A list of great random character name generators

Coming up with a new character name can be hard. Sometimes you want it to be memorable, sometimes you want the name itself to reflect the personality of the character in its meaning. Or sometimes you just need a name quick because it’s for an NPC you’ll never mention ever again.

Here’s a few random name generators & resources which will give you a character name quickly and easily.

Generic names

Random character name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Compared to many you’ll see on this list, this is fairly bog-standard. It’ll come up with some fairly realistic names. Choose between male or female.

US Census names – Picks random names for male and female from the US census.

Fantasy name generator –  Seventh Sanctum – For your fantasy games I suppose. There’s also a similar Dark Elf generator, and an ominously-named “weird name” generator which is quite fantasy-themed.

Wild West name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Names for characters in a Western roleplay. Choose male or female.

Pirate name generator – Ennead Games – Every pirate has a name that strikes dread into those who cross their path. This also includes a nickname. Choose male or female.

Name & details generator – A tool for generating a name, random fake company name, fake address, random phone number, fake email, random username and password. Choose male or female.

Baddies, aliens, creatures & monsters

Alien name generator – SciFi Ideas – Creates 3 unique alien names at a time, ideal for naming an unusual character quickly.

Dwarf name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Names for ‘classic’ fantasy-style dwarves. Choose whether you want full names, first names, or clan names.

Elf name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Generates names for fantasy-style elves, in several styles. ‘Full Name’ gives you first and last names, ‘High Elves’ are more Tolkeinesque, and ‘Wild Elves’ are more tribal/ElfQuest types.

Evil name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Yup, evil names. There’s also the “evil-sounding” name generator which isn’t quite as evil, but sounds it. Not sure why it’s a separate list, but it doesn’t have the ominous roles like “the betrayor” or “the slayor”. Might be quite useful for generating alien or just unusual names.

Villain name generator – SciFi ideas – Generates exotic baddie names, as well as monsterous fantasy-type names, & alien names.

Goblin name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Generates names for fantasy-style goblins, in several styles.

Lovecraftian name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Names in the vein of H.P. Lovecraft’s creations and those that followed in his footsteps.

Vampire name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Choose between modern or fantasy, and which gender. Might be useful if you’ve got a gothic/horror-based game. Whether Vampires are good or bad.

Angelic name generator – Ennead Games – Names for supernatural celestial beings, suitable for both genders.

Dragon name generator – Create a Dragon name, with links to more specific types of Dragon names, and a dragon guide.

Country-specific names

Chinese name generator – Ennead Games – Chinese names usually consist of the family name (or surname) first and the given or “first” name second as opposed to how it is normally done in Western traditions with the given name followed by the family name. In this generator the name are done [Family] – [Given].

Cornish name generator – Ennead Games – Cornwall is a region in South West England with a long and rich tradition. Here’s some traditional names.

Greek name generator – Seventh Sanctum – Names with a Greek-style sound. Probably useful for a roleplay set in ancient Greece.

Old-English name generator – Ennead Games – Names suitable for characters from mid 5th to 12th Century Anglo-Saxon England, or those with an old-fashioned name.

Swedish name generator – Ennead Games – Generates Scandinavian-sounding names.

Irish Name generator – Ennead games – Some classic and traditional Irish names, split by male and female.

Japenese name generator – Ennead Games – Japanese names usually consist of the family name (or surname) first and the given or “first” name second as opposed to how it is normally done in Western traditions with the given name followed by the family name. In this publication the name are done [Family] – [Given].

Spanish name generator – Ennead Games – Spanish is spoken by over 400 million people worldwide. Surely you’ll encounter a Spanish NPC whom you need a name for?

Scottish name generator – Ennead Games – Scotts make great characters. Here’s a generator of traditional names, split by male and female.

Italian name generator – Ennead Games – Bordering France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia Italy is home to approximately 60 million people. Here’s a generator for male and female italian names.

Māori name generator – Ennead Games – The Māori are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand.

Russian name generators – Ennead Games – In Russian mythology it is home to Baba Yaga, Shishiga (who harasses people and brings misfortune to drunkards) and many other gods and demons. Here are some classic Russian names, sorted by male and female.

Welsh name generator – Ennead Games – The Welsh people (Welsh: Cymry) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to Wales and is part of the United Kingdom. Here’s some traditional Welsh names, sorted by male and female.

Writer’s character name generator – NameGeneratorFun – Generates modern names from different cultures, European American, African American, Hispanic American, Jewish American, Native American, Chinese, Korean, Cambodian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Japanese, Arabic and Indian. There’s a similar one at BehindTheName with even more cultural options.

Norse name generator – Ennead Games – The Nordic countries in northern Europe are home to the Vikings and Norse warriors, feared for their skills in battle. “Son” means, unsurprisingly, son and “dottir” means daughter – So that Orrsdottir would translate as “Orr’s Daughter” – The names reflect the immediate father (sometimes the mother) of the child and not the historic family lineage.

Korean name generator – Ennead Games – Like many Asian countries the name of those from Korea are presented in this name generator as [Family]-[Given], as opposed to the [Given]-[Family] name format found in many western cultures.

Hungarian name generator – Ennead Games – Hungary is a landlocked country in central Europe with a rich mythology and is home to the Sárkány, or dragon, and Vadleány – an elusive forest sprite who seduces shepherds.

Specific world/setting name generators

World of Warcraft Tauren name generator – The Tauren from WOW are heavily based on Native American culture and their names often reflect this, so many of the names in the generator are heavily based on real Native American names, as well as actual names of Taurens in World of Warcraft. There’s more name generators for types of WOW characters here.

Warhammer 40K Tau name generator – Tau is a race of aliens in 40K. Their names consist of 3 parts. The first part consists of a caste and the rank within that cast. There’s the fire caste (Shas), air caste (Kor), water caste (Por), earth caste (fio) and the ethereal caste (Aun). Each caste has five ranks, ‘La, ‘Ui, ‘Vre, ‘El and ‘O. The Fire caste also uses ‘Saal. The supreme leader of the Tau has rank ‘O and is part of the ethereal caste. There’s more name generators from the Warhammer 40K universe here.

Guild wars Asura name generator – Asura are a race of intelligent, small and big eared creatures. Their names reflect this quite well, as their names are generally sharp sounding. Their names also tend to have double letters, usually consonants. Asura have no last names. Instead they have job titles and ‘Krewe’ names. There’s more name generators from the Guild wars universe here.

Mass Effect Batarian name generator – The Batarian names, although different, seem to be fairly straight forward in terms of how they’re constructed, so hopefully you’ll find plenty of names to your liking in this generator. There’s more name generators from the Mass Effect universe here.

Elder Scrolls Dragon name generator – Dragon names in the Elder Scrolls universe are usually made up of 3 syllables. This generator combines 1 and 2 syllable words to create the names, all of the words are actual dragon words from the Elder Scroll universe and for this reason some names might not make too much sense if you translate them. However, there are thousands of different possible names to choose from, so you’re bound to find one you like and one that has a good meaning to it. There’s more generators from the Elder Scrolls world here.

Related: Chris Kentlea created this great guide – How to name your character without looking like a twit.

If you like random generators, we’ve also written about random placename generators, alien name generators, and planet name generators. If you found this article useful please share it on Facebook or Twitter, remember sharing is caring!