I need some help naming a reforming villain!

Hey, guys! I’ve lurked for quite some time but I haven’t ever posted until now. I am just utterly stumped on my problem, so if you can help me out that would be great!

Genre: [name_f]Fantasy[/name_f] (pretty generic swords-and-sorcery style)

Time Period/Location: My fictional country is currently called Istrelan, though this could change.

Plot: A group of heroes has been working to counter the threat of a villain known only as the Shrike of Istrelan (a shrike is a bird of prey, by the way). In one battle, the villain is hit REALLY hard on the head, and the heroes don’t want to outright kill him so they take him back to their base to question him. However, the villain wakes up with no memory of being a villain, and he actually turns out to be quite nice as an amnesiac.

(Plot Twist: The villain regains his memories about a week into his stay at the heroic base, but instead of fleeing or spying on them, he finds that he kind of likes how nice they are to him when they think he’s not a villain. And he’s been questioning his lifestyle for some time now, so part of him wants to give this whole “being a good person” thing a try.)

Names of Current Characters:
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I’ve got all these guys pretty well nailed down, but I’m having problem with my reforming villain. Here’s some basic information about him:
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Who named him: His parents. Their names are [name_m]Byrne[/name_m] (father) and Asli (mother). He’s an only child. He came up with the “Shrike of Istrelan” bit all on his own.

Immediate family: see above.

And finally, what you’ve all been waiting for, the names I’ve been considering:

[name_m]Alasdair[/name_m] (nn [name_f]Dair[/name_f])
Aravind
[name_m]Domhnall[/name_m] (nn [name_m]Dom[/name_m])
Faris
[name_m]Fox[/name_m]
[name_m]Ilias[/name_m]
[name_m]Isidore[/name_m] (nn Iso)
[name_m]Jabin[/name_m]
[name_m]Leander[/name_m]
[name_m]Lev[/name_m]
[name_m]Macaire[/name_m] (nn [name_m]Mac[/name_m])
[name_m]Oskar[/name_m]
[name_m]Peregrin[/name_m] (nn [name_u]Perry[/name_u])
[name_m]Pike[/name_m]
[name_m]Priam[/name_m]
[name_u]Rafe[/name_u]
[name_m]Silvanus[/name_m] (nn [name_u]Silver[/name_u])
[name_m]Tadeas[/name_m] (nn [name_m]Tad[/name_m])
[name_m]Tavish[/name_m] (nn [name_u]Tavi[/name_u])
[name_m]Uri[/name_m]
[name_m]Wilder[/name_m]
[name_m]Zephaniah[/name_m] (nn Zeph)

The names I’ve been using for other characters are either versatile enough to work in a fantasy genre, or I’ve tweaked them to suit (for instance, Neliamne is a portmanteau of [name_f]Nellie[/name_f] and Mariamne, both actual names). I’m not opposed to using one of the names on the list, but I do like either a short name (like his parents) or one that has good nickname potential.

One more thing: because his birth name isn’t going to be super dignified, he’s come up with a false identity that he uses with the few members of his army who are permitted to know him as someone other than their fearless leader. I haven’t really made any decisions about that one yet, because I want to know what his real name is first. I want it to be long and ostentatious and vaguely aristocratic sounding— like his second-in-command, Vespasien. If you have ideas for that then I would be very grateful.

I think that’s about it. Let me know if you come up with anything!

Out of your list, I think that [name_m]Zephaniah[/name_m] Zeph fits him best. I get a distinct Middle Eastern/Grecian vibe from most of the names of your other characters, and for me, it’s “normal” sounding (because it fits so well with your other characters’ names) and that would reinforce the idea that despite who he has been, he was/can be as normal as he looks.

Because I know how frustrating it is, as a writer, to ask for opinions on names and have people only rate the options I gave or just give me a list of other names to consider, I’ll just comment on each of your instead:

[name_m]Alasdair[/name_m] (nn [name_f]Dair[/name_f]) - I can honestly say that I have never been a fan of this name or its [name_m]Alistair[/name_m]/[name_m]Alister[/name_m]/[name_m]Alastair[/name_m] cousins. It does fit well with your character though, but it feels more like the name of the [name_m]Knight[/name_m]-in-Shining armour instead of a reforming bad guy.

Aravind - I feel that this name is too much for your story. The villain typically gets a very unusual (compared to the other characters) and “exotic” sounding name, and I don’t think it fits well with the story or your villain.

