Name Generator Central

Ghost Name Generator

Names for Restless Spirits, Haunts and Legendary Ghosts

Magic & Supernatural500 curated namesUpdated Free · no sign-up

Tap a name to copy it500 names in this generator

Generate ghost names in the style of real haunting legends: the Grey Lady, Bloody Mary, the Bell Witch, plus period-appropriate names for the dead who never left, from Victorian children to drowned sailors and headless horsemen.

About ghost names

Ghost names fall into three recognizable patterns, and the pattern you choose tells the reader what kind of haunting this is. Legendary ghosts are almost always described rather than named: the Grey Lady, the Brown Lady of Raynham Hall, the Woman in White, the Headless Horseman, the Phantom Hitchhiker. The description freezes the ghost at the moment of death and hints at the story behind it. Folk ghosts around the world follow the same instinct: La Llorona (the weeping woman), the Bean Nighe (the washer at the ford), Kuchisake-onna (the slit-mouthed woman), the Pontianak.

The second pattern is the ghost who keeps a human name from life, and here period accuracy matters. A ghost haunting a New England farmhouse might be Mercy Hollins or Obadiah Crane; a Victorian governess might be Miss Jessel or Governess Blackwell; a drowned sailor is Bosun Halloway. Real haunting legends like Zona Heaster Shue (the Greenbrier Ghost) and Kate Batts (the Bell Witch) show how a name plus a place becomes a legend.

The third is the ghost given a title or role: the Blue Nun, the Drummer Boy, the Lighthouse Keeper, Old Mother Weir. Children's ghosts (Little Emily, Baby Grace) are usually named this way. Choose the pattern that fits how much the living know about the dead.

Tips for choosing a name

  • Decide when the ghost died and pick a name from that era. A 1690s ghost named Kayleigh breaks the spell; Mercy, Prudence or Ezekiel keeps it.
  • Descriptive names (the Grey Lady, the Girl in the Well) work best when the ghost's identity is a mystery to be solved. Reveal the human name later for a payoff.
  • For a poltergeist or presence rather than an apparition, use a role or sound name: the Knocker, the Whistler, the Watcher at the Gate.
  • Look to regional folklore for ghosts outside the Anglo-American tradition: gwisin (Korea), yurei names like Okiku and Oiwa (Japan), rusalka (Slavic), churel (South Asia).
  • One-word mood names (Lenore, Vesper, Requiem, Wisp) suit friendly or stylized ghosts, mascots and pets more than serious horror.

Frequently asked questions

What are the most famous ghost names?

The Grey Lady, Bloody Mary, La Llorona, the Bell Witch, Resurrection Mary, the Brown Lady of Raynham Hall, the Headless Horseman and the Flying Dutchman are the best-known legends. In fiction, Casper, Beetlejuice, Jacob Marley, Moaning Myrtle, Nearly Headless Nick, Samara and Sadako top the list.

Why are so many ghosts called the Grey Lady or the White Lady?

Because most haunting reports describe a figure by clothing color rather than a name, and pale or grey dresses were what women in mourning or burial were seen in. Nearly every old British castle or house has its own Grey, White, Green or Blue Lady.

What is the difference between a ghost, a wraith, a specter and a poltergeist?

Ghost is the general term. Specter and apparition emphasize a visible figure; wraith and shade suggest a faint or ominous one, often an omen of death; poltergeist (German for noisy spirit) refers to a presence that moves objects and makes sounds rather than appearing.

Can I use these ghost names in my game or story?

Yes. Folklore and legendary ghosts are public domain, and the invented human names are free to use. Named characters from films and books (Beetlejuice, Casper, Moaning Myrtle, Samara) are protected and best used only as inspiration.

