200+ Best Sourdough Starter Name Ideas
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Have you named your sourdough starter? It's a bit of a quirky trend, but if your sourdough starter is just a part of your family (like mine is), then giving it a name seems perfectly reasonable!
I've put together the biggest list of names for your sourdough starter on the internet!
There are over 200 names on the list and it's growing! Seriously, there is so much choice, you're sure to find one you love and that means something to you.
I'd love to know what you've called your sourdough starter, it's such a fun part of the sourdough journey!
Make sure you leave a comment to let us know what you've decided on!
Sourdough Starter Names
If you're reading this, chances are you've recently created your first sourdough starter. Or perhaps you've been gifted one from a friend?
However you've become a "sourdough parent", chances are you'll want to name your new bubbly best friend! It's a great way to add an element of fun to your sourdough journey and tune into to your sourdough starter's vibe.
Plus, you'll be feeding your starter twice a day for a considerable amount of time - you may as well make it fun, right? It's kind of like taking care of a pet (although as a puppy mama, I'd have to say my sourdough starter is so much easier to care for).
If you're looking for easy instructions on how to make a sourdough starter, head here. Or perhaps you want to strengthen your sourdough starter?
I've put together a huge list of sourdough starter names - the biggest list you'll find anywhere! There's sure to be the perfect name for your sourdough starter here, depending on the types of sourdough starter names you're looking for.
Maybe you've called your starter something that's not on the list? I'd love to hear it so make sure you comment below.
160+ Sourdough Starter Names - The Biggest List Ever!
Celebrity Sourdough Names
- Adam Levain
- Angelina Doughli
- Ayeasta Franklin
- Avril Levain
- Bill Murrye
- Bob Baguette
- Bread Paisley
- Bread Pitt
- Bread Sheeran
- Bread Sullivan
- Bread Zepplin
- Breadany Murphy
- Breadie Mercury
- Breadie White (or Bready White)
- Breadney Spears
- Breadstreet Boys
- Bridget Bar-dough
- Bun Jovi
- Carrie Breadshaw
- Clint Yeastwood
- Crust Hemsworth
- Crustin Hoffman
- Crustin Timberlake
- Danny Doughvito
- Dolly Start'n
- Dough Jay Kaloaf
- Dough Pesci
- Doughis Day
- Doughnald Trump
- Doughpra
- Doughy Parton
- Eddy Breader
- Elon Crust
- Emilio Yeastevez
- Engelbert Pumpernickel
- Hugh Jackmanin’ the Dough
- Jason Doughrulo
- Jennifer Doughpez (J Dough)
- Joseph Gordon Leaven
- Leonardough Di Caprio
- Loafra Winfrey
- Maddoughna
- Margot Loafbie
- Marlon Brando (Bran-dough!)
