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  1. Sumi

    Sumi New Member

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    Character Name Help

    Discussion in 'Character Development' started by Sumi, Oct 5, 2019.

    She's a multiracial (Korean, Danish, and Ethiopian) born in paris, france and raised in new york.

    She has short black curly, light caramel skin tone, feline facial features, 5'9 and a slim pear shaped body.

    The names I got so for
    • Venus
    • Gemini
    • Saint
    • Lyrica
    • Satin
    • Carter
     
    Last edited: Oct 5, 2019
  2. Cave Troll

    Cave Troll It's Coffee O'clock everywhere. Contributor

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    That would be triracial. :p

    Have you looked into amalgamating names from the different cultural origins,
    based on that interesting mix of peoples into one. Or based more from the strongest
    ethnic culture that relates to her personality, cause names have meanings to them
    beyond just being names in most cultures and societies. Just a thought. :)

    IDK, that is what I do, when I can't figure out what to name a character, I try and
    find a name that fits their personality. :)

    Good luck. :superidea:
     
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  3. Thorn Cylenchar

    Thorn Cylenchar Senior Member

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    None of those names really strike me appropriate for any of those cultures. Have you checked out behindthename.com?
     
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  4. jannert

    jannert Retired Mod Supporter Contributor

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    You could Frenchify her name a bit, if that is where she was born (depending on circumstances ...did her parents intend to remain in France?) Instead of Satin, for example, she could be 'Satine.'

    I agree with @Thorn Cylenchar that none of the names you've listed suggest her ethnic origins. Is it important that one of them should?

    She COULD have a real name of ethnic origin, but also be called by a nickname she picked up in New York. Which means any of those names you listed would do as a nickname.
     
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  5. Naomasa298

    Naomasa298 HP: 10/190 Status: Confused Contributor

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    All the names in the OP seem very African-American.

    Denmark, Korea and Ethiopia are all Christian majority countries, or have a substantial Christian minority. Maybe something Biblical.

    Kim works for both Denmark and Korea... :)
     
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  6. Iain Aschendale

    Iain Aschendale Lying, dog-faced pony Marine Supporter Contributor

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    Kim, Pak (Park), or Ee (Lee) account for almost 50% of the family names in the ROK and can be interpreted as Western in text. Witness the controversy over the casting of a blonde white woman as "Mindy Park" in The Martian.
     
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  7. LazyBear

    LazyBear Banned

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    I'd choose Estelle, Nadine, Rachelle, Simone or Zara.
     
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  8. badgerjelly

    badgerjelly Contributor Contributor

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    Parents? Seems like a strange question. Sounds like you’re writing something dramatic so I’d expect knowing something about her parents would determine how they’d name her.

    Or Kimchibacontafari? :D
     
  9. LazyBear

    LazyBear Banned

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    "Onani San" would be shorter if it should be an insulting nickname. Scandinavian languages borrow the word from Japanese.
     
  10. cosmic lights

    cosmic lights Contributor Contributor

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    You can't really base a characters name of what they look like as most parents do pick their child's name before birth or when the child is born a name will just come into their head.

    To me the names you have picked are a bit too "flashy" and the names you like instead of what her parents would have chosen. Take a look at her "breeding" see if there are any names there. Maybe a French name, there are some really beautiful ones and don't sound too showy. What were her parents like? Where they didn't family so might have named her after a grandparent, parent or a sibling of theirs. Were they into literature. My friends mother loved music so she named her girls "Carrie-Anne" and "Rosie" from the Hollies and ACDC SONGS. Maybe they would have gone for something simple. The name must be appropriate not just a list of names you love.

    Hope this helped!
     
  11. KiraAnn

    KiraAnn Senior Member

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    What’s the ethnicity and background of her father? That will narrow down the surname rather significantly.

    As for first name, keeping in mind Jannert’s idra if a nickname, what is the background of her parents time together? Why in Paris and then New York soon after?

    One thing that struck me, however, is your reported height of 5’9”. That’s about 7” over average height for all 3 of those ethnicities.
     
  12. StoryForest

    StoryForest Banned

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    I tend to like to go with names that suit the character's personalites more than anything else. It's the person that I want the reader to associate with most, more so than what background/appearance they have, all of them can coincide but I'd try to prioritize the personality first over the other traits.
     
  13. Lady Murasaki

    Lady Murasaki New Member

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    I'd go for names common in these countries and her parents' background before anything. Then choosing from that pool. Baby name sites are a really good tool for this. Satin, in particular, strikes me as a fake name, like a codename for a femme fatale spy but Satine already sounds way more natural.
     
  14. scrissle

    scrissle New Member

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    Here's some names for each of your characters' ethnicities!

    Korean:
    1. Eun
    2. Aruem
    3. Nari
    4. Seong
    5. Sung
    6. Sang
    7. Jae
    Danish:

    1. Freja
    2. Cille
    3. Dorit
    4. Alvida
    5. Elin
    6. Else
    7. Karina
    8. Mari
    9. Merete
    Ethiopian:
    1. Liya
    2. Aida
    3. Kia
    4. Neela
    5. Aisha
    6. Afia
    7. Subira
    8. Zuri
    9. Amara
    10. Maya
    11. Jamila
    12. Faizah
    13. Mariam
    14. Lola
    15. Anika
    16. Diarra
    17. Fana
    18. Kadida
    19. Izara
    Some nice French names, since she was raised in France!
    1. Claire
    2. Madelyn
    3. Adeline
    4. Brielle
    5. Eloise
    6. Genevieve
    7. Remi
    8. Juliette
    9. Rosalie (maybe that's too closely associated with Twilight?)
    10. Vivienne
    11. Elaina
    12. Noelle
    13. Lucielle
    14. Arielle
    15. Liana
    16. Celine
    17. Colette
    18. Esme
    19. Charley
    20. Clementine
    21. Jolie (again, that may be too closely tied to Angelina Jolie)
    22. Amelie
    23. Simone
    24. Chanel
    25. Landry
    26. Emmeline
    I can give more, if you want! Of the names you listed, I like Carter the most.
     
  15. yoffi

    yoffi Banned

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    Lyrica is real cool!
     

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