User:神奇超龍/BW Name Predictions

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Welcome to my prediction and rant page on the names of characters and places (of BW and B2W2). However, I have no plans of predicting most of the CotD's names, names of Pokémon and moves. This is essentially just a rip-off of Kenji-girl's and Maxim's idea. But to be more original, this page will also have my prediction on Chinese names. For other languages, try Siegfried's page. For the convenience of those who can't read, (most of the) Chinese names will be provided with pinyin which are conveniently located in the tt template.

Please DO NOT edit this page (unless you're an admin, then it's fine). I will update it whenever. The names may be subjected to change without prior notice.

English

Characters

Game Protagonists and Supporting Characters

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Touko Clara
Kayla
Similar to "clear". Hilda The name's fine I guess. Her name does remind me of Brunhilde.
Touya Clark
Kalen
Similar to "clear". For Kalen, it fits the pattern of player characters ending with 'n' (Brendan, Kellyn, Ethan, Ben). Hilbert Old fashioned name, but at least it's not Blair.
Cheren and Bel Cheren and Bel Same as Japanese (They sound normal enough in English). Although, Cheren does look more like a "Nigel". Cheren and Bianca Well, they kept Cheren, although it's a bit awkward, change one name but not the other. They could have either just kept Bel/Bell/Belle or change Cheren to something that matches with "Bianca" (like "Nero").
Doctor Araragi Professor Linden Oak, Elm, Birch, Rowan... Go figure. Besides, "Yew" sounds weird. Professor Juniper Wow, this name was one of my first few guesses before I ended up with "Linden". The others were Cyprus and Pine. I like it, at least it's better than eww yew.
Makomo Alice* The titular character of "Alice in Wonderland". Fennel Fennel? At least there's the plant theme on Professors and it does sound exotic, but it's still weird for a name of a person.
Shouro N/A N/A Amanita Why did they name her after a genus of mushrooms that includes some of the most toxic ones? (At least shouro is edible)
Nobori N/A N/A Ingo Not bad, I never did expected this.
Kudari N/A N/A Emmet Emit? Reminds me of emission of particles and electromagnetic radiation...
Dent Phyll
Virgil
From phullon (Greek word for leaf) and virere (Latin word for green). Cilan Fancy name... Weird but it works.
Pod Pierre
Pyril
Similar to puros, Greek word for fire. Chili Couldn't they have named him Cayen instead...
Corn Ponce
Aquil
From "pond"* and aqua (Latin word for water). Cress Finally, a normal name. I like the reference to the herb and watercress, though his name does remind me of Cresselia.
Aloe Vera From Aloe vera and "average". Lenora Darn it... At least, the name does sound nice and has a nice meaning (light). Still, I would have preferred Vera (or Regina).
Kidachi Arbo From Aloe arborescens (Couldn't really think of anything else). Hawes I don't hate the name, but out of all of the archaeologist, why name him after her?
Arti Arthur From "art" and "arthropod". Also similar to his Japanese name. Burgh Urggh... WTH??? That is the worst name they could have for Arti. Arthur was already a giveaway. Why can they give nice, subtle names to gym leaders like they do to cities?* (Note:I do not hate the name "Burg", but the fact that they gave Arti a name that is supposedly a poorly concealed pun for "Bug".)
Kamitsure Amber* The etymology of "electron" and "electricity" was derived from the Greek word for amber. Also a reference to the color of the stone and its properties when it is rubbed with cloth. Elesa Still not "hot" enough for her. Amber would have been perfect for her. Maybe the next female electric-type gym leader?
Yacon Terrence From "terra" (earth). Clay Hmmm... a cowboy with earth/ground based power. Where have I heard that before...
Fuuro Ariel
Angel
Ariel (no, not her) is from "aerial". Second one is "angel". Skyla I like the name, but the reference is way too obvious.
Hachiku Setsu The onyomi (reading) for 雪 (snow). (He looks Japanese anyway.) Brycen They really should use some other words besides "ice". Besides, shouldn't they give him a Japanese name since he DOES look Japanese (like Koga and Erika)?
Iris Iris*
Winny
Dora
No need to explain Iris. Winny* can be taken from Welsh name Wynne (white) and "wyvern" (Inspired by Kenji-girl and Siegfried). Dora is from the Engrish doragon. Also she does resemble a certain tanned adventure-loving girl. Iris Good that it's not Dora (despite the fact that I predicted it). At least I don't have to call her any other name. Her name could be a reference to this or this. (There's already a resemblance to the color). Still, I would have preferred a BW theme between her and Shaga.
Shaga Basil Basil* is from "basilisk" and Greek word basileus (king). Spartan Mayor, anyone? Drayden Meh, too blatant. The name is too "modern" for him (Maybe that's the point...) . Basil would have been the prefect name for him.
Shikimi Velma From "violet" and alma, Spanish word for soul. Shauntal Elegant name. So, I assume they decided to mix Shikimi, "haunt" and the name Chantal and came up with this name. I have to admit it did took me a while to notice the pun in her name.
Giima Devlin
Vlad
Do I need to explain? Grimsley It does suit him, but are they trying to make his name similar to his Japanese name? (Just look at the names of the other members of the Elite Four of Unova)
Renbu Manny
Battista
Manny is from the Spanish phrase "mano a mano" (hand to hand). Battista* is from "battle" Marshal Congratulations Siegfried! I expected this name, but like Maxim said, Sieg predicted it first. Still, his name being similar to the word "martial", alludes to his Japanese name being homophone to 練武 (practice martial arts).
Adeku Rhodes Similar to "red". Also from Rhopalocera, butterfly. Alder Aren't tree names usually reserved for professors? Anyway, his name seems ordinary and not at all badass. But looking at the etymology, it seems creative and perfect for him. Besides similar to "elder" (and Adeku), the word alder and Alnus (Latin name) are derived from the Proto-Indo-European root el- ("red" or "brown"). The leaves of said tree are also food to several species of butterflies and moths (such as Lepidoptera). In addition, there's also a tree called "red alder". Lastly, there's also a type of moth called alder moth. Now, that's subtle. Why couldn't they have named gym leaders like that? (stares at "Burgh" and "Elesa")