- Nicole Kidcrumb
- Olivia Gluten John
- Otis Breading
- Post Doughlone
- Puff Daddy
- Ringo Starter
- Rise-a Minelli
- Russell Crustrow
- Ryean Reynolds
- Ryean Seecrust
- Ryehanna
- Shannon Dougherty
- Sharon Scone
- Sheena Yeaston
- Sir Rise A Lot
- Taylor Sift (Why not make this sourdough funfetti loaf - inspired by Taylor Swift)
- Wheatney Houston
- Winona Ryeder
- Yeast 17
- Yeast Witherspoon
- Yeastie Boys
- Yeaston Blumenthal
Historical Sourdough Names
- Bread Kelly (Ned Kelly)
- Thomas Breadison
- Thomas Loaferson
- Edgar Allan Dough
- Leonardough Da Vinci
- Vincent Van Dough
- Isaac Gluten
- Albert Ryenstein
- Alexander Hamilton (Rise Up)
- Dough Biden
- Sourdough Doughmingo
- Herculyeast
Classical Sourdough Names
- Florence (it means to flourish or blossom)
- Eve
- Elvis
- Patience (because you'll need a lot of it)
- Mabel
- Hope
- Albert
- Myrtle
- Milton
- Ruby
- Betty
- Blanche
- Victoria
- Bob
- Oscar
- Nancy
- Boris
- Rose (because it rises)
- Frannie (like San Francisco)
- Pearl
- Gertie
- Helen
- Geraldine
Corona Sourdough Names
- Quarantina
- Corona
- Rona
- Doughvid-19
- Covina
- Domicron
General TV/Movie Character Sourdough Names (including Disney)
- Audrey (Little Shop of Horrors)
- Angedough
- Austin Flours
- Austin Sour
- Beauty and the Yeast
- Bread Flintstone
- Bread Watch
- Breadward Cullen
- Captain Hooch
- Captain Jack Sparrough
- Cindoughrella
- Cruella Doughville
- Days of Our Loaves
- Dough Rye Me
- Doughafee (Dorothy)
- Doughba Fett
- Doughbastian (The Little Mermaid)
- Doughbert
- Doughdeer
- Doughene
- Doughlores
- Doughnald Duck
- Doughy Tribiani
- Eduardough
- Expecto Padoughnum
- Feed Phil
- Fernandough
- Ferment the Frog
- Fi-Dough
- Frankenstarter
- Frodough Breadins
- Gremlins
- Homer
- Jane Dough
- John Dough
- Judge Bread
- Leonard Hoffbreader
- Little Bread Rising Hood
- Loaf-E (Wall-E)
- Luke Ryewalker
- Optimus Rise
- Order of the Doughnix
- Pillsbury Dough Boy
- Romedough
- Rye Hard
- The Child
- The GodFlour
- The Minions
- The Yeast of My Worries
- Theodough
- Walter Wheat
- WeirDough
- Wicked Witch of the Yeast
- Will Wheaton
- Zebreadiah
Play on Words
- Doughlene
- Weirdough
- Fernandough
- Theodough
- Doughlores
- Angedough
- Pillsbury Dough Boy
- The Yeast of My Worries
- Doughbert
- Dough Rye Me
- Fi-Dough
- John Dough
- Jane Dough
- Eduardough
- Romedough
- Doughadeer
- Zebreadiah
Other Starter Name Ideas
- Kneady
- Cocoa (perfect for a chocolate sourdough starter)
- Dimples
- Bubbles
- Puffy
- Malferment
- Rise One
- Sour Pants
- Phoenix
- Polar (cos it lives in the fridge)
- Our Flour Child
- Hoochie Mama (because it will produce hooch).
Harry Potter Inspired Sourdough Starter Names
My kids are Harry Potter obsessed, so coming up with this list is an ongoing hobby!
- Albus Dumbledough
- Albus Raisinbread
- Basilisk Baguette
- Buckwheatbeak
- Doughbby the House Elf
- Doughlumos
- Doughmione Granger
- Doughy Potter
- Expecto Pantronum
- Fawkes the Phoenix (Rising Starter)
- GryffinDough
- Harry Starter
- Hedwig’s Crust
- Hermione Grain-ger
- Hogwart’s Hooch (Starter of Butterbeer Dreams)
- Horcrux Crumbs (a piece of soul in every loaf)
- Hufflepuff
- Hufflepuff Crumb
- Leviosa Loaf
- Luna Loafgood
- Neville Longrise
- Niffler’s Doughlight
- Polyjuice Provisions
- Professor McGonidough
- Ron Yeastly
- Rye Weasley
- Sevengrain Snape
- Sirius Grain
- Slytherin Crust
- The Golden Crust
- Vol-dough-mort
Yellowstone Inspired Sourdough Starter Names
- Bar Y Dough
- Beth Proof-er
- Big Sky Bread Beginnings
- Big Sky Starter
- Bison Bread Starter
- Bunkhouse Bread
- Casey Crust
- Cowboy Crust
- Dutton Dough
- Frontier Ferment
- Homestead Heirloom Starter
- Jamie Jam Loaf
- John Dough-ton
- Loafin’ on the Range
- Monica’s Mountain Loaf
- Montana Magic Starter
- Proofing with Rip
- Rip Rye-wheeler
