How do you come up with dragon names?

[Aqub]

Most of my dragons' names come from songs or are named after fictional characters. The others are puns or just phrases that I think sound cool. 

[jeffrey-kira]

well, ideally i was gonna name them with random phrases like race horses (some of them, like "suspiciously fleshy" and "final fantasy 500") but most of the time its some stupid "whatever comes to mind when i stare at the sprite" thing xD

https://dragcave.net/view/gVhfR

this one's my favorite 'cuz it looks like the dragon is yelling, see? im very creative.

plus i realised at some point i should just go with things that make me smile rather than anything that actually sounds cool. xD

[Aithne-Onik]

I use the Egg Code.

Basically I take the sound of the code and use the phonetical system from a made up Draconic language I made years ago. 

Ex:

The egg code is "9towV" so the name is "Nyntohv"

Or harder ones such as: "8ZjwT" so, "Eiizjaht"

 

Other times, I don't like how the code-phonetic comes out, so I just name them something relating to how they look or such.

Ex: My Frilled female, Hvaarj. Meaning "Striped".

[Nagapie]

When I was just starting out a couple of months ago I went pretty much exclusively for names originating from album names, songs or their lyrics. Now that I've started to reach the point where I'm struggling to think of ones I haven't used yet I've started to simply think them up myself (often, but not always, using a pattern of adjective + substantive) or use random names or phrases from games and other origins. I have a feeling that some of the ones I think of myself end up sounding a bit nonsensical to native english speakers, but so far no one receiving my lineages has complained so...*shrug*

 

- Examples -

Musical names: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4

Thought up names: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4

Other names:  1 - 2 - 3 - 4

Edited December 20, 2018 by Nagapie

[Usuyukisou]

I usually go to the Dragon Name Generator website to create names! If I can make something out of the dragon's code, I will make a name based off of that instead.

[Suzumiya]

My favorite dragons get named after my family. My next favorites get named after TV show characters. After that, I just name them based on looks, breed, quirks, etc. Sometimes code, if it has a cute code. My lineage-creating dragons get usually random, yet cute, names that somehow relate to them or sound funny. I have a Black Tea lady named "Such A Tea-se". Hah. My only male CB Gold is named after God's human form in Supernatural. A CB Silver mated pair (they only mate with each other, no other dragons) are named after Piper and Leo from Charmed. A CB Silver/Holly mated pair are named after my grandparents (CB Silver beautiful, just like grandma. CB Holly adorable and sweet, like my grandpa). My super special dragon (CB Gold tinsel) is named after a Native American goddess.

Edited March 21, 2019 by Suzumiya

[AislinnSi]

I do one of several things.

 

I'll use Confused Cat's Dragon Name Generator.

I'll use the 20000 Names Website and browse 'til I find nice sounding names and combine two of 'em to form a first and last name.

Or I'll use Latin names for plants, or even plant sub-species. Examples would be Fraxinusia Manna, named after a kind of Ash. (Sort of. The Proper Latin name would be " Fraxinusia ornus", but it's a combination of the common name Manna Ash and the Latin one.) Another would be my Rosebud Kiftsgate, named after a kind of rose.

I also really like food names, though it's uncommon for me to pick up one. I prefer to name my dragons almost like they're people, I suppose?

[SpyroForLife]

Fitting adjective based on dragon's description/appearance/lineage + gemstone/mineral/occasionally other nouns. Dragons of the same breed usually all end up getting the same second name.

 

It usually works out for me and there are a LOT of adjectives out there so I very rarely repeat any. As seen in the Red Army!

 

Every so often I'll use a different style, like some of my Aeons, or my two-headed dragons which usually get names for each head, but otherwise, my adjective + noun format usually works out.

Edited March 21, 2019 by SpyroForLife

[Lyrina25]

I literally just named all my dragons. I used this generator to do it~

[osmarks]

Rarely code-based names, but for all my other dragons, I just pick some sort of cool-sounding phrase. I currently have a really long backlog due to inactivity.

