Find a name for your wizard
- Halion the Annotatorhal (hidden) + ion (walker): “hidden walker”, a scholar of the arcane
- Galelm Toadstoolgal (grey) + elm (helm): “grey helm”, a hedge witch or village cunning-folk
- Balast of the Grey Coastbal (tower) + ast (seer): “tower seer”, a wandering wizard
- Selodric the Annotatorsel (moon) + odric (counsellor): “moon counsellor”, a scholar of the arcane
- Thalion the Magnificentthal (green) + ion (walker): “green walker”, a court magician
- Balelm of the High Gatebal (tower) + elm (helm): “tower helm”, a court magician
- Halessa of the Ashen Mirehal (hidden) + essa (weaver): “hidden weaver”, a sorcerer of ill repute
- Isessa the Learnedis (wise) + essa (weaver): “wise weaver”, a scholar of the arcane
How these wizard names are built
Each given name joins an opening syllable to an ending, both drawn from a small invented “old tongue” that scholars in a fantasy world might still use. Sel means moon and ast means seer, so Selast is “moon seer”. Is (wise) and andor (keeper) give Isandor, the “wise keeper”.
The tradition you choose decides the title or place that follows. A scholar might be “of the Lamplit Archive”, a hedge witch “of Nettle Lane”, a court magician “Crown-Sworn”. These bynames do a great deal of characterisation in very few words, which is useful when a wizard appears in only one scene.
Opening syllables
| Syllable | Meaning |
|---|---|
| al | bright |
| mer | sea |
| thal | green |
| cor | heart |
| ev | evening |
| is | wise |
| or | gold |
| sel | moon |
| bal | tower |
| ros | dew |
| ith | star |
| quen | word |
| gal | grey |
| ny | new |
| tam | quiet |
| hal | hidden |
Endings
| Ending | Meaning |
|---|---|
| andor | keeper |
| iel | child |
| ard | strong |
| wyn | fair |
| elm | helm |
| ric | ruler |
| ast | seer |
| avel | listener |
| ine | singer |
| ost | stone |
| odric | counsellor |
| essa | weaver |
| ion | walker |
| umbra | shadow |
What makes a wizard name memorable
Contrast the name with the person. A grand name for a nervous apprentice, or a plain one for the most powerful mage in the kingdom, gives readers something to wonder about. Ursula K. Le Guin built a whole system on this idea in Earthsea, where a person’s true name is kept private and a use-name is given to the world. Our guide to beginning Earthsea is a good place to see how much story a name can hold.
Let the title reveal the training. Where did they learn? Who do they serve? Is the title one they chose or one others gave them? A wizard called “the Unremembered” has clearly lost something, and readers will want to know what.
Keep the cast distinguishable. If several magicians appear in your story, vary the first letter and the number of syllables. Generate a list and choose names that look different on the page, not only different in meaning.
More names for your world
Every wizard needs somewhere to drink and somewhere to be from: the tavern and town name generator covers both. If your wizard faces something with wings, try the dragon name generator. For the rules behind the magic itself, read our magic system ideas.