[name_m]Domhnall[/name_m] (nn [name_m]Dom[/name_m]) - I’m not really sure how to pronounce this one (dom-[name_m]HALL[/name_m]?) but it’s close to [name_m]Dominic[/name_m], and with [name_m]Dom[/name_m] as your nn of choice, all I can think of is [name_m]Dom[/name_m] Toretto from Fast and Furious.

Faris - This name feels very feminine to me, so I can’t say I am a fan.

[name_m]Fox[/name_m] - I don’t think that his birthname should be another animal (since he goes by Shrike already).

[name_m]Ilias[/name_m] - This is a good one, but it doesn’t seem substantial enough to be the name of a villain when his Second-in-Command is named Vespasien (which I really like).

[name_m]Isidore[/name_m] (nn Iso) - This is another one I can see working for him. It fits the feel of your story and the character, but I still like [name_m]Zephaniah[/name_m] better.

[name_m]Jabin[/name_m] - I don’t like it. To me I hear jabbing instead.

[name_m]Leander[/name_m] - Again, I like this name. It fits your story really well, but I can’t see it on your villain. [name_m]Leander[/name_m] (I guess because its so close to [name_m]Lysander[/name_m]/[name_m]Alexander[/name_m]/[name_m]Lancelot[/name_m]) reminds me of a man who would never consider doing anything unscrupulous.

[name_m]Lev[/name_m] - This doesn’t feel like its enough on its own. Maybe with a longer name?

[name_m]Macaire[/name_m] (nn [name_m]Mac[/name_m]) - I am not a fan of this name.

[name_m]Oskar[/name_m] - [name_m]Oskar[/name_m]/[name_m]Oscar[/name_m] is a name I have never been able to take seriously. It’s not my style, but I don’t think it fits your character either.

[name_m]Peregrin[/name_m] (nn [name_u]Perry[/name_u]) - I like [name_m]Peregrin[/name_m], but I really don’t feel like his name should be another animal (especially not another bird) if he is already called the Shrike.

[name_m]Pike[/name_m] - I don’t like this as a name. It could work if this is his alias, though.

[name_m]Priam[/name_m] - I can’t get over the association of [name_m]King[/name_m] [name_m]Priam[/name_m] from the Illiad. It’s not a bad name, but I can’t see it on a younger man or one whose story ends happily.

[name_u]Rafe[/name_u] - I like this one. If this was the nn for a longer name, I would say go for it.

[name_m]Silvanus[/name_m] (nn [name_u]Silver[/name_u]) - This name feels too pretentious too me. [name_m]Silvan[/name_m]/[name_m]Sylvan[/name_m] could work, or just [name_u]Silver[/name_u] on its own, but [name_m]Silvanus[/name_m] feels like its too much.

[name_m]Tadeas[/name_m] (nn [name_m]Tad[/name_m]) - This name is new to me, but I don’t think it fits your character. It feels more like the name of the sidekick or comedic relief character instead of the villain.

[name_m]Tavish[/name_m] (nn [name_u]Tavi[/name_u]) - This name feels too soft (I like soft names, but I don’t think they fit your character).

[name_m]Uri[/name_m] - This is a good name. [name_m]Uriah[/name_m] would be good too, but I still don’t like it as much as [name_m]Zephaniah[/name_m].

[name_m]Wilder[/name_m] - This name feels like it comes out of leftfield. It’s very different from the rest of your names (which could work if that’s what your going for).

[name_m]Zephaniah[/name_m] (nn Zeph) - See paragraph above (I really like this one though).

    • If you still have trouble choosing a name, looking up the meanings or history of them could help give you a better feel for each name.

Thank you for your help! I do really like [name_m]Zephaniah[/name_m]— I’ve tried to use it in other stories before, but it just hasn’t worked out. The more I say it out loud to myself, though, the more I like it on this character.

Also, I looked it up on Behind the Name (I do love Nameberry but BtN usually has more historical context and pronunciation guides) and [name_m]Zephaniah[/name_m] means “God has hidden” or “The [name_m]Lord[/name_m] is my secret.” I didn’t even plan this, but it fits really well, considering that after the first couple of weeks he’s going to be trying to keep a fairly big secret!

I still really like [name_m]Ilias[/name_m], [name_u]Rafe[/name_u], and [name_m]Uri[/name_m]. I couldn’t find anything longer that would have produced [name_u]Rafe[/name_u] or [name_m]Uri[/name_m] as a good nickname, though, so I think I’m going to go with [name_m]Zephaniah[/name_m]. Thanks so much for your help, it’s truly appreciated!