Names by country
American names for characters
Popular American first names by birth decade, common and regional surnames, pronunciation, and the naming rules writers trip over.
How American names work
Nearly every American has a middle name, often written as an initial (John R. Miller). Jr. and III follow a father's or grandfather's full name.
First names by birth decade
Names drift in and out of fashion. Pick from the decade your character was born, not the year your story is set.
Born before 1950
Girls
- Mary
- Barbara
- Patricia
- Betty
- Shirley
- Dorothy
- Joan
- Carol
Boys
- James
- Robert
- John
- William
- Richard
- Charles
- Donald
- George
Born 1950–64
Girls
- Mary
- Linda
- Susan
- Deborah
- Karen
- Lisa
- Patricia
- Donna
Boys
- Michael
- David
- James
- Robert
- John
- Mark
- Steven
- Thomas
Born 1965–79
Girls
- Jennifer
- Amy
- Melissa
- Michelle
- Heather
- Angela
- Kimberly
- Stephanie
Boys
- Michael
- Christopher
- Jason
- David
- James
- Brian
- Jeffrey
- Matthew
Born 1980–94
Girls
- Jessica
- Ashley
- Amanda
- Sarah
- Brittany
- Samantha
- Lauren
- Megan
Boys
- Michael
- Christopher
- Matthew
- Joshua
- Andrew
- Tyler
- Justin
- Brandon
Born 1995–2009
Girls
- Emily
- Madison
- Hannah
- Abigail
- Olivia
- Alexis
- Taylor
- Brianna
Boys
- Jacob
- Michael
- Ethan
- Joshua
- Tyler
- Austin
- Logan
- Hunter
Born 2010 onward
Girls
- Emma
- Olivia
- Sophia
- Ava
- Isabella
- Harper
- Evelyn
- Charlotte
Boys
- Liam
- Noah
- Mason
- Elijah
- Oliver
- Lucas
- Jackson
- Grayson
Common American surnames
- Smith
- Johnson
- Williams
- Brown
- Jones
- Miller
- Davis
- Wilson
- Anderson
- Taylor
- Thomas
- Moore
- Jackson
- Martin
- Thompson
- White
- Harris
- Clark
- Lewis
- Robinson
- Walker
- Young
- Allen
- King
Regional names
Where a character comes from inside the United States changes their surname, and sometimes their first name.
New England (old Yankee families)
Old Yankee families often hand down family surnames as first or middle names: Bradford, Prescott, Lowell.
Surnames: Bradford, Winslow, Whitcomb, Sargent, Thayer, Abbott, Hale, Cobb, Coffin, Hathaway
The Deep South
Double first names (Mary Beth, Billy Ray) are a long Southern tradition and are said together in everyday speech.
Surnames: Calhoun, McCall, Pruitt, Puckett, Tidwell, Pickens, Vaughn, Hollis, Gentry, Bledsoe
Girls: Mary Beth, Lou Ann, Ella Mae, Sue Ellen, Betty Jo, Leigh Anne, Savannah, Caroline
Boys: Beau, Clay, Wade, Travis, Cody, Earl, Dale, Billy Ray
Upper Midwest (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Dakotas)
Scandinavian and German farm-settler surnames, often with Americanised spelling (Müller became Mueller, Jørgensen became Jorgenson).
Surnames: Olson, Swanson, Lindquist, Hanson, Schmidt, Mueller, Becker, Klein, Hoffman, Peterson
Louisiana (Cajun)
Acadian French surnames, pronounced the Louisiana way rather than the Parisian one.
Surnames: Landry, Broussard, Thibodeaux, Hebert, LeBlanc, Guidry, Boudreaux, Fontenot, Arceneaux, Savoie
Girls: Aimee, Celeste, Josette, Renee, Elodie, Claudette, Genevieve, Noelle
Boys: Remy, Lucien, Andre, Antoine, Pierre, Etienne, Beau, Jean-Paul
Questions
What are common American surnames?
Some of the most common American surnames are Smith, Johnson, Williams, Brown, Jones, Miller. Regional surnames differ, so check the regional lists before choosing one for a character from a particular area.
How do American names work?
Nearly every American has a middle name, often written as an initial (John R. Miller). Jr. and III follow a father's or grandfather's full name.
Build a American character in one tap
InkBorn gives them a name from the right decade, a face card, a background, a personality and even their social media handles.