Celtic Name Generator
Continental Celtic and Brittonic names built from elements attested on Gaulish coins and Roman inscriptions, each with its real meaning.
139,936 combinations
Male, female and neutral celtic names, each with a matching celtic last name and the meaning of every element shown.
- Vindouxellos Senones
Vindo white + uxellos high
Senones the old ones
- Cintumora Senones
Cintu first + mora sea
Senones the old ones
- Gabrobetuon Nemetes
Gabro goat + betuon birch stand
Nemetes the sanctuary people
- Ateleucos Morini
Ate renewed + leucos shining
Morini the sea people
- Catumaga Carnutes
Catu battle + maga field
Carnutes the horned ones
- Senoeburon Atrebates
Seno old + eburon yew grove
Atrebates the settlers
- Argiogabros Allobroges
Argio silver + gabros goat
Allobroges from another land
- Mandomarca Brigantes
Mando pony + marca mare
Brigantes the high ones
- Ateritum Cornovii
Ate second + ritum ford
Cornovii the horn people
- Ialotascos Carnutes
Ialo clearing + tascos badger
Carnutes the horned ones
- Nemetocarna Brigantes
Nemeto sacred + carna horn
Brigantes the high ones
- Lituglanon Atrebates
Litu festival + glanon clear spring
Atrebates the settlers
- Segolanos Ordovices
Sego victory + lanos plain
Ordovices the hammer fighters
- Medumaga Senones
Medu mead + maga field
Senones the old ones
- Litanoabona Bituriges
Litano broad + abona river
Bituriges world kings
- Tigernocintus Allobroges
Tigerno lord + cintus first
Allobroges from another land
- Nemetobriga Eburones
Nemeto sacred + briga hill
Eburones the yew people
- Cambotegos Allobroges
Cambo crooked + tegos house
Allobroges from another land
- Cambogenos Ordovices
Cambo crooked + genos born
Ordovices the hammer fighters
- Carnomaglana Senones
Carno horn + maglana chieftain's
Senones the old ones
- Boducondate Ordovices
Bodu crow + condate confluence
Ordovices the hammer fighters
- Bannomatus Senones
Banno peak + matus bear
Senones the old ones
- Tritomara Cornovii
Trito third + mara great
Cornovii the horn people
- Carnonemeton Caturiges
Carno cairn + nemeton sanctuary
Caturiges the battle kings
Need a name that means something in particular? Build one from its meaning.
How Continental Celtic names are built
¶This set is deliberately not Irish, Scottish or Welsh. It draws on Gaulish and early Brittonic, the Celtic recorded by Greek geographers, Roman writers and the coin legends and inscriptions of Gaul and Britain from roughly the third century BC to the third century AD. These are the ancestors of the later forms: catu here becomes Irish cath and Welsh cad, vindo becomes Irish finn and Welsh gwyn, rix becomes Irish ri and Welsh rhi.
A name is two words compounded, and the second usually carries the rank or the verb. Catu battle plus rix king gives Caturix. Sego victory plus maros great gives Segomaros. Dubno deep or world plus rix gives Dubnorix. Vindo white plus vassos servant gives Vindovassos. Feminine forms take -a rather than -os, so the same stock yields Vindomaros for a man and Vindomara for a woman, and rigana, queen, answers to rix.
Places were built from the same words, which is why so many modern towns still show them. Duno means a fort and gives Noviodunum, the new fort, and Lugdunum, now Lyon. Durum is a walled town, briga a hill, magus a market field, lanum a plain, bona a foundation: Vindobona, the white foundation, is Vienna; Mediolanum, the middle plain, is Milan. Nemeton was a sacred grove, and Condate a river confluence.
More celtic names
Male celtic names
- Elucatus Caleti many battle
- Mediocintus Ordovices middle first
- Brigosegos Tricorii eminence victory
- Mandovassos Carnutes pony servant
- Vassogobannos Morini servant smith
- Caromaros Petrocorii dear great
- Bannoanextlos Petrocorii peak protection
- Moritegos Atrebates sea house
- Segoialos Lemovices victory clearing
- Belocunos Petrocorii bright hound
- Meduviros Ordovices mead man
- Bitugobannos Nemetes world smith
- Lituelus Bituriges feast many
- Uxelloanextlos Eburones high protection
- Lamavindos Eburones hand fair
- Argiotritos Petrocorii silver third
- Elucarnos Petrocorii many horn
- Ialogobannos Carnutes clearing smith
Female celtic names
- Maglomarca Lemovices chief mare
- Leucobitua Nemetes shining world
- Senobriga Allobroges old hill
- Tritogena Nemetes third born
- Catuebura Nemetes battle yew
- Tigernonemeta Lemovices lord sacred
- Dubnocatua Morini deep battle
- Cunomatua Nemetes hound bear
- Dubnobitua Senones deep world
- Talonanta Caturiges brow valley
- Litucuna Allobroges feast hound
- Dubnoleuca Lemovices deep shining
- Cambotrita Lemovices crooked third
- Pennodubna Petrocorii head deep
- Nantopenna Cornovii valley head
- Litanomaglana Bituriges broad chieftain's
- Deuoiala Senones god clearing
- Tarvobitua Bituriges bull world
Neutral celtic names
- Catulindon Tricorii battle pool
- Elumorion Atrebates many sea
- Ateeburon Ordovices second yew grove
- Litanoderuon Ordovices broad oak wood
- Nouiolanon Eburones new level ground
- Lemosegon Petrocorii elm victory
- Litanocetum Carnutes broad forest
- Rigonanton Ordovices royal valley
- Pennoderuon Lemovices headland oak wood
- Ollonouion Carnutes great new
- Duronanton Carnutes gated valley
- Durolanum Morini gated plain
- Atelanon Petrocorii second level ground
- Matusenon Senones bear old
- Matutegos Tricorii bear house
- Argiocetum Ordovices silver forest
- Tarvovernon Lemovices bull alder swamp
- Ritusedon Caturiges ford seat
Questions
What is the difference between Celtic and Irish names?
Irish is one branch of Celtic, and a late one in written terms. The names here are Gaulish and Brittonic, recorded a thousand years before the Irish sources, in forms such as Catuvolcus and Segomaros. Irish Conall and Welsh Cynwal both descend from a Common Celtic Cunovalos, so the Celtic form is the parent rather than a variant.
Are these real Celtic names?
The elements are all attested in inscriptions, coin legends and classical authors. Many combinations here are documented names such as Caturix, Segomaros, Dubnorix and Vindomaros. Others are new pairings of the same stock, formed by the rule the language actually used, which is how Gaulish generated names in the first place.
What does -rix mean at the end of a Celtic name?
Rix means king, from the same Indo-European root as Latin rex and Sanskrit raja. It sits at the end of a compound and the first element qualifies it: Dubnorix is king of the world, Caturix king of battle, Ambiorix king round about. The feminine equivalent is rigana, queen, which survives in Irish rigan.
Did Celts have surnames?
Not in the modern sense. A person was placed by father and by people, so a Gaulish inscription gives a name, sometimes a patronymic in -cnos meaning son of, and the tribe. Tribal names are meaningful in themselves: the Bituriges are kings of the world, the Eburones the yew people, the Brigantes the high ones.
How do you pronounce Gaulish names?
Roughly as written, with Latin values: c is always hard, ou is a long u, and the final -os and -us are sounded. Segomaros is SEG-o-MAR-os. The spellings here follow the Latin-alphabet forms of the inscriptions, so v and u interchange freely, as they did for Roman scribes writing Gaulish down.