Pixie Names for D&D, Folklore and Pixie Hollow

A pixie name should sound like it was overheard rather than introduced. That is the whole trick. The pixies of Cornish and Devon folklore were never formally named to anyone — farmers learned what to call them from the sound they made in the hedgerow, or from whatever went missing that week.

That gives you two very different directions, and this page covers both. Pixie names built on real folklore run short and consonant-light: Piskin, Wyn, Joan the Wad. Names built for D&D lean softer and longer, because Sylvan is a flowing language and a Feywild pixie is a creature of light rather than mud. Then there is Pixie Hollow, which follows its own rule entirely — one word, taken straight from nature.

Below you will find 300 names sorted by where you actually need them, each with its meaning, plus a generator that builds new ones from the same roots.

The pixie name generator below runs on six different naming systems, because “pixie” means three different things depending on where you are standing. Cornish builds from real Westcountry roots and dialect. D&D builds Sylvan-sounding names that fit a Feywild NPC. Pixie Hollow follows Disney’s own rule, which is one word, taken from a plant, a weather condition or a small sound.

Male, female and surname modes handle the rest. Nothing here is random syllables — every option is assembled from a real root word, and the generator shows you what it means. Click any name to copy it.

Pixie Name Generator

Pick a tradition and a type. Every name is built from a real root word, and the meaning is shown with it. Tap a name to copy it.

Tap any name to copy it.

Real pixie lore comes from Cornwall, Devon and Somerset, where it was taken seriously well into the 1800s. The names below use genuine Cornish and Westcountry roots, which is why they run shorter and blunter than the fairy names people usually expect. Joan the Wad is the only crowned one , she is the queen of the Cornish piskies, and her name simply means “Joan the torch.”

NameMeaning
PiskinFrom piskie, the Cornish form of pixie
Joan the WadQueen of the Cornish piskies; wad means torch
BuccaThe Cornish Puck; a sea-spirit of the west
OmfraThe pixie of Trevose Head who lost his laugh
WynCornish gwyn — white, fair, blessed
TamsinCornish form of Thomasina, a Westcountry classic
JagoCornish for James; common on the moors
KensaCornish for “first”
LowenCornish for “happy”
MorwennaCornish — sea wave
DemelzaA Cornish place-name, “fort of Maeldaf”
JennaCornish Jenifer, fair one
TalanCornish — bright brow
KerraCornish — dearer, more beloved
NessaCornish an nes, the nearer one
PerranCornish — after Saint Piran, patron of tin
TressaCornish — third-born
EnnorCornish — the mainland, the boundary
ConanCornish and Breton — hound, wolf
ElowenCornish — elm tree
SterenCornish — star
LovedayA real Cornish given name, for a day of reconciliation
BryokCornish — after Saint Breock of the Downs
TegenCornish — a pretty thing, a trinket
SithneyA Cornish saint’s name, from Lizard peninsula
RosenCornish — rose
GwennaCornish — the fair one
ZennorA Cornish village; home of the mermaid legend
HedraCornish — October, and autumn itself
MerrynCornish saint; a name from the north coast

In D&D 5e a pixie is a tiny fey, neutral good, Challenge 1/4, speaks only Sylvan, and casts from innate magic using pixie dust as its component. The name needs to sound like Sylvan — open vowels, liquid consonants, nothing hard-edged. One detail worth building on: the Monster Manual says pixies abhor weapons and will flee rather than fight, so a name that sounds like a swordsman is already off.

D&D pixie casting a spell with pixie dust in a Feywild glade
NameMeaning
AelinorSylvan-style — of the first light
SylwenOf the wood, blessed
ThistlewynThistle-born, in the Feywild style
NimwenSmall and fair
EolithA stone of dawn
FaelisOf the fair folk
CirrenA high, thin cloud
LumethOne who carries light
AshwenBlessed of the ash tree
PeverelA Feywild name of the older courts
OrriselFrom orris root, used in perfume
TamsylWoodland twin
VessineA small vessel; one who carries
AurelinOf gold, at the point it fades
MiralenOne who watches, marvels
SorrelithOf the sorrel plant
NinuelOf still water
ElorinA song remembered
HespinOf the evening star
CaelwynBlessed of the sky
YarrowenOf yarrow, the wound-herb
BrightlinA small brightness
SylvennaOf the deep wood
TirrelA small tremble, a shiver of air
OvennaOf the hearth-warmth
LissandrilGraceful, flowing
MossenOf the moss
EnwythWithin the withy, the willow
PerrilanA small danger, charmingly meant
DewhallowBlessed by dew

Sylvan is not spoken only by fey — the names for characters who speak Sylvan too cover the mortals who learned it.

