Geography-based name generators (a total of 26). Click on the flag or use the search bar below to open the tool.
Any name, any culture — no region filter
Japanese, Korean, Filipino, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, and Indian name generators
British, English, Scottish, Irish, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Norwegian, Danish, Dutch, Polish, and Russian name generators
American, Mexican, and Dominican name generators
Arabic and Turkish name generators
Naming conventions around the world are pretty consistent: they define the structure and meaning of a name. A Japanese name isn't a Polish name with different vowels, and knowing that difference is what makes a name actually usable in your work.
Historical fiction writers, game localizers, and language students need names from real places, not just generic, slightly foreign-sounding ones. The 26 generators cover just about every case. Ask for a French surname, and you get one. Ask for a realistic-sounding Korean given name, and you get a realistic-sounding Korean given name. All in about ten seconds. That's it.
According to my data on popular story names by location, American names are the most popular, followed by Japanese, English, Spanish, Italian, and Irish names.
A number of generators now come with Kanji for Japanese surnames, which in Japan are written before the given name. Note that current support for European languages is limited to Spanish and Italian names for now, with German, French, Dutch, Polish, Russian, Greek, and the 4 British Isles countries (British, English, Scottish, Irish) all to be added. For Asia, this will be Japanese, Korean, Filipino, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, and Indian. In the Americas, this will be limited to the United States, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic. For the Middle East, this will be limited to Arabic and Turkish names.
We used current and historical frequency data from many countries to make our cultural name generators. Each generator returns a first name, a last name, and, in most cases, a short note explaining the meaning of the returned names. Knowing your characters' names and their meanings gives you a rich starting point for developing them.
Naming rules will vary depending on the country, and these name generators are programmed as such to replicate the rules of the country or region. For example, countries in East Asia (think China) will have the surname (or last name) first. Russian or Arabic countries will have a patronymic (or a name derived from the father). Spanish names will use two surnames (or one from each parent). So these rules are automatically applied based on the country, helping users get more realistic options.
So long as your story is set in the real world and not some fantasy, fictional world (as opposed to a historical or real-world setting with fictional elements, e.g., Dumbledore is a real name), this hub's pool of cultural names will be far more appropriate than the set of fictional or fantasy names found at the other generators hub.
Note that creating a Spanish name for a character who lives in Barcelona and a wizard name for a completely made-up world are two very different jobs. If you are interested in fictional names for fantasy stories and world-building, we have a separate hub for those generators. This hub includes only real cultural names for fiction set in the Real World.
A cultural name generator returns real names from a specific country or language area. These are real names used by real people from real cultures, as opposed to invented names that might look similar. Wordineer's cultural name generators are built from real name data for each culture and include meaning notes as well as the names in script form where relevant (Japanese names in kanji, Russian names in Cyrillic, Greek names in Greek script etc.).
To generate Spanish names generally (from Spain and Latin America), go to the Spanish name generator. If you are looking for more specific Mexican names, go to the Mexican name generator. It includes the many regional variations found in the country. If you are looking for more specific Dominican names, go to the Dominican name generator. This generator includes many Caribbean Spanish traditions.
Yes, authentic. Every name comes from real naming data for that culture. Nothing is phonetically invented. Many generators include meaning notes, cultural context, or the original script (kanji for Japanese, Cyrillic for Russian
Yes. All names are based on real-world naming data, so everything is authentic. Many of the generators include meaning notes and even cultural information, as well as listing a name in its original script: Japanese names in kanji, Russian names in Cyrillic, and some Indian names in Devanagari. These names are ready for you to use in your creative work. For more serious work – like legal documents or genealogy research — it is best to verify against a primary source whenever possible.
This hub contains real names from different cultures and languages. In contrast, the other generators for story & character names are for entirely made-up settings such as fantasy, a D&D party, or an entirely invented world. In other words, if the character is from real life (e.g., Barcelona), use this hub. If the character is completely made-up (e.g., a wizard), use the other hub.
Yes. Names are not copyrightable, so you can use the generated names in your novel, screenplay, campaign,n or gam; no attribution required. This is what a cultural name generator is for. The meaning notes help you select a name that is appropriate for your character, rather than just choosing the first name that comes to mind.