Portrait of William ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare wrote the famous line “What is in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Old Will loved to use unique names and even created some of his own. Here are the most popular Shakespeare names categorized by play. If you’re a Shakespeare fan, or just an avid theater-goer, you might want to consider these unique names when choosing baby names for your baby. Or maybe you already did!

All’s Well that Ends Well

Bertram
Diana
Helena
Lafeu
Lavache
Mariana
Parolles
Rinaldo
Violenta

As You Like It

Adam
Amiens
Audrey
Celia
Corin
Dennis
Frederick
Jaques
Phebe
Rosalind
Oliver
Orlando
Silvius
Touchstone
William

Comedy of Errors

Adriana
Aegeon
Aemilia
Adriana
Antipholus
Angelo
Balthazar
Dromio
Luce
Luciana
Nell
Pinch
Solinus

Cymbeline

Arviragus
Belarius
Cloten
Cornelius
Cymbeline
Guiderius
Helen
Leonatus
Imogen
Philario
Pisanio

Hamlet

Barnardo
Claudius
Cornelius
Fortinbras
Francisco
Gertrude
Guildenstern
Hamlet
Horatio
Laertes
Marcellus
Ophelia
Osric
Polonius
Reynaldo
Rosencrantz
Voltimand

Julius Caesar

Artemidorus
Brutus
Cassius
Caesar
Casca
Cicero
Calphurnia
Cinna
Dardanius
Decius
Flavius
Marullus
Messala
Metellus
Octavius
Pindarus
Portia
Strato
Tittinius
Trebonius
Varro
Volumnius

King Lear

Cordelia
Curan
Edgar
Edmund
Goneril
Oswald
Regan

Love’s Labour’s Lost

Adriano
Berowne
Boyet
Costard
Dull
Ferdinand
Holofernes
Jaquenetta
Maria
Mercade
Moth
Nathaniel
Rosaline

Macbeth

Angus
Banquo
Caithness
Donalbain
Duncan
Hecate
Fleance
Lennox
MacBeth (surname)
MacDuff (surname)
Malcolm
Ross
Seton
Siward

Measure for Measure

Abhorson
Angelo
Barnardine
Claudio
Elbow
Escalus
Francisca
Froth
Isabella
Juliet
Lucio
Pompey
Varrius
Vincentio

Merchant of Venice

Bassanio
Gratiano
Jessica
Lancelot
Leonardo
Lorenzo
Nerissa
Portia
Salerio
Solanio
Stephano
Tubal

Merry Wives of Windsor

Anne
Bardolph
Fenton
Ford
Nym
Pistol
Robin
Rugby
Shallow
Simple
Slender

Midsummer-Night’s Dream

Bottom
Demetrius
Egeus
Flute
Helena
Hermia
Hippolyta
Lysander
Oberon
Philostrate
Puck
Quince
Snug
Starveling
Stout
Theseus
Titania

Much Ado About Nothing

Antonio
Balthazar
Beatrice
Benedick
Borachio
Claudio
Conrade
Dogberry
Don Pedro
Don John
(Friar) Francis
Hero (female)
Leonato
Margaret
Ursula
Verges

Othello

Bianca
Brabantio
Cassio
Desdemona
Emilia
Gratiano
Iago
Lodovico
Montano
Othello
Roderigo

Pericles

Antiochus
Cerimone
Cleon
Leonine
Lychordia
Lysimachus
Marina
Pericles
Philemon
Simonides
Thaisa
Thaliard

Romeo & Juliet

Abraham
Balthasar
Benvolio
Escalus
Gregory
(Friar) John
Juliet
(Friar) Laurence
Mercutio
Paris
Peter
Romeo
Sampson
Tybalt

Taming of the Shrew

Baptista
Bianca
Biondello
Christopher
Curtis
Grumio
Hortensio
Katharina
Lucentio
Nathaniel
Petruchio
Philip
Tranio
Vencentio

The Tempest

Adrian
Alonso
Ariel
Antonio
Caliban
Ceres
Ferdinand
Francisco
Gonzalo
Iris
Juno
Miranda
Prospero
Sebastian
Stephano
Sycorax
Trinculo

Timon of Athens

Alcibiades
Apemantus
Caphis
Cupid
Flaminus
Flavius
Hortensius
Lucillus
Lucius
Philotus
Phrynia
Sempronius
Servilius
Timandra
Timon
Titus
Ventidius

Titus Andronicus

Aemilius
Alarbus
Bassianus
Caius
Chiron
Demetrius
Lavinia
Lucisu
Marcus Andronicus
Martius
Mutius
Publius
Quintus
Saturninus
Sempronius
Tamora
Titus Andronicus
Valentine

Twelfth Night

Antonio
Curio
Fabian
Feste
Malvolio
Maria
Olivia
Orsino
Sebastian
Toby
Valentine
Viola

Two Gentlemen of Verona

Antonio
Eglamour
Julia
Launce
Lucetta
Panthino
Proteus
Silvia
Speed
Thurio
Valentine

Winter’s Tale

Antigonus
Camillo
Cleomenes
Dion
Dorcas
Emilia
Florizel
Hermione
Leontes
Mamillius
Mopsa
Paulina
Perdita
Polixenes

Jennifer Moss (she/her) is the founder of BabyNames.com, author of The Baby Names Workbook, and Producer of The Baby Names Podcast. Jennifer is widely regarded as the leading expert on popular baby name trends and the naming process, serving as the authoritative source on the subject for national and international media.

Jennifer entered the tech arena in the 80s as a software developer and database architect, and became a pioneer in the Internet industry. In addition to operating BabyNames.com, Jennifer owns a web development agency in central California.