Gnome Name Generator

What gnome names sound like

Gnome names bounce. They are usually two or three syllables long, full of b, p, z and n, stressed on the first beat and finished with a playful ending: -wick, -bin, -zen or -o for boys, -ina, -ella or -bell for girls. Say a few aloud and you will hear it, the rhythm of someone who talks quickly because there is always something more interesting to get to. This page's list begins with Dablio “Tumbles” Cogfizz, said DAH-blee-oh.

Our grammar keeps the bounce from turning into gibberish. A cluster such as ck or bl may appear only once per name, two parts that end in the same letters may not sit side by side, and doubled vowels are merged.

Tinker and woodland gnomes

• Tinker gnomes have the clickier names, with k, z and -wick, and family names from the workbench: Copperkettle, Sprocketbrook, or of the something Workshop.
• Woodland gnomes have softer names with m, l and n and endings such as -moss, -fern and -bell, and family names from mushrooms, moss and hedgerows: think Toadstoolhat or Acornwhistle, or of the Bracken Folk.

Most fantasy worlds have room for both. A gnome who grew up in a city workshop and later moved to the woods might well have a tinker's name and a woodland nickname.

Nicknames and family names

Gnomes in many stories collect names the way other people collect keepsakes: one from each parent, a few from friends, one earned in an embarrassing accident. We give each name a single nickname in quotes, picked from a list of our own (Sixpence, Teacup, Quickstitch), and limit each one to once per thirty names so a list never repeats a joke. Family names are compounds of two cheerful words, a workshop name, or a burrow or warren. If you need a longer chain of names for one character, generate a few and stitch them together.