Naming your dolls

Hmm..six of my dolls were inspired by people so they used their names. Past that, I have naming structures. All of Mao and Kyou's children are named after Catholic saints. All of Tsuru's children have Japanese names. For my dolls that sit outside the main story/family structure..I have a much harder time coming up with names for XD I'm still trying to find names on some.

 

I don't have much experience naming dolls, but when naming characters I like to use the behind the name website. I think up a meaning or trait that suits the character and search for names with that meaning. The site also has a name generator tool which can be useful if you cant think of anything.

 

I still need to name my two bjd’s. Sometimes I just wait for a name to ‘fit’ when I’m styling them/photographing them. In the past, I have been known to search baby name sites for names inspired by something. For example, I had a galaxy themed custom, so wanted a galaxy themed name.

 

I come up with a doll character first before I even get the doll, and I just have to think a lot about the character and what would suit them

 

I usually just go on baby name websites and scroll through lists until something clicks.

 

I am an animator and my dolls are literally themselves, their eyes say their names ... Louisa, Tessa, Anni, Stephan, Pavel, Herman...

 

All of my dolls, both present and future, are just shelling characters of mine so my response probably won't quite be what was intended, but I'll try anyway.

I, personally, am a fan of puns so my two main boys (who have yet to arrive) are both named with that in mind. One has a questionable origin--Youji, where the first kanji is the same you as in youkai--and the other is a dog demon--Cuinn, pronounced as Quinn and referring to the word cú meaning hound. That being said, sometimes it can take ages to come up with the right name. The only one I currently have home at the moment, Seiya, was named to give my friend a positive association with the name after having only heard it tied to an OC belonging to an ex-friend and having a very negative view of it as a result.

Now if only I could come up with something decent for this dragon I've been working on...

 

I really love how you created a name that has significance meaning by taking names from your family members. Now that doll will always be special to you. With most of the dolls (non-BJD) I collect, I have already planned a name for them, however with BJDs I found the process to be quite different. For some reason, I couldn't commit to a name until they were home and completely outfitted. I have to spend time with him/her and see how their style pans out before I can officially select a name.

It took me at least a week to choose both of my dolls names. I often browse name websites and research the name meanings (I love a good name meaning!) Nameberry.com is my favorite for this.

I recently did a blog post on this very topic! 5 Tips For Naming Your Doll The Perfect Name

 

I don't have a certain naming system for my dolls. I'll literally have a name pop up in my head and if it sticks, I go with it. I just let the name come naturally.

 

I look at a lot of baby name sites and name generators. I change my dolls name a few times before I settle on one I really like. Right now I want to change Simone's name because I don't like the way it sounds when I say it out loud.

 

My dolls aren't really characters or anything. I think of them more as like little customizable works of art, so they either don't have names or have silly names. I originally named my DC Ant Celty after Cell, but changed my mind about making her purple and green and made her orange and black instead so now she's Cheeto lol. I guess I pick names that go with the aesthetic of the doll, if that makes sense.

 

I think that is a cute idea! If I had to go with that naming scheme my girls would probably be named Pinky and Marshmallow *giggles*

 

I have one family of dolls that are named after gemstones/semi-precious stones. The rest are just names I saw either in a book or from a baby name site.

 

That is such a cool ideal. It reminds me of the crew of villains in Sailor Moon =^_^= (Queen Beryl is always my fave; don't ask..).

 

My story is made up of gods/goddesses/spirits/angels from religions around the world, so I look to international baby naming websites. Ludovica Amorosi is Italian Catholic angel, and I just really liked the nickname Ludo. Healani Kahale is a Hawaiian name I chose for my incoming Hawaiian goddess of the ocean.

 

Okay.... All of the doll in my family are named (or nicknamed) after food lolz

Even tho from the profile it doesn't seems like it, but yeah the nickname I called them are all foods.

My general large size boy (SD17 not included) are named after fruits: Persimmon and Melon
the bigger boy with SD17 body is named after alcohol: Pinot
my two large size girl are named after sweets: mochi and ice pop
and the two medium size little one are named after beans: red and black bean

as of thier original name on the profile, I just give them whatever Kanji come in to my mind by the time lolz

 

well im Japanese and for the most part it's normal for japanese names to have meaning in the kanj so i always like to match my dolls personality with a name that can translate well to their personality traits. another thing i do sometimes for my little dolls that have no part in my stories if i cant come up with a name then i always just go to the baby names sites or just come up with cool sounding names my self

 

I started with names that began with K. After Katerina, Katya, Kar'yn, 6 more... to Kari I needed a different set of names, so they now get named after characters from stories, books or movies that I particularly like.

 

When I name a doll it does not always stick. Typically I will think of a name but, more often than not, I will forget the name after a few months. The few names that stick tend to be on the dolls with the most developed personalities and characters. I wait till I have the doll to see what personality tends to develop. The ones I usually remember are the Disney themed ones.

 

I make preexisting characters, OCs or characters from books etc. so their names are choosed in advence.

I've made one half inpulsive buy - the doll inspired me as soon as I have seen him, so his name just happened along with the rest. He just...looked like his name? Or the name was like him? I can't really describe it.
But my newest, truly impulsivly bought boy...That's a problem. I bought him just because I loved the sculpt. No preexisting character which would match, no impulsive inspiration. Nothing. I'll just wait and give it time