If you’re like me, you put a lot of thought into naming characters, which is why I make these lists of names! If you have millennial characters in a U.S. based novel, story, or screenplay, you might want to give them names that were popular when they were born.
Some people in older generations can occasionally forget that millennials have been adults for a long while now. They were born between 1981 and 1996, so you can do the math! Given the fact that it takes time to write and publish a book, and the book will be out there for a while, these are good names for any characters in their 40s as well as characters in their late 20s and 30s.
While some of these names were trendy, many of them are classics! It just goes to show that some names never go out of style.
Sometimes you want an unusual character name, of course. The character of Mabel in Only Murders in the Building is a millennial, for instance, and Mabel is a name that most people associate with older generations. But if you want a name that really goes with the grain for the generation, here are 50 “girl names” and 50 “boy names” that can help! I’m putting those in quotation marks because, of course, not everyone is strictly male or female, and just because a name has been traditionally feminine or masculine doesn’t mean anyone can’t use it.
If you dislike a particular name, this isn’t the place to discuss it—if you do, I’ll delete the comment when I see it so no one’s feelings are hurt.
Be sure to bookmark this post (or pin it on Pinterest) for future reference!
Millennial Women’s Names
Jessica
Ashley (also spelled Ashleigh)
Taylor
Amanda
Crystal (also spelled Krystal)
Megan (also spelled Meghan)
Jasmine
Tiffany
Sarah (also spelled Sara)
Stephanie
Brianna
Nicole
Melissa
Elizabeth
Danielle
Brittany (also spelled Brittney)
Lauren
Emily (I’m using this one! So are lots of people, of course. 🙂 )
Amber
Kayla
Chelsea
Courtney
Samantha
Rachel
Heather
Victoria
Rebecca
Hannah
Alexis/Alexandria
Caitlin (also spelled Kaitlyn)
Morgan
Alyssa
Katherine
Haley
Jennifer (also HUGE for Gen X)
Abigail
Olivia
Madison
Anna
Maria/Mary
Shelby
Brooke
Allison (also spelled Allyson)
Sydney (also spelled Sidney)
Jamie
Erin
Erica
Savannah
Kimberly
Millennial Men’s Names
Michael
Joshua
Mark/Marcus
Ryan
Brandon
Jason
Justin
Kyle
Christopher
Matthew
Nicholas
John/Jonathan
Tyler
Zachary
Kevin
Daniel
David
James
Jacob (almost always Jake for short)
Cody
William
Andrew
Austin
Thomas
Sean (also spelled Shawn)
Jeremy
Jesse
Aaron
Christian
Anthony
Cameron
Brian (also spelled Bryan)
Alex
Joseph (also Jose, for Latino men)
Jordan
Samuel
Richard
Patrick
Dylan
Hunter
Juan
Eric
Caleb
Noah
Logan
Adam
Kevin
Nathan
Charles
Lucas
Steven (also spelled Stephen)
Did I leave out the best millennial name? Let me know in the comments! And of course, for my international readers, the most popular millennial names in your country might be very different…I’d love to hear about that, too.
And if you love lists for writers, be sure to check out my book Master Lists for Writers. Many bestselling authors have told me they keep it on their desk (though it’s available in eBook, too!)
Thanks so much for reading, and happy writing!
Interesting! Thanks for sharing. One of the first tasks of a story is figuring out the perfect name for your main character.
Definitely! I take a lot of time with it. Hope you’re having a great week, Tanya!
We moved into a new community. Our son joined a scout troop of six boys and five of them were named David. No kidding.
As a retired teacher, it was interesting to see how names changed over the years. Names, like most things, become fashionable. One of the biggest trends near the end of my career was to come up with alternative spellings for the most basic names. What? There’s an alternative spelling for Marie? When did it become Maree??
A great list! Thanks.
It’s like my older two boys’ class lists.
Isabella
Bella
Kiera
Elyse
Maisey
Bianca
Francesca
Hunter
Maghon/Magon also for Megan
Jordan
Emma
Kailey/Kaylee/Kayleigh
Bailey
Hailey
Halley
Riley/Rileigh/Ryleigh
Rian or Ryan for a girl
Jaden is used for boys or girls
Nathaniel (not always shortened)
Liam
Seth
Eli
Benjamin/Ben
Andrew/Drew
Cody
Chase
Collin/Colin
Connor
Cole
Spencer
Ethan
Trent
Bryn,
I’m plotting a trilogy for romantic suspense. The working title is The Wyne Sisters, There names are Chardonnay, Cabernet, and Malbec. One is a professional gambler. One will be a chef in a casino and the other a holistic essential oil maker.
What do you think?
Hi Carol! I love how different their careers are! To be honest, I’ve never been a fan of super unusual character names like that, BUT, it’s a matter of personal preference. Lots of readers like them!