Alchemy Name Generator

Five real names from alchemy a press, each with what it meant or what a chemist calls it now.

Alchemy Name Generator

  1. Sal ammoniacAmmonium chloride.
  2. Pearl whiteBismuth nitrate.
  3. Sal alembrothA salt of the chlorides of ammonium and mercury.
  4. StannumTin, the metal of Jupiter. Sign: ♃
  5. CerationSoftening a hard, dry substance until it is more like molten wax.

Next step Draw an element from the modern tableMake up a potion to go with the name

How it works

This alchemy name generator deals real names from the old art: substances with the name a chemist uses today, the stages of the Great Work, the apparatus, and the planetary metals with their signs.

Read the full guide

Four kinds of alchemical name

The menu under the button keeps the draw to one kind. Substances pairs an old name with its modern one: oil of vitriol is sulfuric acid, brimstone is sulfur. Stages and operations runs from nigredo, the blackening, to projection. Apparatus holds the alembic, the athanor and the retort. Metals and signs gives the Latin names of the seven metals the alchemists tied to the Sun, the Moon and five planets.

Borrowing a name

For an alchemist in a story, a shop sign or a made-up potion, take the old name and leave the chemistry behind. Azoth, Colcothar and Zaffre sound invented and are not.

Tips
  • Gold carries the sign of the Sun and silver the sign of the Moon; both are printed on their cards.

Questions and answers

What are some real alchemy names?

Aqua regia, oil of vitriol, butter of antimony, sal ammoniac, brimstone and philosophers' wool are old names for substances a chemist knows by another name today. Nigredo, albedo, citrinitas and rubedo are the four stages of the Great Work.

What did alchemists call the seven metals?

They tied each to a body in the sky: gold to the Sun, silver to the Moon, quicksilver to Mercury, copper to Venus, iron to Mars, tin to Jupiter and lead to Saturn. The cards give their Latin names, from Aurum to Plumbum.

What is oil of vitriol called today?

Sulfuric acid. The vitriols were sulfates: blue vitriol is copper sulfate, green vitriol is iron sulfate, white vitriol is zinc sulfate and red vitriol is cobalt sulfate.

Can I use these names for a character or a potion in a story?

Yes, as names. They suit a fantasy alchemist, a shop or an invented potion. The page says what each word meant and gives no recipe; several of the real substances are poisonous.

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All 128 names

Substances 83

  • Alkahest The universal solvent the alchemists theorized.
  • Aqua fortis Nitric acid. Also called spirit of nitre.
  • Aqua ragia Turpentine. Also called spirit of turpentine.
  • Aqua regia Latin for royal water: a mixture of aqua fortis and spirit of salt.
  • Azoth First a supposed universal solvent, later another name for mercury.
  • Blue vitriol Copper sulfate.
  • Bluestone The mineral form of copper sulfate, also called blue vitriol.
  • Borax Sodium borate.
  • Brimstone Sulfur.
  • Butter of antimony Antimony trichloride.
  • Butter of tin Hydrated tin chloride.
  • Cadmia Probably zinc carbonate. Also called tutty.
  • Calamine Zinc carbonate.
  • Calomel Mercury chloride. Also called horn quicksilver.
  • Calx Calcium oxide, and a word for other metal oxides.
  • Calx viva Quicklime, which is calcium oxide.
  • Caustic marine alkali Sodium hydroxide, or caustic soda.
  • Caustic potash Potassium hydroxide. Also called caustic wood alkali.
  • Caustic volatile alkali Ammonium hydroxide.
  • Chalcanthum The residue of roasted blue vitriol, mostly cupric oxide.
  • Cinnabar Mercury sulfide, the common ore of mercury. Also called vermilion.
  • Colcothar Ferric oxide. Also called rouge or crocus.
  • Copper glance An ore of copper sulfide.
  • Corrosive sublimate Mercuric chloride.
Show all 128 names (104 more)

