Shakespeare Names: Beyond Romeo and Juliet

My daughters middle name is titania after Shakespeare! Great name.

Viola is our #1 girls pick for our baby due in October, should it be a girl. Portia is another favorite, from Merchant of Venice, which I don’t see mentioned above. Great list!

Don’t forget the boy’s name Ariel!

I’ve loved Balthazar ever since we had to make a Romeo and Juliet movie adaptation in ninth grade.

“Dude, Balthazar, like, take care of yourself, man!”

No mention of Mercutio? For shame!

Another vote to add Portia! Also: Miranda and Sebastian from The Tempest.

Mercutio, Portia, Miranda and Sebastian have all been added.

This is very interesting…
Would someone be able to compile a list of all the Shakespearean names and the plays that they’re from and list it, please? Or does anyone know if there is already a list posted online and how to find it? I would love to read it.
-Thanks!

Here are a few more girls names to add:

Katharina & Bianca (Taming of the Shrew)
Iris, Ceres, & Juno (The Tempest)
Anne (Merry Wives of Windsor, King Richard III, King Henry VIII)
Margaret (Much Ado About Nothing, King Richard III)
Hermia (Midsummer Night’s Dream)
Nerissa & Jessica (Merchant of Venice)
Phebe (As You Like It)
Olivia & Maria (Twelfth-Night)
Elizabeth (King Richard III)
Katharine & Patience (King Henry VIII)
Gertrude (Hamlet)
Emilia & Bianca (Othello)

I’m sure there are several more boy’s names, too.

I feel like I won the lottery! Thanks so much for writing this post – I rarely see any name sites focus on all the great names Shakespeare’s plays have to offer.

I see Robyn has already listed it, but one of our top contenders was Katharina, from Taming of the Shrew. Our daughter was almost named that… she was so stubborn about coming out I did start lobbying for it for a while!

Viola was on our list as well. Plus, Cordelia, Beatrice and Cassandra also got some consideration.

My husband really wants to name twins Viola and Sebastian were we to have boy-girl twins.

I love Viola. Unfortunately, when spoken in a Southern US it’s pronounced VY-ola, instead of the much more melodious VEEola.

Some of these beautifully-named characters are nevertheless notorious for some pretty horrid actions/scenes (Titus Andronicus, Regan, even the beautiful Ophelia [suicide]). If you’re telling people you chose the name because you love Shakespear, you should check out the character first or risk some pretty judgmental looks!
Also, just FYI, Shakespearean scholarship holds with the VY-ola pronunciation. VEE-ola is an instrument.

I love Tybalt for a boy – there’s still the option of Ty if he proves to be more outdoorsy/sportsy than bookish.

I used Tybalt on my cat because I thought it might be too unusual for a child. Considering that it gets mispronounced every time we go to the vet, I’m glad I went ahead and it used it.

From the girl’s list I like: Cordelia, Helena, Luciana/Lucyana*, Blanche*, Desdemona*, Cassandra, Celia , Patience, Portia, Nerissa.

from the boys list I like: Cassio, Hero, Lorenzo, Lyzander/Lysander*, Orlando Titus, Ajax, Alonso, Dion, Fabian, Francisco, Lennox, Lucius, Sebastian*, & Valentine*.

Rosalind, Cordelia, Bianca, and Sebastian are my faves. All are on my lists.