🛡️ Knight Name Generator

Sir or Dame, a medieval first name, and the place, deed or order they're known by.

By Rich · Updated

Generate Knight Names

Knight names built the medieval way: Sir or Dame, a period first name, and a place, an epithet or a knightly order, from Sir Ralph of Blackmoor to Dame Isabel the Unbowed.

Click "Generate Names" to see results

Free to use, no credit needed. If you're naming a business, brand, band or product, check the name isn't already taken or trademarked first.

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Example Knight Names

A few names this generator came up with. Press "Generate Names" above for more.

Any · Any

  • Sir Aymer of Coldwater
  • Sir Bertrand of Fallowmere
  • Dame Ermengarde Strongbow
  • Sir Warin of Northwold

Any · With an epithet

  • Dame Hawise Ironside
  • Dame Rohese the White
  • Sir Roger the Grim
  • Dame Juliana the Fair

Sir · Any

  • Sir Osbert of Greyhaven
  • Sir Godfrey, Knight of the Lantern
  • Sir Gervase the Just
  • Sir Stephen the Valiant

Sir · With an epithet

  • Sir Gilbert Greymantle
  • Sir Alan Longsword
  • Sir Fulk the Wanderer
  • Sir Roland the Black

Dame · Any

  • Dame Cecily of Stonebridge
  • Dame Mabel of Whitehall Keep
  • Dame Edith, Knight of the White Hart
  • Dame Matilda the Merciful

Dame · With an epithet

  • Dame Joan the Lame
  • Dame Beatrice the Red
  • Dame Amice the Younger
  • Dame Maud the Bold

How the Knight Name Generator Works

It works from 150 names and name parts, which combine into over 5,600 possible results.

The choices:

  • Title:
    • Any, e.g. Dame Emma, Knight of the Golden Spur
    • Sir, e.g. Sir Fulk the Lame
    • Dame, e.g. Dame Juliana of Eastmarch
  • Name format: Any, Of a place, With an epithet, Of an order, Title and name only.

Each press gives you 8, 16 or 32 names (choose under "How many"), and you won't see the same one twice until you've been through everything for the choices you've made.

A knight's name is a short story: a title, a first name, and something that says where they're from or what they've done. Sir Lancelot du Lac is Lancelot "of the Lake"; William Marshal was named for his family's office at court. This knight name generator builds names the same way, with real medieval first names and a place, an epithet or a knightly order.

How knights were named

Medieval knights rarely had fixed surnames the way we do. They were known by a byname that set them apart from all the other Williams and Roberts:

  • A place: where they held land or came from. Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, El Cid, was from Vivar near Burgos.
  • An epithet: a nickname for a deed or trait. Edmund Ironside, Richard the Lionheart.
  • An office or family: William Marshal, the knight who served five English kings, was named for the marshal's office his father held.

The first names in this generator are real names used in England and Normandy in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, from Geoffrey and Fulk to Matilda and Petronilla.

Sir and Dame

"Sir" is the title for a knight, used with the first name: Sir Ralph, not Sir Blackmoor. Its female equivalent today is Dame, the title for women given the same honour in the British system, and it's the natural choice for a fantasy female knight.

Real medieval women did hold castles and fight. Nicola de la Haye defended Lincoln Castle through two sieges, the second in 1217, and the Order of the Garter admitted women as Ladies of the Garter in its early years.

Knights of legend and fantasy

  • The Round Table: Sir Gawain, Sir Galahad, Sir Percival and Sir Bedivere, each with a name still used for knights in fiction today.
  • Knightly orders: the Knights Templar, the Hospitallers and the Order of the Garter (founded 1348) gave knights a second name: their order.
  • D&D and fantasy: the Knights of Solamnia in Dragonlance, and the Order of the Gauntlet in the Forgotten Realms. The Of an order format gives your knight an order of their own.

Making a knight's name yours

  • Pick the byname that tells the story. A knight known by their home is tied to it; a knight known by an epithet has a reputation to live up to, or down.
  • Let it change. A young knight starts as Sir Hugh of Ashcombe and becomes Sir Hugh Dragonbane after the right adventure.
  • Add heraldry. A coat of arms, a colour and an animal (a white hart, a red lion) completes the name, and gives a tavern something to be called.

For a holy warrior, try the Paladin Name Generator; for more epithets, the Epithet Generator.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a female knight called?

Today a woman given a knighthood in the British system is a Dame, so "Dame" is the usual title for a female knight in fantasy. Historically, a few women were admitted to orders like the Garter as Ladies of the order.

Did medieval knights have surnames?

Mostly not fixed ones. They were known by bynames: a place (of Blackmoor), an epithet (the Bold) or an office (Marshal), some of which later became family names.

Do you use Sir with the first name or the last name?

The first name: Sir Ralph, or Sir Ralph of Blackmoor, never Sir Blackmoor.

Are the first names real?

Yes. They're names used in England and Normandy in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. The places and orders are invented.

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