All 500 ghost names

Browse the full list
  • The Grey Lady
  • The White Lady
  • The Lady in Black
  • The Blue Lady
  • The Brown Lady of Raynham Hall
  • The Woman in White
  • La Llorona
  • Bloody Mary
  • The Bell Witch
  • Kate Batts
  • Resurrection Mary
  • The Headless Horseman
  • The Flying Dutchman
  • Anne Boleyn
  • The Green Lady
  • The Drummer of Tedworth
  • The Cock Lane Ghost
  • Scratching Fanny
  • The Hammersmith Ghost
  • The Greenbrier Ghost
  • Zona Heaster Shue
  • The Enfield Poltergeist
  • The Amherst Ghost
  • The Tower Ghost
  • The Phantom Hitchhiker
  • The Vanishing Hitchhiker
  • The Grey Man of Ben Macdui
  • The Wild Huntsman
  • Herne the Hunter
  • The Black Shuck
  • The Radiant Boy
  • The Weeping Woman
  • The Crying Boy
  • The Faceless Nun
  • The Phantom Monk
  • The Ghost of Christmas Past
  • Jacob Marley
  • Banquo
  • Hamlet's Father
  • Peter Quint
  • Miss Jessel
  • Catherine Earnshaw
  • Rebecca de Winter
  • Beetlejuice
  • Casper
  • Nearly Headless Nick
  • Moaning Myrtle
  • The Bloody Baron
  • The Grey Lady of Ravenclaw
  • The Fat Friar
  • Peeves
  • Slimer
  • The Librarian
  • Sir Simon de Canterville
  • Captain Daniel Gregg
  • Sam Wheat
  • Samara Morgan
  • Sadako Yamamura
  • Kayako Saeki
  • Toshio Saeki
  • Okiku
  • Oiwa
  • Otsuyu
  • Yuki-onna
  • Hanako-san
  • Teke Teke
  • Kuchisake-onna
  • Ubume
  • Funayurei
  • Pontianak
  • Kuntilanak
  • Langsuir
  • Churel
  • Bhoot
  • Preta
  • Gwisin
  • Cheonyeo Gwisin
  • Mullae Gwisin
  • Banshee
  • Bean Sidhe
  • Bean Nighe
  • The Washer at the Ford
  • Draugr
  • Gjenganger
  • Wiedergänger
  • Nachzehrer
  • Domovoi
  • Rusalka
  • Vila
  • Kikimora
  • Mavka
  • Nav
  • Lemures
  • Larvae
  • Manes
  • Umbra
  • Eidolon
  • Phasma
  • Revenant
  • Wraith
  • Shade
  • Specter
  • Phantom
  • Apparition
  • Poltergeist
  • Wisp
  • Will-o'-the-Wisp
  • Jack-o'-Lantern
  • Corpse Candle
  • Fetch
  • Doppelgänger
  • Eleanor Whitlock
  • Josiah Blackwood
  • Abigail Thorne
  • Ezekiel Marsh
  • Prudence Ashcombe
  • Silas Grimshaw
  • Constance Vale
  • Obadiah Crane
  • Mercy Hollins
  • Bartholomew Pike
  • Temperance Fairweather
  • Nathaniel Rooke
  • Lavinia Bellamy
  • Cornelius Fenwick
  • Rosalind Ashby
  • Ambrose Wexley
  • Ophelia Redgrave
  • Jeremiah Coldwater
  • Millicent Harrow
  • Thaddeus Wraye
  • Clementine Frost
  • Isaiah Sallow
  • Winifred Blythe
  • Ephraim Tull
  • Beatrice Marlowe
  • Amos Hollow
  • Little Emily
  • Little Nell
  • Little Tommy Ward
  • Baby Grace
  • Sister Agnes
  • Brother Anselm
  • Father Bernard
  • Mother Ludlow
  • Nurse Hattie
  • Governess Blackwell
  • Old Man Hollister
  • Old Mother Weir
  • The Miller's Daughter
  • The Lighthouse Keeper
  • The Drowned Bride
  • The Jilted Bride
  • The Hanged Man of Gallows Hill
  • The Drummer Boy
  • The Piper of Culross
  • The Sailor of the Mary Celeste
  • Captain Ezra Whitlock
  • First Mate Cobb
  • Bosun Halloway
  • The Chained Debtor
  • The Grey Monk
  • The Blue Nun
  • The Coachman
  • The Stationmaster
  • The Night Porter
  • The Man in the Grey Suit
  • The Woman on the Stairs
  • The Girl in the Well
  • The Boy in the Attic
  • The Child on the Landing
  • The Face in the Window
  • The Knocker
  • The Whistler
  • The Weeper
  • The Watcher at the Gate
  • Willow
  • Wisteria
  • Ashen
  • Pallor
  • Vesper
  • Lenore
  • Ligeia
  • Annabel Lee
  • Ulalume
  • Emily Rose
  • Elise Rainer
  • Emily Rain
  • Mary Worth
  • Anneliese
  • Marisol
  • Ysabel
  • Ottoline
  • Hesper
  • Nocturne
  • Requiem
  • Elegy
  • Dirge
  • Lament
  • Vigil
  • The Pink Lady
  • The Lady in Red
  • The Lady in Grey of Hampton Court
  • The Screaming Lady
  • The Lady of the Lake
  • The White Lady of Berlin
