Goblins are the first monster many D&D parties meet, and the ones they remember have names. In the starter adventure Lost Mine of Phandelver it's Yeemik the goblin and Klarg the bugbear. This goblin name generator covers all three goblinoids: quick, nasty goblin names with an epithet, hobgoblins with a military rank, and big, slow-sounding bugbear names.
Goblins, hobgoblins and bugbears
In D&D, goblins, hobgoblins and bugbears are three related peoples, often grouped as goblinoids, and they suit very different names:
- Goblins are small, quick and cowardly in a crowd. Their names are one syllable or two, full of k, g and sk sounds: Snik, Skrit, Gribble.
- Hobgoblins are disciplined soldiers who organise into legions. Their names are harder and more formal (Morzak, Ghaztor), and a hobgoblin is likely to introduce themselves by rank.
- Bugbears are the largest and stealthiest of the three, despite their size. Their names are heavy and rumbling: Brugg, Thrum, Gorrumph.
Goblins in folklore and fiction
Goblins were mischievous spirits in European folklore long before they were monsters in games. Christina Rossetti's poem Goblin Market (1862) has goblin merchants selling enchanted fruit. Tolkien's The Hobbit has the Great Goblin under the Misty Mountains, and in Labyrinth (1986) David Bowie plays Jareth, the Goblin King.
D&D's goblins borrow from all of that: greedy, sneaky and funnier than they mean to be. That's why an epithet works so well. "Snik Two-Teeth" tells you what kind of goblin he is before he's said a word.
Naming goblins at the table
- Name the one who surrenders. A goblin who begs for its life is the one players will want to talk to, so it needs a name ready.
- Give the boss a title. Goblin bosses love grand titles they haven't earned: "Gnash the Bold", "King Splug".
- Keep hobgoblins formal. Rank first, name second: "Captain Morzak". It shows players at once this is a disciplined enemy.
- Let bugbears be quiet. A short, heavy name for a creature that strikes from the shadows makes a good surprise.