Demon name generator
This demon name generator produces infernal true-names with a derived meaning and a dread title — "Malgoroth the Undying — 'malice-wrath lord', a true-name that should not be spoken aloud." Ten names load instantly; re-roll, toggle gender, and star the keepers to a saved list that persists across the site.
Xarithoth
“chaos-shadow-fiend” — a name summoners trade in whispers
Vorith the Undying
“devour-shadow” — of the bottomless pit
Aelon
“flame-lord” — a name summoners trade in whispers
Ozus
“dread-one” — a name summoners trade in whispers
Ithoth
“shadow-fiend” — older than the pit that spawned it
Xargoroth
“chaos-wrath-fiend” — older than the pit that spawned it
Abaith
“abyss-shadow” — a name summoners trade in whispers
Malgoria
“malice-wrath-queen” — a true-name that should not be spoken aloud
Aelon the Undying
“flame-lord” — of the bottomless pit
Goron
“wrath-lord” — older than the pit that spawned it
How demon names are structured
A demon name is two or three charged syllables (Mal-, Bel-, Vor-) with a gendered or lordly ending, often followed by a dread title: the Undying, the Flayer, the Thousand-Mawed.
What makes a good demon name
Demonic names are harsh, guttural, and faintly blasphemous, full of z, x, v, and hard stops. A demon's true name is meant to sound dangerous to say aloud — which, in many campaigns, it literally is.
Examples of demon names
Malgoroth, Belith, and Voroz sit squarely in the infernal tradition without copying any specific published fiend.
True names, use-names and the hierarchy of the pit
A demon answers to at least two names. The use-name is the one it gives mortals — pronounceable, menacing, safe to say. The true name is older, harsher and dangerous: in most settings, knowing it grants power over the fiend, which is why true names are written in locked grimoires and never spoken.
Titles mark rank in the infernal hierarchy — the Undying, the Flayer, the Thousand-Mawed are not nicknames but offices. When a generated name above carries a title, that title tells you how senior the thing you have named really is.
Summoning, binding and why the name matters at the table
Naming a demon well pays off in play. A summoned fiend whose name the party has researched should feel different from one they have not — give the researched name a meaning the players can exploit: rot-shadow fiend suggests exactly what to ward against.
Cults name their patrons in euphemism, so the same demon might be the Generous One in the temple and Xargoroth in the grimoire. Keep the true name secret, hand out the euphemism freely, and let the players feel the difference when they finally learn it.
Naming the lesser fiends
Not every fiend rates a three-syllable true-name and a dread title. Infernal courts are hierarchies, and names should scale with rank: servitors and imps get short, clipped versions of their master's pieces, lieutenants get a full name without a title, and only the court's rulers carry both a true-name and an office.
The inventory table below doubles as a family tree for the pit. Give a demon lord a name from it, then build his underlings from the same prefixes with the endings stripped off — the court will sound like one bloodline, because it is.
The building blocks of demon names
Every name above is composed from these pieces — 7 prefixes, 6 roots, 4 endings, 3 surnames, titles & epithets — and the meaning under each name is derived from them, not invented. Combine any prefix with any root and ending and you can build a name of your own by hand.
Prefixes
| Piece | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Mal- | malice |
| Bel- | lord |
| Aba- | abyss |
| Vor- | devour |
| Xar- | chaos |
| Ner- | rot |
| Az- | doom |
Roots
| Piece | Meaning |
|---|---|
| gor | wrath |
| ith | shadow |
| ael | flame |
| oz | dread |
| ub | filth |
| rak | torment |
Endings
| Piece | Meaning |
|---|---|
| -on | lord |
| -oth | fiend |
| -us | one |
| -ia | queen |
Surnames, titles & epithets
| Piece | Meaning |
|---|---|
| the Undying | of the bottomless pit |
| the Flayer | of the torture courts |
| the Thousand-Mawed | of the abyssal deeps |
Worked examples
- Ozusoz + us“dread-one”
- Rakusrak + us“torment-one”
- Aelothael + oth“flame-fiend”
Frequently asked questions
What makes a name sound demonic?
Harsh, guttural consonants (z, x, v, hard stops) in a charged, slightly blasphemous shape, often capped with a dread title.
Why do demons have true names?
In many settings a demon's true name holds power over it — knowing it can summon, bind, or banish the fiend. That is why true names are guarded and feared.