Gothic baby names are commonly chosen for their unusual meanings. If the gothic culture interests you, you may decide to choose a baby name with ties to the darker side of life. Enjoy a comprehensive list of gothic and dark-sounding baby girl and boy names that will help you choose the perfect moniker.
Ancient Gothic Names
Many of these names are borrowed from mythology. They speak to a legacy of power, and sometimes darkness, but are all as beautiful as they are uncommon.
- Arachne (girl) - young woman who challenged Athena and was turned into a spider
- Balor (boy) - one-eyed giant in Irish mythology
- Chaos (unisex) - originally, the state of the universe before the Greek gods arrived
- Chimera (girl) - a mythological beast made up of parts of different animals
- Circe (girl) - Greek sorceress
- Esmerée (girl) - the daughter of a Welsh king who was turned into a serpent by magicians
- Griffin/Gryphon (boy) - mythological beast with the body of a lion and the wings and head of an eagle
- Hades (boy) - Greek lord of the underworld
- Hecate (girl) - Greek sorceress
- Hler (boy) - ruler of the underworld in Norse mythology
- Isolde (girl) - tragic Irish heroine
- Medusa (girl) - mythological Greek monster whose hair was snakes and blood was poison
- Moon (unisex) - ancient symbol of fertility
- Nephilim (boy) - race of half-human giants
- Sabrina (girl) - goddess of the river Severn in Celtic mythology
Scary Gothic Last Names
These gothic surnames are beautiful and unique enough that they can be used as first names. The bonus is that most of these names are fitting for a boy or girl. Coming from various notable people from Goth culture, see if one of these might work for your little one.
- Addams (boy) - from the famous show The Addams Family
- Avenal (boy) - last name of British sitcom's goth character from The IT Crowd
- Bara (boy) - a noted femme fatale from the 1910s
- Baudelaire (boy) - Famous French poet from Gothic period in literature
- Bowie (boy) - last name of musician David Bowie, noted influencer of Goth culture
- Burton (boy) - as in Tim Burton, noted for having influenced Goth culture with his dark take on films
- Dali (unisex) - last name of famous surrealist painter Salvador Dali
- Gorey (boy) - artist who has a goth aesthetic
- Ladouceur (girl) - writer and poet who wrote Encyclopedia Gothica
- Lugosi (unisex) - actor who portrayed Dracula in the 1930s film adaptation of the famous book
- Mercer (unisex) - last name of the author of The 21st Century Goth
- Mortem (unisex) - after fashion designer Rose Mortem who is married to Goth band frontman from The Awakening
- Nietzsche (unisex) - pronounced nee-chee ; famous philosopher who influenced Goth subculture
- Poe (unisex) - famous poet noted for his dark poetry
- Stoker (boy) - last name of the writer of Dracula
Beautiful Dark Sounding Baby Names
If you're looking to evoke power with a menacing or scary-sounding baby name, these names may well fit the bill. Check out a few gothic names with a darker edge for your little one.
- Ague (girl) - term for Malaria
- Akeldama (boy) - field of blood; where Judas Iscariot committed suicide
- Dade (boy) - dark one
- Dolores (girl) - sorrows in Spanish
- Draven (m) - child of the shadows
- Leila (girl) - Arabic for night
- Maleficent (girl) - working or productive of harm or evil
- Mara (girl) - a maleficent female wraith in Scandinavian folklore that causes nightmares
- Narcissa (girl) - feminine form of Narcissus
- Salem (unisex) - location of witch hunts in Massachusetts
- Shadow (unisex) - black
- Shiva (boy) - God of destruction
- Tueur (boy) - French for killer
- Tohopka (unisex) - Native American name meaning wild beast
- Thanatos (boy) - he who brings death, death bringer
Gothic Names With Creepy and Evil Meanings
If you're looking for something to help your baby embrace their real, inner goth, try one of these names. These evil-sounding names have a unique ring to them.