The Feywild runs on emotion rather than logic, and its pixies are named for whatever they were doing when someone first noticed them. These are longer and stranger than the Cornish set, and they work best for an NPC who is going to be a problem in a delightful way.

NameMeaning
Wisp-of-MorningNamed for the hour she was first seen
ThornquietSilent among the brambles
GloamstirOne who moves at dusk
HalfpennyWhat she takes, and never more
RimewhistleThe sound of frost forming
NettlelaughLaughs where it stings
QuickfernFast as the fern uncurls
DimbellA bell heard faintly
SoftmarrowGentle to the bone
Cobweb-NineThe ninth of her line, or her ninth web
LanternslyCarries a light and misuses it
BrackenshyHides in the bracken
OwletNamed for the bird she rides
TallowthinBurns low and long
SundappledMarked by light through leaves
MirefootWalks on standing water
GlimmeraskAsks for shine, gives nothing
HushwingFlies without sound
SaltpetalOf the coastal flowers
WindlebrookWinds like a small stream
FernhollowFrom the hollow where ferns grow
Moth-and-AshTwo things she was seen with
ChillnettleCold and stinging together
FeatherfallDescends slowly, always
BarleywickOf the barley field’s edge
SnowdropThe first flower, named for itself
HollowbellA bell with nothing inside
Twilight-ComeArrives exactly at dusk
PipperwillA small persistent will
RavelknotTangles and untangles both

There is no separate male pixie tradition in folklore — Cornish sources describe piskies as wizened old men in green as often as anything else, and the Victorian idea of pixies as universally female came much later. These lean on Cornish, Welsh and Old English roots, which gives them the right weight without turning them into elves.

NameMeaning
PiranCornish saint of tin miners
BrannocCornish — of the raven
HobbFrom hob, the Westcountry house-spirit
GwilymWelsh form of William
TrevikCornish — of the small farm
PellanCornish — of the pool
AnwylWelsh — beloved
CadanCornish — battle, but a small one
RhosynWelsh — rose, used for either
DenzelA Cornish place-name, “high stronghold”
KittoCornish diminutive of Christopher
LocrynCornish — a legendary king
MassenCornish form of Maximus
NectanCornish saint of the waterfall
ObyWestcountry shortening of Obadiah
PetrocCornish — the great saint of Padstow
RewanCornish saint, a hermit
SelevanCornish form of Solomon
TobynWestcountry form of Tobias
UtherOf Cornish-Arthurian legend
WellaCornish for William, everyday form
YestinCornish — the just one
BodenCornish — a dwelling
CarneCornish — a rock pile, a cairn
DowrCornish — water
GwedhenCornish — a tree
HayleA Cornish estuary town
MarrekCornish — a knight, or a horseman
NynsCornish — the negative, “not”
StenCornish — tin

These follow the softer end of the Cornish and Welsh pattern, with the flower and weather naming that pixie lore actually uses. Worth knowing: in Devon, pixies were believed to be the returned souls of infants who died before baptism, which is why so many folkloric pixie names sound like names that were given and then never used.

NameMeaning
AillaCornish — very beautiful
BersabaCornish form of Bathsheba
CordeliaOf Cornish-Arthurian legend, Lear’s daughter
DerwaA Cornish saint’s name
EndelynCornish saint of the north coast
EwellaCornish — to rise up
GwenepCornish saint; a parish name
IaCornish saint who sailed on a leaf
JowanetCornish form of Joan
KerensaCornish — love
LamornaA Cornish cove
MelyorCornish — better, improving
NonnaCornish saint, mother of David
OlwenWelsh — white footprint
PetronellCornish form of Petronella
RozenCornish — rose
SenaraCornish saint of Zennor
SowenaCornish — success
TanquilCornish form of Tanguistel
UrsellCornish diminutive of Ursula
VerryanA Cornish parish name
WennaCornish saint, a mother of saints
YgernaCornish — mother of Arthur
BlejanCornish — blossom
EbrelCornish — April
GwynderCornish — brightness
HafWelsh — summer
MerynCornish saint; a soft variant
EseldCornish form of Iseult
TegennCornish — a small pretty thing

Disney’s Pixie Hollow follows a single rule: one word, taken from the natural world, and it should match your fairy’s talent. Tinker, water, garden, light, animal, fast-flying and dust are the talents used in the films and the old MMO — and yes, male fairies are called sparrow men, not pixies. The names below are grouped by talent so they land correctly.

