usually go for names with some sort of meaning (which also requires me to know something about the character), but it's not bad to just pick a name you like, either.

Is it acceptable to choose name that is variant of my name?

For example my name is Ivan. So I choose John, Hans, and Yahya as my character name.

[Blane Doyle]

Sometimes a name just jumps out at me from the start and I have no problem keeping that on the character.

But sometimes it becomes difficult. Names can change in the middle of writing and sometimes I have to put in a placeholder because nothing comes up. Other times I keep the original name that was given but manage to elongate it into something more fitting (for example, Tabby into Tabitha) while still being able to utilize the original as I desire.

I keep a number of naming sites bookmarked and I even have a physical book available for quick reference. Your Magical Name, which I got back in the days when I would browse the New Age section of the bookstore like no one's business, has become exceedingly useful to me as it not only has thousands of names but multiple categories. The first half of the book has the number based name system, you know where you assign each letter of the alphabet a letter and add everything up and poof name number, that gives the basic personality type of each. Naturally, this is mostly pointless. But it's fun! And if you really want to use it, the second half works with it quite well.

The second half of the book is split into two categories, male and female, and ordered alphabetically. Beside each name is the number corresponding to it, making it easy to find a personality name on the fly. But it also lists the country of origin and meaning of each name behind it.

Now, not every name meaning matches the person it is given to at all. For example: My real name (which shall not be given here) is not only spelled different from the norm (apparently it's the Irish spelling, which makes sense given my mother's side is Irish), the normal spelling come from Greek (I am in no way Greek) and means "pure". Now, 1) I am in no way pure by any means so this makes me laugh and 2) My parents did NOT intentionally name me this. It's tradition to be named after your aunt or grandmother if you are a girl in my family, and just be the 4th or 5th guy named after your dad.

There's no real special meaning behind my name. My parents didn't think I was going to grow up to be pure, they did not know the original name was Greek... they just slapped on my grandma's name, which I am sure had meaning when it was given to her. But honestly? My "real name" has abolutely no meaning to me. In fact, I kind of hate it for multiple reasons (one being I was in a class with SEVEN other kids with my name and the fact my family uses the kid versions of my name to reprimand me or make me feel guilty or childish). But I'm getting off topic.

Other people, and characters, however, have perfectly fitting names. (Spoiler Alert) In Tangled, we meet Flynn Rider, the dashing and daring thief who dreams of owning an island (or castle, he's cool with both) and being just filthy stinking rich. Except not. His name is not Flynn Rider at all, he adapted the name from a story character he admired. His real name?

Eugene Fitzherbert. Eugene is relatively inconsequential until his character development fits it, as it comes from Greek again and means "noble", and he proves himself to fit his real name. But the more important name is his LAST. See, ignore Fitz for a second. Herbert is the real last name here, which comes from German meaning host or bright or whatever. But at the same time we can completely ignore that too and come back to the first half. Fitz is a prefix added into Herbert for a very good reason and was used since it was added to the names of sons of princes. ILLEGITIMATE sons of princes.

Flynn Rider's name is, essentially, Eugene the Bastard son of Mr. Herbert. Ouch. And considering he was an orphan, this is probably WHY he was orphaned. It's very clever "getting crap past the radar" hinting, but Eugene is essentially a very blatant child born of wedlock. Fail O'Suckyname indeed, TV Tropes.

And then you have names that do not fit a character at all by name but somehow just... SOUND right. I will, again, use my name as an example. But my screen name this time. Blane Doyle is not just an internet handle for me it is my chosen name. Doyle was simple enough for me, the meaning ("descendant of Dubhghall"), means nothing to me but it is a traditional Irish surname. As a handle and not as a given name I was comfortable with using it (and one of my favorite cartoon characters was named Doyle so there is that). Blane comes from... me shoving an L into Bane. Bane was my nickname from my livejournal days of a much longer name, and I used to have the handle of Bane Reiko here. I changed that after the name became less than appealing to me. I wanted a more normal, professional sounding name. Shove an L in there and bam! Blane Doyle! What does Blane mean? It's Gaelic (stroke of luck) for yellow. I have no real affinity for the color, I don't even like it that much... it's just there. But I like my new name, it just feels... right to me. I feel like a Blane Doyle, even if the meaning of the name itself is lost on a bit personal level with me now.

While this is an excessivly long post for what is, essentially, a very simple question, it is for a good reason. There is no simple answer. You don't draw a name out of a hat and bam name! You don't get ultra blatant descriptive names ala My Little Pony (unless you are purposefully going for that). But usually, it boils down to a few things.

