Published on 04/23/2021 14:48 By Akinwalere Olaleye;Georgia Stone
Edited by | Fact-checked by
When we think of gothic male names, names like Vlad, Mortimer, and Bram come to mind, each with a hauntingly beautiful sound that perfectly captures the essence of the gothic genre.
Similarly Xander, Raven, and Asher are all great examples of goth male names that evoke a sense of darkness, mystery, and individuality. However, when it comes to baby names, the term ‘goth’ has nothing to do with the subculture, instead, it is derived mainly from the eighteenth-century literature genre.
It can also have something to do with the fashion, architecture, and music trends of the same era.
Names that are inspired by the goth subculture tend to be mysterious and sometimes a little dark for example, Perseus, an ancient Greek hero, who was known for slaying the Gorgon Medusa and using her head to defeat the sea monster known as Cetus.
If you want to be inspired by a Greek goddess, you could be inspired by Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and warfare was revered as a powerful protector of the ancient Greek city of Athens. Goth baby names can also involve aspects of goth imagery, style, and iconography.
Whilst some of these names have quite dark and unique meanings, they can still make beautiful baby names for a little boy.
Names From Gothic Fiction And Literature
Gothic literature emerged in the seventeenth century as an early form of Dark Romanticism. Part of the larger Romanticism movement, it is characterised by descriptions of dark picturesque scenery, expressions of terror, supernatural elements and gruesome narratives.
These are elements that influence these Gothic baby names derived from Gothic fiction. See the brackets after each name for details of which literary work the name comes from.
1.Arthur (Celtic origin), meaning ‘bear’ (The Scarlet Letter).
2.Cassius, a Shakespearean name that dates back to antiquity.
3.Dorian (Greek origin), meaning ‘from the sea’ (A Picture of Dorian Gray).
4.Edgar (English origin), name that means ‘rich spear’ (Wuthering Heights).
5.Henry, means ‘ruler of an estate’ or ‘rich’ (Dorian Gray).
6.Igor, Frankenstein’s principal assistant.
7.Ivan (Russian origin), name which means ‘God is gracious’ (Brothers Karamazov).
8.Lorcan, name of a character in the Harry Potter epic.
9.Lucifer, (Latin origin), meaning ‘light bringer’.
10.Lucius, Shakespearean name meaning ‘light’.
11.Malachi (Hebrew origin), meaning ” (The Children of the Corn).
12.Manfred (German origin), Gothic name meaning ‘peaceful man’ (The Castle of Otranto).
13.Morpheus, refers to the Greek God of dreams (The Sandman Comics).
14.Oberon (French origin), meaning ‘ruler of the elves’ (A Midsummer Night’s Dream).
15.Tristan, a tragic hero from the Arthurian legend (Tristram Shandy).
16.Victor (Latin origin), meaning ‘conqueror’ (Frankenstein).
Non Binary Gothic Names
Non Binary names, otherwise known as unisex names, are names that would be suitable for your Gothic baby boy or girl. We have put together some dark and mysterious names that could be used for either gender, the following are some of the most popular non binary names:
17.Ascelin (French origin), this Gothic name means ‘noble’.
18.Hastie, the name of a popular character from The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde.
19.Hawthorne, a person who resides where Hawthornes grow.
20.Hemlock, a unique Gothic name from a poison used to kill Socrates.
21.Jett, a unisex name that means ‘jet black’.
22.Merle (French origin), another name for the blackbird.
23.Morgan (Welsh origin), this is a popular name meaning ‘sea born’.
24.Oxyx, means ‘a pitch black stone’, this name is made more virile by the final ‘x’.
25.Parris, similar to the name of the French capital.
26.Raven, this unisex Gothic name for your son or daughter means ‘wise’ or ‘dark haired’.
27.Sage, a short and strong name that implies wisdom and knowledge.
28.Salem (Hebrew origin), this name means ‘peace’ and also references the famous witch trials.
29.Tempest, a cool, evocative, modern name whose meaning is ‘trouble’ or ‘storm’.
30.Thorne (English origin), a distinctive name that means ‘prickly’.
31.Vega (Spanish origin), this name with Arabic roots is the name for a swooping eagle.
32.Vesper (Latin origin), means ‘evening star’.
Gothic Names Inspired By Movies And TV
Movies and television have been a huge inspiration as they provide a steady source of fantasy names that have proved popular with parents of both boys and girls. Goth names such as Vlad (the long form of Vladimir) and Xander (from Buffy The Vampire Slayer) have gone on to become popular Gothic baby names.
33.Clive (English origin), a baby name whose meaning is ‘a cliff’.
34.Damien (Russian origin), this name usually means ‘to tame’ (The Omen).
35.Dexter (Old Latin origin), this name means ‘one who is right handed’ (Dexter).
36.Draven, this name is drawn from a character in In The Shadows.
37.Hawk, this is a name for a baby boy that means ‘a bird’ (The Revenant).
38.Xander (Ancient Greek origin), a goth name that means ‘defending men’ (Buffy the Vampire Slayer).