- Sourdough at the Yellowstone
- Tate's Rising Starter
- The Yellowstone Yeast
- Trail Dough Blaze
- Wrangler's Wheat Starter
- Yeast of the West
Star Wars Themed Sourdough Starter Names
- 3CP-Dough
- Doughba Fett
- Doughbie-Wan Kenoughi
- Madoughlorean
Geographical Inspired Names
- San Fran (for San Francisco sourdough vibes)
- Paris (nod to French baking)
- Roma (Italian roots of pizza & bread)
- Vienna (for Viennese bread tradition)
- Brooklyn Crumb
- Alamo Loaf
- Seattle Rise
- Dakota Dough
Names Based on Sourdough-Related Words
- Dough-Licious
- Doughlas Fir
- Doughminator
- Doughminique
- East of Yeast
- Flour Power
- Flourentine
- Flourever Young
- Holy Doughly
- Kneady Baby
- Kneadles & Crust
- Lady Floursence
- Need for Knead
- Proof Positive
- Proofessor Crumb
- Rise & Shine
- Rise Against
- Sir Flours-a-Lot
- Slow Riser
- Take What You Knead
- The Daily Knead
- The Final Flour
- The Great Proofer
- To Knead is to Love
- Yeast Mode
- Yeast at Last
- Yeast of Eden
- The Yeast You Can Do
Other Ideas for Naming Your Sourdough Starter
If none of the above take your fancy, there are lots of other ways you could name your sourdough starter. Here are a few ideas:
- Are you using a certain jar to grow your starter (ie pasta, coffee, salsa etc). Name your starter after what was in the jar originally. For example Tostitos Joe or Napolitana.
- Name your sourdough starter after your favorite place in the world.
- Name your sourdough starter after the place you live (can be town, street, locality etc) - since the local yeast is what makes it unique.
- Name your starter to remember someone special or someone who perhaps gave you your sourdough starter.
Why Name Your Sourdough Starter?
Many people view their sourdough starter as simply a tool for making sourdough bread. But for many sourdough bakers it's so much more - so why shouldn't it have a name?
Your sourdough starter is actually a living collection of yeast and bacteria. It needs regular feeding and maintenance. It's just like taking care of a pet.
And in fact, many sourdough bakers say their sourdough starter has its own unique personality so naming it becomes a heartwarming tradition and something that sparks a lot of conversation among the sourdough community.
This living element is what propels many people to name their scoby (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast). It endears their sourdough starter and creates a familiar culture around the daily ritual of feeding.
Do you have a reason for naming your starter? I'd love to know, make sure you comment below.
I hope this guide to the best sourdough starter names has helped you to name your own sourdough starter. Come and join in the fun in our sourdough community of over 300k bakers!
Frequently Asked Questions
Your starter is a unique colony of yeast and bacteria. It's alive and needs regular feeding - just like you! Many sourdough bakers give their sourdough starter a name to differentiate it from other starters. It also brings an element of fun to what can be a tedious and long process.
You can't store your sourdough starter in the fridge until it's mature. You really need to leave it on the counter and feed it twice a day during the establishment phase. Once it's mature, you can store it in the fridge and feed it more infrequently. You'll find a full guide to storing your starter in the fridge here.
A more mature sourdough starter can definitely bring a more diverse flavor profile to a loaf of sourdough. However, a 12 month old starter can bring just as a robust flavor as a 20 year old starter. A starter that is less than 12 months old will not have developed a full bodied flavor. You'll definitely taste the difference between a younger starter and an older one - especially if the younger one isn't mature.
