There is no doubt that a novel you read or write will revolve around the main character. You will hear their name the most, or remember them the most. Therefore, they have a great responsibility. It is important that they stand out, that they fit into the story, that they attract attention. But is that always the case? Should character names necessarily carry expectations? And how are these names created? Let’s analyse this together.
If I had to make a rough estimate, I would say that millions of books (in total) have been printed throughout history. In fact, I was curious and did a little research, and according to what I read, Google Books did a study (done in 2010 and not covering subsequent years) and found that a total of 129,864,880 books have been printed since Gutenberg’s invention in 1440. I am not sure of the accuracy, but that is the figure given. I will be content to assume that it is not an urban legend.
In other words, over the centuries, countless characters have appeared in countless books. Yet some of them managed to remain memorable. What was their secret? Was it that they were so cool? Did they have the most famous names of their era? Did they sound too futuristic?
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In my opinion, the most important reason is, of course, directly related to the recognition of the author. On the other hand, there is the fact that the recognition of each of these authors’ books is not the same. In other words, no matter who you are, each of your books will not be as well known as the others, and as a result your characters will fade and not be remembered.
It seems that the recognition of the book is much more important than the author himself. We can see this when we look at popular culture and analyse the books that are read. If you mention a famous book, say “Moby Dick”, to someone who does not read many books but has an idea, they will say Ishmael, the name of the sailor, even though they have not read the book. Even though he is not the main character, but the narrator. But there are points that make it memorable, whether you have read it or just hear about it.
The interesting thing is that sometimes we cannot remember the name of the author or his books. Nevertheless, we can recognise the events in which the character is involved, some unexpected details or the name (a similar one if it is a complex name). Because names are unique; sometimes they represent and remind us of the book, sometimes of the author himself.
Well, we have understood this, but can we do such a naming? Given what has been said, our chances are slim, to be honest, but the world of literature is extraordinary. Let’s see how we can create these names.
1. The Old Methods
Let’s start with something strange and ancient. It’s unreasonable to expect every character’s name to be of the highest quality, isn’t it? Giving a royal name to an obscure character would contradict the situation. But if it is an exceptional work, perhaps it can have a different effect. As I said earlier, names appropriate to the period can be memorable. You may remember that there used to be telephone books. They were like thick books and heavy as a log. This can be your first address as a retro option. Well, if your grandmother still has one.
2. Online Dictionaries
Now let’s look at a more sensible option. Although physical dictionaries won’t help you as much as you thought they would, online dictionary sites can be a good place to start. Look up the common names that come to mind and see when they were most frequently used. Perhaps you have a story set in a bygone era and think a period name would suit your characters. If so, you can decide by looking at the frequency of use.
3. Etymological Research
There is also a method that I like to work on and that I already use a lot. Etymological research. In order to choose a name that fits the narrative of my story (as it is a work of fiction, the options are wider), I research the origins of random words. Most of the time I jump from word to word, both learning and creating alternatives. I find it fun and useful. When you learn that the origins come from surprising places, you also change your mind about the words you ignored.
4. Name Generators
Yes, there are websites for this. I found them years ago when I was looking for themed names for my characters in role-playing games. It became a favourite method, and I’ve had several since. Generally speaking, there are generators that can be used to generate names for various (fictional) groups, classes, races and languages within a genre or a particular work. These may not help you directly, but they can give you an idea.
5. Reference Uses
We all have our favourite books. Sometimes the lives of their characters can touch us so deeply that we become passionate followers of the author. So we may want to use the author’s name or the characters’ names to show our respect for them. When we see that our character feels the same way, or that similar events have happened to them, we pay homage to the original work that the name evokes. Readers may also learn about the author we are influenced by and wonder about the origin of the name. On the other hand, these character names may come not only from other novels, but also from various media such as games, films, TV series, and songs. The purpose here is to show our appreciation for the works we love.
