Naming your dolls

I couldn't give a doll that same name as someone I knew. By some fluke I happen to have a doll named James and then met a friend called James, and now it feels weird when I talk about the doll James because people think i'm talking about the person and arghhh. Also doesn't help that doll James is a right little douche and real James is very nice, he'd be mortally offended if by some misunderstanding heard me refer to James the doll as "that hipster douchebag over there" lol.

Also you know when you meet someone with a particular name and they're a real jerk? you end up associating that name with that individual's behaviour. I have a few names I just can't like now thanks to awful people with those names. Likewise there's names where every person with that name you've ever met has been lovely or really crazy or odd or whatever, so now that name is intrinsically linked to those traits.
It's the same reason people dismiss names for kids. "Oh I knew a Susan at school, she was awful to me" or "I've never met a Martha I didn't like"
I think doll naming is a bit like naming a child, you don't want to use something that's overdone but you also don't want to use something linked to a person in your life unless that doll is supposed to be linked to them (I have a puppet named Trebor because husband (who is robert) claimed I was replacing him with a puppet him hahaha. So it's Trebor, robert backwards. but most of the time i'd avoid names of people I know due to the confusion and potential wierdness of having a toy with the same name as your cousin or your dad or sister or something. Yeek. I know i'd be a bit weirded out if someone I knew gave a doll my name.

 

Mostly I just pick names that I like and that seem to suit the personality I imagine for each doll. None of my dolls really have much in the way of backstories, and I don't write about them, so none of them have last names. My April Story Adrienne's name is Snow, because she's literally meant to be Snow White as in the classic fairy tale character. I played around with names that meant "snow" or had some connection to winter, or the color white... but in the end I just didn't like any of them as much as plain old Snow. And my Islanddoll Noah girl is named Matilda after a song I really like-- "The Black Matilda" by the Rumjacks. I imagine her character as sort of a personification of the Matilda in the song. They're the only two I'd say have any real specific significance to their names, character wise. Everyone else just got names I liked that felt like they suited.

 

I totally agree with every word from your post. Moreover, when you have a doll, it has be something very special and any association kind of kills this precious personality and individuality.

 

I've chosen names from a couple different avenues. My first doll, Emily, got my first-choice baby name from when I planned to have kids. Alexandra was chosen so that it could be shortened for a tomboy nickname (Chris was also an option). Briallen is a flower elf from Wales, and Briallen is the Welsh word for primrose. Fujiko is a mori girl and her theme color is light purple, so I chose "wisteria child" for her name. Cheonsa is an Angel Elf Soo, and cheonsa is the Korean word for angel. Himeko and Kumiko are two of my favorite Japanese names. All of the girls have a flower element somewhere in their names and a theme color. I wanted rich purple for my tan MNF Lira, so I went with Orchid. I've never planned to name a doll after a real person, I do think that would be awkward for the person in question. I have one doll I plan to keep the sculpt name for, Luts Eveline. I just really like that name. Okay so I choose random names, sorry I'm not help lolololol.

 

Quite a few dolls have passed through my home, and usually their final names are ones that seem to stick after "trying on" a few. Inspiration for the names can come from novels, or just from searching for name meanings online (I'm a big sucker for names with good meanings). One name has already been there though - I always have a Yo that I will call Charlotte/Lottie - they're the one that I think will most likely stay with me for a long time. Currently (and I think maybe from now on), Charlotte is the name for my YoSD Kanon.

 

I have a problem with naming dolls or just characters in general. When I get a new doll, or have a new character in mind, I go to a list I've made of names that I like the sound of. But the thing is, I normally end up with the first name I consider for the character. Because the first name I think of tends to stick, and even if I think of a better name later, I can't get myself to change it. Both of my girls, Poppy and Edith suffered from this. But as time passed I warmed up to their names, and find that they suit them rather well, which is probably why they stuck in the first place.

 

It's very hard for me to name anything..
The thought of it will be a name that I will be calling him forever is scary.

Sometimes I just browse google for name ideas or my last resort is to just pick an anime character I love.