1:1:1 refers to the flour and water mixture ratios, so 1:1:1 denotes 1 part flour, 1 part water and 1 part sourdough starter. Expand your knowledge of this topic with this guide to sourdough starter ratios.
![Moldy Sourdough Starter [with photos of bad sourdough starter]](https://www.pantrymama.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/MOLDY-SOURDOUGH-STARTER-4-768x1152.jpg)
I have 1 called Phoenix and 1 called Bad Moon. Because they are both rising.
I have 4 starters. Mark Anthony and Cleopatra, Hail Caesar, and Lazarus.
I was gifted some named Albus Crumbledor so I kept it. Proof bread’s starter is “Harriet”. All the names are great, thanks for the ideas!
My starter is nearly 2 years old, I name it Martha Starter
Dough B. Dick
Scooby Dough
Mike's called Yolanda, The Good Witch of the Yeast...
Wasn't her name Glinda? lol
My son suggested Power Puff Girls.
Mine is Johnny 5, because it's alive!
I have 3 starters.
Trudy - from a neighbour whose starter was named Gertie.
Ollie - one I made from scratch last year and I just liked the name.
April-May - one I made this April and May to show my 14-yr old grandson how to make a starter from scratch. I kept notes every day so he would know what might happen. She was very active from the beginning and I baked a lovely sandwich loaf on day 14. I used whole wheat and unbleached all purpose. Lots of stirring seemed to do the trick.
I name it Bubbles J whom bone in June, in short I call it BJ
Belén derived from the Spanish for Bethlehem meaning House of Bread.
One day I had to feed the sourdough very early at 4:00 in the morning, and my husband was extremely surprised and asked, “Oh my ! What a Tamagotchi you got in the kitchen? " Since then my sourdough's name is Tamagotchi.
I named my starter
Mine is roach, cause this one WILL NOT DIE !
I named mine Steve, but afterwards I realized it was a missed opportunity-i should've named it Turner (Turner and Hooch)
I named mine starter “Wilberforce” after my favorite character from my favorite television show.
Only because I have never known anyone with the name. It may sound silly, but helps “force” me to remember to feed my starter.
My scoby is Scooby Do
I have two. Oh this breading! and Rise, Sally, Rise!
I'm naming one that has begun to make beautiful sourdough for me "Doughtzart"--I will play Mozart while I make the dough. 🙂
I simply named mine Ryelee… after the freshly ground rye flour I feed it!
My teenage daughter and I named our 1st one "Pudge". Pudge controls the weather, or at least makes us control the room temperature!... From "Lilo and Stitch" Pudge the fish, that Lilo feeds peanut butter sandwiches to. I have been experimenting trying to get Pudge more active. Now we have 3 jars going. Pudge, Pudge Jr. In a smaller jar, and Pudge Rye-n, the one switched to... Rye of course! Pudge is still very young, just about 25 days old and still not doubling, but we love Pudge and will find away! My daughter is anxious to bake so we'll try some discard recipes.
Beth Doughton (hard on the outside soft on the inside)
I'm going with Scooby-Dough in honor of my great dane
Mine is called Hamish Jr after its parent starter. I was going to James after my Scottish friend's father, but then she told me that he is actually Gaelic for James so I kept the name Hamish Jr!
Mine is “Beauty and the yeast”.
I named mine mamela after Kamela Harris the first black woman Vice President. She said her kids call her mamela and I took that to be a strong name, hoping my starter would be strong. After a year IT IS strong
After finding my abandoned starter in the back of the fridge, and luckily reviving it, I named mine Lazarus - because it rose from the dead.
That’s exactly the name I’ve always called mine!
I've named one Mr. Bubbles and the other one Scooby-Dough!!
We named ours Dilf Dough I like to Feed
How about Scoby Doughby Doo (Scooby Dooby Doo)?!
Daisy Dough
I named mine a simple plain one
BUBBLES 🩷
My husband helped me with the name. Marilyn Mondough. I love it!!!💗
Thank you for an endless amount of ideas and recipes. I named my new friend Crustina Eggulara.
