Cicada Name Generator

Start with what someone hears

Roll a few cicada names and picture a person trying to place a sound. It might come from one tree, or another call might answer from farther away. Cadence Drummer suggests the rhythm. Echo Singer might suit a voice someone hears before seeing the insect. Try both names in a sentence where the observer looks up.

See how a name works in a drawing

Shell Buzzer could connect the sound someone heard with an empty shell they notice on the bark later. Amber Bark may fit a close view of the tree. Put each beneath the same sketch and then use it in a line of dialogue. If the observer uses a long name and a nickname, show them together once so the reader can connect them.

Decide how much to say about the season

In a story about periodical cicadas, a name like Seventeen-year Rhythm can sound like something a person would use after remembering an earlier summer. Summer Brood has a shorter rhythm and can fit a character named after the group it appeared with. Try the name in a scene where the summer is remembered, then in one where a person simply hears the insect outside.

When several insects appear together, read their names in the same line. Give one a sound from high in the tree and let the other answer from somewhere else. If you have to read twice to tell them apart, replace one name and keep the rest of the sentence in place.

Keep two favorites and swap them between a caption and a conversation. Cover the first drawing or set aside the description of the tree and see which name still brings the same cicada to mind. Try it once more in a scene where the insect is quiet and the observer returns to look at the bark. The name can bring back the first call even when nobody hears it again.