6. Random and Ordinary Interactions
Some writers may not care as much as we think they do. This is a choice, not everyone has to take the same care. Maybe they’re writing about a character they hate and don’t feel like paying much attention to these characters. Of course, the naming we mentioned also applies to striking concepts and symbolic points other than the main character. For example, in Douglas Adams’ famous work “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”, 42 is given as “the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything”. This is a tempting nomenclature (because of the fascinating grandeur of the concept) to which the author attaches no meaning, but only helps to shape the ridiculous and absurd narrative. According to his own statement, he simply added a random number that occurred to him. An ordinary approach to such a lofty response. I think the crux of the matter should be here.
“It was a joke. It had to be a number, an ordinary, smallish number, and I chose that one. Binary representations, base thirteen, Tibetan monks are all complete nonsense. I sat at my desk, stared into the garden and thought ’42 will do’”.
Nevertheless, it goes without saying that he created something symbolic that is used all over the world. Sometimes ordinariness and randomness can be the most effective.
7. Appropriateness to the Story
Factors such as theme, atmosphere, background, event, culture, language, social status, race may be the main determinants of your stories. In this case, you may want to reflect on your research into the present day and use concrete examples. In his most famous work, “War and Peace”, Leo Tolstoy used a naming system based on the social classifications of Russia at the time. The aristocrats, the military class and the common people are given “appropriate” names. I don’t know what factors determined what was appropriate at that time, but if you analyse other novels and epics, especially those in which the characters rise from the lower to the higher ranks, you will see that the names acquire meaning and slowly lose their former simplicity. So it’s not so much about the glamour of the name as it is about our respect or perspective on the status. I’m sorry, but if I met a king called Bob, I’d laugh. Arthur, on the other hand… I think it’s safe to say that it sounds more effective.
8. Uniqueness and Creativity
Although I would prefer to continue with these points that come to mind in detail, I will end with this one. Because when I stop and look at them all, I see that we are talking about many points. We have already talked about the past, the digital, history, those created as moulds, other works, simplicity and the nomenclature that will suit the work. Now it is time to go beyond the borders. They do not refer to the old or the new, to what exists or what is imagined.
Sometimes you do not understand the sentence you read in a story. There is a word that you do not know. When you see it written in capital letters, you realise that it is significant and peculiar. But it doesn’t seem to have any meaning, and it might even seem difficult to say. “Why are the five consonants side by side, how am I supposed to read this?” “I’m not sure it means anything, but I’m going to think about it for the whole book”. Whether positive or negative, you will have an extraordinary experience.
These names can be formed by combining two concepts (Draco Malfoy — Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. Draco is Latin for dragon and Malfoy is French for evil). It may be a word you have never heard before, a word that is not even in the dictionaries (Qfwfq — Cosmicomics by Italo Calvino), a word that does not fit into any concept in your mind. Sometimes it repeats itself unnecessarily, sometimes it is as if one or two letters are missing or the letters have changed. There are also some that contain numbers and punctuation marks (R2-D2 — Star Wars series by George Lucas). Add to this a foreign language that you do not know, and sometimes even that is distorted. All this can have a memorable effect, but it can also tire the reader. So, although they are probably unique enough not to be repeated in history, they are also very likely not to have the desired effect. I will end with an interesting example. The character Qfwfq (yes, that was no joke) in Italo Calvino’s important work “Cosmicomics” was, I think, the most different name I have seen in a long time. What makes it even more interesting is that it has a possible meaning.
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When I write my stories, the last thing I think about is the title of the chapter and the names of the characters. I jot down the titles as they come to me during the chapter, but I always put the finishing touches on them at the end of the story. The same goes for names. During the narration I make up names like XYZ, ABC, [young man], and I think about them after I have considered the generalisation. Sometimes I do some of the things I mentioned, I try to take inspiration from everywhere, I use what makes sense to me. The fact that they have meaning, I think, gives the story an unexpected effect.
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