50+ Great Nonbinary Name Ideas

Looking for great nonbinary name ideas? You may find other sites sorting names by male and female, but don’t worry, we don’t do that here. Before we dive in, I want to emphasize that a lot of nonbinary people do not change their name and appreciate their birth name. I personally decided to change my name as part of coming out as nonbinary, because I was uncomfortable with people perceiving my old name as very feminine. If I didn’t feel discomfort or gender dysphoria from my old name, I would not have changed it.

I made quite a few lists of names while trying to choose a new one for myself. Some names I liked were “too cool” for me. I selected a name, Rey, that would be easy to pronounce for speakers from different backgrounds, is not from a culture other than mine, and was “good enough.” Using it felt a lot better than my previous name, so I decided to make the switch. 

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If you’re looking for a new name, here are lists of single-syllable names, nature-inspired names, unisex names, and feminine and masculine names.

Let’s dive into a post all about nonbinary name ideas.

Single syllable name ideas

It’s not just a stereotype for trans and nonbinary people to pick a single sylable name, if it works! I did, and then realized just how many of my community have done the same! One time I hung out with Ray, Rey (me), Gray, and Jay. This can be based on the first letter of your old name, or just a name you appreciate.

• Ash
• Bay
• Dee
• Fay
• Jay
• Kay
• Lee
• Elle
• May
• Ray
• Vee
• Xi
• Zee

Beautiful nature name ideas

Some of the coolest, knock-your-socks-off names come from natural phenomena. They have the side benefit of not being strongly associated with a human gender.

• Obsidian
• Phoenix
• River
• Brook
• Ocean
• Forest
• Laurel
• Hazel
• Rowan
• Aurora
• Lily
• Juniper
• Sage
• Rosemary
• Fox
• Willow
• Amethyst 
• Aspen
• Jade
• Heron
• Nova
• Robin
• Tiger
• Sky

Gender-neutral or unisex name ideas

A selection of great unisex names for your perusal:

• Casey
• Riley
• Jessie
• Jackie
• Jaime
• Pat
• Chris
• Jody
• Tracy
• Jan
• Kim
• Noel
• Jordan
• Emory
• Sam
• Dana

Feminine or masculine names

Nonbinary does not equal androgenous. Many, many nonbinary people have and appreciate traditionally masculine or feminine names. Some examples:

• Jonathan Van Ness of Queer Eye and founder of JVN Hair
• Meg-John Barker, author of Queer: A Graphic History and Rewriting the Rules
• Kate Bornstein, author of Gender Outlaw
• Judith Butler, philosopher, author, gender theorist
• Demi Lovato, singer
• Jacob Tobia, writer, producer, actor, author of Sissy: A Coming-of-Gender Story
• Jeffrey Marsh, author and activist
• Elliot Page, actor
• ND (Nate) Stevenson, creator and executive producer of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
• Steven Tyler, Aerosmith, “I’ve been misquoted as saying that I’m more female than male. Let me set the record straight — it’s more half and half, and I love the fact that my feelings are akin to puella eternis (Latin for ‘the eternal girl’).”

Your name represents you

Whether you choose to keep your given birth name throughout your life or change your name multiple times, you are the only person who knows what’s right for you and your current situation. You don’t have to love your name. Hopefully you don’t hate your name (that’s a good indication it might be time for a change). 

If you’re looking through lists of nonbinary names, the next step might be to ask a trusted friend (or an online community) to try out a new name for you that you are considering. It’s okay to change your mind, even many times. It may take some time for you to get used to your own name change, even if it feels like the exact right thing to do. 

Good luck on your name exploration process, whether you decide to change your name or not!

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For more gender neutral names, unisex names, and nonbinary name inspiration, please check out my other name lists!

50+ Great Agender Name Ideas

Gender Neutral Names: 60+ Great Unisex Names