Character names can of course be non-indicative (like our own), but fiction is a special case, in which dragons talk and life's problems are permanently solved at the end of the third act, just before the credits roll.

Why not take the opportunity for a little word-play?  Choose or construct a name that is unique to your character and memorable to your story. It should reveal something about your characters: who they are, where they come from or where they are going.  The name of a fictional character can be a clue to their intentions, or reveal part of their internal life.  At the very least, a fictional name should not be misleading.

Here are a few examples from pop culture and fiction:

Non-descript names, or names with no special significance:

Marge Simpson

Stewie Griffin 

Neither of these necessarily give insight into a character’s internal life.  These are often used when a character needs to be 'normal', or to appeal to the widest possible audience.  The low-contrast or 'average' name can provide a contrast to the rich internal life of a character.

Descriptive names, or self-explanatory.  The character name is descriptive, or the character name is literal, since sometimes a character is a very obvious trope.

Little Orphan Annie  --  well, she has no parents.

Ichabod Crane — his bod is described in the story as lanky and bony.

Daffy Duck  --  he’s a duck, and he’s daffy

Goofy — … and so he is.  A-hilk!

SpongeBob SquarePants  — he’s a sponge, and he’s square, in more ways than one.

Superman  --  look!  up in the sky, it’s a literal ubermensch!

Jack Skellington — skeleton, get it? (nudge)

Hidden description or meaning.  The character name is allusive, rather than obvious.

Draco Malfoy  --  word roots include ‘lizard’ and ‘ill-made’.

Cruella de Vil —‘cruel’, plus either ‘devil’ or ‘of evil’.

Fred Flintstone  --  ordinary-guy first name, combined with reference to a cartoon Stone Ages

Dash Riprock — a dashing character, strong enough to rip rock.  Whatta guy!

Dr. Zoidberg  -- a cartoon Jewish space scientist?  Why not?

Ebenezer Scrooge — ‘Ebenezer’ says ancient, while ‘Scrooge’ conveys screw.  Ew.

Harley Quinn   --  break one word into two pieces, and call it a character name.

Han Solo — He likes to work alone.

Of course, naming can be taken too far.  When character names are Too Obviously Meaningful, they can be actually painful to read.  But hey, naming a character is one more chance to get creative.  You’re a writer; creative is what you do.   And as a writer, you want to communicate meaning to your reader, so build meaning into the people, places and things in your story.

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Consider these points when naming your character:

1- Appropriateness: national, historical, religious or political.  Age or gender.

A Roman soldier might be named Marcus Somebodycus, but he probably wouldn’t be named Whitefang Starfeather.

2- Inner meanings or etymology

Use root meanings found in modern languages, such as Latin, Greek or Sanscrit.  Neo, of The Matrix, means literally ‘new’, and can also be scrambled into ‘one’.

3- Sounds that are fun to say.

Scooby Doo!  Riff Raff!  Sweet Polly Purebred ...?

To be avoided:

1- Names with potential misunderstandings; popular or unpopular associations

Avoid a name like Adolf, unless that plays into the underlying meaning of your narrative.  Probably skip Oprah or Kobe, since pop culture already associates meanings with those syllables.

2- Unspellable or unpronounceable names.

If you name your alien XltifferQ or fi3fr0395x, the reader has to slow down to figure out how to mentally pronounce it, which gives them the chance to opt out of reading your story.

3- Names with unhelpful meanings in foreign languages. 

A Chevy Nova is a nice name for a car in English, but not in Spanish, where it means ‘doesn’t go’.

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Find potential character names in--

• Your imagination.  This should always be your first stop.  It’s so close by.
• Phone books.  Actual people with actual names can give a sense of either reality or unreality.  Regina Zeltner.  I mean, how could you make that up?
• Baby name books.  Myra and Bernice were popular names in the 1930’s.  In the 80s girls were all named Shannon or Tiffany.  And it’ll be different next year.
• Family records.  Riff off your own grandparents.
• Company & product names.  No reason you can’t name a character Vehicle Identification Number Diesel.
• Slang and neologisms.  Build off current word usage to create a name with a strong sense of the here-and-now.
• Among your friends.  Use a mix of caution and common sense here, but maybe someone you know already has the perfect name for your character.
• The obituaries.  You never know where the right name is hiding.
• The dictionary.  Yes, those books still exist!  Choose one from column A, and one from column B.
• Books on etymology, or word origins.  The ancient echoes of meaning found in the origins of everyday words can give your character exactly the right vibe.
• An online name generator.  If you want to just roll the dice, and find a character name for Joe Random, maybe that’s the way to go.

So keep looking.  Mix and match names that seem right.  Keep going until you find the right sound, the right look, the right vibration.

Give your characters each a name worthy of them, and worthy of you as their creator.  After all, when your characters live on in fictional immortality, you won't want them ashamed of their names.  And you'll want to enjoy their pride and honor, as well.

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