  • The White Lady of Hohenzollern
  • The Weeping Bride
  • The Silent Bride
  • The Grey Lady of Glamis
  • The Green Lady of Fyvie
  • The Woman in Black
  • The Woman in the Mirror
  • The Woman at the Window
  • The Bride of Corpse Road
  • Dame Alice Kyteler
  • Lady Mary Berkeley
  • Lady Howard of Okehampton
  • Lady Blanche
  • Lady Jane Grey
  • Catherine Howard
  • The Wicked Lady Ferrers
  • Marie Laveau
  • The Sultan of the French Quarter
  • Delphine LaLaurie
  • Chloe of the Myrtles
  • The Myrtles Plantation Girl
  • Abigail Boone
  • Sarah Winchester
  • The Woman of Winchester House
  • The Bride of Bara-Hack
  • The Lady in White of Union Cemetery
  • Ocean-Born Mary
  • Peg Leg Bailey
  • The Grey Ghost of Fort Monroe
  • The Ghost of Chillingham Castle
  • The Blue Boy of Chillingham
  • The Grey Lady of Dudley
  • Sir George Villiers
  • The Phantom Coach of Blickling
  • Anne Boleyn's Coachman
  • Ann Griffith of Burton Agnes
  • Old Nance
  • The Grey Lady of Cleve Court
  • The Highwayman of Hounslow Heath
  • Dick Turpin's Ghost
  • Black Vaughan
  • The Black Dog of Bungay
  • The Wild Hunt Master
  • Gabriel's Hounds
  • The Barghest
  • Padfoot
  • The Gytrash
  • The Cauld Lad of Hylton
  • The Bogle of Cortachy
  • The Drummer of Cortachy
  • The Piper of Duntrune
  • The Phantom Piper of Edinburgh
  • The Grey Friar of Blackfriars
  • The Mackenzie Poltergeist
  • Bloody Mackenzie
  • The Ghost of Mary King's Close
  • Annie of Mary King's Close
  • The Bodmin Sailor
  • The Jamaica Inn Wanderer
  • Jan Tregeagle
  • The Ghost of Borley Rectory
  • The Nun of Borley
  • Marianne of Borley
  • The Enfield Voice
  • Bill Wilkins
  • The Amityville Presence
  • Old Kate
  • The Winchester Widow
  • The Lemp Mansion Boy
  • Lavender the Lemp Ghost
  • The Stanley Hotel Maid
  • Lucy of the Stanley
  • The Whaley House Judge
  • Yankee Jim Robinson
  • The Bell Witch Cave Keeper
  • The Lady of the Lorraine
  • The Gettysburg Sentinel
  • The Devil's Den Sniper
  • The Ghost of the Alamo
  • The Faceless Bride of New Orleans
  • The Ghost of Julia Legare
  • The Ghost of Alice Flagg
  • Alice of the Hermitage
  • The Gray Man of Pawleys Island
  • The Lady of the Lighthouse
  • Theodosia Burr
  • The Ghost of Ocracoke
  • Blackbeard's Headless Corpse
  • Ghost of the Queen Anne's Revenge
  • The Palatine Light
  • The Ghost Ship of Northumberland Strait
  • The Lady Lovibond
  • The Octavius Crew
  • The Mary Celeste Cook
  • The Ghost of the Great Eastern
  • The Riveter in the Hull
  • The Ghost of the Queen Mary
  • Jackie of the Queen Mary
  • The Lady in White of the Queen Mary
  • The Chambermaid of the Queen Mary
  • The Watchman of the Whitby Pier
  • The Drowned Fisherman
  • The Fisherman's Widow
  • The Lost Lifeboatman
  • The Grey Sailor
  • The Sailor with the Lantern
  • The Bosun's Whistle
  • The Phantom Rower
  • Charon's Passenger
  • The Ghost Ferry of the Hudson
  • The Headless Sentry
  • The Sentry of Kensington
  • The Sentry on the Wall
  • The Roman Legionaries of York
  • The Treasurer's House Legion
  • The Ghost of the Ninth Legion
  • The Centurion of Bath
  • The Phantom Legion
  • The Cavalier
  • The Roundhead Ghost
  • The Grey Cavalier
  • The Ghost of Prince Rupert's Dog
  • The Ghost of the Old Rectory
  • The Reverend in Grey
  • The Vicar's Daughter
  • The Curate on the Stairs
  • The Bishop's Shadow
  • Sister Mary Ignatius
  • Sister Clemence
  • Sister Beatrix
  • Sister Ursula
  • The Sister in the Chapel
  • Brother Cuthbert
  • Brother Aldous
  • Brother Ignatius
  • Brother Peregrine
  • The Abbot of Whalley
  • The Monk of Battle Abbey
  • The Monk in the Cloister
  • The Chanting Monk
  • The Grey Monk of Rufford
  • The Weeping Nun
  • The Walled-Up Nun
