My youngest goes to a Christian high school and has many classmates named Luke, Ben, and Caleb. There’s a little more variety to the girls’ names, but my niece went to a small Catholic grade school and had five Graces in her class. So if you want to try using names from the Bible for characters, try find unusual ones. But, of course, the name has to fit the character.
The Fun of Finding Unusual Names
I love naming characters. It’s more fun than naming my kids because I don’t have to consult anyone. I have almost unlimited freedom, but I should follow one of the golden rules of naming characters–names should be easy for readers to pronounce . If the name is Tchakach, but it’s supposed to be said “Take”, don’t use it. Here is my post on the two golden rules for naming.
A third rule to keep in mind is the reputation of the name. Ahab and Judas are easy for English-speakers to pronounce. But they come with a ton of baggage. There’s a reason Herman Melville named his mad captain Ahab. If you use a Biblical name like that, you have to consider the impression it will make on readers before they’ve gotten to know the character.
Following those rules, here are some overlooked Bible names that will make your characters stand out. I put “f” for names that are traditionally female, but for English-speakers, many of these names could suit either gender.
Abel, Amasa, Boaz, Bilhah(f), Cozbi(f), Damaris(f), Dinah(f), Emmanuel, Festus, Gad
Haggar(f,) Hiram, Huldah(f), Ibzan, Japheth, Jehu, Joab, Joram, Justus, Keturah(f)
Kish, Laban, Merab(f), Mishael, Neco, Nemuel, Onan, Oreb, Palti, Rizpah(f)
Rumah(f), Sally, Sceva, Sharar, Shem, Shua, Terah, Tema, Tobijah, Vashti, Zebul, Zeba
Biblical place names that can work as given names.
Edom, Haran, Rome, Zioń, Canaan, Aram, Emmaus, Gilead, Nazareth, Zair
Carmel, Galilee, Havilah, Sinai, Bethel, Beulah, Cana, Judea
Virtue names that go beyond Faith, Hope, and Charity
Content, Mercy, Justice, Temperance, Patience, Peace, Zeal
Cherish, Honesty, Able, Prudence, Honor, Truth, Noble
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