New Post
Search
Help[Opinions] Real Surnames that sounds like RPG character surnames
I work at a job where I see a lot of different names every day and over the I've taken it upon myself to write down a bunch of very real surnames I've seen that sound like something I'd give to one of my many RPG characters and fantasy world OCs. I'd like to know what you think of these and if you also know any that you'd think have the same feel to them. I find this quality endearing.
Gearhart
Oxenrider
Houseknecht
Elwood
Novalis
Lightcap
Vandervort
Hockenberry
Vanderlinder
Zokhrabekova
Ravenscroft
Leisenring
Sands
Vandendreissche
Tarr
Minium
Orner
Shade
Waldvogel
Woolfolk
Conquest
Wintermute
Gemberling
Hydro
Klock
Geiswhite
Lawless
Whispell
Proudlock
Feather
Edit: having turned on the create links checkbox, Elwood is the only name on this list that actually has an entry on this site at time of posting! (Not counting user submitted names which I think don't pick up?) Really fascinating to see that.
UP WITH TRANS RIGHTS
DOWN WITH AUTISM SPEAKS
🏳️⚧️♾️🏳️⚧️♾️🏳️⚧️
Gearhart
Oxenrider
Houseknecht
Elwood
Novalis
Lightcap
Vandervort
Hockenberry
Vanderlinder
Zokhrabekova
Ravenscroft
Leisenring
Sands
Vandendreissche
Tarr
Minium
Orner
Shade
Waldvogel
Woolfolk
Conquest
Wintermute
Gemberling
Hydro
Klock
Geiswhite
Lawless
Whispell
Proudlock
Feather
Edit: having turned on the create links checkbox, Elwood is the only name on this list that actually has an entry on this site at time of posting! (Not counting user submitted names which I think don't pick up?) Really fascinating to see that.
UP WITH TRANS RIGHTS
DOWN WITH AUTISM SPEAKS
🏳️⚧️♾️🏳️⚧️♾️🏳️⚧️
This message was edited 5/23/2025, 5:33 PM
Replies
I used to know a Brandon Merryman.
There is a French-Canadian surname that always makes me smile. It's ''Jolicoeur''. It is not particularly rare (like it exists, I've come across two or three people during my lifetime with that name) It literally means ''pretty heart''. Hearing it always makes me smile for some reason.
Oh that's precious
I've encountered Lawless too along with the following:
Battles
Hell
Meriwether
Mondragon
Moriarty
Powers
Plumptre
Sumner / Summoner
Waltz
Edited to add: Bloodsoe, Breedlove
Battles
Hell
Meriwether
Mondragon
Moriarty
Powers
Plumptre
Sumner / Summoner
Waltz
Edited to add: Bloodsoe, Breedlove
This message was edited 5/22/2025, 8:22 AM
Those are good ones for sure. I might have to keep Mondragon
I "collect" whimsical surnames I come across at my job too! I add them to a list I've kept for years to use for future potential stories/characters. Those are some absolutely delightful ones in your list, I simply must collect Lightcap, Whispell, Proudlock, Houseknecht, and Woolfolk.
Here's some of mine:
Winterholler
Honeybourne
Sobotker
Lusk
Chrysostom
Swoff
Jollymore
Cromby
Phillipoff
Mapstone
Dalrymple
Pluckrose
Here's some of mine:
Winterholler
Honeybourne
Sobotker
Lusk
Chrysostom
Swoff
Jollymore
Cromby
Phillipoff
Mapstone
Dalrymple
Pluckrose
Oh Honeybourne is a GOOD one I love that
Interesting how personally knowing someone with a name makes it seem less remarkable. I had two good friends, a brother and sister, whose last name was Wintermute so it seems perfectly normal to me. : I've also known people whose last names were Woolfolk and Lawless, and I've read books by authors named Tarr and Gearhart. Sands also seems normal to me because of singer and actor Tommy Sands, and recently British actor Julian Sands was unfortunately in the news because he disappeared while hiking in southern California's San Gabriel Mountains in January 2023 and was found dead six months later.
I've never known a Proudlock, but I had a good friend whose surname was Proudfoot.
I've never known a Proudlock, but I had a good friend whose surname was Proudfoot.
For sure! I don't remember any really cool names from highschool. Granted I graduated in 2014 so it's been a while, and my interest in names hadn't really awaken yet. I'm sure there's people out there that would have been flabbergasted by the sheer volume of Polish names though.
I do this too haha
I actually had a spreadsheet with "magical" names on it that I use for the DnD campaign and for my writing!
I also love finding people with superhero names - I've run into real life Logan Howlett (Wolverine), Wade Wilson (Deadpool), Lorna Dane (Polaris), and Jean Grey. Also I've run into a couple Wayne Bruce's, which is Batman's name backwards haha Also met a Barbara Gordon (Batgirl).
I find it very amusing in my normally dull day-to-day life lol
I actually had a spreadsheet with "magical" names on it that I use for the DnD campaign and for my writing!
I also love finding people with superhero names - I've run into real life Logan Howlett (Wolverine), Wade Wilson (Deadpool), Lorna Dane (Polaris), and Jean Grey. Also I've run into a couple Wayne Bruce's, which is Batman's name backwards haha Also met a Barbara Gordon (Batgirl).
I find it very amusing in my normally dull day-to-day life lol
I had a travelling coworker at one point that was named Xavier and delightfully informed me he was in fact named after the X-Men character. My brother is named Jacen, and it took me a LONG time to find this out, but he's apparently named after a character from the Star Wars novels.
Ooh, I got one for ya: a guy who worked in HR at one of my jobs had the surname Ghostkeeper. Amazing, right?? It was definitely his real, legal family name because he was pretty disgruntled about my delight over it.
Ravenscroft and Wintermute are amazing. So Gothic. Lightcap and Whispell are adorable!
I saved a few surnames from a job I had working in some archives, maybe you'll enjoy these:
Rosecorner
Withernow
Solar
Rumbelow
Goodenough
Silvertooth
Whimbrel
Ravenscroft and Wintermute are amazing. So Gothic. Lightcap and Whispell are adorable!
I saved a few surnames from a job I had working in some archives, maybe you'll enjoy these:
Rosecorner
Withernow
Solar
Rumbelow
Goodenough
Silvertooth
Whimbrel
Snatching Rosecorner and Rumbelow for my whimsical/fantasy surname collection, thank you very much.
Goodenough definitely has a story attached to it, I wish I knew what it was!
Goodenough definitely has a story attached to it, I wish I knew what it was!
I love it! Ghostkeeper would have been really great for a necromancer character of mine but I've already well settled on Smythe (think of her folks like the Addams family, hence the spelling). Just something about names that are word combos being the go-to for a lot of fantasy writers really helps this feeling.