- Avarice (girl) - greed
- Badriyah (girl) - full moon
- Cain (boy) - Biblical character who killed his brother, earning him the title as the world's first murderer
- Chalice (girl) - fancy cup, used to hold holy blood
- Daemon (boy) - an evil attendant or spirit
- Diti (girl) - demon mother in Hinduism
- Gehenna (girl) - New Testament version of hell
- Grimoire (unisex) - book of incantations, making medicines, summoning spirits
- Golgotha (unisex) - Hebrew for skull
- Melancholia (girl) - a mental condition and especially a manic-depressive condition
- Mephistopheles/Mephisto (boy) - Renaissance-era name for Satan
- Morte (boy) - French for dead
- Thorne (unisex) - sharp
- Vladimir (boy) - alleged vampire
- Wolfe (boy) - deadly beast
Creative Gothic Names
Looking to be a little outside of the box with your goth name? You can be sure no one else in your child's class will have the same name!
- Ascelin (unisex) - of the moon
- Aelfwif (boy) - Germanic word for elf + battle or war
- Alaric (boy) - first king of the Visigoths; means all-powerful ruler
- Bellatrix (girl) - although made famous by the Harry Potter novels, this name is Latin and means female warrior
- Clove (girl) - spice
- Draconia (girl) - dire
- Druscilla (girl) - it sounds dark but actually means fruitful
- Dyrk (boy) - one who admires nighttime
- Mallory (girl) - cursed or ill-fated one
- Perdita (girl) - lost in Spanish
- Quillon (boy) - sword
- Twilight (girl) - dusk
- Vespers (unisex) - Catholic evening prayers
- Wednesday (girl) - from The Addams Family
- Xander (boy) - vampire hunter from the television show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Goth Names From Nature
Nature is full of beautiful, dark, and scary moments. Many goth names pay homage to pagan and druid ancestry as well. Try one of these names if you're looking for something to speak to your love of true Gothic roots.
- Amethyst (girl) - naturally occurring purple gemstone
- Ash (boy) - what's left after a fire
- Belladonna (girl) - poisonous plant with purple flowers
- Branwen (boy) - bran is a Celtic word for crow
- Briar (boy) - a thorn
- Chrysanthemum (girl) - flower associated with death in Japan and some European countries
- Foxglove (girl) - a beautiful but poisonous flower
- Hellebore (girl) - flower that blooms through the snow in the middle of winter
- Hemlock (unisex) - poison Socrates took to commit suicide
- Merula (boy) - Latin for blackbird
- Oleander (unisex) - a beautiful but poisonous plant
- Onyx (unisex) - stone that is pitch black
- Raven (girl) - bird often associated with death
- Sage (unisex) - a spice
- Willow (girl) - weeping tree; symbol of death
Baby Goth Names From Literature
These charming names come straight out of the book. From the fatal gothic female names to the sinister boy names, you'll find a little of everything on this list.
- Annabel-Lee (girl) - tragic character from Edgar Allan Poe poem
- Basil (unisex) - from The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
- Desdemona (girl) - tragic Shakespearean heroine
- Grendel (boy) - name of the beast from Beowulf
- Guinevere (girl) - white ghost; of Arthurian legend
- Elsinore (girl) - Hamlet's castle
- Eulalie (girl) - figure from Edgar Allan Poe poem
- Hastie (unisex) - character from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
- Manfred (boy) - the lord in The Castle of Otranto, a gothic novel by Horace Walpole
- Mina (girl) - female heroine in Dracula
- Nimue (girl) - an Arthurian sorceress
- Ophelia (girl) - tragic Shakespearean heroine
- Tempest (unisex) - from The Tempest by William Shakespeare
- Tristan (boy) - tragic Arthurian hero
- Victor (boy) - scientist who created Frankenstein
Dark and Beautiful Gothic Names With Meanings
Most goth names combine an element of beauty with a bit of darkness. If that describes your family perfectly, a goth name might be exactly the right fit for your baby. Find the perfect male or female gothic name and meaning for your little one in a snap.