Substances, continued

  • Cuprite An ore of copper oxide.
  • Dutch white A pigment of white lead and barium sulfate.
  • Flowers of antimony Antimony trioxide.
  • Flowers of sulfur Sulfur after distilling.
  • Fool's gold Pyrite, a mineral of iron disulfide.
  • Galena Lead sulfide, the ore of lead.
  • Glass of antimony Impure antimony tetroxide, a yellow pigment for glass and porcelain.
  • Glauber's salt Sodium sulfate.
  • Green vitriol Iron sulfate, also called ferrous sulfate.
  • Horn silver An ore of silver chloride. In Latin, argentum cornu.
  • Lapis solaris Barium sulfide, the Bologna stone of 1603.
  • Litharge Lead monoxide, made from massicot.
  • Liver of sulfur A loosely defined mixture of potassium sulfide and related salts.
  • Luna cornea Silver chloride.
  • Lunar caustic Silver nitrate. In Latin, lapis infernalis.
  • Marcasite A mineral of iron disulfide.
  • Marine acid air The gaseous form of hydrochloric acid.
  • Massicot Lead monoxide.
  • Mercurius praecipitatus Red mercuric oxide.
  • Minium Red lead, which is trilead tetroxide.
  • Mosaic gold Stannic sulfide.
  • Naples yellow An oxychloride of lead. Also called cassel yellow.
  • Natron Sodium carbonate. Also called soda ash.
  • Nitrum flammans Ammonium nitrate.
  • Oil of tartar A concentrated solution of potassium carbonate.
  • Oil of vitriol Sulfuric acid. Also called spirit of vitriol.
  • Orpiment Arsenic trisulfide, an ore of arsenic.
  • Paris yellow Lead chromate. Also called chrome yellow or Leipzig yellow.
  • Pearl white Bismuth nitrate.
  • Pearlash Potash baked in a kiln.
  • Philosophers' wool Zinc oxide, a white pigment. Also called nix alba, white snow.
  • Plumbago Graphite.
  • Powder of Algaroth Antimony oxychloride.
  • Purple of Cassius A purple made with gold and tin chlorides, used for coloring glass.
  • Realgar Arsenic disulfide, an ore of arsenic.
  • Red vitriol Cobalt sulfate.
  • Resin of copper Copper chloride.
  • Sal alembroth A salt of the chlorides of ammonium and mercury.
  • Sal ammoniac Ammonium chloride.
  • Sal petrae Potassium nitrate. Medieval Latin for stone salt; the English word is saltpeter.
  • Salt of hartshorn Ammonium carbonate. Also called sal volatile.
  • Salt of tartar Potassium carbonate.
  • Slaked lime Calcium hydroxide.
  • Spirit of box Methanol. Also called pyroxylic spirit.
  • Spirit of hartshorn Ammonia.
  • Spirit of salt Hydrochloric acid. Also called acidum salis or muriatic acid.
  • Spiritus fumans Stannic chloride.
  • Stibnite Antimony trisulfide, the ore of antimony.
  • Sugar of lead Lead acetate.
  • Sweet vitriol Diethyl ether.
  • Thion hudor Lime sulfur.
  • Tin salt Hydrated stannous chloride.
  • Turpeth mineral A form of mercury sulfate.
  • Venetian white Equal parts of white lead and barium sulfate.
  • Verdigris Carbonate of copper or copper acetate, once used as a green pigment.
  • White lead Carbonate of lead, a pigment.
  • White vitriol Zinc sulfate.
  • Zaffre Impure cobalt arsenate.
  • Zinc blende Zinc sulfide.

