Gorilla Name Generator

Find the right gorilla name for a stuffed animal, a zoo-style naming contest, a story character or a game mascot: Swahili and Kinyarwanda names used at real sanctuaries, famous gorillas like Koko and Jambo, big silverback names and soft names for babies.

About gorilla names

Real gorillas get named in a few recognisable ways, and borrowing those habits makes a made-up gorilla name sound authentic. Zoos and sanctuaries overwhelmingly use Swahili, Kinyarwanda and other Bantu-language words: Zuri (beautiful), Imani (faith), Baraka (blessing), Kwame, Jelani, Amahoro (peace). Rwanda's annual Kwita Izina ceremony names every mountain gorilla infant this way, which is why Virunga troops carry names like Kuryama, Bwenge and Isabukuru. Older Western zoos leaned on friendly human names, so the famous silverbacks of the twentieth century were Guy, Jambo, Massa, Bushman and Willie B., and researchers like Dian Fossey gave her study animals blunt nicknames such as Digit, Uncle Bert, Beetsme and Cantsbe.

The other big source is pop culture: Koko and Harambe from the news, King Kong and Donkey Kong from film and games, Grodd from comics, Winston from Overwatch, Kerchak, Kala and Terk from Tarzan. Those names carry an instant image, which is useful for a mascot and risky for an original character.

Pick by the gorilla's role. A silverback wants a short, heavy name with a hard consonant (Titus, Bokito, Goliath, Ndume). A youngster or plush toy wants something soft or silly (Moke, Pudding, Mochi, Sir Thumps-a-Lot). A gorilla in a novel set in the Congo basin sounds right with a Lingala or Kinyarwanda name and wrong with a punny one.

How to choose gorilla names

• For a realistic zoo or sanctuary gorilla, use a Swahili or Kinyarwanda word with a meaning you can explain on the sign: Amani (peace), Neema (grace), Tumaini (hope), Ubwiza (beauty).
• Silverbacks suit names of one or two heavy syllables ending in a hard stop or a long vowel: Titus, Bokito, Ndume, Kodiak. Save the three-syllable soft names for females and infants.
• Name a gorilla troop as a set. Real groups are often named after the silverback (the Titus group, the Susa group), so pick his name first and let the females and infants follow a shared language or theme.
• Avoid naming an original character after a heavily used pop-culture gorilla. Kong, Grodd, Koko and Harambe will swallow your character; Kibabu, Shinda or Mapuwa will not.
• If the name is for a plush toy or a child's character, let the sound do the work: repeated syllables (Bobo, Koko, Lulu) and food names (Biscuit, Peanut, Mochi) are the ones kids remember and say.

Frequently asked questions

What are good names for a silverback gorilla?

Short, weighty names with hard consonants read as 'silverback': Titus, Bokito, Ndume, Kumbuka, Shabani, Goliath, Kodiak, Brutus. Many real silverbacks also carry dignified human names such as Guy, Jambo and Ivan, or Swahili words like Kiburi (pride) and Hodari (brave).

Why do so many zoo gorillas have African names?

Gorillas are native to central Africa, and zoos name infants with words from Swahili, Kinyarwanda, Lingala and other regional languages as a nod to that origin. Rwanda formalised the practice with Kwita Izina, a yearly ceremony that names every new mountain gorilla baby in Kinyarwanda.

What are some famous gorilla names?

Koko (the sign-language gorilla), Harambe (Cincinnati Zoo), Snowflake (the albino gorilla of Barcelona), Ivan (the shopping-mall gorilla), Jambo (Jersey Zoo), Bokito (Rotterdam), Titus and Digit (Dian Fossey's study animals), plus fictional apes such as King Kong, Donkey Kong, Grodd, Winston and Kerchak.

What should I name a baby or stuffed gorilla?

Go soft and sayable. Real zoo babies get names like Moke, Kibibi, Zola and Kipenzi (beloved); for a toy, repeated sounds (Bobo, Koko, Lulu) and snack names (Peanut, Mochi, Biscuit) work best with kids.

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