How to Come Up With Truly Hipster Cat Names

If you're looking for ways to prove your hipster cred, look no further than your new cat. A hipster cat name for your fur ball will help him grow into a trendy and urbane feline.

Cultural Names

Hipsters like to set themselves apart with their taste in obscure bands, artists, and little-known or counterculture literature. These make for some fertile material for cat names.

Choose a Name From a Book

Whether it's the name of an author, a character, or just some random word from the title or idea of the book, you can't go wrong with a literary cat. Have a book you loved, such as John Irving's A Prayer for Owen Meany? Voila! You've got your cat name (Owen, Meany, or name a pair Owen and Meany). Or, take inspiration from the suggestions below.

• Eggers - from author Dave Eggers of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
• Eeeee - from Eeeee Eee Eeee by Tao Lin
• McSweeney - from the trendy book publisher and website
• Wallace or Jest - from Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
• Teju or Cole - from the author of Open City
• Safran - from author Jonathan Safran Foer of Tree of Codes
• Hornby - from author Nick Hornby (High Fidelity)
• Haruki - from author Haruki Murakami (1Q84)
• St. Lucy - from St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves by Karen Russell
• Kerouac - from the Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac
• Aldous or Huxley - the author of Brave New World
• Orwell - from author George Orwell (1984)
• J.D. or Salinger - author of Catcher in the Rye
• Bukowski - from underground author Charles Bukowski
• Pynchon - from the complex novelist Thomas Pynchon

Pick Names From Indie Music Bands

If music is your scene (or your cat's), then pick a name from your favorite band. Name it after your favorite hipster performer, one of their songs, or a musician with a unique name. For instance, love Bon Iver? If you've got a pair of cats, why not name one Bon and the other Iver?

• Soleima
• Clairo
• Michi
• Jade Bird
• Nightly
• Lxandra
• Lykki Li
• Gundelach
• King Krule
• Mitski
• Waxahatchee
• Spoonboy
• Hatchie
• Rhye
• Fratelli
• Father John Misty

Try Hipster Gourmand Names

Hipsters are known for being consummate foodies. They love obscure wines, teas and coffees, and locally grown foods. Think about unique food items you enjoy, especially if they're organic and non-GMO, of course! Some ideas for perfect feline foodie follow.

• Pabst (Pabst Blue Ribbon)
• Trader Joe or Trader (the popular grocery chain)
• Pomegranate (the fruit or the trendy food market)
• Kale
• Quinoa
• Sprouts
• Goji ( the berries)

Pick Obscure Tea-Based Names

Like tea? There are all sorts of interesting names. Make sure it's nothing simple or commonplace; Chai just won't do (unless you really love chai). Think of interesting sounding tea-based words instead, such as the following.

• Darjeeling
• Pu-erh
• Rooibos
• Matcha
• Malawi
• Oolong

Choose Uncommon Coffee-Based Names

What would a hipster be without coffee? Naturally, you're not going to name your kitty Starbuck or Seattle's Best (or maybe you will), but give a nod to coffee culture by choosing interesting names from the world of coffee.

• Espresso Romano
• Ristretto
• Puñet
• Divisio
• Malabar
• Jacu Bird
• Tobio
• Antoccino
• Marocchino

Pick Rare Wine-Based Names

Choose a unique wine; your cat deserves something less pedestrian than Franzia or Two Buck Chuck (Charles Shaw). Instead, go obscure; these are especially good for white, cream, or silver cats or blue-cream calicos:

• Himbertscha
• Aligoté
• Godello
• Gringet

Red, orange tabby, tortie, and calico cats would like:

• Pais
• Ruché

You Can't Go Wrong With Hipster Places

There are definite cities and locations that hipsters are known to congregate in and these make great cat names, such as:

• Brooklyn
• Portland
• Austin
• Williamsburg
• Harlem
• Bushwick
• Barista Jam (not exactly a "specific place" but it's somewhere hipsters love to go!)

You can also name your cat after local hipster hangouts, such as the name of a favorite food truck or kombucha brand (or just choose Kombucha as a name).

Name After Hipster Products

Hipsters are known for loving certain types of products, whether it's mason jars, plaid and flannel shirts, vintage and retro clothing, vinyl records, or fixed gear bicycles. For example, if you love bicycles too, some fun names based on parts and manufacturers could be:

• Fixie
• Sprocket
• Cinelli
• Aventon
• Masi
• Bianchi
• Stanridge

Consider Obscure People Names

One quality that sets hipsters apart as a group is their focus on things out of the ordinary. No plain Jane names for them! If you want a girl or boy name for your cat but don't want an "every day" type of name, try on some of these, or look for similar rarely used names in baby name books or websites.

Girls

• Lena
• Olive
• Ofelia
• Mable
• Theodora
• Octavia
• Verity

Boys:

• Elijah
• Dorian
• Shepherd
• Auden
• Stellan
• Bram
• Everest
• Rufus
• Pascal

Use Random Foreign Words

Another way of showing off your sophistication is demonstrating your knowledge of other languages and cultures. Try showing your "off-beat" smarts with a name for your kitty based on random, esoteric foreign words with ironic meanings.

• Gigil (Filipino) - The need to hold tightly or squeeze something you find crushingly adorable (like your kitten!)
• Lagom (Swedish) - This means "just right" as in the perfect blend of qualities
• Boketto (Japanese) - Staring vacantly somewhere far away for no reason at all (some cat owners can relate to seeing this behavior in their cats often)
• Hygge (Danish) - The warm, comfy feeling you have when you're hanging out with friends around a fireplace in the midst of winter (or with a cat on your lap)
• Fernweh (German) - A sense of yearning for a place you've never visited
• Cafune (Portuguese) - A lover running his or her fingers romantically through your hair (or fur!)
• Gökotta (Swedish) - Waking up first thing in the morning so you can rush outside to hear the first birds singing (which describes many an active cat's behavior)
• Gattara (Italian) - "The crazy old cat lady" or a single, older woman who cares for stray cats
• Friolero (Spanish) - Someone who really hates the cold (good for a hairless cat!)
• Sobremesa (Spanish) - Spending time over a dinner table after the meal is gone because you're enjoying being with your friends too much to leave

Picking a Hipster Cat Names

These are some ideas to get you started. Additionally, consider the following:

• Think about things that you enjoy, whether it's eclectic books, indie bands only you and your friends have heard of, or art house films.
• Ask friends who speak other languages to come up with completely random words that might have a hidden meaning tying them in to your cat, whether it's by fur color, temperament, or a feline quirk.

A Unique Name for a Unique Cat

Just remember that as a hipster, you want to use a name that no one else has used for their cat, so make sure your choice is one you haven't heard before. This will demonstrate your unique brand of style and education.