1) What makes sense for your character to be named in family context? (IE, tradition naming.)
2) What makes sense in context for your character to be named? (IE, Mr. Fitzherbert.)
3) What feels RIGHT for your character even if the meaning doesn't fit? (Using me as another example, I am Blane here.)

In the end it is up to you to discover your character's names in a way that works for you. But I do hope this helps you out a bit.

[Sabotage]

If your character name is stopping you from developing your story ( "NO! I absolutely must name this character and it has to be SYMBOLIC! It must be IMPORTANT!") Then you might be doing something wrong.

Although a character having a meaningful name can be quite an easter egg for your readers, remember that it's the story and the character that counts! Spend more time shaping the character to who you want it to be and you'll probably have the name jump out sooner or later. I have spent countless hours in babynames/behindthename sites scouring for the perfect name and it's almost worse than blowing your entire afternoon to tvtropes. Do not be like me!

That being said, I name characters for location/setting (fantasy, era, country), backstory (Did he live as a perfectly normal kid with perfectly normal parents? Then there's no reason for him to be called something like Moonchild or Baldwin, is there? Normal people don't name their kids *Baldwin.), and how the name sounds like in my head. I don't usually do much on the symbols. When I think of a certain name, they almost always have a vague physical/descriptive connotation to me. For example, a girl named "Cassie" will be sweet and girly in my imagination, while a boy named "Leon" will act almost gallantly or nobly. I try to mix them up sometimes to get dissonance. Example, if a character is an introvert, a computer hacker and a loner it's almost easy to call him a simple name like Kyle or Jim. But what if I name him something weird/exotic like Jorge (is he part-Hispanic?) or Maximillian (are his parents rich)? That might even add color to your character.

So my advice would be just follow what sounds good to you and don't spend too much time on it. Names will change within the course of your writing so it's important to just write.

*Note: I am sorry if I have offended anyone who is named Baldwin through that comment. I have to admit "Baldwin" is a really strong, sturdy name. You gotta admit it's a bit silly, though..

[arachni42]

I have spent countless hours in babynames/behindthename sites scouring for the perfect name and it's almost worse than blowing your entire afternoon to tvtropes. Do not be like me!

...Are you saying there's something wrong with spending countless hours on behindthename and tvtropes??

Nah, I agree with you; don't hold up your writing for a name. (And yes, if you want to pick a variation of your name, that's fine. You can pick a name just because you like it, even if it has no meaning. The only thing to watch out for is some names sound weird in some settings.)

Although I will say that blowing afternoons on those sites has its place. For me it can be a source of inspiration. You know, when I'm tired of writing anyway. Honest. Inspiration -- that's my story and I'm sticking to it!!

[Sabotage]

Although I will say that blowing afternoons on those sites has its place. For me it can be a source of inspiration. You know, when I'm tired of writing anyway. Honest. Inspiration -- that's my story and I'm sticking to it!!

...I-I'm denying it all the way through. *shifts uncomfortably* Dargh. Yes. Well. Yes... *clicks to open tvtropes tab*. Just a fix.

The only thing to watch out for is some names sound weird in some settings!

Oh, in what case?

[arachni42]

The only thing to watch out for is some names sound weird in some settings!

Oh, in what case?

Oh, I dunno, some weird name like (this is just the first one that randomly pops into my head) "Sabotage" wouldn't work in a modern day high school, but maybe you could get away with it in some sort of a bizarre sci-fi. Or something like (I dunno, another totally random one) "Arachni," because what is that, an arachnid where you forgot the D? But it could work on a plane full of spiders, where the Arachni character named themselves that so they could show how unique they were.

But if the name is an Internet alias, anything is possible! (Bah, now I want to write a story about an MMO just so I can come up with all sorts of alias-type names.)

[Blane Doyle]

Since you two brought up TV Tropes, I suggest looking through "Aerith and Bob". http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AerithAndBob

In most cases, names that stick just out a bit aren't really a problem. For example it wouldn't be too jarring to have a group of high schoolers names John, Mark, Angie, and Yuki. The last name will stick out, but given the diversity of the real world it's not going to cause many problems.

But take a fantasy world. If you have a group of characters named Clematis, Alcea, Lilium, and Zinnia? Suddenly adding a character named William would be a bit weird. Unless it is explained (he's from another country, another world, etc) it's just going to not make sense. (BTW, if you got that all those names are flowers kudos to you)

But that's not to say that it's going to ruin the character or story. For example, Death Note is filled to the brim with characters that have normal Japanese names. And then we have... Light. Despite his name standing out like a sore thumb this causes no problem (and can actually be argued as being chosen for symbolism) And people have named their kids after weirder things.

