How do you name your characters?

[Dorian Gregory]

Naming a character is very important if you intend to use that character for more than just a single thread, which could die in as little as a week. When it comes to characters that I use I put a lot of effort into creating them writing at least seven pages of information not including any explicitly titlted history. However, we I think of names I try to consider the character much like the rest of you. For example, Dorian Gregory is actually an elderly man who had been a very prominent Doctor in his time in a future world. However, I can easily flip his traits and fit him into any setting.

More on point, when looking for a characte name I rummage through the excel spread sheet I have of more than four hundred names first and last gathered from the four corners of the globe and draw out what I need. At least as I experience it, when I create a character I can read over these names and just instantanously know which one fits. I'm sure I am not the only one who feels this way. As it were, after writing for so long coming up with names isn't terribly difficult. The character is what matters and if you make the character likeable and interesting to the reader they will come to love the name.

[Rilla]

Honestly, hitting random letters and seeing what sticks, if I don't already have a name.

It's how i got the name Rilla, for instance, or Ukami.

If it's for w modern setting, I use RL examples of people I know.

Like William(Guy I went to school with), Chamberlain(My middle name)

[Dudel]

Wing it.

I never use the same tactic twice. Sometimes a name just comes to me. Sometimes the RP has "naming rules" which I'm encouraged to follow. Sometimes I ask a friend. Sometimes I slap my keyboard.

If it's just an NPC, or some thorw away.

I use dis.

http://www.behindthename.com/random/

[TheSleepyKitty]

I basically look up origins/meaning of names, and pick ones I like.

For surnames, I just try to pick a last name that seems to fit with the RP (i.e. Medieval Europe etc.)

[theapprentice]

The locations I use latin or historical roots to name. Characters have random names.

[Alphakoka]

Usually mixing/switching up from picking names of people I know, using generator (Including a list of names with its meaning), mumbling somethings that might be used for names, or trying to make anagram.

Of course, it all depends on the RP, I wouldn't make some guy named Jim in an Eastern setting and vice-versa.

[Valeric]

There's a huge trouble coming up with oriental names though. It isn't enough that it has to sound good (in language different to the name itself), but you also have to pay attention to the actual meaning of the name. Stringing together random Japanese words, for example, won't work because it's more likely to be some embarrassing gibberish.

[Foster]

As the title states. I'm pretty curious how most people come up with names for characters, or even for locations.

I usually use a name generator for characters of modern setting, especially for their last names. I just keep running a generator until I find a satisfactory first name - last name combination, and use it. For fantasy settings, I just string together something random in my head until something nice falls into place. I often worry that a name I came up with may in fact be the name of something I've read before, but unable to recall at the current moment, so I usually google it beforehand.

I manualy generate names off of names I've already seen. Oftentimes obscure TV show chaacters.

Because nobody expects Lt. Skokes to secretly be a lizard alien spy.
-Sarcasm

Another time, I took several characters from Half-Life, and the Mercury space program, and just swapped first and last names around.

Gordon Grignon and Alexis Sheppard to the rescue!

And when that fails, three-word Alliteration, or fun with their initials.

William Woodrow-Wallace Wilson.

All except that last method are helpful, in the event of memory-loss... or if you're looking for someone who watched a show but you're too embarrassed to ask.

[Alphakoka]

There's a huge trouble coming up with oriental names though. It isn't enough that it has to sound good (in language different to the name itself), but you also have to pay attention to the actual meaning of the name. Stringing together random Japanese words, for example, won't work because it's more likely to be some embarrassing gibberish.

That can be overcame by asking an oriental friend's help.
But yeah, for oriental names, I usually go for a generic meaning, then translate them to said language and see if it works.

[Hagazussa]

I generally choose a name I like for my character and which fit their personality. You could say the characters themselves tell me what they want to be named. If I am playing in a particular time period or setting that have specific naming conventions I read up on that and choose an appropriate name from those that might fit, again going by what feel right for the character.