Miniature garden objects representing garden, tinker and animal fairy talents
NameTalent it fitsMeaning
BrambleGardenThorned climbing plant
TansyGardenA yellow flowering herb
SorrelGardenA sharp-tasting leaf
VetchGardenA climbing meadow plant
CloverGardenThe luck plant
RippleWaterThe smallest wave
BrookWaterA small stream
MistleWaterFrom mist
DewpearlWaterA single drop
CascadeWaterFalling water
EmberLightA small remaining fire
GlintLightA brief flash
LumenLightA unit of light
ShimmerLightTrembling brightness
HaloLightA ring of light
CogTinkerA gear tooth
RivetTinkerA fastening pin
SprocketTinkerA toothed wheel
ThimbleTinkerSmall, protective, useful
CopperTinkerThe tinker’s metal
VixenAnimalA female fox
WrenAnimalThe smallest loud bird
FennecAnimalA tiny desert fox
MartenAnimalA quick forest hunter
DappleAnimalA coat marking
GaleFast-flyingA strong wind
SwiftFast-flyingThe bird that never lands
ZephyrFast-flyingThe west wind
MotesDustSpecks in a sunbeam
SpangleDustA tiny glittering thing

Short, soft, and built on the small things pixies were actually associated with — dew, moss, seeds, the sound a cricket makes. Nothing here is longer than two syllables, because a cute name stops being cute at three.

Gnomes and pixies get mixed up constantly, but gnomes are a different tradition entirely — the gnome names list keeps them apart.

NameMeaning
PipA seed
NimQuick, nimble
TibbAn old Westcountry pet name
DotThe smallest mark
FenMarshland
WickA candle’s thread; also a small settlement
BibbA small covering
NellA shortening of Helen, meaning light
MimQuiet, demure
PogA small round thing
TuckFolded away, hidden
BeeThe insect, straightforwardly
PoppetA little doll; a Westcountry endearment
NixNothing, and also a water spirit
WispA thin strand
DillyA charming small thing
MomoA soft repeating sound
TotA very small child
PuckThe mischief spirit itself
BramblebitA fragment of the hedge
TweeExcessively dainty, worn proudly
NubbinA small lump
WinkleA small shell
SprigA small shoot
PebbleA rounded stone
DimityA light cotton cloth
FlitTo move in short darts
CricketThe insect she takes her music from
FizzleA small failing sound
BobbinA thread-spool

This is the pixie’s actual reputation. Folklore pixies knot horses’ manes overnight, sour the milk, hide small objects and most famously lead travellers off the path — being pixy-led. The cure, seriously recorded across Devon, was to turn your coat inside out. These names all reference something a pixie is accused of doing.

Traveller with a lantern led off the path by pixie lights on a foggy moor
NameMeaning
PixyledThe state of being lost by pixie mischief
ManetangleKnots horses’ manes at night
MilkturnSours the milk in the churn
CoatwrongThe reason you turned your coat inside out
LoselightThe false light on the moor
WiddershinsCounter-clockwise; the unlucky direction
KeyhideTakes the one key you need
CrookpathBends the track behind you
ThistledodgeNever where you reach
BogwinkWinks from the marsh, then is gone
NettlespitePuts stings where hands go
LatchliftOpens what was shut
BreadsaltSpoils the offering left out
GorsegrinGrins from the yellow scrub
SourcreamThe most-reported pixie crime
TurnaboutSends you back the way you came
BellstopSilences a bell mid-ring
HedgeknotTies the gap in the hedge shut
LampsnuffPuts out the light you carried
GatespinSwings the gate as you approach
CropsitSits on the grain so it will not thresh
PonyrideRides the colts until they are exhausted
ShoehideThe other one is gone
WellmurkClouds clean water
CrumbsnatchTakes what falls, and a little more
PeatslipMakes the footing give
NamecallCalls your name from nowhere
StilewrongMoves the step over the wall
FogspinTurns a mist into a maze
RushwhistleWhistles in the reeds to draw you in

Worth knowing before you use this: film critic Nathan Rabin coined the term in 2007, reviewing Elizabethtown, and he meant it as criticism — a character type that “exists solely in the fevered imaginations of sensitive writer-directors.” He publicly apologised for the phrase in 2014 after it became a label people applied to any woman with short hair. The names below are the register the trope uses: vintage, slightly unusual, always a little too memorable.

