Hurricane season will soon be bearing down on us, and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) already has a list of potential hurricane names this year.
There are 21 names that have been pre-selected, one for almost every letter of the alphabet (the WMO skips Q, U, X, Y, and Z names, because there aren’t at least six suitable names starting with those letters). The list cycles every six years, meaning the last time some of these names were seen was in 2019.
If there are more than 21 storms warranting a name this year, there’s a list of supplemental names, which is a relatively recent change. Before 2021, if the list of names ran out, the storms would then be named after the Greek alphabet.
The 2025 Atlantic storm name list:
- Andrea
- Barry
- Chantal
- Dexter
- Erin
- Fernand
- Gabrielle
- Humberto
- Imelda
- Jerry
- Karen
- Lorenzo
- Melissa
- Nestor
- Olga
- Pablo
- Rebekah
- Sebastien
- Tanya
- Van
- Wendy
The only change from 2019 is that Dorian was retired after Hurricane Dorian decimated the Bahamas that September.
It caused over $5 billion in damage across the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas, and at least 77 deaths.
How do storms get their names?
The naming system as we know it today began in 1953, when the National Hurricane Center created a list of all traditionally female names, which explains why some of the names seem old-fashioned. Atlas Obscura reported that this practice was rooted in sexism and the perceived “unpredictability” of both hurricanes and women.
It took another 26 years for male names to be added to the list. Now, the storms alternate between traditionally male and female names.
Per the WMO, there are four main characteristics a name must have to be added to the list of potentials. They should be “easy to pronounce” and” short in character length for ease of use in communication,” and should also be unique to the Western hemisphere and have “appropriate significance in different languages.”
In other words, a name can’t mean something offensive in a language other than English.
When does a hurricane name get retired?
It takes a lot for a name to be retired. A hurricane needs to make a “major impact,” according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Then any country the storm affected can request for the name to be retired, or the WMO can decide itself.
In some cases, a storm doesn’t even need to be a hurricane to be retired — the name “Allison” was retired in 2002 after Tropical Storm Allison caused billions of dollars in damage in Texas.
In the 2020s, nine storm names have been retired: Laura, Eta, Iota, Ida, Fiona, Ian, Beryl, Helene, and Milton.
There are even more names for Pacific storms
The above is just a list of potential Atlantic hurricanes and tropical storms. There are even more names for storms up and down the Pacific, which are called cyclones or typhoons depending on their location.
However, as hurricanes affect the US more significantly than those storms, we focused on the hurricane names here.
This year’s hurricane season starts June 1
The Atlantic hurricane season starts on June 1 this year and ends on November 30.
Hurricanes are getting more powerful as the climate crisis continues. AccuWeather predicted “volatile” hurricanes are coming this year and forecasted that “near to above the historical average number of named storms” will hit the US.
As such, it’s time to prepare for hurricane season if you live in a high-risk area: Know your evacuation routes, have emergency kits ready, and find out where your designated local shelter is.
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