[bloodyneptune]

At first I tried to find relevant names, usually Greek/roman gods. After I while I just gave up and started  "its orange. im naming it Traffic Cone. because traffic cones are orange"

[Aniia]

In order to find my dragons easily on the scroll, I give them all surnames, which are some version of their species name. For the first name, I choose a random human name, or a descriptive name if its not taken, or if I really can't think of anything, I come up with a name from their five-letter egg code.

The exception to this is dragons used in lineages I make, which have lineage-specific rules.

[Lesh4537]

I keep the following statement regarding my naming practices on my profile - 

 

"Many of the names I have given my dragons unfortunately occur while I am watching late night talk shows or the news and have been drinking. I often pick phrases or combine a couple of words that I find interesting or funny. Should you find any of these names offensive, please let me know. Drunken me thinks this is witting and creative. Sober me feels the need to apologize."

 

When I'm not testing the political sensitivity of the game, I usually try to name CBs based on the breed descriptions. For lineaged things, I try to play off of the parents names or build a similar theme. Not the most unique but it works well for me. 

[Caius]

I go for a variation between their codes, ancestors, names I like, words I like and songs. 😌

Still have about 170 left to name after my inactivity though, poor lads and lasses. But at least I've managed to name around 200 dragons in a matter of just a few days. 

[Neomorph]

It depends.

If I ever get a lineaged egg from the AP or a trade and their parents have names I usually try to come up with a combination of the two. Any CB I usually try to come up with names that resemble the type of dragon they are (for example my Thunder dragon has Fulgar in her name since Fulgar relates to electricity). 

Sometimes I make up names with their dragon code if if the code itself is cool.

[Fuzzbucket]

Codes and / or ancestors, and also in line generators.

[lunalamoon18]

Lots of different ways. Depending on my mood, my names can be meaningful, pop culture references or just plain-out silly and bizarre.

 

Some are named after the first random phrase/words/thing that comes to my mind, like "Orange Pretzel Gnome" the Arcana and "Chicken Nugget Eater".

Others get pop culture references and/or references to characters and stuff, like "Glootie" (I can't believe I got that exact name). I have so many pop culture dragons that if I put them all here, the list would get way too long.

Sometimes I make puns by splicing together a fictional character I like and a dragon species.

A few of my dragons are named after my own characters.

Music artists I like get a few dragons named after them.

One time I got frustrated that a name I wanted was taken, so behold, "why is every cool name taken ugh" the Avatar of Creation was born!

Sometimes I get good codes and name my dragons after/relating to them. Two good examples are "8aro8" and "Gedds"

Or after/relating to lineages, like my SA or "Firestorm" Red.

[Ruby Eyes]

Sometimes, I take inspiration from other people's remarks about really silly things.

For example, when someone expressed their dislike about people naming dragons silly things like Kawaii Spaghetti Monster.

(Of course I had to grab that name instantly!)

 

Other times, I may take words from webcomics: Sword-Chucks - because it's absolutely ridiculous.

Edited December 6, 2019 by Ruby Eyes

[VixenDra]

I look at the official name and translate it to Latin and change the ending so the males are named with a consonant, rarely "o"or "e", female always ends with an "a", and the S1 kid ends with a "u".

If the breed's name is untranslatable or translates into names I'm already using, I seek for some trait in the description or sprite, rarely I use the original breed name if it's untranslateable and I'm out of inspiration.

All dragons get the Dovah surnames based on gender and stage,

and all 2-headeds get a Monobrained indicator (because I'm repulsed by the idea of 2 brains sharing a body and using their shared cloaca/whaterer DC dragons have) https://dragcave.net/lineage/o9m5O

Zombies are all called Dill(undead/zombie) and their subtype https://dragcave.net/lineage/2feaF

Once I made an exception from using Latin, because it was way too irresistable: https://dragcave.net/lineage/6RfXZ

 

Also, another exception: I decided to name a special Khovos and Pipio pair after my fiance's and mine online names but I totally forgot to catch the pipio to represent him and his birthdate on November 30th;-;... it's the only extra dragons I have, all the rest are possibly PB sets of 5s with my scrollwide naming scheme.

 

[sorenna]

I have several different methods...

