Naming things is hard. Ask any parent, pet owner, or novelist. But naming a giant ball of gas or a rocky terrestrial sphere orbiting a distant star? That’s a specific kind of torture. You want it to sound vast. Ancient. Maybe a little bit dangerous. You definitely don’t want it to sound like you just mashed your keyboard and hoped for the best—even though, let's be real, that’s how half of the "official" names in the Star Wars Expanded Universe probably started.
If you’re building a world for a TTRPG campaign or writing a space opera, a name generator for planets is basically a life raft. But here's the thing: most of them are kinda bad. They spit out names like "Xylophon-4" or "Glorp." Unless you’re writing a parody, those aren’t going to cut it. You need something that feels grounded in linguistics or, at the very least, astronomical tradition.
Why the Generic Name Generator for Planets Usually Fails
Most people go to a random site, click a button, and get frustrated. Why? Because these tools often lack "flavor." A planet's name shouldn't just be a random collection of phonemes. It should tell a story. If a planet was discovered by a megacorporation in a cyberpunk future, it’s probably going to have a serial number or a brand name like Amazonia Prime. If it was settled by religious refugees, it might be named New Canaan or Sanctuary.
Most basic generators don’t account for the "Who" and the "Why." They use simple Markov chains to predict which letters usually follow each other in English. That’s how you end up with "Blandor" or "Flargh." To get the good stuff, you have to look for tools that allow for prefix and suffix customization or those based on specific cultural roots.
The Science of Real Exoplanet Names
Look at how NASA actually does it. It’s boring. Honestly, it's super dry. We have planets like HD 209458 b or Kepler-186f. The "Kepler" part refers to the telescope that found it, and the letter "f" denotes its position in the system. If you want your sci-fi to feel "hard" or realistic, your name generator for planets should probably lean into alphanumeric strings rather than poetic descriptors.
But nobody wants to read a book where the hero travels to PSR B1257+12 d.
We want Arrakis. We want Tatooine. We want Reach. These names work because they are easy to pronounce but feel foreign enough to trigger that "sense of wonder" that Carl Sagan used to talk about.
How to Filter the Noise
When you're looking for a tool that actually works, you need to check the settings. A high-quality name generator for planets will offer categories. You’ll see options like "Greeko-Roman," "Descriptive," or "Ancient Sumerian."
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- Linguistic Anchoring: This is a fancy way of saying "make it sound like a real language." If your planetary system was settled by people of Neo-Japanese descent, the names should reflect Japanese phonology.
- Environmental Cues: Sometimes the best name is just a description. Mustafar sounds hot and jagged. Hoth sounds short, cold, and blunt.
- The "Phone Test": If you can't say the name clearly over a hypothetical radio transmission, it’s a bad name. X-77-Zzzzt-Alpha is a nightmare for dialogue.
I've spent way too many hours on sites like Fantasy Name Generators by Emily. It’s the gold standard for a reason. She doesn't just use one algorithm; she has dozens of different sub-generators. You can find "Space Colony" names or "Dead Planet" names. It’s that level of specificity that saves you from the "Glorp" problem.
The Psychology of Sounds
There’s this thing called the "Bouba/Kiki Effect." It’s a real psychological study where people consistently associate jagged shapes with the word "Kiki" and rounded shapes with the word "Bouba."
You can use this when picking names from a generator. Is your planet a jagged, volcanic wasteland? Use "K" sounds, "T" sounds, and "P" sounds. Krypton. Trantor. If it’s a gaseous, soft, or watery world, go for "L," "M," and "S" sounds. Solaris. Luminara. It’s a subtle trick, but it makes your world-building feel "right" to the reader's subconscious.
Moving Beyond the "Random" Button
Don't just take the first result. That’s the biggest mistake people make. Think of a name generator for planets as a brainstorming partner, not a boss.
Use the generator to get ten ideas, then mash them together. Take the prefix of result #3 and the suffix of result #8. If the generator gives you Vorgon and Althea, maybe your planet is Vorthea. Suddenly, it’s unique. It’s yours. It doesn't feel like a computer spat it out during a server refresh.
Real astronomical history is full of weird naming conventions. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) is the official body that handles this. They actually have strict rules. For example, features on Venus are almost exclusively named after women or goddesses. If you're naming a system in a story, creating your own "rules" like this adds a layer of depth that a raw generator can't provide. Maybe all the planets in your "Sector 7" are named after extinct birds. That’s world-building.
Actionable Steps for Better Planet Naming
To actually get results that don't suck, follow this workflow the next time you open a generator:
- Define the Vibe First: Decide if the planet is "Ancient Mystery," "Corporate Mining Outpost," or "Wild Frontier" before you start clicking.
- Pick a Linguistic Root: Use a generator that lets you choose a "culture." Latin roots feel imperial; Slavic roots often feel rugged or cold; Polynesian-inspired roots can feel oceanic and expansive.
- Check for Real-World Conflicts: Google your favorite result. You don't want to name your "original" planet something that turns out to be a brand of prescription blood thinners or a village in Switzerland.
- Say it Out Loud: If you stumble over the word "Zxythp-Lara," your readers will too. Simplify until it flows.
- Layer the History: Give the planet a formal name (the one the generator gives you) and a "common" name. Groombridge 34 becomes The Rust Belt. This makes the world feel lived-in.
The best use of a name generator for planets is to break through writer's block. It provides the spark, but you have to fan the flame. Start by grabbing a list of twenty names from a high-quality generator, then ruthlessly delete eighteen of them. The two that remain are your keepers. Modify them, test their "Bouba/Kiki" energy, and make sure they fit the history of your fictional universe.