History Main / NamelessNarrative

* This is actually a plot point in ''Manga/IllBoyIllGirl'', where the main characters suffer from a disease that obscures everything related to a person's identity, including their names. Even the protagonists' names aren't reveal, and they are simply referred to as "the boy" and "the girl".

* ''Anime/AkudamaDrive'' only refers to characters by descriptors that reference their jobs or crimes, such as Brawler, Cutthroat, Pupil, and Boss. Even the protagonist is only known as "Ordinary Person" or [[spoiler: Swindler]].
* ''Futari Escape'' is about a pair of friends and roommates- a manga artist and a {{NEET}}. The former addresses the latter as "[[SenpaiKohai Sempai]]," but their names are unknown.

* In Creator/CharlesPerrault's version of the tale, the princess is just "Literature/SleepingBeauty".

* In the tales of Creator/AsbjornsenAndMoe:
** "Literature/EastOfTheSunWestOfTheMoon": The heroine is "the girl"; the hero is "the White Bear", and later, "the Prince".
** "Literature/TheThreeAunts"
** In "Literature/TheOldDameAndHerHen", neither the old widow, nor her daughters, nor the troll are given names in the story.
* In the tales of Creator/AlexanderAfanasyev:
** "Literature/{{Morozko}}" has the titular Father Frost... and the old man, the old woman, her stepdaughter -the heroine- and her daughter.
** In "Literature/TheWiseLittleGirl", no character is given a name.
** In "Literature/TheFeatherOfFinistTheFalcon", Finist is the only character with an actual name.
** "Literature/TheFireBirdTheHorseOfPowerAndThePrincessVasilissa": Neither the hero nor the main antagonist are given names. They are only "the archer" and "the Tsar".
** In "Literature/TheWhiteDuck", the characters are the king, the queen and the witch.
* Creator/JosephJacobs' "[[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/diamondstoads/stories/witch.html The Old Witch]]"
* "[[https://web.archive.org/web/20200221214909/https://www.surlalunefairytales.com/beautybeast/stories/smalldog.html The Small-Toothed Dog]]": The heroine tells the dog its name is "Sweet as a Honeycomb" when she's trying to coax it, but there are no other names.
* In "Literature/TheStoryOfKingOdd", Odd is the only character referred to with an actual name.
* "Literature/PrinceLindworm": All character are nameless.

* In ''Fanfic/ABoyAGirlAndADogTheLeithianScript'', only canon characters have names. All original characters are known by either their occupation or their rank (the Captain, the Youngest Ranger, the Seneschal...)

[[folder:Films -- Animated]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLittlePrince2015'' is an AdaptationExpansion with several {{Canon Foreigner}}s, but as in the book, they remain nameless--the Little Girl, the Mother, etc. PlayedWith in the third act, where we meet "[[spoiler:[[NotHimself Mr. Prince]]]]." Given the circumstances, this probably shouldn't be considered his "real" name.

* ''WesternAnimation/LifeInATin'' is centered around the repetitiveness of an ordinary life, and as such, the main character and any character he interacts with remain nameless in order for its message to have a more general reach.
* ''Animation/HeroicTimes'' was meant to be an entirely visual-musical movie with no voice acting, [[ExecutiveMeddling until the execs]] added a CharacterNarrator. Regardless, nobody, not even the main character is named, since he speaks in first person and refers to others from his own perspective -- "my brother", "the king", "the princess", "the Czech knight", and so on. Even the title conceals his identity. The film is actually an adaptation of the ''Literature/{{Toldi}}'' book trilogy, life story of Miklós Toldi, so being familiar with the stories helps identify most characters.