  • The Nun of Watton
  • Mother Shipton
  • Mother Redcap
  • Mother Damnable
  • Old Mother Riley
  • Old Nanny Ghost
  • Old Granny Weathers
  • Peg Powler
  • Jenny Greenteeth
  • Nelly Longarms
  • Grindylow
  • The Green Children of Woolpit
  • The Babes in the Wood
  • The Twins in the Nursery
  • The Nursemaid of Chillingham
  • The Nursemaid Ghost
  • Nanny Ashcombe
  • Nanny Prewitt
  • Nurse Winslow
  • Nurse Colter
  • Matron Ashdown
  • Matron Greaves
  • The Matron of Ward Nine
  • The Night Nurse
  • The Nurse in Grey
  • The Doctor in the Corridor
  • Doctor Cornelius Blythe
  • Doctor Ambrose Vane
  • Doctor Grimsby
  • Surgeon Hollowell
  • The Undertaker's Boy
  • The Gravedigger
  • The Almshouse Widow
  • The Workhouse Master
  • The Workhouse Child
  • The Chimney Sweep
  • The Match Girl
  • The Lamplighter
  • The Nightwatchman of Newgate
  • The Newgate Ghost
  • The Hangman of Tyburn
  • The Tyburn Tree Ghost
  • The Executed Man
  • The Condemned Woman
  • The Debtor of the Fleet
  • The Prisoner in Cell Six
  • The Ghost of Cell 13
  • The Gaoler's Daughter
  • The Landlord of the Black Swan
  • The Phantom Coach
  • The Headless Coachman
  • The Highwayman's Lady
  • The Ghost of the Wreckers' Cove
  • The Ferryman's Daughter
  • The Shepherd's Lantern
  • The Milkmaid of Ellingham
  • The Governess in Grey
  • Governess Ashworth
  • Governess Fairlie
  • Miss Pinkerton
  • Miss Ambrose
  • Miss Merriwether
  • Miss Grimwood
  • Miss Lydia Fenn
  • Miss Charlotte Vane
  • Miss Agatha Roode
  • Miss Prudence Hale
  • Mrs Ashcombe
  • Mrs Tuttle
  • Mrs Pettigrew
  • Mrs Cavendish
  • Mrs Hurst
  • Mrs Wetherby
  • Mrs Rowntree
  • Mrs Ollerton
  • Mr Halloway
  • Mr Tulliver
  • Mr Ashcroft
  • Mr Pennyfeather
  • Mr Grimshaw
  • Mr Fenwick
  • Mr Threadgold
  • Mr Sallow
  • Mr Whitcombe
  • Mr Blackstone
  • Captain Blackwood
  • Captain Isaac Verne
  • Captain Josiah Fenn
  • Captain Marlowe
  • Captain Halloran
  • Captain Redfern
  • The Grey Lady of Levens Hall
  • The Blue Lady of Berry Pomeroy
  • Lady Margaret Pomeroy
  • The White Lady of Samlesbury
  • Lady Dorothy Southworth
  • The Screaming Skull of Bettiscombe
  • The Countess of Salisbury
  • Lady Arbella Stuart
  • Sarah Whitehead
  • The Black Nun of Threadneedle Street
  • The Man in Grey of Drury Lane
  • Joseph Grimaldi's Ghost
  • The Phantom Drummer of Herstmonceux
  • The Radiant Boy of Corby Castle
  • Owd Nance of Bolling Hall
  • Anne Walker of Lumley
  • Dame Elizabeth Hoby
  • The Ghost of Bisham Abbey
  • Silky of Black Heddon
  • Green Jean of Ashintully
  • The Ghost of Katherine Parr
  • Nell Gwyn's Ghost
  • Kate Morgan of the Coronado
  • The Boy in Room 502
  • Old Green Eyes of Chickamauga
  • Emily of the Covered Bridge
  • The Blue Lady of Moss Beach
  • The Madonna of Bachelor's Grove
  • Alice Riley of Wright Square
  • Fisher's Ghost of Campbelltown
  • The Red Lady of Leap Castle
  • The Elemental of Leap Castle
  • Anne Tottenham of Loftus Hall
  • The White Lady of Kinsale
  • The Woman on the Widow's Walk
  • The Boy Who Drowned in the Millpond
  • The Girl in the Blue Pinafore
  • The Man Who Waits at the Crossroads
  • The Bride on the Staircase
  • The Piper in the Tunnel
  • The Drummer in the Wall
  • The Soldier at the Ford
  • The Sentry Who Never Stood Down
  • The Woman Who Walks the Battlements
  • The Child Who Knocks Three Times
  • The Man With the Lantern in the Marsh
  • Hepzibah Crane
  • Jedediah Sallow
  • Drusilla Fenwick
  • Ichabod Wren
  • Tabitha Ashgrove
  • Zebediah Holt
  • Honoria Blackwell
  • Gideon Ravenscar
  • Perpetua Marsh
  • Cassius Thorne
  • Araminta Vane
  • Elias Grimwood
  • Dorcas Whitfield
  • Barnabas Coldwell

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