I have called my sourdough starter Must-tang-Sally.
Doughkey Pokey. It had such a slow start!
My new one is Bubblelicious, it’s just so cute and bubbly!
I’ve decided on Barry Manidough because he is one of my favorite performers and my starter gives everything it has for each performance (feeding).
My son named ours Mr hungry! Seemed appropriate!
I’m going to name mine Amy Farrah Flour (The Big Bang Theory sitcom).
I'm a dog person .. called my starter Scooby-dooby-dough .. Scooby for short
Love it!
Ours is Snoop Dough (Dogg). Hubby came up with that 🙂
I have named mine "Dewey II" after my cat, as my Kitchen is a "Little Shop of Horrors"!
Hi everyone
I ha be named my starter Mike (abbreviation for Microbes)
One I considered was “labRat” because the bugs are - Lactic Acid Bacteria.
Warren
I call mine The Pudding since the proof is in the pudding.
Haha I love this so much
My daughter named my starter Flubber !
Sour Seymour!
Bertha’s Bread
I named mine Yeastus
I have so far named mine "rotten son of a yeast",
I named my “Felicity” because she always gets so happy (bubbly) when I feed her. If I have another discard jar that I’m using, it is always marked as FM- Felicity Marie as that is the middle name that has been passed down generationally in my family.
I waited six months to be sure that my starter is alive and thriving before giving her a name: Sara Dough.
Mine is named Yanny the yeast. When I'm making loaves, I call them Sarah
I have named my starter, Nubia, which means gold in Egyptian.
My husband named mine Arnold Schwarzenbaker
Festus. From Gunsmoke. I thought about yeastus but I like Festus. My all time favorite show. Marlon Brandough is my starter. Festus is my discard.
I’ve name by starter Doughby Gillis. I can now bake The Many Loaves of Doughby Gillis!!!!
The starter I began with was from someone named Felicia, hence her name on the jar. I have had her for a year. I started my own in a second jar to experiment and since he was my first creation, his name is Adam. Shortly before Christmas, with lots of plans of making lots of sourdough goodies, I started my third jar and since he's the newest, he's Newton. Silly, but true and since I like to experiment with the science of it all, it's helpful to have three and keep their names on the jars. 🙂
I decided to name mine Double O Leven, a play on James Bond being 007.
Lucy Ricardough
Thanks to your suggestion to use TV show characters, our sourdough starter is named Officer John Doughlan ("The Starter"). Strong contenders were Eleaven (born on the 11th), Zoey (means "life"), and Seamus Feedagain (big HP fans).
Just rejuvenated my starter from having dried "it"out a couple of years ago.
Never really have a name before.
His name will now be Sponge Blob.
I'm torn between Betty after my grandma and Shenandougha....halp! lol
Thinking about Lucy Ricardough
Mine is called Jean Ralphie Dough.
Like Jean-Ralphio from Parks & Rec.
I chose Bubbles, it makes me feel happy and joyful. 😁
Mine are named Edgar Allan Dough and David Doughie
My friend named it Audrey. From Little Shop Of Horrors. ( The plants name was Audrey) “ Feed me Seymour”
I named mi e
Bubbles 💓
Calling my first starter Arnold Yeastenegger
Mine is Dough-Wayne Johnson
Mine is Dr. Frankenstarter, it’s dying of antici_pation
Love this!!
rebekah
My daughter purchased her starter from King Arthur and named it "Merlin". She recently gifted me with starter from her batch and I named it "Morgana".
My starter’s is named after Gypsy Rise (Rose) Lee, the famous burlesque performer and stripper.
Stinky Steve!
I named mine Blessed because it blesses me with so many wonderful recipes.
That's a great name!
