It's no secret that writers agonize over what to name their characters. Many authors can't even begin to write until they've given each and every person a name.
So how does one go about this tough task? Let's take a dive into how these famous characters were named.
Voldemort.
Voldemort is the antagonist of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. Rowling took the name Voldemort from the French words vol ("flight"), de ("of"), and mort ("death").
James Bond.
Ian Fleming, who was a birdwatcher, took the name of the very real ornithologist James Bond. After meeting Bond and his wife, he decided the "brief, unromantic, and yet very masculine name" was perfect for the character he was envisioning.
Sherlock Holmes.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle named the character over and over again before settling. Holmes was very close to being named Sherrinford Hope. However, Doyle's first wife thought the name was entirely awful and told him to change it, which is when Doyle landed on Holmes.
Pikachu.
Pikachu is a cute little Pokémon character the world has grown to love. His name evolved from the combination of two Japanese words — pika, a word for lightning flashing and chu, which is used to refer to the squeaking sound mice make.
Mario.
He's one of the most recognizable video game characters of all time. His current name was chosen after the landlord at Nintendo's US office interrupted a meeting to try to collect overdue rent. The landlord's name? Mario Segale.