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Lake Name Generator & Guide

The halfling kicked his feet in the cool water, idly waiting for the half-orc to drag the canoe down the beach to the lake. “Any day now, pally,” he called, to which the half-orc responded with a growl. “We need to cross Lake Calembrai by sundown, or else the sirens pull us under.”

Generate Names

Pulicat

Kinkony

Karna

Molasses

Eyre

Basswood

Bedo

Fewa

Dreamstream

Ooze

Larnaca

Moriri

Forge Your Own Name: Discover Our Name Suggestions & Backstories

Table of Contents

A fantasy lake has more to it than what meets the eye. They often hide forgotten drowned temples with magical treasure, or serve as the den for mermaids or sea monsters. Many come with local legends about swimmers going missing at night, victims of whatever lurks in the lake.

On the surface, lakes are perfect for fishing and trade, so people will build ports and cities nearby. In a fantasy world, lakes end up being hubs for settlement and for ancient secrets.

Good Lake Names

It is very common to name lakes after people. The explorer who first discovered a lake or the powerful king who built his city on its banks will often give their name to a lake.

  • Kariba
  • Turkana
  • Lagdo
  • Barombi
  • Vanda
  • Tai
  • Santi
  • Namak

Zarivar

Also known as “the knotted lake,” this body of water is made of several tiny lakes that flooded and merged, giving it a jagged shape and shallow depths that frogs love.

  • Galilee
  • Issyk
  • Rara
  • Lugano
  • Mirik
  • Dora
  • Bodensee
  • Chandra
  • Maggiore

Sevan

At the peak of Mt. Lokmus sits this lake, frozen for ten months of the year. In the summer, fortune-seekers brave the mountain to pan the lake for gold nuggets.

  • Lessing
  • Rila
  • Verde
  • Iskar
  • Garda
  • Atazar
  • Volta
  • Parochlus
  • Glazer

Champlain

Named for the human explorer who discovered it, the elves who actually live near the lake resentfully refuse to even mention the name to undermine the humans’ pride.

  • Lulusar
  • Basswood
  • Messier
  • Chapala
  • Glendive
  • Laguna
  • Alden
  • Palena
  • Fangano

Ousteri

Four metropolitan cities feed their waste into this lake, creating a filthy slime that covers the water. Crocodiles have taken a liking to the sludge and stalk the lake for food.

  • Eyre
  • Lanao
  • Stowe
  • Madron
  • Souris
  • Cahuilla
  • Komi
  • Salinas

Tengger

When Lumaniel, the goddess of rain, had her heart broken, it is said she cried for three days and nights. Her tears filled a nearby crater, which grew into this lake.

  • Zapatera
  • Samosir
  • Ozero
  • Kollu
  • Desor
  • Hamisar
  • Venna
  • Osman

Funny Lake Names

Nothing makes a lake name stick out like a bit of humour. These names can also kickstart some myths in your fantasy world as people go to comical extremes trying to explain the odd naming choices.

  • Mudhole
  • Lacking
  • Drybed
  • Puddlepond
  • Baithook
  • Dreamstream
  • Mistake
  • Looney

Wishyaknew

Only by chance can one find this lake. Its exact location is unknown, but travelers stumbling through the misty shores occasionally find themselves facing the legendary expanse of water.

  • Molasses
  • Trouttrap
  • Ratfish
  • Oddlywet
  • Landless
  • Shipsnapper

Fishful

The name of this lake has attracted many greedy fishing people over the centuries. Because so many arrived to fish the lake, it is now almost entirely empty of fish.

  • Beaverbrook
  • Shortswim
  • Loveless
  • Nibbler

Did you enjoy this guide? Leave us a comment with your thoughts, and share this guide with your friends if you liked it. Lakes attract settlers, fishing people, and all manner of aquatic monsters. Giving yours a good name can help make it an integral part of your fantasy world.

Picture of Liam Blackley
Liam Blackley
I'm passionate about telling stories as a DM and I get a thrill from worldbuilding. Inviting players into these made up worlds that somehow still feel vibrant and alive is incredible, and Codex Nomina is a way to extend that invitation to more people.

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