[[folder:Films --Live-Action]]
* In the early days of America's SilentMovie industry, many audiences were made up of immigrants who could speak little if any English. Many films that weren't adapted from other media had characters named The Boy, The Girl, The Mother, etc. This allowed viewers to more easily identify with these characters. Even in the later years of the silent era, some filmmakers would occasionally use this trope, especially if they were trying to promote an aura of universality in the story:
** In F.W. Murnau's classic silent film ''Film/{{Sunrise}}'', the main characters are called the Man, the Wife, and the Woman From The City.
** Creator/CecilBDeMille often did this in his films.
** Ditto D.W. Griffith, e.g. in his 1916 epic ''Film/{{Intolerance}}'', where this trope is used to powerful effect, causing the characters to become allegorical and thus universal (although some of them are historical figures). The Mountain Girl, the Rhapsode, the Dear One, the Boy, Brown Eyes.
** Also typical for Creator/CharlieChaplin throughout his silent film career.
** Also true of silent films from other countries. Notable Chinese film ''Film/TheGoddess'', about the life of a Shanghai prostitute, does not give any names.
** Ditto Soviet silent cinema, here due also to the goal of portraying the collective experience of the workers. In ''Film/{{Strike}}'' the only named character is the worker whose suicide precipitates the strike.
** Japanese silent film ''Film/APageOfMadness'' doesn't even use any title cards, so it's a NamelessNarrative pretty much by default.
** 1909's short film ''Film/TheLonelyVilla'' features nameless characters.
* ''Film/TyrannosClaw'', a film set in prehistoric times, where none of the characters are named onscreen. Even the movie's [=IMDb=] page doesn't have their names!
* Throughout ''Film/{{Zombieland}}'', the only person referred to by name is [[spoiler:Bill Murray]] - everyone else is referred to by their home or destination. The girls' names are revealed at the end (though one is hard to catch), but the men never really have names.
* In ''Film/YourFriendsAndNeighbors'', none of the characters are referred to by name. In the credits, they're given placeholder rhyming names such as Cheri, Jerry and Barry.
* Only three characters get names in ''Film/CurseOfTheZodiac'', and one of those names is only revealed in text just before the credits, which only list the actors, no character names or titles.
* In ''Film/{{Exam}}'', the main characters insist that they only go by pseudonyms based on their physical appearances (save for one character): White, Black, Blonde, Brown, Brunette, Dark, Deaf, and Chinese Woman. The other two characters are the Guard and the Invigilator.

* In the Ryuhei Kitamura film ''Film/{{Versus}}'', none of the characters have names. The closest thing the main character has to a name is his prisoner number ([=KSC2-303=]).
* Just like in the book, no characters are named in ''Film/TheRoad''. The main characters are referred as the man and the boy. Double subverted with an old tramp they meet at one point, who claims his name is Ely, before revealing it isn't, and that he doesn't want to tell them his real name.

* None of the characters are named in ''Film/WindChill''. This was done to make the story feel like an urban legend.
* No names are given in the 1971 film ''Film/TwoLaneBlacktop''. The credits refer to the characters [[EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep by their profession]] or some other identifying attribute, e.g. "The Driver" (James Taylor), "The Mechanic" (Dennis Wilson), "The Girl" (Laurie Bird), and "GTO" (Warren Oates).
* The ten strangers who make up the main cast of the movie ''Film/{{Ten|2002}}'' never properly introduce themselves to each other, so no names are ever spoken, and the credits refer to them by either their occupation or role in the story (e.g. The Medium or The Religious Fanatic). Unusually, a few minor characters who are solely TheVoice do have full names that are AllThereInTheScript. The {{novelization}} has an interesting way to deal with having largely nameless characters - each main character narrates one of the ten chapters of the book, so they all have slightly different, in-character ways of referring to the other nine.
* Only two characters in ''Film/{{Eraserhead}}'' are named: main character Henry and his fiancee Mary. Everyone else is named either by their relation to those two or where they live, such as Mary's Mother, The Beautiful Girl Across the Hall, The Man in the Planet and the Baby. This, coupled by the general lack of dialogue and oppressive music gives the film an extremely disturbing and alien feel.
* ''{{Film/Slacker}}'', as a result of the film switching characters every five minutes. Names used in the end titles include "Should Have Stayed at the Bus Station", "Grocery Grabber of Death's Bounty" and "Tura Satana Look-Alike".
* The only two characters in ''Film/ClosetLand'' are credited as Interrogator and Victim. It's not a comedy.
* ''Film/UnderTheSkin'': The end credits list the actors in order of appearance, but give no character names. The only time that people are named during the film is in a "missing persons" report that we hear on the radio.
* ''Film/TheAirIBreathe'': The four main characters are known only by their ThemeNaming, respectively Happiness, Pleasure, Sorrow, and Love, and these are AllThereInTheScript. Their real names are never spoken either, though Sorrow is referred to several times by her stage name "Trista".

