Palace Name Generator

Real palaces are named in a few recognisable ways, and each carries a different flavour. Many take the name of the place they stand on: Versailles, Buckingham, Schönbrunn, the Alhambra (from the Arabic for "the red one"). Others describe a season or purpose, such as the Winter Palace in St Petersburg or the Summer Palace outside Beijing. Chinese and East Asian palaces are usually named for a virtue or blessing, so the Forbidden City contains the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Palace of Heavenly Purity. Ottoman and Persian palaces often reference light, gardens, or the ruler (Topkapi means "cannon gate"; Golestan is "rose garden").

Fantasy palaces work best when they follow one of those traditions instead of stacking adjectives. "Palace of the [Symbol]" (Peacock Throne, Golden Lotus, Nine Gates) sounds imperial and eastern; "The [Material] [Hall/Court/Seat]" (the Alabaster Palace, the Ivory Seat) reads as a nickname courtiers would use; a place-based name in French, German, Italian, or Spanish (Château de Vauremont, Palazzo Aureliano) instantly signals a European-style monarchy.

When naming a palace, decide who built it and what they wanted the building to say. A conqueror names it for victory, a pious king for harmony, a vain one for himself. The name is the first piece of the palace a reader ever sees.