NameWhy it fits the type
ClaireKirsten Dunst’s character in Elizabethtown, the original
SamNatalie Portman in Garden State, the other famous one
RamonaScott Pilgrim; the hair-colour-per-act version
Summer(500) Days of Summer, which then dismantles the trope
ClementineEternal Sunshine, which dismantles it harder
PennyVintage, small, slightly out of time
BirdieA nickname used as a full name
JunoMythological, deployed casually
WinnieDiminutive, warm, deliberately childlike
MargotFrench, chilly, a little unreachable
CocoTwo syllables of pure whimsy
WrenNature name, small bird, no edges
SundayA day used as a name
DelphineOrnate, faintly ridiculous, memorable
LarkAnother bird, another lightness
ZeldaLiterary, jazz-age, unstable by association
PoppyBright, brief, English
NicoAndrogynous, borrowed from music
BijouFrench for jewel; a costume name
MarnieVintage, slightly melancholy
OndineA water spirit; the name promises she will leave
FrankieA man’s name worn ironically
CloveA spice used as a person
EsmeSalinger by way of the 2010s
TuesdayThe other day-name, less used
CricketA sound used as a person
VeraOld-fashioned, deliberately
PlumA fruit, offered as a whole personality
MabelRevived Victorian, warm, slightly mad
JemShort, sharp, not quite a full name

Folklore pixies do not have surnames, so this is invented territory — but it can be invented consistently. The pattern that works is place plus feature, the same way English hamlet names were built: a thing, then where it is. Pair any of these with a first name from the sections above.

SurnameMeaning
ThistledownThe seed-fluff of a thistle
MossbarrowA burial mound gone green
DewhollowA dip that collects dew
FernwhistleThe sound in the ferns
BrackenmereA pool among bracken
GorsewickA settlement in the yellow scrub
PeatlowLow ground, peat soil
RimebarrowA frosted mound
SallowbrookWillow by a stream
NettlecombeA valley of nettles — a real Somerset place
HazelrushHazel and reeds together
TormeadA meadow under a tor
SedgewindWind through sedge grass
ApplecrossWhere the orchard path crosses
FoxgladeA clearing the foxes use
HeatherfellOpen heather upland
CloudberryA northern moorland fruit
WillowickA settlement among willows
StonecressCress growing on stone
MarshlightThe will-o’-the-wisp itself
OakenshadeUnder the oaks
BilberryThe moorland berry
LarkmoorMoorland the larks nest on
RushbankThe reeded edge of water
ElderfordA crossing by elder trees
BramblewickA holding in the brambles
FurzedownFurze-covered hill — a real English place-name
CoombewaterWater in a steep valley
WrenhollowWhere the wrens nest
MirestileA step over a boggy gap

The three pixie traditions barely overlap, and that is genuinely useful. If you want folklore, go Cornish and keep it short — Piskin, Kerensa, Wyn. If you want a Feywild NPC, go long and Sylvan and remember the creature you are naming would rather vanish than draw a blade. If you want Pixie Hollow, pick one word from a garden and stop there.

The pixie name generator at the top of the page runs on all three sets, so if none of the 300 above is right you can keep pulling until something is. Click any name to copy it.

How do you spell pixie?

Pixie is the standard modern spelling, but the variants are not misspellings — they are regional forms that predate the standard one. In Cornwall the word is piskie or pisky. In Devon you will find pigsie. Pixy and pixi both appear in older printed sources. The Cornish form came first and the letters transposed in Somerset and Devon, which is how piskie became pixie.

What is a pixie in D&D 5e?

A Tiny fey, neutral good, Challenge 1/4, that speaks only Sylvan. It has Magic Resistance, casts druidcraft at will using pixie dust as its component, and can turn invisible along with everything it carries. The Monster Manual is explicit that pixies hate weapons and will flee rather than fight — which is worth remembering before you write a pixie warband.

Are pixies and fairies the same thing?

No, though the two traditions have blended. Pixies are specific to southwest England — Cornwall, Devon, Somerset — and folklorist Thomas Keightley noted as early as 1850 that the child-stealing and traveller-misleading stories were probably borrowed from broader fairy myth rather than being originally pixie. Pixies are also associated with ancient sites: stone circles, barrows and standing stones.

What are male pixies called?

In folklore, simply pixies — Cornish sources often describe them as small wizened men in green. In Disney’s Pixie Hollow the male fairies are called sparrow men, which is a Disney invention rather than a folkloric term.

What does it mean to be “pixie-led”?

It means being deliberately lost by pixies, usually on open moorland, following false lights or music until you are walking in circles. The recorded remedy across Devon and Cornwall was to turn a coat, a pocket or a jacket inside out. This is also where the word pixilated comes from — originally “bewildered by pixies.”f

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