Stages and operations 26

  • Albedo The whitening, the second of the four stages of the Great Work.
  • Calcination The first of the twelve gates of George Ripley.
  • Cauda pavonis The peacock's tail, a stage in which an array of colors appears.
  • Ceration Softening a hard, dry substance until it is more like molten wax.
  • Cibation The seventh of Ripley's twelve gates.
  • Citrinitas The yellowing, the third of the four stages of the Great Work.
  • Cohobation Repeated distillation of the same matter.
  • Congelation The sixth of Ripley's twelve gates. Pernety's list of 1758 pairs it with Taurus.
  • Conjunction The fourth of Ripley's twelve gates.
  • Cupellation Refining that separates gold and silver from base metals at very high temperatures.
  • Dissolution The second of Ripley's twelve gates, which he also calls solution.
  • Exaltation The tenth of Ripley's twelve gates.
  • Exuberation The fourth of the fourteen stages given by Samuel Norton.
  • Fermentation The ninth of Ripley's twelve gates.
  • Fixation Solidification. Pernety's list of 1758 pairs it with Gemini.
  • Magnum opus The Great Work: working with the prima materia to create the philosopher's stone.
  • Multiplication The eleventh of Ripley's gates: increasing the potency of the philosopher's stone.
  • Nigredo The blackening, the first of the four stages of the Great Work.
  • Philosopher's stone The mythic substance said to turn base metals into gold or silver.
  • Prima materia First matter, the starting material of the Great Work.
  • Projection The twelfth of Ripley's gates and the ultimate goal of Western alchemy.
  • Purgation The first of the fourteen stages given by Samuel Norton.
  • Putrefaction The fifth of Ripley's twelve gates.
  • Rubedo The reddening, the fourth and final stage of the Great Work.
  • Separation The third of Ripley's twelve gates.
  • Sublimation The eighth of Ripley's twelve gates.

Apparatus 10

  • Alembic An alchemical still: two vessels connected by a tube, used for distillation.
  • Aludel A subliming pot: earthen pots without bottoms, fitted one over another.
  • Athanor A furnace that gives a uniform and constant heat.
  • Bain-marie A water bath, used to heat materials gently.
  • Crucible A container in which metals are melted at very high temperatures.
  • Lute A substance used to seal apparatus and to protect vessels against the heat of the fire.
  • Matrass A glass vessel with a round or oval body and a long narrow neck. Also called a bolthead.
  • Mortar and pestle A bowl and a tool for crushing and grinding substances into a fine powder.
  • Retort A spherical vessel with a long downward-pointing neck, used for distillation.
  • Sand bath A container filled with heated sand, used to heat another container evenly.

Metals and signs 9

  • Argentum Silver, the metal of the Moon. Sign: ☽
  • Aurum Gold, the metal of the Sun. Sign: ☉
  • Cuprum Copper, the metal of Venus. Sign: ♀
  • Ferrum Iron, the metal of Mars. Sign: ♂
  • Hydrargyrum Quicksilver, the metal of Mercury. Sign: ☿
  • Plumbum Lead, the metal of Saturn. Sign: ♄
  • Stannum Tin, the metal of Jupiter. Sign: ♃
  • Stibium Antimony, in Latin: the symbol Sb comes from it. Newton wrote it with the sign ♁
  • Wismuth Bismuth, under an old German spelling. Newton wrote it with the sign ♆

How this list was compiled: A list of 128 real names from alchemy, chosen and worded for this site on 2026-10-03 from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0), read that day: the substances and the old Latin names of the metals from 'List of alchemical substances' (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_alchemical_substances), except that the Latin name of antimony is spelled Stibium, as the article 'Antimony' (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antimony) gives it, where the list page writes Stibnium; the four stages, George Ripley's twelve gates and Samuel Norton's stages from 'Magnum opus (alchemy)' (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnum_opus_(alchemy)); the planetary metals, their signs and Pernety's list of 1758 from 'Alchemical symbol' (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alchemical_symbol); and each piece of apparatus and each remaining operation from its own article. A script checked that every name and every modern name on a card stands in those texts. A card says what the word named or what a chemist calls it now. It gives no recipe and no quantity, and nothing here says that any of it works or is safe: several of these substances are poisons. Left out on purpose: explosives, poisons known only as poisons, and spirits for drinking. The seven planetary signs are printed because every phone can draw them; the other alchemical signs are left off the cards because many devices cannot. Licence: Facts from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); the selection and the wording of every line are ours.