Halloween Names: Costumes, Parties and Spooky Stories
Good Halloween names tell people what kind of scary you're in for: a cosy cup of tea with a friendly ghost, or a cellar nobody comes back from. Here's how to name costumes, parties, pets and stories, with examples from our own generators.
Decide how scary it should be
Halloween takes its name from All Hallows' Eve, the night before All Saints' Day on 1 November. It has always mixed the frightening with the silly: before pumpkins took over, children in Ireland and Scotland carved lanterns from turnips.
Every Halloween name sits somewhere between those two. Before you choose one, decide who it's for. A name for a toddler's costume and a name for a horror night should sound completely different, and most of our Halloween generators let you choose cosy, funny or properly spooky.
Costume characters
A costume is better with a name, especially at a party where everyone asks who you are.
- Witches can be classic, hedge or costume-party silly. A child's witch might be Glitterhex Gigglewick or Potionella Broomsticks; a hedge witch comes with a familiar, like Holly Nettlecombe and her toad, Warty Bob. Try the Witch Name Generator.
- Vampires have been aristocrats since John Polidori's The Vampyre (1819) and Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897), so a title helps: Countess Yvette Harrowgate, Margravine Aveline Ravenhurst. A modern vampire can pass as ordinary: Rafe Fairchild. See the Vampire Name Generator.
- Ghosts are named after what they look like or where they walk, like The Blue Laundress or The Yellow Coachman, or something softer for a friendly sheet costume: Biscuit, Floaty. Try the Ghost Name Generator.
- Monsters under the bed are best funny: Wobwick the Sock-Thief, Sir Mumblump, Snorer Extraordinaire. See the Monster Name Generator.
Parties and haunted houses
A party or a haunted house at the school fair needs a name for the poster, and a tagline helps set expectations.
- For families, say it's friendly: The Not-So-Haunted House: the scariest thing here is the toffee apples, or Pumpkin Hollow: don't feed the bats.
- For grown-ups, short and specific is scarier: The Rot Kitchen, Doll Factory 7.
- For the party itself, a pun does the job: The Monster Bash.
Use the Haunted House Name Generator for attractions and the Event Name Generator for the party. Whatever you choose, put an age guide on the poster as well as a name.
Werewolves, zombies and skeletons
The rest of the Halloween cast each has its own naming habit:
- Werewolves suit names that mean wolf, which many languages have plenty of: Ulric (wolf power), Conall (strong wolf), Louve (she-wolf). The Werewolf Name Generator gives the meaning with each one.
- Zombies are funniest with an ordinary name and a description: Lurching Brenda, Drooling Graham. See the Zombie Name Generator.
- Skeletons are made for bone puns: Pelvis Shinwell, Knuckles Dryden, or just Rattles. Try the Skeleton Name Generator.
- Scarecrows can be folksy (Grandad Hob Haycock, Jem Tater) or creepy, depending on the field. See the Scarecrow Name Generator.
- Mummies get real ancient Egyptian-style names with meanings, like Siamun ("son of Amun"). Try the Mummy Name Generator.
Black cats and Halloween pets
Black cats have a mixed reputation. In parts of Britain a black cat crossing your path has long been thought lucky, while elsewhere it's an omen. Either way, Halloween is their season.
A spooky name suits the mood (Omen, Murk, Raven-Paw), but one that lasts all year is a safer bet for a real pet. Food names work well for black cats: Bilberry, Aniseed, or Bara Brith, after the Welsh fruit loaf. The Black Cat Name Generator has spooky, cute, gothic and food styles, and works for dogs too.
Halloween names for children
For younger children, the best Halloween names are funny rather than frightening. A few things help:
- Silly sounds: names with bubbles, wiggles and giggles in them, like Glitterhex Gigglewick or Wigglesnore the Very Shy, take the fear out of a costume.
- A job or a habit: a monster who steals socks or snores is more fun than one that lurks. Mrs Blubsock the Snack-Snaffler is a monster a four-year-old can be.
- Friendly ghosts named after soft things: Floaty, Biscuit, Glow.
- Family haunted houses with reassuring taglines, so nobody refuses to go in.
For a story to go with the costume, the family-friendly mood in the Local Legend Generator makes gentle legends, like a black dog with a red collar who chases leaves round the green in autumn.
Spooky stories and local legends
A ghost story needs three names: the ghost, the place, and the warning. Real British legends work this way, from black dogs on lonely roads to grey ladies in old houses.
- The Local Legend Generator makes up a whole legend in that style, with a place, a creature and the warning locals still give. Choose the family-friendly mood for younger listeners.
- The Horror Movie Title Generator gives a story a title. Folk horror suits one-word names like Wickermother or Harecrown.
- For a witches' gathering in the story, the Coven Name Generator has cosy options like The Marmalade and Cauldron Coven.
A quick way to pick
- Choose the scare level: cosy, funny or frightening.
- Pick the generator for what you're naming, and the style that matches.
- Generate a few and say them out loud. Halloween names are announced at parties, shouted at doors and read on posters.
- Add a title or tagline if it needs one: a countess, a sock-thief, a warning.
For everything else, see all the Halloween name generators.