I’m just starting out! Thank Lynette for the inspiration. I’m naming my starter after my mom and favorite person in the world (heaven). Ruby Mertalicious! Ruby was my grandma and she was the best cook and baker and she was my fav person ever and my mom/best friend’s nickname is Mert. So Ruby Mertalicious it is. Mert for short.
Love that, Paula!
I named my starter Mother Nature and my discard Esperanza (always hoping she will perform and she hasn’t failed me!).
Sourbro
My hubby started spouting off these Movie themes ones he made up! Too Hilarious not to share!
Fairy Dough-Mother
Cindoughrella
Dough White
Gail gadough
Captain doughmerica
A Few good yeast
The Doughminator
..You can’t handle the Dough
Doctor Dough
YODOUGH (instead of YOLO)
Double Dough7
Dough another day
Dough dough Baggins
These are great! Mine is named Persephone, because half the time she’s alive 💐 and half the time she’s dead ☠️
We just returned from a trip to London....so of course our starter is Anne Doughlyn!
Was gifted a sourdough starter for Christmas made from einkorn flour and a bunch of equipment to get into bread making. I named the starter Einakin Doughstarter.
Mine is "Thayne's theorem". Named for my uncle who got me interested in the finer points of cooking. And won local Sourdough completions for many years.
Mo Dough
Beth Doughton after Yellowstone 🥰 I saw this on TikTok the other day.
I did not go the celebrity route in naming my starter. I call mine Billy-Bob! My father-In-law's name was William (who went by Bill) and my father's name was Robert (who went by Bob). I loved them both dearly and they are both deceased. Billy-Bob is almost 3 years old has produced some pretty amazing sourdough loaves!
Orlandough Blooms
Meet Picky Penelope. I'm still waiting for her to double consistently. We are on week 3+. My house is cool, I've moved her around, tried the oven and microwave with the light on. Had skin and crust form. Started with AP unbleached flour, changed to whole wheat - which she loved and doubled. Switched back to AP, bubbles decreased, became watery with hooch on top. Fed her 1:2:<1 this morning. It's a process for sure, but I'm enjoying it.
Bubbles and SunRISE
😊
Dough mama!
I just got started in this world... My first was inherited from my DIL last month, so I gave it her last name, which is Francis and I love it. Then I started my own, just last Sunday, for the sake of learning, and I called her "Maria", after The Sound of Music's Maria Von Trapp ("How do you solve a problem like Maria??" - seemed perfect lol). I have no idea what I am doing! =)
I am new to sourdough. When it came to the first discard, the husband suggested keep it as a spare in case the main one died. So they became William and Harry, after Harry's book 'Spare'. Then a week or so later I took some of William and tried adding whole wheat instead of the bread flour, and got George. Keeping them all going became a chore and they were collectively the Royal pains. Now that I read your advice to only keep one, there will be a royal purge.
Ludwig Van BeeDoughven
Used to have starters made from different grains. Weaned one off of the various whole-grain flours and fed it only white flour, as an experiment. Explaining it to someone I said, "And this one is all-white, all-the-time." So my starter's name is JIM CROW for a couple-three years now.
Mine is named Snake Breadskin for all you Kurt Russel fans.
I chose to name my sourdough starter “Rye Anna”.
Mine is named Dough Bro
I've always called my starter, MyLady. I was watching some midevil show the time. I think I will now call her MyLady Doughna.... After my sister Donna, who have me my starter.
Thanks for all the suggestions.
I nearly went with Coloradough but I will forget too fast since that’s where I am.
Would have gone with SpeedDough, since he was born during the summer, but I’ve got a slow guy. And he’s cold (fridge). I think I like Edwardough from above. And he’s going to get a mustang glued to the jar tomorrow.
I laughed so hard at your comment ... and then I read your next comment 🙂 I still think you should glue a sports car to the jar lol 😉 xx
Miserable typo. A MUSTACHE glued to the jar. Not a mustang. I mean I guess I could glue a small horse and/or sports car.