 

As the first post state, it's a lot of character names for me.
But for a new doll with no character attached? That's very difficult. I often ask my Irish friend for naming advice.
It's also dependent on the doll's looks and perceived personality.

 

I have a list on my phone of names that I've heard and liked, so I pair the doll up with that name that has a nice ring to it, and that I think fits the doll. My current boy is Alister

 

As I can only speak for one doll, (I only have one currently,) I feel that the name comes gradually. At least it did for him. It took me about a month before I established a name for him as well as a signature look. Before that I just called him the company name. I have a feeling my next dolls will also be purchased and will arrive before I give them names, unless I'm purchasing one in the late future for the sake of already existing fictional characters in my arsenal of science-fiction and fantasy.

 

When trying to name a doll, I usually already have a sense of how I want the name to sound. I don't know if that makes sense, but I tend to already have an idea of how many syllables I want the name to have. After that, I go through the alphabet and choose the letter which most stands out to me for the doll. From there on I usually have more trouble deciding a name if it's not modeled after a pre-existing character. Personally, I try not to name it after a common name that I'll come across because I would feel awkward having a doll with the same name as someone I know.

 

My doll family is all over the place and I've given up naming them for the time being.
I was going to name them when I properly place them (by head sculpt) into the story but then it was hard deciding what they should look like and all of that, so for now they are more like... just looking pretty!
I suppose that's what I get for buying them just by sculpts that I like rather than trying to shell one of my 40+ already existing OCs, but I am way too picky about my OCs and doubt I could find sculpts that fit them perfectly, because I already have images of them in my head.
I write either fantasy or rather realistic stories taking place in Japan though so it's mostly Japanese names for me.

 

I have had my first bjd for two weeks now, but I can't seem to find his name.

Maybe it's because his outfit isn't made, his wig isn't here, and I haven't gotten the color eyes I want for him yet.

It could also be because his body paint isn't done yet.

How do you all find your doll names? Does it come easily for you? Did you know your doll's name right away? Or did it take time for it to come to you? I am curious to know how it goes for others.

 

It can take a while. I have a new Pukifee that I got about two weeks ago, and I haven't decided much about her other than her wig. She has a basic faceup too, but I don't even know if I want to add to it or anything. So far, I'm calling her "Critter," because I couldn't even decide initially whether she was a she or not, and several people commented on how cute the nickname was, so I've kept it for now.

 

I have several methods - I have a list of names I've always loved - I look in baby name books (or lists online). My dolls all are of a specific ethnicity so I find names from those countries. Don't worry though, if you can't get his name immediately, eventually it will come to you.

 

Okay. I do a lot of things. 1st I go on baby names sites to name my characters if I have a very specific meaning I want to come across. Second, and the more common one, I go on Fantasy name generators. Names for all your fantasy characters. and choose from the drop downs if I have a specific nationality for a real name or a fantastic race etc etc (youll see if you go to the site) and then I just keep clicking until I find a name I like, that suits the character,

 

If you don't have an idea yet about who your doll is going to be, don't feel pressured to name it straight away. I've had my first doll (Madalyn from Souldoll) since 2011, and after trying out different names, it was only like two months ago that I gave her a name that truly matched her in my opinion - Lydia. Meanwhile, you can always call your doll by the sculpt name.
On the other hand, my Mr Rabbit is still only a head, but his name has been Farinelli the moment I ordered him and nothing would ever change that!

 

With my boys I decided on a personality and a bit of a back story before I chose their names. Also with one of my second hand dolls took into account where I got him from and tried finding a name from his old home. I like to stick with more uncommon but still realistic names for my boys, and if I can find something spelled differently I am usually drawn to it pretty quickly.

 

Usually, I write the character first and buy the doll later so they already have a name, but in cases where the doll comes first, I tend to go through baby name websites while looking at the doll and getting ideas of what fits. Sometimes, if the doll is based on an existing movie or book character or shares traits with a real person, I'll run the inspiring person/character's name through a baby name site that suggests related names.

 

I used to pick names from baby name websites, but now I just get the name popping into my mind when I start thinking about buying a doll. Or I might use the sculpt name as a starting point - so Mika becomes Michelle, for example.