Gorilla Name Generator

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.