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Planet Name Generator

Twenty planet names per click, in five styles: alien syllables, classical rocky worlds, gas giants, human colonies and survey-catalog designations.

Style

  1. Lunoth
  2. New Ember
  3. Nerix
  4. Larkspur Watch
  5. Arion
  6. Copper Behemoth
  7. Aurion
  8. New Anchor
  9. Ashford Watch
  10. Nerene 2
  11. Lantern Rest
  12. Tarn-6571 g
  13. Mercy Rest
  14. Halcyon Reach
  15. Calus
  16. Kaax Magna
  17. Myrax
  18. Ithnax
  19. Myrell the Veiled
  20. Furrow Watch
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How planets get their names

Real planets fall into two camps. The ones in our own system carry names from Roman and Greek myth, chosen by ancient observers, and nothing modern has been added to that group. Planets around other stars mostly have no name at all, only a catalog label: the name of the star followed by a lowercase letter, starting at b for the first planet found. That is why real exoplanets sound like Kepler-something b, and why a story that uses this format immediately feels like a science file.

Fiction has more room, and the choice of sound matters. A planet named by its native species sounds alien, with syllables that do not follow English patterns. A world named by its settlers sounds like a wish or a place back home: Halcyon Landing, New Meridian. A world named by a survey team gets a number, because the people who found it never expected to stay.

Two things weaken a fictional planet name quickly. One is borrowing a familiar one, which makes readers think of the original. The second is length. A planet mentioned fifty times needs to be typed and said in two or three syllables. Save the long, formal name for the first chapter.

Planet names for worldbuilding

Pick the naming style to match the culture that is doing the naming. If your colonists arrived from Earth, they will name the world after a hope, a founder or a place they remember. If the world has natives, give it a name from their language and let the settlers use a mangled version. If a corporation owns the survey rights, a code such as Halix-442 b will be the official name and the locals will invent a nickname in a week.

The style chips above follow those four cultures. Gas giants get either a descriptive name such as Amber Maelstrom or an alien name with a size suffix, since nobody colonizes them and the naming can be more poetic.

A shortlist of 20 planet names

  • VorthosHard v and th give a dense, heavy world with high gravity, and it takes two seconds to say.
  • TalnaxShort, mineral-sounding: the name of an ore-rich rock a mining crew would call home.
  • NyloraSoft liquids make it sound like an ocean world, and the ending feels native rather than human.
  • ZaniumThe -ium ending suggests a mineral, so readers guess it is valued for a resource.
  • AuriaClassical, warm and easy to say; a temperate rocky world with a good chance of being settled.
  • VesperonEvening plus a suffix: tidally locked or dim, a world always in twilight.
  • CaloraWarm sounding, and suggests a world close to its sun.
  • NerixOne hard consonant at the end, giving it a technical and slightly hostile feel.
  • Amber MaelstromA gas giant described by its most obvious feature, the way a survey pilot might name it.
  • Violet TempestColor and weather: the storm-covered giant that every ship in the system can see.
  • Ochre ColossusSounds like something a settler nicknamed before the survey office gave it an official name.
  • Vorthos MajorAlien name with a size suffix, used when a system holds several worlds with related names.
  • New MeridianThe classic colony name: hope, a fresh start, and a hint of the world that was left behind.
  • Halcyon LandingCalm and hopeful, and the word Landing tells you exactly how the first settlers arrived.
  • Kestrel ReachBird plus frontier; it reads as an edge-of-map world with strong winds.
  • Mercy HollowA quiet, slightly sad name for a settlement that survived a first winter.
  • Port AnchorTrade and shipping in two words; ideal for a hub world with a busy orbital dock.
  • Halix-442 bCatalog format: star name, number and lowercase letter, exactly how survey databases list discoveries.
  • Orsi-7104 cThe letter c shows this is the second planet discovered around its star; a small detail readers notice.
  • Teleos-903 dSounds like a survey file, a cold, official name for a world that nobody has named yet.

Choosing a planet name

  • Decide who named it. Natives, settlers and a survey corporation each produce a different kind of name, and one planet can carry all three.
  • Keep the working name to three syllables or fewer. You will write it hundreds of times.
  • Do not borrow a name that a famous story already uses. The IAU rules for real planetary names discourage duplicate names for the same reason, since confusion costs more than novelty.
  • Use catalog names for planets nobody cares about yet, then let a character rename one when it becomes important. The change tells readers something has shifted.
  • Match the sound to the world. Hard consonants for heavy or hostile planets, soft liquids and open vowels for water worlds and gentle climates.

Questions people ask

What are good planet names?

Good planet names are short, easy to say and match the world's character, such as Vorthos for a heavy rocky planet or Halcyon Landing for a colony. Avoid names already used by famous stories or by real solar system bodies.

How are real planets named?

Planets in our solar system carry names from Roman and Greek mythology. Planets around other stars usually get a designation made of the star's name and a lowercase letter, starting with b, and only a few have IAU-approved proper names.

What is a planet designation like Halix-442 b?

It follows the real exoplanet pattern: the parent star's name, then a lowercase letter for the planet. The letter b marks the first planet found, c the second, and so on in order of discovery.

How do I name a planet in a sci-fi story?

Start with who is naming it. Natives use their own language, settlers use hopes and memories, and survey teams use catalog codes. Then choose a two- or three-syllable sound that matches the planet's climate or mood.

Do these names avoid real planets and famous fictional worlds?

Yes. The generator rejects the names of solar system bodies and a list of well-known fictional planets. A random invented name can still resemble something obscure, so search before you publish.

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Updated September 2026 · How these names are made