With Halloween around the corner, it’s time to lift the lid on vampire names. It’s been a few years since we last covered them, and the vampire world — and the pool of fangtastic names — just keeps growing.
When you’re naming a vampire, you have several options:
Vampire-next-door names are for vampires who try to fit into the human world. These include the timelessly-named Twilight vampires, like Edward, Alice and James. There’s also True Blood with its older generation of names like Bill, Eric and Pam… and Terry Pratchett’s reformed character John “Not-A-Vampire-At-All” Smith.
Next-big-thing vampire names also blend into the human world, but stand out for being super-stylish. They may already be on the rise for babies, and a popular vampire book/show/movie can give them an extra boost. I promise I’m not going to mention Twilight all the time, but Stephenie Meyer was a fashion-forward namer, using up-and coming names like Emmett, Esme, Felix and Jasper years before they really took off.
International vampire names reflect that they’re a multicultural bunch. Eastern and Central European names are popular, as you’d expect from Dracula’s roots in Transylvania, but other nationalities are available, like Anne Rice’s Armand and Santiago. There’s also a strong contingent of Japanese vampires, such as the Manga series Vampire Knight with its lead bloodsuckers Yuki and Zero.
Gothic vampire names are those with a dark, dramatic flavor. These include mythological names and names from the ancient world like Aphrodite and Neferet in the House of Night series; atmospheric word names such as Amelia Atwater-Rhodes’s Jaguar and Darren Shan’s Meteor; and inventions like the moody respellings in the Black Dagger Brotherhood (Phury and Zsad*st, anyone?).
And let’s not forget the comedy vampire names that you’re not likely to see in any baby name announcements, like Monster High’s Draculaura and Elissabat.
Here’s a selection of mouthwatering vampire names: one male and one female for (almost) every letter of the alphabet. They range from literary classics through Young Adult fiction and video games. Some are on-trend, some are offbeat, and none of them would be scary on a human baby.
Vampire girl names
Amelie (The Morganville Vampires) — Fresh French alternative to Amelia.
Bianca (The Dresden Files) — Light in sound and meaning.
Claudia (The Vampire Chronicles including Interview with the Vampire) — Recently left the Top 1000, but still timeless.
Drusilla (Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel) — Rare Roman name with clunky charm.
Elena (The Vampire Diaries) — A sleek international crowdpleaser.
Fala (Den of Shadows) — Sweet, simple and almost never used.
Gloriana (Glory St. Clair series) — Unashamedly frilly and, as the curvy vampire shows, could be Glory for short.
Harmony (Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel) — One of the biggest virtue names of the 21st century.
Irina (Twilight saga) — Elegant Slavic import deserving more attention.
Judith (The Southern Vampire Mysteries) — Biblical classic waiting for a comeback.
Kalika (The Last Vampire) — In the book, this name derives from the Indian goddess Kali.
Lucy (Dracula) — The classic vampire-next-door name.
Mavis (Hotel Transylvania) — The perky character helps to make this vintage darling fresh again.
Nadja (What We Do in the Shadows) — Slavic spelling of this hopeful name.
Olga (Young Dracula) — May appeal to lovers of short girl names like Alma and Ida.
Priscilla (Fear Street) — Long and dainty biblical choice.
Remilia (Touhou Project) — Remy plus Emilia equals…
Sophie–Anne (The Southern Vampire Mysteries) — Sweet anglo-french double name that feels like an update of Mary Ann.
Tatiana (Vampire Academy) — Grand and underused Russian beauty.
Ursula (The Vampire Chronicles) — A favorite for many name lovers, though unfairly neglected on the charts… in other words, right in the sweet spot.
Verona (Van Helsing) — Melodic Italian city name that could join the likes of Siena and Florence.
Wilhelmina (Dracula) — Dracula’s victim Mina has a pleasantly clunky full name that’s on the rise again.
Ysandre (The Morganville Vampires) — Romantic spin on the “Sandra” names.
Zafrina (Twilight saga) — Zarina meets Saffron in an invented name that wouldn’t sound out of place in real life.
Vampire boy names
Augustine (Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter) — Stately, but with cuddly nickname options.
Balthazar (Evernight) — A hidden gem, rare yet recognizable.
Caelan (Skulduggery Pleasant) — Between Callan and Kayden, this has a sound that’s the height of cool now.
Darius (The Saga of Darren Shan) — Kingly name with a stylish -us ending.
Emiel (The Witcher) — Interesting variation on Emile.
Felipe (The Southern Vampire Mysteries) — A Spanish classic that’s still going strong.
Garrett (Twilight saga) — A well-established member of the cool -tt ending group of boy names.
Hunter (Night World) — Punchy occupational name that’s been a favorite for over 20 years.
Ivan (Being Human) — Another Russian name, and an alternative to Evan.
Jagger (Vampire Kisses) — Fun and dramatic rock’n’roll surname.
Konrad (Warhammer Fantasy) — German classic that feels cool again.
Louis (The Vampire Chronicles) — Royal name on the uptick on both sides of the Atlantic.
Molochai (Lost Souls) — Another variation on Malachi, Malakai et al.
Nicolas (The Vampire Chronicles) — Streamlined French version of a quiet classic.
Otto (Discworld) — This little O name is super-stylish right now.
Paris (The Saga of Darren Shan) — More common on girls, but chic for boys too.
Quinlan (The Strain) — Irish surname with great potential.
Rido (Vampire Knight) — A rare option for an O-ending boy name
Silas (The Graveyard Book) — Neil Gaiman was on the pulse with this vampire janitor’s name, also endorsed by Justin Timberlake.
Thibor (Necroscope) — Variation on the Czech, Slovak and Hungarian name Tibor.
Vladimir (The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod) — Is it even a list of vampire names if there’s no Vlad
Wybert (The Southern Vampire Mysteries) — Unusual Bert name with nerdy charm.
Xander (The Blood Maker and the Witch’s Curse) — Already had a vampirish vibe from Buffy, and now the name of a bona fide vampire.
Ysandre (The Morganville Vampires) — Romantic spin on the “Sandra” names.
Yolando (Vampire Huntress) — A fun masculinization of retro Yolanda.
Zero (Vampire Knight) — Full of cool sounds, but the meaning could be a problem.
