Names and meaning

When I’m naming characters, well often I’ll just browse some of the baby naming websites that are out there.  If it’s a minor character I might just pick something at random that sounds good.  If I know something like the ethnicity or nationality of the character I’ll refine my search accordingly.  Sometimes I’ll try to pick a name that has a meaning that reflects something about the character, or fits thematically with the story.  Alvin Stag, for example:  Alvin actually just means ‘noble friend’, but it sound a bit like elven doesn’t it?  And ‘Stag’ is of course a reference to Oberon.  Here then are some more character names and why I named them that.

Jennifer Willow Airhart – Jennifer means ‘white enchantress’ or ‘fair one’, but although the character is fair in appearance, I more or less just picked that at random.  Airhart however is a variant of Earhart meaning courageous and honorable.  I chose it because of the famous aviator.  Jen has long dreamt of flying off and exploring the world and pushing back the bounds of what’s possible (although she’s need a bit of help actually getting out of the house first).  Willow was more or less just added for plot reasons, but if you’re wondering it means slender and graceful (like the tree).

Kaya Cade – Kaya is a name found in many different cultures; Japanese, Greek, Native American.  It’s also Jamaican slang for marijuana.  Bob Marley made a song about it.  Kaya Cade is also a musician, of sorts, but when we do eventually meet her family maybe it will be clearer why her mother might have named her that.  ‘Cade’ also has several different meanings and origins, from lumpy, to casket, or pet.  I just picked because I thought it sounded good.

Sayuri Oshiro – Sayuri is Japanese meaning small lily, although Oshiro means big castle.  Maybe it’s because she’s a beautiful thing that must be protected, but actually it’s a name I picked at random years and years ago.  A lot of characters I made in video games were called that (I did watch a lot of anime back then and maybe went through a bit of a weaboo stage, but my nephew must never know about that).

Tenley Tych – Well the name Tenley was originally an English surname that for some reason became a girl’s name in the US.  The reason I named was because there is a minor character in the game Baldur’s Gate named Tenya who I started including some fanfics I wrote and made into someone who could join your party in a mod.  So Tenley started off being based on that character and I just picked another name that sounded similar.  I don’t know if Tych is a real surname or not.  I just took the ‘e’ off Tyche, the original Greek name of Fortuna.  As a child, Tenley is more inclinced than other characters to act on her emotions, so she can seem a little chaotic, random, and a bit of a force of nature at times.