 

#1, I use the parents' names as a springing-off point.  This is lots of fun for AP eggs!  A good example is this Green I named "Curtains Fall At Last" (https://dragcave.net/view/8F617).  The parents are named 'Fishy Final Rush' and 'Great Wing Act 2,' which made me think of the final act of a play, which is followed by the dropping of the stage curtains and the 'curtain call' for the actors; putting that together gave me "Curtains Fall."  It's a very long lineage, so "At Last" is my joking reference to the fact that this 'play' was a very long production! 

 

#2, I incorporate a pun based on the breed or appearance.  I have bunches of Mints with names like "Experi-mint-al Subject" and "Not What I Mint" because I like coming up with silly puns. 

 

#3, I use the breed or a reference to the breed as a kind of surname, then come up with a personal name based on the dragon's code or a cool word or a random sound that popped into my head.  This style of name I like to do in pairs, so they'll make nice breeding couples.  So I end up with duos like "Morpho Glimmering" and "Morpho Shimmering" (a pair of Morpho Drakes), or "Pillow Kytra" (code kYTra) and "Pillow Yycid" (code YyciD), a Pillow pair.

 

#4, for certain lineage projects I add a Roman numeral to the #2 method.  Purebreds get the breed name/reference, so they're "II Red Smith" or "IV Pink Eagon."  Checkers get a 'smushname' with three letters from each parent breed, leading to names like "II Lacite Jezreel" for the 2nd generation of a Lacula x White checker.

[Sashimi]

I use 

On 12/13/2019 at 7:57 AM, sorenna said:

#3, I use the breed or a reference to the breed as a kind of surname, then come up with a personal name based on the dragon's code or a cool word or a random sound that popped into my head.  This style of name I like to do in pairs, so they'll make nice breeding couples.  So I end up with duos like "Morpho Glimmering" and "Morpho Shimmering" (a pair of Morpho Drakes), or "Pillow Kytra" (code kYTra) and "Pillow Yycid" (code YyciD), a Pillow pair.

I do this too!

I kind of like how neat a scroll looks when I do this and this way I remember the specific breed names x) I also like to add a "CB" when it's caveborn. Helps with breeding, too. Usually the actual name comes from their code, parents' names or based on the breed description. 

 

Frozen hatchies don't get any addons to their names (usually), just give the actual name same way as the adults or whatever I want.

[wobster109]

I try to base them on things that are important or significant to me at that time, although what counts as important is a low bar. For example, the ones from college are a lot of keywords or jargon from those classes. Gigabit. Complex Analysis. Figid (short for Figure ID). Some are characters or phrases from books, shows, and songs, and not even ones that are particularly moving, just whatever I came across that day. There was a year when a bunch are based on My Little Pony lol.

 

Lately it’s transitioned into things my toddler says. “Two cookies.” “More orange!” “Boobnana” - his first pun!

 

For holiday and valentine dragons, I try to pick things that are meaningful to me as a philosophy, lifestyle, or real world event. Same for the high generation dragons of lineage projects.

 

If I’m lazy or naming lots at once, then it’s often based on the code.

 

Sometimes I look back through my scroll, and it’s a nice reminder of what was going on in my life at various points.

Edited December 16, 2019 by wobster109
Typo

[wheeloftime13]

It varies. They can be people I know, fictional characters, sayings I like, names randomly generated, or names chosen based on their meaning and how I think it fits a specific dragon breed. Mythology is also a really big contributor after fictional characters.

[Duskspoken]

I have almost 7000 dragons and I NORMALLY try regular names. But since I have so many, and so many Dusk named kids and Grandkids, I have turned to other things. I've done Crayon colors, board games, right now I'm doing random words I see from around me or from things I hear on the tv. I also recently used celeb baby names. I am getting a bit out of hand with these crazy names but it is fun. I can't wait for people to get the babies from them. lol (I'm going to do song lyrics and titles too, as well as book titles.)

[Tiira]

Almost always I pick names that have something to do with their breeds. I use mostly Finnish words but there are exceptions, like space or fiction inspired names for certain breeds. Fun fact: common Finnish words have usually been taken already! Apparently not everyone here prefers English.