Good rule of thumb in my opinion: If it sounds weird in comparison for the other names it is probably a good idea to have a reason behind it, be it "it's set in a place with diversity" or "he's from outer space".

Another good rule of thumb: If the fact that they are from somewhere else is supposed to be a twist? Don't give them an obviously different name, especially if it is a dead giveaway. If the cast is Bob, Cheryl, Amy, and Dan I'm probably not going to guess Dan was actually a demon in disguise. If Dan's name was "Culiref"? I'm probably going to pick up that he's Lucifer pretty quick.

[zankokunoyami]

This varies with me.

My average story, I set aside a bunch of names pending on what I am doing.

For my story, Samurai'sNEXT: I picked out names that had some sort of meaning or relevance to the story plot itself. They were meant to be symbolic. During the research, I shuffled a number of names for the main character and decided on the one that I felt fit him and the story the best.

In my project Dies Irae: I started off by deciding what origin I wanted the names to be from. I settled with Latin, Greek and Hebrew because they all intertwined in one way or another. From there, I searched for names by meaning. Main character wise, I ended up going with Esther Keshet because 1) Esther essentially means Star, and this said a lot about her not only as a main character, but symbolically as well. Where as Keshet meant rainbow, and helped show her colorful nature and how she continues to evolve.

Some stories of mine, I started with a name simply because the name inspired the character. I would go, 'Kenneth Hawkins... now what kind of character would suit that name?'.

Basically, you don't want to force it. Pending on the story and what you are trying to achieve, it should roll off the tongue. Is the characters name supposed to mean something? Or is it supposed to represent something? Is it the MEANING or the ATTITUDE of the name that you are trying to highlight. Is he cool? Weak? Strong? An arse? Is he a symbol or simile? Does his story reflect a play? Etc etc.

Sometimes your main character is no one important at all. In which case, you might want to research a name in which reflects the nobody he is.

At least, this is how I always go about it. I have never once had trouble naming a character. They usually come freely. But I also spend a lot of time on Baby Name sites. So I get to research a lot of things.

I also, after naming a character, research their name more deeply. Outside of the meaning, what are its origins? Famous people? Famous things revolving around it? Sometimes a single name can open up a thousand more names that follow it. In which case, you can follow this string of events to name your main character based on the name of your main antagonist or his best friend. Ex: When looking up Dante, you might find Virgil.

[Starwulfen]

Sometimes my characters sort of come with names attached, but I have a couple of methods for when they don't.

For a character that needs a normal name, I use Behind the Name (and Behind the Surname)
I usually either start with a meaning I want, or with an origin, and work from there.
I'm currently working on naming a character for an RP, so I'll use her as an example.
(The system is Scion, where you play children of gods)
She's a Scion of The Morrigan, who is from Irish Mythology, so I checked the Irish feminine names.
Scrolling down I see 'Aisling' meaning dream or vision. This kind of fits, given that a possible translation for Morrigan is 'Nightmare Queen', and also that one of the abilities I'm taking in game is prophecy.
But I don't like the sound of Aisling as a name so much, so I check the variations, which gives me 'Aislin'. And so she now has a name. (I still need to sort her a surname out though)

But for characters I want a fantasy or otherworldly sort of name for, I have a different process. (also for place names in the same style)
I load up http://nicetranslator.com/ and select all the languages that use Latin script (so that I can read it)
I then input one or more words I associate with the character and look at the translations.
I pick one or more that I like the sound/look of and mess with them, taking pieces from the words and combining them and adding other sounds in until I reach something that sounds good as a name. (as an example slightly pre-dating my use of translating into this process, a character called Firanena began with the word 'Fire')
Or sometimes I'll just take the translated word and use it as a name on it's own. For example in Destiny's Spire, Kardas and Skydas's names are just sword and shield translated into Lithuanian.

Sorry that ended up so long, but hopefully it was a little helpful to someone.

(Random aside - Blaine Doyle, I get the feeling we have the same real name, or at least the same root for it. I could be wrong though)

[arachni42]

Scrolling down I see 'Aisling' meaning dream or vision.

I got a kick out of this because I named my D&D cleric Aislin. It was perfect, because the pronunciation is unusual for English, so it gave her the chance to be all snotty about misspellings and such. She is a little bit stuck-up. (This only works because I know that the GM and players are all native English speakers.)

But for characters I want a fantasy or otherworldly sort of name for, I have a different process. (also for place names in the same style)
I load up http://nicetranslator.com/ and select all the languages that use Latin script (so that I can read it)
I then input one or more words I associate with the character and look at the translations.

Interesting... I haven't written much fantasy, so I don't have a process for it. That's a pretty neat site! Bookmarked now.