Sometimes the hardest part of building a character is coming up with a good name. You can always take a name from Tolkien or other fantasy novels, but you’ve seen those names over and over and you want something a little different, but not way out there. How about an historical name? Or one from a different culture? So far in this series, we’ve covered Roman, Russian, Italian, and Anglo-Saxon names. If none of these suit you, how about an Ancient Egyptian one?
Ancient Egyptian Name Structure
Names in ancient Egypt seen to have been chosen with great care for their meaning. Many contained the name of a god, as well as common words or phrases and could be used by either men or women. In some cases, as needed for identification, a person might be known by two names: one as their formal name and another, which was what they were called most of the time.
As with all posts in this series, the list here isn’t intended to be historically accurate. It’s merely providing suggestions for use with role-playing games. If historical accuracy is important, you’ll want to check your name against reliable historical records.
(Photo courtesy of Flickr, ©isawnyu 2010)
Male Names
- Abi
- Ahmose
- Amenemhet
- Ahmose
- Bes
- Den
- Djet
- Hekanakht
- Heru
- Horemheb
- Kamose
- Menes
- Metesouphis
- Nebnefer
- Neferirkare
- Padiu
- Pakamen
- Pakapu
- Panhsj
- Seti
- Siptah
- Ti
Female Names
- Achotep
- Ahori
- Amenirdis
- Beset
- Cena
- Henut
- Hetepet
- Iutenheb
- Khentkaus
- Meritnit
- Mutemwia
- Mutnodjmet
- Naunakht
- Nefertari
- Nitocris
- Nithotep
- Peseshet
- Rennefer
- Sacmis
- Sekhet
- Senen
- Sobkneferu
- Taiemniut
- Tawaret
Sources
- Ancient Egyptian Names
- Ancient Egyptian Names (Parents Connect site)
- Ancient Egyptian Queens
- Behind the Name: Ancient Egyptian Names
- Childbirth and Children in Ancient Egypt
- Female Pharoah, The – Women Who Ruled Ancient Egypt as Pharoahs
- Glossary of ancient Egyptian terms and names
- Some Everyday Women in Ancient Egypt
- Women in Ancient Egypt
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