Generators
These generators can be used for inspiration for names of people, ships, places, and other things. Remember that adventurers are a weird bunch, and their names does not always conform to these conventions. The output here is just the start, you could alter any result here to better suit your needs. For example, a quicktalking human bard might shorten Cassandra to Cass, and a wise elven abjurer wizard might have adopted or received a byname to reflect their skills, such as Tindowend ('Magic-shield') or Melroth ('Strong-staff').
Humans
The different human cultures are similar in structure, but share some common names and roots. Each culture also has names and roots that are far more common than in other cultures, such as 'wind' and 'sail' in maritime culture, and 'sword' and 'steel' among martial societies. The nomadic cultures of the isles are so removed from society at large that their naming conventions seem quite foreign to most observers. Agricultural communities have quite a bit of overlap with halfling names, and they often overlap geographically as well.
Elves
Elven names are given here roughly translated, but their true meaning is often deeper than a surface reading. For example, Saeven ('Night-man') might refer to the circumstances of his birth, the color of his eyes or hair, or the religious disposition of his parents. Elves also have a complicated system of earned bynames.
Planetouched
Aasimar and tieflings usually follow the naming conventions as the communities they grew up in, but they are more likely to have a virtue name ('Faith', 'Prudence' etc) - perhaps taken later in life as a promise to themselves.
Tabaxi
Tabaxi have nature-inspired names, often a long pseudo-sentence with a shorter nickname, ex 'Leaf-on-the-Wind' (Leaf) or 'Holds-her-Tail' (Tails).
Genasi
Genasi sometimes have an 'of the' suffix related to their nature or origin instead of a last name, ex 'Jasper of the Deeps' or 'Paribal of the Hearth'.
Orcs
Orcs use a patronym instead of a lastname, ex 'Gaur, son of Tarim' or 'Draka, daughter of Klog'.
Dragons and Dragonborn
Dragonkin often have an epithet, ex 'Tofanis the Corrosive' or 'Lanolata the Quick'.
Other name resources
- FantasyNameGenerators
- Wikipedia's list of stars
- Any babyname website
Goliaths: Finnish names