Download Article
Download Article
wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, volunteer authors worked to edit and improve it over time.
This article has been viewed 1,155 times.
Learn more...
Find the perfect name for your village, town, or settlement. Whether you're writing a story, playing an RPG, making a video game, or crafting your own world, the name you give your village will define the impact it has. This generator can help you generate any village name, from fantasy to real world. All fields are optional, but providing more info will give better results.
Generate Backstory
Copy Backstory
Regenerate Backstory
The Foundations of a Village
Okay, so you've found the perfect village name. That's amazing! But there are still plenty of other important details that give life and color to any village, whether it's one you're creating or one you're exploring. Let's go through some of the key elements below.
Climate and landscape. This is crucial to understanding life in any village. Is the weather sweltering and dry, casting fear into the village people every harvest? Is it cold, snowy, and fenced in by beautiful mountains that keep enemies at bay? The location and weather don't just create a mood or invoke feelings in the townspeople. They can also be a driver of action and plot. For example, a seaside village might be threatened by a storm offshore, or a pack of wolves might outgrow the nearby forest, only to have the town's livestock for dinner.
History and unique traditions. Culture will define your village and the people who bring it alive. What have the people of your village experienced, and how does it influence them today? Maybe the townspeople are suspicious and solitary due to a long history of danger and crime. Or conversely, maybe they're experienced spiritualists who promote peace and community. Culture can be expressed in so many ways: holidays, customs, rituals, and more. What defines your village's culture? Perhaps they celebrate together whenever someone spots a shooting star, or maybe they sleep on the ground to feel connected to the earth below them. The options are endless!
Central hubs and important places. The village's setup will be another crucial way to understand your community. Normally, a village is organized by a central location, known as a "hub." Maybe it's a gazebo, maybe it's a big cherry tree, or maybe it's the building where the community leaders meet. Other important places will radiate out from there. Depending on your village's culture, it might need more or less of certain types of places. A harbor village might have more locations to trade goods and repair ships, for example.
Leadership. Who is running the show in this village? There are so many ways for systems of power and government to take shape, and they greatly affect the lives of the people. Maybe a benevolent counsel of elders makes big decisions in your village, leading the people to live fair and happy lives. Or maybe, a distant crown applies pressure on cruel, local barons who shake villagers down for taxes—which would make things far less fair and happy.
Relationship to the rest of the world. Life doesn't end at your village's border, does it? In order to understand this village, it's helpful to know how it interacts with the world around it. It might be a trade hub, attracting buyers and sellers from every corner of the universe. It might be a giant power, with a daunting army to match, leaving neighbors in fear. Or maybe it's the hub of education, where neighboring towns come to expand their worldview. It's all possible!
