User-created list
Literary Names (Authors)
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Kurt
German, diminutive of Kurtis
"courteous, polite"
A name that defines itself, a bit more curt in the harder K version.
Larsson
Lorca
Spanish place name and surname
The haunting Lorca is a place name from the Spanish province of Navarre, but far more famous as the surname of the eminent Spanish poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca, who was the direct…
Orson
Latin and English
"bear cub"
In the past, Orson has felt like a one-person moniker, tied to film director Orson Welles, who dropped his given name of George in favor of his more distinctive middle. While the Citizen Kane creator…
Poe
English
"peacock"
An evocative unisex one-syllable name, Poe is most distinguished by its literary reference. Edgar Allan Poe was an influential American author and poet, credited with inventing the genres of…
Salinger
French, Saint Léger
Fervent fans of The Catcher in the Rye might want to consider this as a literary tribute. More mainstream alternative: Holden.
Selby
English
"from the willow farm"
Selby, a rarely heard British surname, feels sleeker and more distinctive than Shelby. Todd Selby, known primarily by his last name, is a hip photographer of interiors.
Silverstein
Tennyson
English
"son of Dennis"
Few people would have considered the surname of this famous Victorian poet as a first name until Russell Crowe chose it for his son in 2006. But, as a rhythmic three-syllable patronymic, Tennyson has…
Tolstoy
Wharton
English
"farm near the river"
Wharton is a rather stiff banker name that becomes creative as a middle name choice for lovers of the novels of writer Edith.
Wolfe
Anglo-Irish surname and variation of animal name
"wolf"
The Wolfe spelling shifts this name from animal name to surname-name, aggressive to aristocratic, much like Wilde does for Wild. Some sources suggests that the original bearers of the Wolfe family…