Name for Planet

[mercywrites]

Phantorian-- I took the name from the Greek word phantasia, but it seems to similar to the Disney movie Fantasia, so I change it up a bit. I choose this name because my character reminded his son that when his ancestor sat foot on the planet he saw all the possibilities that were open to him that weren't back home on Earth anymore. My question is that a good enough reason for the name? Or does it sound silly? Can anyone recommend websites that name planets?

 

[DragonOfTheAerie]

Phantorian is a good name for a planet. If you're not happy with the name, though, I would change it, though I wouldn't recommend random name generators on the Internet. They are hardly ever helpful and there are simply so many ways you can combine letters to make made up names that the results won't be very specific to what you're needing. I often come up with names by thinking of letters and combinations of letters that sound good to me and combine them in different ways until I find something that I like.
As for the explanation for the name, it does seem a little far-fetched. The name itself is too far away from the root it's derived from for there to be any immediately apparent connection. As in, when I look at the name Phantorian it doesn't really remind me of the Greek word or connote possibility and opportunity. But the story itself sounds good. When setting foot on a new planet it makes sense that a character would think of all the possibilities not available on Earth that are opening up in front of him. So you might want to find a name that communicates the idea of opportunity and possibility. Explorers like to name places after what they are thinking and feeling at the time they come upon them.

 

[evolution_rex]

The ian at the end makes it sound more than a person from some place called Phantoria rather than the name of a place itself. And what would you call someone who who is from Phantorian? A phantorianian? I would switch it to Phantoria or maybe Phantorion.

Also, names don't need to be explained. If you're going to require a logical explanation to the name, none of the names you come up with will satisfy you.

 

[mercywrites]

Thank you both! Excellent advice.

 

[AJ Stevens]

I'd echo what the others said. Is Tatooine a good name for a planet? I don't know; it seems okay. It's different. I have no idea why it's called Tatooine, and I don't really care. Your readers will most likely have a similar attitude, I would guess.

I think Phantorian is just fine, but I'd be more interested in what it looks like and what happens there than anything else. As long as I can pronounce it, I'm happy!

EDIT: Just to add that most of the celestial bodies we know of are named after people or entities. Perhaps something worth considering.