Goth Names Inspired By Mythology
Mythology, folklore and fairy tales have inspired many dark Gothic baby boy names. Just like with movies, fairy tales from ancient Greek, Norse, Irish, Welsh, American, Scottish, French and Latin roots have provided a choice of edgy and dark boy names. Some of the most popular of these baby names include:
39.Ahriman, the devil or evil God in Zoroastrianism.
40.Anubis, Egyptian God of embalming and death.
41.Bran, one of the Celtic Gods of the underworld.
42.Caine (Hebrew origin), meaning ‘possessed’.
43.Daemon, this is a very dark Gothic name that means ‘servant of the devil’.
44.Endymion (Greek origin), the name of a handsome boy from Greek mythology.
45.Fenrir, this Gothic name for a boy is derived from Norse legends. It means ‘fen-dweller’.
46.Gabriel, (Hebrew origin), this is the name of an angelic servant that means ‘God is my strength’.
47.Grimoire, a Gothic baby name derived from folktales about spirits and incantations.
48.Hades, (Greek origin), a Gothic boy name from Greek mythology. This is the name of the King of the underworld.
49.Idris, the name of a Legendary Welsh giant after whom Idris Fort is named.
50.Leviathan (Hebrew origin), the name of a monstrous sea monster found in the Bible.
51.Loki, a cunning shape-shifting God in Norse mythology.
52.Orion, a legendary hunter in Greek mythology. This name also means ‘rising star’.
53.Orpheus (Greek origin), the name of a legendary Greek musician and poet that made trees dance.
54.Styx, this Goth name refers to mythological Greek River of Hate.
55.Summanus, the Roman name of the God of night thunder.
Gothic Boy Names Inspired By Nature
Nature is full of dark and bright moments, beautiful landscapes and harsh, arid deserts have influenced many . Many boy names from the Gothic tradition pay homage to nature, here are some of the popular Gothic baby names that you can give to your baby boy.
56.Altair, the name of the brightest star in the Aquila constellation.
57.Astor (German and French origin), refers to a bird of prey.
58.Briar, one of many Gothic names, this one means ‘a thorny patch of land’.
59.Obsidian, one of the rarer boy names. Obsidian is a type of volcanic glass.
60.Oleander, a Gothic boy name derived from a Mediterranean shrub.
61.Pluto, this goth name means ‘rich’ and is the name of the former ninth planet.
62.Silas (Latin and English origin), this boys’ name means ‘forest’ or ‘wood’.
63.Silver, a unisex name derived from the shimmer of metal.
64.Vervain, Gothic name of a sacred herb known as Verbena.
65.Wolfe (German origin), this German name meaning ‘travelling wolf’ or ‘beast’ has implication of fierceness.
Creative Gothic Names for Your Boy Child
Here are several more Gothic names which could suit your precious baby boy.
66.Alaric, Gothic name that means ‘all powerful ruler’.
67.Adonis, (Greek origin), this name is associated with masculine beauty.
68.Adrian, Latin origin, meaning ‘a person from Adria’.
69.Dyrk (German origin), German variation of Theodoric that means ‘the people’s ruler’.
70.Gaspar, (Spanish and Hungarian origin), meaning ‘bearer of treasure’.
71.Grey, this first name is associated with Virgo.
72.Kokabiel (Hebrew origin), means ‘star of God’.
73.Kimaris, the name of the 66th member of a legion of demons.
74.Leandor (Spanish and Italian origin), this name has implications of strength and power.
75.Lucien (French origin), meaning ‘light’.
76.Massimo (Italian origin), meaning ‘the greatest’.
77.Morte (French origin), this is a Gothic name meaning ‘death’.
78.Nergal, a biblical name that means ‘great man’.
79.Orlok, an original name of a vampire from the Nosferatu folktale.
80.Quillon (Latin origin), meaning ‘strong’.
81.Ransley (English origin), meaning ‘raven’s meadow’.
82.Renwick (Scottish origin), this name refers to a raven settlement.
83.Seth (Hebrew origin), meaning ‘placed or appointed’.
84.Spyros (Greek origin), this name has implications of wealth.
85.Seren (Welsh origin), meaning ‘calm’ and ‘serene’.
86.Samael, the name of an angel of death.
87.Tariq (Arabic origin), meaning ‘one who knocks at the door’.
Popular Gothic Names
This is a category of new Gothic names that have become fashionable in the recent past. If you are looking to make a splash with a cool, unique and edgy name you cannot go wrong with these names.
88.Akeldama (Hebrew origin), meaning ‘field of blood’.
89.Abbadon (Hebrew origin), this is the name of the demon of destruction.
90.Azazel, the name of the demon that taught humanity weaponry and cosmetics.
91.Azrael (Hebrew origin), this is the name of the Angel of death.
92.Belial (Hebrew origin), meaning ‘a demon’ or ‘the devil’.
93.Elatha, the name of the golden haired Prince of Darkness
94.Dade (Gaelic origin), meaning ‘the dark one’.
95.Hellebore (Ancient Latin origin), meaning ‘to injure’.
96.Iblis, this is one of the many names of Satan in Islamic folklore.
97.Shadow, a unisex name meaning ‘dark’.
98.Shiva, another unisex name. This means ‘destruction’ and ‘resurrection’.
99.Teuer, a Goth name that refers to something expensive.
100.Thanatos, this is the name of a Greek God of death.
Sources