* The characters in ''Film/SpringSummerFallWinterAndSpring'' are never named. Even a newspaper headline involving two of them does not use their names.
* ''Film/{{Embers}}'': By nature of the movie's premise (apocalyptic amnesia virus) almost no one knows their own names; in the credits the nameless characters are listed as "Guy," "Girl," "Teacher," "Chaos," and "Boy."

* In Creator/HGWells' ''Literature/TheTimeMachine'', the Time Traveller and most of the people to whom he's relating his story are just identified by their role, such as the Doctor[[labelnote:*]] no, not [[Series/DoctorWho that one]]. Though he would have been interested. [[/labelnote]] and the Journalist. Only one character in each time period has a name: Filby in the [[FramingDevice frame story]] and Weena in the future.
** The official sequel by Creator/StephenBaxter mentions the narrator of the original's FramingStory a few times as the Writer - although he's clearly Wells himself. It also has the Time Traveller's younger self using the name "Moses" (a DevelopmentGag on an early draft of the original) although that seems to be a nickname.
** To a lesser extent, Wells' ''Literature/WarOfTheWorlds''. More characters get names, but the narrator/protagonist and his family don't.
* The characters in Creator/JoseSaramago's ''Literature/{{Blindness}}'' are referred to by their roles or, ironically, physical descriptions (given the fact all of them are stricken by blindness).
** Saramago does this frequently, in whole or in part, for example in ''Seeing'', ''Death with Interruptions,'' and (ironically) ''All the Names''.
* The kid and his grandmother in Creator/RoaldDahl's ''Literature/TheWitches''.

** "Literature/RobotVisions": The narrator doesn't give his name and doesn't differentiate between the multiple scientists working on their TimeTravel project, saying that these things aren't necessary for his account. The {{robot}} sent to the future, however, is [[RobotNames named]].
** "{{Literature/Segregationist}}": The surgeon, the nurse, the med-eng, and the Senator. None of the characters are given names, although the only one who is clearly ''human'' is the Senator; the rest of the characters might not even have names.
* ''Surfacing'' by Margaret Atwood has a nameless narrator.
* ''Phantastes'' by George [=McDonald=] has very few names revealed.
* Jessica Day George's "Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow" (based on "Literature/EastOfTheSunWestOfTheMoon") has the main character known only as 'Pika' (girl) or 'Lass' because her mother refused to name another girl, and only a mother can name the daughters. She's given a name by the white reindeer to protect her from trolls, but it isn't until late in the story that she reveals it. The prince in the story also remains nameless for the majority of the story, but mostly because he never did get a chance to tell the Lass his name.

* None of the bosses in ''VideoGame/{{Furi}}'' are ever given a proper name, only a title revealed [[AllThereInTheManual during the credits]]. This convention is also shared with the main character The Stranger[[spoiler:/The Rider, who may not even have a name]], and his guide The Voice[[spoiler:, aka The Architect, which is how he addresses himself]]. The only exception is the {{DLC}} BonusBoss named [[AerithAndBob Bernard]].

* ''WesternAnimation/LifeInATin'' is centred around the repetitiveness of an ordinary life, and as such, the main character and any character he interacts with remain nameless in order for its message to have a more general reach.

* In ''Anime/GoblinSlayer'', no one actually is named. Everyone is known by either their occupation (such as the titular Goblin Slayer, Cow Girl, etc.) or their class (like the Priestess, Spearman, Witch, etc.) PlayedForLaughs in volume 9 when Harefolk Hunter tells her mother to "look after Brother and Sister and Brother and Brother and Sister and Brother and Sister!".

* ''Futari Escape'' is about a pair of friends and roommates- a manga artist and a {{NEET}}. The former addresses the latter as "[[SempaiKohai Sempai]]," but their names are unknown.

