Fantasy Street Name Generator

Real medieval streets were named for what happened on them, and that is the secret to a fantasy street that feels lived in. Trades clustered together, so a city had a Tanners' Reach downwind of everything, a Coppersmiths' Row ringing with hammers, and a Shambles where butchers threw offal into the gutter. Landmarks gave names to the rest: Bell Tower Yard, Market Cross, Old Quay Steps, Gallows Row. Fantasy cities add their own trades and landmarks, which is where Alchemists' Row, Wandmakers' Close, Dragonsgate Way and Wyrmtooth Lane come from.

The suffix does a lot of work. Lane, Row and Alley suggest narrow, old and crowded; Street and Way are the main thoroughfares; Walk, Close, Mews and Court are quieter corners; Steps, Stair, Cut and Wynd hint at a hilly or cramped city; Avenue, Promenade and Boulevard belong to the rich new quarter; Wharf, Quay and Strand mark the waterfront. Longer descriptive names (Street of Silent Bells, Lane of a Thousand Steps, Court of Small Miracles) sound older and grander and usually carry a story the locals can tell.

The list mixes all of these so you can fill in a whole map: a guild district, a harbour, a temple quarter, a wizards' row, a noble hill and the rookeries where the thieves' guild meets.