Team Plasma

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Team Plasma Team Plasma We all know it's going to be this anyway... Team Plasma Just as expected.
N (Harmonia) N Remember J and O... N Again, just as expected
Geechisu Goetis Goetis is from goetia, Greek word for sorcery*. Ghetsis Ehhh... sounds like "ghetto" (even "Genesis"). Still, it fits, bizarre name for a creepy guy.
The 6 other sages
Vio
Asura
Ryokushi
Rot
Giallo
Smr
All from the colors of rainbow in other languages.
We have Vio (violet),
Asura (azul, Spanish for blue),
Ryokushi (緑色 ryokushoku, green color),
and Rot (rot, German for red)
Jaro (giallo, Italian for yellow)
and Sumura (أسمر ’smr, Arabic for brown).

Zinzolin
Gorm
Ryoku
Rood
Giallo
Bronius
Darn, there's no Chinese...
Zinzolin? And I thought Ghetsis was bizarre...
Why Gaelic? I still prefer Azula Asura
They just removed the "-shi"...
Why change to Dutch? Oh yeah... rot
No comment
Latin? Romanizing Arabic is hard...

BW2

I'm feeling uncreative right now, so these are what I could come up with. I may change it whenever I feel inspired...

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Kyouhei Herman From the German name Herman (meaning "army man") and the diminutive form of Minerva/Wilhelmina/Hermione. And yes, their names do form a pun. Go figure Nate RWow, it was so simple, yet I never took it into consideration* and over-think things. However, I would have preferred Mei to be called Rose to preserves the anagram, but it's seems to be a coincidence that their names also resemble Tate and Liza. OMG, RS Remakes confirmed!
Mei Minnie Rosa
Hue Hugh Similar sounding Hugh Nailed it
Akuroma Achroma I still have no idea if his name refers to "achromatic" or "evil black demon", but whatever. Colress Corless would have made more sense. It's both a pun to colorless and an actual name. Colress is just harder to pronounce.
Dr. Burnet Professor Burnet It's already a Western name. Would probably be left as is. Professor Burnet Heh heh heh
Homika Lethe From lethal. (Venus was already taken) Roxie Well, the name is simple, normal, and effective. This is the first time "rock" isn't used for a Rock-type leader...
Shizui Caspian From Caspian Sea. Marlon Well, it's meaningful, but it just doesn't sound impressive. But after some time, I'm starting to like this name.
Banjirou Alton
Cory

Ruben
From Alder and the suffix -ton.
From Corylus (One of the genus that belongs to the same family as alder.

From Alnus rubra, red alder.
Benga Ruben→Ben→-Benga (Close enough)

I quite like this name. Not only does it belong to a genus that have reddish wood, the name also reminds me of the Bengal tiger. My only pet peeve with this name is that benga tree doesn't belong with the same family as alder. But still the meaning and possible references is enough outweigh this, so I can totally let it pass.

Tetsu
Tenma
Ferris
Phoenix
From ferrous or ferric (Unfortunately, the name's already taken)
Tenma means flying horse (Pegasus), so I'm choosing Phoenix because it's also a mythological creature and sounds closer to my guess.
Curtis
Christoph
I'm guessing that they're high-class enough to get the names that involve "courteous" and "fancy". Still, it's interesting to note how their screen name have a Christian theme. Christoph being a shorter form of Christopher, which is Greek for "bearer of Christ". On the other hand, Nancy is derived from the Hebrew name Hannah, meaning "favored by God".
Ruri
Rukko
Lali
Jem
Julie
From lapis lazuli
From gemstone
From jewel. Also similar to lazuli.
Yancy
Nancy
Jujube Enchantra From enchantress. Also a character in Sabrina Bellelba *Thinks of Beldam* It's funny how the names look like a combination of the Slavic and Latin word for white (bel + alba).

Anime

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Matori* Matilda "Matilda" is just the first name that popped into my head. N/A ...
Shooty Camm From "camera". Also "Gary" and "Paul", notice anything? Trip That's a name? Trippy, isn't it? Don't tell me it's a reference to this guy...
Don George Don Jorge Same as Japanese. Also, Don Jorge. Lastly, Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny anyone? Don George That was disappointing. They ruined the pattern between him with the Joys and Jennys, and lost the subtle pun to dojo.
Flint Phineas/Silex Phineas sounds similar. He also looks similar to Takuto Tobias. Silex is Latin for "flint" Pierce Not bad, but the name somehow reminds me of James Bond.
Kikuyo Martha I know she's just a COtD, but her name shares similarity with Agatha (Kikuko) and Bertha (Kikuno), and they're all elderly ladies. Karena Oh well...
Dr. Seger Professor Seger Same as Japanese. I assume his name is taken from Seger rock. I wonder if there will be a theme on fire-related rocks. Dr. Zager That's just a bizarre way of spelling his name...
Cabernet Cabernet
Calla
Cerise
No change I guess.On second thought, I doubt they would name her this, after renaming Sommelier to Connoisseur (I guess they did not want any reference to alcohol...). Calla is from "calligraphy", while Cerise is French for "cherry" and a name of pinkish-red color. Burgundy Well, I was right about expecting a color. I surprised they still kept the reference to wine, and the fact that her name doesn't starts with the letter 'c'. I still think that this is a strange name for a person.
Amy Emmy
Amy
Same as Japanese. For the record, I prefer Emmy. Emmy Great, it's not like she will re-appear...
Kenyan Kenan Similar sounding. Kenyan sounds like someone from Kenya. Stephan At least its better than the Chinese name. (See reason below)
Langley Langley No need to guess why... Georgia Interesting reference. And I was expecting a color that starts with the letter 'B'*. Dub names for major anime characters are getting more unpredictable lately.
Luke Luke Too easy... Was going to change to Lucas, but... Luke Of course...
Masaomi Marcello Marshal was already taken. Montgomery Excellent... name (or not). German name Maximillian suits him more.
Suwama Sommer Similar sounding. Also German for summer. Shamus Well, he is a sham...
Pinot Noir Beaujolais From the historical province of Beaujolais, which is famous for wine-making. Ricard Nouveau Not bad, I'm still surprised that they still want to preserve the wine theme.
Kotetsu Adamson From the Latin adamas (hard steel) and 'son' relates to the 小/子 ko (little) in his name*
Virgil Virgil* Western name. (Too early to think of a better name)

Movies

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Dread Grangil Dread Grangil Same as Japanese. Grangil also sounds like "grand kill". Damon Interesting reference.
Janta Janta
Jeanta
Same as Japanese. Juanita Not bad, but it sounds Spanish.
Carlita Carlita Same as Japanese. Carlita Not much to say here.
Momont Mormont Same as Japanese, but they could change it to something that doesn't contain "Mormon". Mannes Cannes?
Sed Seyde
Shade
Same as Japanese. Luisa Sounds Spanish or Italian...
Aude Aude Same as Japanese, even though it sounds like a girl's name... Also, a department and river in France. Luis
Malin Malin Official romanization...

Places

Since the cities and towns seem to have a cloud theme, most of the predictions are changed to fit the pattern. Note: Some names are inspired by Maxim's, so there would be some similarities.

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Isshu Isshu I think the spelling will be kept. It doesn't have the long "o" sound. Unova O.O Wow, that was totally unexpected. It will take me a while to get used to this. The reference to 雲 un (cloud) is probably unintentional.
Kanoko Town Fawnstreak Town* Fawnstreak is from "fallstreak cloud" (cloud hole). Nuvema Town It's fine. Apparently, the Italian name is not Nuvema. *shrugs*
Karakusa Town Cumuril Town* From cumulus and "tendril". Accumula Town Accumulate, eh? I knew it would be named after cumulus cloud.
Sanyou City Tristelle City From "Tri" (three) and "stellar". Striaton City I don't really mind, although Trislucia (Translucidus + Tri) would seem to fit the meaning more.
Shippou City Cloissure City Portmanteau of "Cloisonné" and "treasure". Nacrene City I like it. An artistic city named after a pearlescent cloud. Although, the name does remind me of "Nazarene".
Hiun City Aeroscape City
Aeraltia City
From "aero", "landscape" and "skyscraper".
From "aerial" and "altitude".
Castelia City Very fitting and elegant, a city of skyscrapers named after a castle-like cloud.
Raimon City Thorgate City From "Thor", the Norse god of thunder, and "gate". Nimbasa City* Nice... Interesting reference to cumulonimbus clouds (thunderstorm clouds).
Hodomoe City Velumber City*
Velumar City
From velum (sail-like cloud) and "umber" (dark brown) or mar (sea). Driftveil City Disappointing. The name ruined the pattern of subtle and exotic-sounding names. It sounded generic. I mean "cloud drift" as basis, really? They should based the name more on velum (veil), not "drift".
Fukiyose City Contravia City* From contrail and "aviation". Mistralton City I'm not fond of this one, even though it's not as bad as Driftveil. The rest are named after clouds, this one is more like wind (mistral), even though it did have the alto- and "mist" in its name. Also, "mist" does not sound right in a city that features the only airport in the region (in the game).
Sekka City Altogala City* From altostratus and Galanthus (snowdrop). Icirrus City Sounds like Icarus. I guess it could work, since cirrus clouds are composed of ice and located high in the sky.
Souryuu City Duplidran City* From duplicatus (partly merged cloud) and "dracon". Opelucid City So, I assume it's from opacus and perlucidus (or translucidus, heck maybe even "opal" and "lucid")? Still I don't like discarding the reference to "dragon" (That's what I liked about in its Japanese name).
Kagome Town Lacunole Town* From lacunosus and "hole". Lacunosa Town So close, missed by two letters.
Sazanami Town Undula Town* From undulatus (wavy clouds). Undella Town ♫ Under my undella ♫ ♪ Ella Ella, ay ay ay... (I almost nailed it anyway)
Kanawa Town Radiata Town* From radiatus (clouds arranged in parallel lines) and the Latin rota (wheel). Anville Town This name is just as bad as Driftveil (Anvil clouds, really?), with a lame (and redundant) pun. I wish they would keep it consistent and give all the cities subtle names
Black City Black City
Carbonjet City
From its Japanese name.
From "carbon" and "jet".
Black City No surprise here.
Yaguruma Forest Cirruiver Forest From cirrus and "quiver". Pinwheel Forest Sounds kiddy, but at least the meaning was close, and "pin" is still related to the "arrow" in Sky Arrow Bridge. Also, removing the space in "Sky Arrow", is that some sort of trend?

B2W2

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Hiougi City Arcia City From arcus cloud. Folding fans are arc-shaped, right? Aspertia City It sounds somewhat close to my guess. It's pretty good considering it is newly discovered cloud formation.
Tachiwaki City Radiata City* From Cirrus radiatus. Tatewaku patterns has the shape of alternating, parallel waves (which is close enough). Virbank City This is quite well thought out. Virga being both a cloud whose precipitation evaporates before reaching ground and can be found in extraterrestrial atmosphere
Sangi Town Humill Town From humilis Floccesy Town I'm fine with floccus, but how would this pronounced? (Honestly, it looks like an attempt at combining the cloud's name with flossy) Turns out, it's also an attempt in combining it with prophecy
Yamaji Town Pyroute Town From pyrocumulus and route Lentimas Town Is this some sort of mass held in the Lenten season? Well, it is based on a cloud that (mostly) forms on the mountain, but I would have preferred a volcanic reference.
Seigaiha City Maritus City From mammatus cloud* and marine Humilau City It looks like they just combined some Hawaiians words to a cloud without taking into consideration that this cloud mostly forms on dry and mountainous areas, making the name ironic. At least the name doesn't sound bad...

Anime locations

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Current Town Current Town/Currant Town First one is the same as Japanese name. Currant is for a plant theme. Luxuria Town Luxuria? As in the sin of Lust? How did they come up with this name anyway...
Eindoak Eindoak
Aint Oak
Same as Japanese. Eind is Dutch for "end", and contains "ein", which may or may not be a bizarre reference to Ein Sof.
Aint Oak is just similar to "giant oak", and contains "Ain", a department in France.
Eindoak Town Was the "Town" even necessary...
Milos Island Milos Island I don't really see a need of change. Milos Island Same...
Toaru Town Acerten Town Really lame pun of "a certain". Ambiga Town Still ambiguous to this.
Astilbe Town Astilbe Town They will probably leave it as is. Astilbe Town Ehhh
Chikakuno Town Proxima Town From proximate Stonesthrow Town Must have been a different translator. But the name still works, within a stone's throw and all...
Higaki City Herinbon City Corruption of herringbone, which is both a pattern that is the western equivalent of Higaki-pattern (檜垣文) and a term referring to a certain cloud. I was originally going to name it Stratos City


Chinese

The scoring was Siegfried's idea, but I decided to change to letter grades. Note: These are just my opinions. It does not represent the general opinion of the fandom, but we're agreeing that this generation has the worst set of names. (Admittedly, I've been over-creative with the characters' names and some of them are just bizarre...

Grade Explanation
A Good name, keep it up. (>=91)
A- Average (86~90)
B+ Acceptable (76~86)
B Barely tolerable (75)
C Disappointing (50~74)
D Terrible (21~49)
F Failure (1~19)
F- ... (0)

Characters

Game Protagonists and Supporting Characters

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Touko and Touya 透子 and 透也 From their Japanese name. If there will be official names * for them, they're probably these. They're never going to have official names here, so I give up...
Cheren 徹廉
徹玄
黑廉
黑蓮
Transliterations (I can't really decide). Unrelated, but 徹廉 roughly means "penetrating integrity". On the other hand, means black. The other two are rough transcriptions. I just forced the word 黑 (black).
Bel 貝兒
白兒
Transliteration. 貝兒 means "shell child", also short for 寶貝兒 (darling). 白 means white. 白露 Original guess*. Perfect name, it not only keeps the sound of her name, but also preserve the meaning. But, it would take me a while to get used to this, after calling her 貝兒 for so long. Score: A
Dr. Araragi 紫杉博士 The Chinese medicinal name for the Japanese yew. 紅豆杉博士 That's one weird surname*. I wonder what they will call Mr. Juniper. At least they did bother to research what araragi means. (And yay! I guessed the 杉 part), also Japanese yew becomes Chinese yew... Score: C/D
Makomo 真菰 From 真菰 makomo. Literally "true wild rice". 真菰(博士) Knew it. Score: A
Shouro 松露 From her Japanese name. Refers to the truffles.
Nobori 阿登
阿上
上行
From 上り / 登り nobori. 上 means up, to board. 登 means ascend, climb up. For 上行 (up train), I just copied his Korean name. 北尚 The fandom's initial reaction: . These names are rather punny, but brilliant. It is something well thought of. After seeing a string of rather bad names (for male characters), I was fearing that they would be called something like 諾伯利 and 庫達利. At least these are an improvement, I hope to see better names in the future. Score: A+
Kudari 阿降
阿下
下行
From 下り / 降り kudari. 下 means down, to get off. 降 means decend, fall. For 下行 (down train), I also copied his Korean name. 南廈
Dent 田斗 From the name 田斗 dento. 田 means field, while 斗 is a measure for dry grain *. 天桐 That was unexpected. They could have used 田 instead of 天 (heaven), but at least there's the plant reference. 桐 refers to several kinds of trees (too many to list here). Also his name sounds like 甜筒 ice cream cone... Score: B
Pod 爆穹 * Weird transliteration inspired by 天桐. Literally "Explosive firmament". 伯特 That was dull and uncreative. They ruined an opportunity to create a good theme between the brothers. They could have added some other similar sounding word that reference his specialty, such as 爆 bào​ or 炮 pào. After seeing this name, I may forgive "Chili". Score: D
Corn 湖空* From the Japanese 湖 ko (lake) and 空 (sky). I intentionally made their names rhyme. There's also a theme here (heaven, sky, firmament...) 寇恩 Look like someone decided to mixed Kodai and Goone's Chinese name, and why use 寇 (enemy, to invade)? Clearly, the one who made this name did not get the theme, or even made any effort to create one. I probably wouldn't be that annoyed if all of the three brothers' name were just nonsensical transliteration. Score: D
Aloe 蘆薈 / 阿蘆 From 蘆薈 (lúhuì), Aloe. 蘆蕙
蘆薈
A name that I would normally expect. Score: A
Kidachi 木立 From 木立 kidachi. 木立 Of course... Score: A
Arti 雅技 From the Cantonese 雅枝竹 (artichoke). 雅技 means "elegant skill". 亞堤 Hooray for "inferior dyke"... Must be a theme going on... *. Also, 亞 is so overused. 雅 (elegant, refined) would have suited him. Score: D
Kamitsure 甘蜜雷 *
嘉蜜雷
卡蜜雷
Since I think 加密列 is ugly and 甘菊 is a bit dull, I mixed the translation and transliteration. It's a portmanteau of 甘菊, , and 小菊兒 From one extreme to the other, they're over-thinking this. I would have preferred a partial transliteration as it would at least preserve the reference to thunder. And unfortunately, there's also the other connotation of 菊花 which the fans are joking about. But nevertheless, the name isn't that bad. Score: B+
Yacon 壓坤 Transliteration of his name. Also 壓 means "to press" or "to crush". 坤 is a trigram representing "earth". 菊老大 2 Cs(s) + 2 H2O(l) → 2 CsOH(l) + H2(g)
WORST. NAME. EVER. Score: F
Fuuro 風露 This one was too obvious. From her Japanese name, literally means "wind dew" in Chinese. 風露 What a relief... Score: A
Hachiku 淡竹 From 淡竹 hachiku. Literally "light-colored bamboo". 哈奇庫 Let me put it this way, they were able to keep the reference of his movies, but never bothered to use the kanji version of his name. And besides, would have been a better ice reference. I might as well call him 哈奇... Score: C
Iris 愛麗絲 Transliteration of iris. Literally "love beautiful silk". Has other variations (愛莉絲艾麗絲艾莉絲). 艾莉絲 Predictable, but did they really have to give her the same name as Alice (艾莉絲)? They did have (at least 3) other choices. Score: B
Shaga 射干 From 射干 shaga. It's also a name of a flower, though not the same as Iris japonica. Literally means "to shoot heavenly stem". 夏卡 Just because Isshu is New York doesn't mean that all names are American. At least they didn't name him 沙加. Come to think of it, 射干 probably sounds too close to a vulgar phrase, so Score: C
Shikimi 樒樒
阿莽
From 樒 shikimi. Also, 樒樒 is a pun of 秘密 (secrets, mysteries).
From (日本)莽草 (Illicium anisatum).
Giima 越桔 Generally refers to the Vaccinium genus. He also does resemble Koga (阿桔).
Caitlin 嘉德麗雅 Transliteration and translation of Cattleya. Literally "Excellent virtue, beautiful and elegant*". 嘉德麗雅 I was right all along! Top-Insight, please use this name. Score: A+
Renbu 蓮霧 From 蓮霧 renbu (Syzygium samarangense). Also sounds similar to 練武​, "to train martial art".
Adeku 赤楠 Direct translation of his Japanese name (Syzygium buxifolium). Coincidentally, 赤 means red. 阿戴克 阿爹哭. Wasted reference... (Although there's a meaning in and , I doubt that its intentional) Score: C

Team Plasma

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Team Plasma 電漿隊
電離子隊
等離子隊
電漿 is Mandarin for "plasma". The other word 等離子 is not very poetic. For 電離子, Swampert pointed out that Rotom species is 電離子 (Charge Ions), so a combination of those two words is possible.
N (Harmonia) N (哈爾蒙尼亞) Again J and O... 哈爾蒙尼亞 is from 哈爾蒙尼亞 (Harmonia).
Geechisu 傀奇士* Weird transliteration. I have to admit that it's not a real name, like his names in other languages. It means "peculiar eccentric". Not sure how the localization team will handle this one. Like the champions, main villains usually get "good" names.
6 other sages 蔚歐, 綠士, 恰洛, 羅特, 壽暮拉, 阿祖拉 All of them are transliterations, some of which have some added reference. 綠士 is from ryokushi and contains 綠 (green). 洛 is a reference to Yellow (小洛). 暮 of 壽暮拉 means sunset. 阿祖拉 is named after this character... (Hope that the localization team could come up with something better)

BW2

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Kyouhei N/A I won't even bother
Mei N/A
Hugh 阿休
阿修

阿彪
阿相
Transliteration. 修 can mean "practice"
From 彪 hyū
From 色相, hue/
Akuroma 阿克羅馬
吳澀/吾澀
Transliteration.
Both are homophones to 無色 (colorless or achromatic).
Dr. Burnet 地榆博士 Direct translation.
Homika 瑪錢 From 馬錢子 (Strychnos nux-vomica). Replaced 馬 with 瑪 because it's more feminine. 霍米加 I was hoping they'd come up with a name as wacky as 小菊兒 (but not like 菊老大). Like Hachiku, it seems they have switched (back) translators. It's interesting to note that female names are usually better, but this name could have been made more feminine. Score: C
Shizui 水蔥
清井
From 水蔥屬 (Schoenoplectus genus). 水 is water.
From 清井 Shizui. Literally "clear well"

Movies

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Dread Grangil 德雷德·克蘭基爾
恐懼·克蘭基爾
Transliteration of Japanese name. 恐懼 is for a more direct translation of "dread". 德雷多* So close... Score: C
Janta 珍塔
珍達
Transliteration of Japanese name. 姜塔 To be fair, I like this name, so... Score: A
Carlita 卡莉塔
卡莉達
Transliteration of Japanese name. 卡莉塔 Knew it... Score: B
Mormont 摩門德 Transliteration of Japanese name. 莫孟多 Not even close. I probably shouldn't have put 摩(爾)門 (Mormon) in his name. Score: C
Shade 塞德 Transliteration of Japanese name. 瑟朵 I like it. The 朵 may not be exact, but it makes the name sound more feminine. Score: A
Aude 奧德 Transliteration of Japanese name. Also, the Chinese name for Aude. 奧德 Nailed it. Score: A
Malin 瑪琳 Transliteration...

Anime

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Shooty 攝俤 Transliteration of his name. Also from , to take a picture. 修帝 It's fine I guess. This name was sort of expected (His fan name was 提 after all). I guess I shouldn't expect too much from the localization team. Score: B
Don George 唐·喬治 * Transliteration of his name. 東·喬治 So close, Don is usually transliterated as "唐" (not "東"), but 喬治 (George) was pretty obvious though. Score: A-
Flint 弗林特 Transliteration of his Japanese name, like the names of most Team Rocket members. 富林多 Transliteration... Why am I not surprised... Score: B
Kikuyo 菊代 From the name 菊代 Kikuyo. Also shares similarities with 菊子 (Agatha) and 菊野 (Bertha). 菊代 Yay, not that anyone cares. (Wonder if they are related...)
Dr. Seger 塞格博士 Transliteration again. Also from 塞格錐 Sāigé-zhuī (Seger cone). 塞格博士 Nailed it! Score: A
Cabernet 赤霞珠 Direct translation of her name. 赤霞珠 Nailed it!. Score: A
Amy 艾美 Transliteration. Besides there's already a character named 愛美 艾咪 Just like Mamie... Score:C
Kenyan 肯尼陽 Transliteration again. 甘尼洋
肯尼洋
Original name sounds vulgar.Ash mispronouncing his name as 甘尼亞 doesn't help either. I was rather mixed when they changed it though. Score: C
Langley 蘭莉
蘭葛蕾
蘭格雷
Transliterations... 藍葛雷 I was close by sound. I knew they would transliterate it this way... Score: B+
Luke 路克
盧克
Take your pick. 盧克 is just more common... 路克 Why did I even bother to put 盧克 anyway... Score: A
Charles 查爾斯 How Charles is usually translated... 查爾斯 Same... Score: A
Masaomi 正臣 From 正臣 Masaomi. 正臣 Of course... Score: A
Suwama 座真 From 座る suwaru and 真 ma. 諏訪間 (suwama) was too long (and sounds like the name of a room). 蘇瓦瑪 Whatever... At least it isn't 諏訪間...
Pinot Noir 黑比諾 Direct translation. 黑皮諾 Alternate name's fine. (The way they translated Taverne* is quite funny. Score: A
Kotetsu 虎徹
小鐵
From 虎徹 kotetsu, which individually means "tiger" and "pierce"
From 小鉄 kotetsu (little iron)
Virgil 維吉爾 Transliteration, even though his Japanese name sounds closer to 巴吉爾...

Places

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Isshu 壹種 From 壱種 isshu (one variety). Strange-sounding name, but it would be better than transliteration such as 伊修 and 伊樹.
Also a homophone to 異種 (different varieties).
合眾 At least it's not 伊X. Not bad, it's actually creative. 合眾 means "united", and yet there's still the reference to 美利堅合眾國 (USA) and its motto 「合眾為一」 (E pluribus unum). Score: A
Kanoko Town 鹿子鎮 There was 真新鎮 (真っ新), 若葉鎮 (若葉), 未白鎮 (未白), and 雙葉鎮 (双葉). 鹿子鎮 (鹿の子) is definitely next. 鹿子鎮 Nailed it! (It was obvious anyway) Score: A
Karakusa Town 唐草鎮 From 唐草 karakusa. Literally "Tang grass". Also sounds slightly similar to 唐朝 (Tang Dynasty), which was a prosperous dynasty in China. 唐草鎮 Nailed it again! Score: A
Sanyou City 三曜市 Took a while to figure this one out. There were a lot of choices (三葉三陽三洋三樣). I eventually settled with 三曜. 三曜市 Oh yes! Three in a row! Score: A
Shippou City 七寶市 From 七宝 shippou (Seven treasures). There's also a similarly named town in Shanghai , not that it matters... 七寶市 Nailed it! Score: A
Hiun City 飛雲市 From 飛雲 hiun, (flying cloud). Too obvious... 飛雲市 I'd be surprised if it wasn't this. Score: A
Raimon City 雷文市 * From 雷文 raimon ("thunder pattern"). 雷文市 Raimon Legends was called 雷文傳奇隊 in the Chinese dub of M13. The name is practically confirmed, just hope they'll keep it consistent (Update: They did). Score: A
Hodomoe City 帆巴市
帆渦市
帆卷市
First one is from "帆巴" hodomoe*. Second and third ones are from the Japanese motto 船の'渦'く水. Both 帆渦 roughly means "sail whirl(pool)". Third means "sail roll". 帆巴市 Honestly I was expecting more creativity in this name, as 巴 is meaningless in Chinese. (Maybe the Japanese officials wanted it as 帆巴?) Score: B+
Fukiyose City 吹寄市
吹聚市
吹寄市 is from 吹き寄せ fukiyose ("to blow and send" in Chinese), while 吹聚 is a more accurate translation ("to blow and gather"). 吹寄市 Nothing new here... Score: B+
Sekka City 雪華市 From 雪華 sekka. It can be translated as "magnificent snow" or "snow blossom". Why not 雪花 (snowflake)? There were similarly named cities in the past such as 藍市 (Cerulean City) and 橙市 (Petalburg City). 雪花市 (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻!! Anyways, 華 could have made the name more elegant. Score: B+
Souryuu City 雙龍市 From 双龍 souryuu (Double dragon). 蒼龍市 is also possible. 雙龍市 Yay! Place names have always been good. Why can't they do the same thing to characters... Score: A
Kagome Town 籠目鎮 From 篭目 kagome. Can either mean "basket eye" or "cage eye". 籠目鎮 Nailed it...
Sazanami Town 細波鎮
小波鎮
漣漪鎮
From 細波/小波/漣 sazanami. 細波 literally means "fine wave".
小波 means "small wave".
漣漪 means "ripple".
小波鎮 Too plain. It still not as good as 細波鎮... Score: B+
Kanawa Town 金輪鎮
鐵輪鎮
From 金輪/鐵輪 kanawa. 金輪 can either mean "metal wheel".
鐵輪* means "iron wheel".
金輪鎮 Nailed it...
Yaguruma Forest 矢車森林 From the Japanese name. Literally "arrow car forest". Also related to the Sky Arrow Bridge(My guess for this would be 天箭橋). 矢車森林
天之箭橋
For the former, nailed it! For the latter, 之 was really unnecessary. Score: A, B
White Forest 白色森林 白色森林 literally means "white-colored forest".
Black City 黑色市
黑色城市
Both means "black colored city".

BW2

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Hiougi City 檜扇市 From 檜扇 hiougi.
Tachiwaki City 立涌市 From 立涌 tatewaku/tachiwaki 立湧市 Close enough. 湧 and 涌 have the same sound and meaning anyway. Score: A
Sangi Town 算木鎮 From 算木 sangi
Yamaji Town 山路鎮 From 山路 yamaji
Seigaiha City 青海波市 From 青海波 seigaiha

Anime locations

Japanese Name Prediction Reason Actual Comments
Current Town 潮流鎮 潮流 means "current", as in "tidal current" or "current trend". 卡蓮多鎮 Transliteration... I would have preferred a direct translation. Good thing it's not an in-game location. Score: C
Eindoak 艾恩德奧克 Transliteration. 艾茵多奧克 3 out of 5. I like the 茵. I hate the 多. Score: B
Raimon Town 雷文鎮 See Raimon City 雷文鎮 But of course... Score: A
Milos Island 米洛斯島 The Chinese name for Milos 三雲島 Brilliant! I didn't even see the pun to three (三 mi) and -los. Score: A+
Toaru Town 某各鎮 Pun of 某個.* 某格鎮 If I wasn't so obsess in keeping the tones exact. I would have chose this name anyway. Score: A
Astilbe Town 落新婦鎮 Direct translation. 彩穗蓬花鎮 They caught the plant reference? Eh, this could have been shorter and there were other choices (虎麻, 升麻, 泡盛), but I do agree that 落新婦 is a bit silly. Score: B+
Rōshan N/A N/A 洛祥 This sounds more like a place in China. (But, it strangely reminds me of Lanshiang. Wait, run for your lives!!!) Score: B+
Chikakuno Town 近之鎮 From 近くの chikakuno, nearby. 鄰近鎮 It's better than Tonarino Town... Score: B+
Higaki City 檜垣市 From 檜垣 higaki. Has nothing to with Hiougi City (檜扇市)

Legendary Pokémon

Not arranged in Isshu Unova regional Pokédex order. All the names are transliterations.

Japanese Name Prediction Notes Actual Comments
Victini 維克蒂尼 維多利亞 (Victoria) and 尼刻/尼克 (Nike) 比克提尼 Doesn't sound right. Honestly, the name makes me think of 比基尼. Score: C
Cobalon 鈷巴路恩
鈷巴路翁
(cobalt) 勾帕路翁 勾帕 sounds random. I'm still pissed that they didn't use 鈷... Score: D
Terrakion 泰拉吉恩
泰拉吉翁
泰山 (Mt. Tai) 代拉基翁 代 just sounds off. Also 基 and sounds the same. Score: C
Virizion 碧里茲恩
碧里茲翁
碧 (jade, jade green). 畢力吉翁 Is 碧 too much to ask? I mean it has the same sound as 畢. Score: C
Tornelos 托內羅斯 埃俄羅斯 (Aeolus). 龍捲雲 I'm surprised these are not transliterated from its Japanese name... Score: A
Voltolos 伏特羅斯 伏特 (volts) and 埃俄羅斯 (Aeolus). 雷電雲
Landlos 壤土羅斯
陸地雲
壤土 (loam), (earth) and 埃俄羅斯 (Aeolus).
"Terrestrial cloud".
土地雲 Fair enough. Some fans were expecting this after the other two were revealed. Score: A
Reshiram 烈勢拉穆
烈史拉穆
烈勢 ("violent power") 雷希拉姆 They could have used 烈 to reference its fire typing (雷 is thunder...). Score: B
Zekrom 傑克羅穆
傑科羅穆
傑克 ("to heroicly conquer"). 捷克羅姆 So, Zekrom is Czech (捷克)? I didn't really expect 捷 (but I like it), but 姆 does not seem to fit Zekrom. Score: A-
Kyurem 酷雷姆
究雷姆 *
酷 (extremely) is also a slang term that means "cool". 酋雷姆 酋 isn't bad. It's a good thing 茜雷姆 was just a typo... Score: B+
Keldeo 凱爾帝歐 凱爾派 (kelpie) 凱路迪歐 At least it sounds better than the other three. (And 迪 is relatively new for them) Score: B
Meloetta 魅蘿樂達
梅洛艾塔
魅力 (charm) and 音樂 (music) 美洛耶塔 Something about it just doesn't sound right. It's strange that they're using instead of Score: C+
Genesect 基諾賽克多* 基因 (gene)

Korean

Just guessing for Korean city and town names. They seem to be based on "simple" Korean words. All taken from the Wiktionary and Google Translate. I don't understand Korean, so please don't hurt me...

Japanese Name Prediction Meaning Actual Comments
Kanoko 흰점 Huinjeom "White dot(s)" 마름꽃 Mareumkkot Dry flower? Sounds depressing...
Sanyou 세별 Sebyeol "Three stars" 성신 Seongsin At least I got the "star" part right.
Shippou 보물 Bomul Treasure 칠보 Chilbo Too literal...
Raimon 벼락 Beorak Lightning 뇌문 Noemun Again, too literal
Hodomoe 범선 Beomseon Sailship 물풍경 Mulpunggyeong Not even close. I think it means "water landscape".
Fukiyose 바람 Baram / 불다 Bulda Wind / Blow 궐수 Gwolsu It seems like a pattern
Sekka 설편 Seolfyeon Snowflake 설화 Seolhwa But of course...
Souryuu 쌍룡 Ssangryong "A pair of dragons" 쌍용 Ssangyong Darn it, copied the wrong character. Still, perfect name for the city.
Kanawa 고리 Gori Ring 가륜 Garyun "Carriage wheel"?
Sazanami 물결 Mulgyeol Wave 물결 Mulgyeol Wow, I actually nailed it
Kagome 구멍 Gumeong Hole 보배 Bobae So, the shape is a reference to treasure?
Hiougi 부채 Buchae Fan 부채 Buchae Knew it
Sangi 산가지 Sangaji Counting rod 산가지 Sangaji Thank you, Wikipedia
Tachiwaki 증기 Jeung-gi Steam 모란만 Moranman I have no idea how they got this
Yamaji 산로 Sanno Mountain road 산로 Sanno Three out of five~
Seigaiha 청해파 Cheonghaepa Blue ocean wave 기하 Giha Can't really see if this had anything to do with water...
Higaki 회원 Hoewon
오늬 Onui
능삼 Neungsam
Korean reading.
Nock
Some pattern that I found...