* ''Machinal'' (1928) by Sophie Treadwell has a DramatisPersonae and plot synopsis which identify the characters only as generic archetypes, and many of the characters are in the habit of referring to others only by their initials. However, the three most significant characters are given full names in dialogue: the protagonist (billed only as "Young Woman") is Helen Jones by marriage (her maiden name is not revealed beyond "Miss A."), her husband is George H. Jones, and her lover is Richard Roe.

* ''Machinal'' (1928) by Sophie Treadwell has a DramatisPersonae and plot synopsis which identify the characters only as generic archetypes, and many of the characters are in the habit of referring to others only by their initials. However, the three most significant characters are given full names in dialogue: the protagonist ("Young Woman") is Helen Jones by marriage, her husband is George H. Jones, and her lover is Richard Roe.

* ''Machinal'' (1928) by Sophie Treadwell gives names to only a few of its characters, and the DramatisPersonae omits even those in favor of generic descriptions such as "Husband." The protagonist is billed as "Young Woman"; her full married name, Helen Jones, is revealed only in the penultimate scene.

* In ''Anime/{{Maoyu}}'' the characters are referred to by their titles and positions even by each other, such as Hero, Lady Knight, Demon King, and Lone Winter King. "Ruby Eyes" is the closest anyone has to a proper name, and that's more of a title or epithet.

* The short video ''WebVideo/ToTheDeath'' has a total of five characters, only two of which get actual lines. None of them get a name or even a descriptive title in the credits. Even the work page settles for calling by roughly descriptive titles: the teacher, the student, the man in the black suit, the janitor, and the bearded man/the master.

* ''WebOriginal/WhatColorAreYou'': While you enter a name for yourself at the start of the quiz, it's never used and the player is only addressed as 'you'. Likewise, the creator/narrator never gives their name, and all the characters encountered during the game segment are simply called 'the snake' or 'the noble' by them.

* Nearly everyone in ''Film/EaglesGathered'', with the exception of Bob the (maybe) angel. The other two main characters are referred to as "the golden boy" and "the silver girl"; the fans usually just call them Gold and Silver.

* The [=NPCs=] in ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' games never seem to have real names, instead using job titles or simple descriptions to designate characters. As for you, despite [[HelloInsertNameHere whatever name you choose for yourself]], you're never referred to as anything other as Hunter. Averted with the Pub Manager in ''Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate'', who so far is the only character in the entire series to actually call the player Hunter by their name. This trend is only dropped by ''Monster Hunter Rise'' which is the first mainline game in the series to give every member of the cast actual names.

* In ''LightNovel/{{Maoyu}}'' the characters are referred to by their titles and positions even by each other, such as Hero, Lady Knight, Demon King, and Lone Winter King. "Ruby Eyes" is the closest anyone has to a proper name, and that's more of a title or epithet.

* In the Spanish children's play ''El Principe Que Todo Lo Aprendio De Los Libros'' (ThePrinceWhoLearnedEverythingFromBooks) all of the characters are called only by their role ("The King", "The Ogre" etc.) The only seeming exception is the protagonist, Principe Azul, which literally means "Prince Blue" -- however, Principe Azul is the Spanish equivalent of saying "PrinceCharming" so it doesn't really count as a name either.

* All the player characters and the Announcer in ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' are [[EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep referred to solely by profession/class]] in-game (which admittedly [[ExcusePlot doesn't have a plot]]) and in the [[Machinima/TeamFortress2 machinima videos]]. The [[Webcomic/TeamFortress2 webcomics]] ''do'' eventually give the majority of them names (and Miss Pauling), but they're still mostly referred to by class.

* ''VideoGame/FridayNightFunkin'': All of the original characters are only referred to by their role in the narrative: the player character is The Boyfriend, his girlfriend is The Girlfriend, and her parents are The Father and The Mom. While Monster breaks the trend of being named "The [X]", its name is still just ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin.

* In several stories by Creator/HansChristianAndersen, such as ''Literature/TheLittleMermaid'' or ''Literature/TheLittleMatchGirl'' the characters are not named and only referred by their titles, e.g. 'the mermaid' and 'the prince' in ''The Little Mermaid''.

* Several stories by Creator/HansChristianAndersen.
** ''Literature/TheLittleMermaid''.
** ''Literature/TheLittleMatchGirl''.