Sim names

[LivvieLove]

Well it's because i named Tamara and Xander's daughter after Blair Wainwright, only she will have a middle initial J (for Jennifer - she's also named after Jennie Clavell) and for now she is "Blair Jennifer Donner" but that may change to "Blair J. Clavell" or they could hyphenate, and when she turns into an YA, she goes into the city hall to change her surname to Wainwright.

Sunset Valley needs a Blair Wainwright.

I think what Trip means is that this thread is a compiled list of Names that people use to name their Sims, rather than names of Sims already in the game. It's like a creative list for those of us who are stuck for names or don't feel our names fit the Sim we want them to.

[Deklitch]

I'm currently using names from the Bible, but only names that are Abraham and his descendants. (So no Herod, Luke, Noah, Adam, Eve).

[HelenMoriarty]

Adding to the above, books are a really great source that also provide a 'natural' theme to naming. I commonly take names out of novels I've read recently, so if I've read Jane Austen, names like John, George, William, Emma, Jane, Isabella etc. will abound. After reading 'Howl's Moving Castle', there were Howl and Sophie (of course) as well as Michael, Martha, Augusta, Calcifer, Lettie... whereas 'Dracula' had Jonathan, Mina, Lucy, Arthur,  VanHelsing and some more. It's really easy to take names from established characters and choose traits accordingly.
On other files, I assigned colours to families and named them based on my associations with said colours. This gave me names such as Raven Noir, Cinder Flamma, November and December Ice... which went in a much more 'fantastical' direction compared to what I normally do.
A third option I often stick with is picking culturally specific names. I've got several families with Japanese names, e.g. Shigure and his daughters Yuriko, Akane, Sakura, or the Nagai family Jun (father) and Yumi, their son Shun and their daughter Kaho. There are tons of lovely girl names ending in -ho, such as Miho, Shiho, Maho, Chiho, or ending in -yo/yu (Miyo, Ayu, Mayu, Sachiyo, Chiyo, Sayu) etc.
So yeah, like others have said, it's best to choose names YOU like, possibly from people you know or that you have some sort of connection with.

[LivvieLove]

After reading 'Howl's Moving Castle', there were Howl and Sophie (of course) as well as Michael, Martha, Augusta, Calcifer, Lettie...

This was the entire theme of my Baby Boomer challenge. XD Though I did end up having to switch to other titles when they had too many kids.  Not to sway too much off the topic, but I'll just say that the sequels to Howl's Moving Castle are very much awesome indeed, and would recommend them. Sorry to be random about it, but I've never actually met someone who's read the book.
Movies are also a great source for themes. Also, a long time ago Metro mentioned using the Seasons for names, and basing their personalities off of the season.

[VioletG]

Adding to the above, books are a really great source that also provide a 'natural' theme to naming. I commonly take names out of novels I've read recently, so if I've read Jane Austen, names like John, George, William, Emma, Jane, Isabella etc. will abound.

I do this very often too ... not just for the sims, but for any game that asks you to pick a name. I read a lot so I usually just pick names from whatever book I'm reading. One of the books I'm reading now (The Killing Moon) is a fantasy and has a lot of very exotic names: Ehiru, Nijiri, Sunandi and Hananja, while the other is regular fiction (The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao) and has a lot of Hispanic names: Oscar, Lola, Belicia, Maritza, Ana, Rosio, Mauricio, Constantina, Socorro, Ybon and many more. Books are definitely a great source for names, especially names that fit together.

[TwistedFate243]

I usually use the same names over and over again:Opal Chord, Erin Skye (get the pun?), Gracie Willows, Isin Moonheart, Olivia Thorne, Lucius Phantomhive, Zacharias Smith, Jeremiah Stone, James, Luke, Lucifer (yes, I name my thieves after the devil), Finny, Sophia, and Dessi. My favorite sim names!

[McHazy]

I use my surname for my sims (Smith - common but that's what I married!) and then I go nuts. I've started a naming theme where I use first names from Nora Roberts books....as she is so prolific as I plenty to use. 

[Randox]

The one that always gets me are last names. First names are fine, I'll just think for a second until I strike one I like. For last names, I struggle to think of one that feels right. For my current save I had to think of two last names since one person was adopted way back at the start. One last name I pulled from American Dad (Donovan), and the other I made up (Osran).

I've noticed that I typically pick names (first and last) that don't correspond to anyone I know.

[Variosities]

I like using silly names wherever possible. For instance, Robyn Banks is a criminal, Sandy Shore lives near the beach, Tom and Kitty Katz are animal lovers, then there are the Dewit brothers, Howie and Kenny.

[Kamxam]

I named my current witch/vampire couple Open and Tastea (Tas-Tee-a! lol) Vein.  Figure she'd get the name confused by everyone which is why i picked it..
Was thinking of naming a cook charactor Hammond Eggs, but that may be a little too silly.

[Jessywoo]

I usually have a theme - I have a (failed) dynasty that is now just a fun game that goes by the surname of Plant. I had tree names for boys and flower names for girls. Tree name examples are Oak, Rowan, Cedar, Aspen, Mahogany (more of a wood but still). Flower names are Marigold (the founder), Poppy, Rose, Violet, Wisteria, Daisy, Iris.

Or I'll just pick a cute surname and then any cute first names that go with it. My current family has the surname Button, and I've got Oliver and Lois as the founding couple, then their three kids Evelyn, Kayla and Jacob, then Kayla's daughter Roisin. I think they're cute names anyway

I've also had the Malicious family, all with the Evil and Mean-Spirited traits (that was fun, they were all enemies even though they were all related). My explorer sim is called Kara Loft in homage to the famous tomb raider. I've had a Penny Dreadful.

My favourite though is another current sim, an eccentric artist with wacky clothes and a weirdo house on the very edge of town. Her name is Lola Granola.

[ManiSims]

I like having cute name themes too.  That, or I name Sims after my favorite characters from book/shows/movies/etc. 

[beardeux]

I use many sources for names.  When it comes to naming the cars, I use my home town names.  Historic sites, streets, parks, buildings etc...
  My pets names are associated somehow with the owners, ie: Jack Hill and his dog Jill.
  My favourite family names came from money.  I have 4 sims named Penny Copper, Buck Dollars, Sylvie Dime and Bear Deux.  Bear and Sylvie had 4 kids named Penny, Nickle, Mint and Dollard.  I use Astronimical objects ie: stars, nebulas, planets, comets, etc.  TV shows ie: - Clampett's, movies, nursery rhymes, Greek, Roman, Shakespeare,  Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe for Supernatural fairies and some are expressions or associated word phrases, such as Hope Diamond or Paige Turner.
  It's always a challenge and I agree the hardest part of making up a sim.  You can sit there for ages trying to come up with names.  I try to have my theme ready before I go to CAS.

[Deklitch]

I've used actor surnames as first names when I've needed unusual names, first half of one and 2nd half of another shoved together. However, good idea to double check the results before you let them go live to the forum ... a couple of my first attempts turned out to be rather unsuitable for here given the rating of this forum.

Dek

[dharmagoddess]

I don't have any special ways I name my sims. I used to use my book of magickal names, but I haven't been able to find it. 
I took a chance on my recent witch sim and randomized. It turned up with Georgina Perkins, which I quite loved. It struck me as very fitting, so I may randomize them more often.