British-sounding name for my MC?

Writers' Corner
1

Or co-MC. :slight_smile:

I’ve been sort of plagued with the idea of a story (or a series of novels) for a while now surrounding two police (homicide) detectives from a semi-small town in northwestern [name_m]Washington[/name_m] state (less than an hour from the Canadian border). I’ve got the one MC, [name_f]Aurora[/name_f], pretty much completely sorted, but her partner (he goes by [name_m]Jack[/name_m] almost exclusively, much to his chagrin, and 100% thanks to his nosy grandpa, but not his real name–not even close!–and his real name will become important as the series of novels progresses) I’m less sure of (name-wise, I mean!). His last name is [name_u]James[/name_u] (hence why I don’t want him to be just [name_m]Jack[/name_m]–[name_m]Jack[/name_m] [name_u]James[/name_u] sounds a little funny to me), which is non-negotiable.

Detective [name_u]James[/name_u] is originally from northwestern [name_m]Kent[/name_m], [name_f]England[/name_f], although he’s lived in this town since he was a toddler. He grew up in my adorable made-up town (Sparta), and even now lives only a couple minutes from his parents’ home. He’s patient, kind, determined (he calls it tenacious. [name_f]Aurora[/name_f] calls it stubborn.), and can really blame himself too much for things, particularly when it comes to losing a case/disappointing a victim. He has a surprisingly cute/silly sense of humor, and is intelligent, sensitive, supportive, strong. Since he is originally from the UK, I want something that sounds sort of British, maybe a bit more prim and proper than the popular names of guys I grew up with ([name_m]Josh[/name_m], [name_m]Brian[/name_m], [name_m]Matthew[/name_m], [name_m]Benjamin[/name_m], [name_m]Brandon[/name_m], etc.). I like the idea of something along the lines of [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m], [name_m]Jasper[/name_m], [name_m]Oscar[/name_m], [name_m]Hugo[/name_m], [name_m]Miles[/name_m], [name_m]Leo[/name_m], [name_m]Felix[/name_m], [name_m]Peter[/name_m], [name_u]Elliott[/name_u], [name_m]Samuel[/name_m] (may not really fit what I’m going for, but initially I thought it could be a good fit for him), [name_m]Henry[/name_m], etc.

[name_f]Do[/name_f] any of those seem like they might fit him? Or do you have any ideas?

Thanks, Berries!

2

I think [name_m]Oscar[/name_m], [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] & [name_m]Henry[/name_m] would fit him very well, [name_m]Felix[/name_m] also fits the “silly sense of humor” description well.
Maybe look up the Top 100 around the time he would have been born in as a lot of names might sound “British” now as they are popular over there but would also sound too young for an adult.
For example, the earliest list, 1996, has [name_m]Felix[/name_m], [name_m]Hugo[/name_m], [name_m]Oscar[/name_m], [name_m]Leo[/name_m], [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] & [name_m]Miles[/name_m] in the 100s & 200s while [name_u]Elliott[/name_u], [name_m]Samuel[/name_m], [name_m]Peter[/name_m] & [name_m]Henry[/name_m] are within the Top 100, so the latter few are more “British” on a 20 year old than the others would be.

Some ideas:
[name_m]Lewis[/name_m]
[name_m]Louis[/name_m]
[name_u]Charlie[/name_u] / [name_m]Charles[/name_m]
[name_m]Dominic[/name_m]
[name_m]Nicholas[/name_m]
[name_m]Alexander[/name_m]

3

I’m from the UK and here’s some names I hear often among people I consider to be particularly British.

[name_m]Sebastian[/name_m]
[name_m]George[/name_m]
[name_m]Hugh[/name_m]
[name_m]Colin[/name_m]
[name_m]Benjamin[/name_m] (not [name_m]Ben[/name_m], just [name_m]Benjamin[/name_m])
[name_m]Alexander[/name_m]/[name_u]Alex[/name_u]
[name_m]Luke[/name_m]
[name_u]Freddie[/name_u]

4

Thanks, [name_f]Eve[/name_f]! I have been leaning toward [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m], so it’s reassuring that you find it British-sounding. Does it seem to be more of a youthful name there, or something rather classic? I can’t find any name statistics that go back farther than 1996 for [name_f]England[/name_f] and [name_m]Wales[/name_m], but since then it seems to have only climbed from the 100-200 range all the way up to where it is now, at number thirty-eight. I’m wondering if it’s a bit like it was here–an under-the-radar classic (although it’s hard for me to tell, since I grew up with a [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m]?) to the stylish, very familiar choice it is now. Either way, that would suit my purposes, and I can definitely see [name_f]Aurora[/name_f] calling him [name_m]Seb[/name_m] (Sebby when she wants to embarrass him, haha) once she figures out his real name (and that he’s not the hugest proponent of [name_m]Jack[/name_m]). I love [name_m]George[/name_m], [name_m]Colin[/name_m], and [name_m]Hugh[/name_m], though, and they are maybe candidates for his middle name–I had been thinking about something along the lines of [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Jasper[/name_m], [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Hugo[/name_m], or [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Felix[/name_m] ([name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Leo[/name_m]? [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Henry[/name_m]? [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Oliver[/name_m] or [name_m]Oscar[/name_m], even?), but it almost seemed over-the-top. Something like [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Henry[/name_m], [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]George[/name_m], or [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Hugh[/name_m] might be just right.

5

The Sebastians I’ve met are from the ages of about 5 to about 35, not older really, so I would say it’s youthful, yes. X

6

[name_m]Ah[/name_m], okay! That suits the age group I’m going for (well, more like 26-32), so it fits! I think he’s officially [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_u]James[/name_u]. :wink: