How Hurricanes Are Named: Rotating Lists and Retired Names
Atlantic hurricanes get their names from six rotating lists maintained by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), so each list comes back every six years: the 2026 list will be used again in 2032. A storm receives the next name on the list when it becomes a tropical storm, with sustained winds of 39 mph (63 km/h). When a storm is so deadly or costly that reusing its name would be inappropriate, a WMO committee retires the name, as it did with Melissa in March 2026.
Who names hurricanes?
Names for the Atlantic and eastern North Pacific are set by the WMO Regional Association IV Hurricane Committee, made up of experts from the national weather services of North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) states that it does not control the naming of tropical storms. NHC applies the lists as the WMO Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre in Miami, and NHC director Michael Brennan chairs the committee.
The WMO says names are easier to remember and communicate than numbers or technical terms. Names alternate between male and female and are chosen to be easy to pronounce in the languages of the region. The WMO says names are not chosen after any particular person.
How do the rotating name lists work?
Each Atlantic list has 21 names. NOAA says the letters Q, U, X, Y and Z are skipped because few names start with them and they are hard to use across languages. Eastern North Pacific lists have 24 names and do use X, Y and Z. Each season starts at the top of that year’s list.
| List | Names |
|---|---|
| Atlantic 2026 (used again in 2032) | Arthur, Bertha, Cristobal, Dolly, Edouard, Fay, Gonzalo, Hanna, Isaias, Josephine, Kyle, Leah, Marco, Nana, Omar, Paulette, Rene, Sally, Teddy, Vicky, Wilfred |
| Atlantic 2027 (used again in 2033) | Ana, Bill, Claudette, Danny, Elsa, Fred, Grace, Henri, Imani, Julian, Kate, Larry, Mindy, Nicholas, Odette, Peter, Rose, Sam, Teresa, Victor, Wanda |
| Eastern North Pacific 2026 (used again in 2032) | Amanda, Boris, Cristina, Douglas, Elida, Fausto, Genevieve, Hernan, Iselle, Julio, Karina, Lowell, Marie, Norbert, Odalys, Polo, Rachel, Simon, Trudy, Vance, Winnie, Xavier, Yolanda, Zeke |
Source: NHC, Tropical Cyclone Names. As of November 9, 2026, NHC’s season table shows the Atlantic list used through Josephine, a subtropical storm in October, so the next unused Atlantic name is Kyle.
Storms that form between seasons follow the calendar. NHC says a storm that forms on December 28 takes its name from the list of the season just ended, and a February storm takes a name from the coming season’s list.
When does a storm get a name?
A system is named when it reaches tropical storm strength. Tropical depressions carry only numbers, such as Tropical Depression Nine. Subtropical storms take names from the same list, which is how Josephine was named in October 2026. A tropical cyclone that crosses from one basin into another while still a tropical cyclone keeps its name, under the U.S. National Hurricane Operations Plan. Our guide to tropical depressions, storms and hurricanes gives the wind thresholds.
How are hurricane names retired?
According to NHC, a list changes only when a storm is so deadly or costly that using its name again would be inappropriate. The Hurricane Committee strikes the name at its annual meeting and chooses a replacement for the same place on the list. The WMO says retired names are removed from the rotating lists.
Atlantic names retired after recent seasons, according to NHC’s naming history and the WMO:
| Season of the storm | Retired name | Replacement | On the list for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Laura | Leah | 2026 |
| 2020 | Eta, Iota | None (Greek letters no longer used) | None |
| 2021 | Ida | Imani | 2027 |
| 2022 | Fiona, Ian | Farrah, Idris | 2028 |
| 2024 | Beryl, Helene, Milton | Brianna, Holly, Miguel | 2030 |
| 2025 | Melissa | Molly | 2031 |
NHC lists no retirements from the 2023 season. In the eastern Pacific, the committee retired John after the 2024 season and replaced it with Jake.
The WMO announced Melissa’s retirement on March 4, 2026, during the committee’s meeting in Mexico City. The WMO says Melissa was a Category 5 hurricane at its peak, caused more than 90 deaths across Jamaica, Haiti and other island nations, and was the strongest hurricane on record to make landfall in Jamaica. Beryl, Helene and Milton were retired in April 2025.
What happens when the name list runs out?
Extra storms now take names from a supplemental list. The WMO Hurricane Committee adopted it on March 17, 2021, and ended the use of the Greek alphabet, which had been used in the 2005 and 2020 seasons. The committee said Greek letters distracted from hazard warnings and were potentially confusing; in 2020, Zeta, Eta and Theta sounded alike and occurred in quick succession. The same meeting retired Eta and Iota.
NHC calls these the alternate name lists. The Atlantic list has 21 names, from Adria, Braylen and Caridad through Tayshaun, Viviana and Will, and it skips Q, U, X, Y and Z. The eastern North Pacific list has 24 names, from Aidan to Zoe. The WMO says names on the supplemental list can be retired and replaced if needed.
How are storms named in the central Pacific and other basins?
The Central Pacific Hurricane Center in Honolulu names storms between 140°W and the International Date Line. It uses four lists of 12 Hawaiian names, and the names run one after another instead of resetting each year: when one list ends, the next name comes from the top of the next list. Lala was the first central Pacific name used in 2026.
Other WMO bodies run their own systems:
- Western North Pacific: RSMC Tokyo assigns names from a list of 140, contributed by the 14 members of the ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee, including the United States. Names run in sequence across years. At its 58th session, the committee retired eight names, including Ragasa and Kalmaegi.
- North Indian Ocean: RSMC New Delhi names cyclones over the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea from a list of 169 names from 13 countries. Names are used in sequence and are not repeated. Naming there began in September 2004.
- Other basins: separate WMO regional bodies keep their own lists for the Southern Hemisphere.
Our live page of active storms shows current NHC advisories and GDACS alerts for typhoons and cyclones in other basins, and our guide to GDACS alerts explains those alert levels.
Bottom line
Atlantic names follow six WMO lists that repeat every six years, eastern Pacific names follow six longer lists, and central Pacific names run straight through four Hawaiian lists. Deadly or costly storms lose their names, and a busy season now falls back on a supplemental list instead of Greek letters. The name tells you which storm an advisory covers; the alerts for your area come from the NWS and local officials.
FAQ
Can a retired hurricane name be used again?
Not on the rotating lists. The WMO removes retired names from them, and a replacement name takes the slot.
Why did forecasters stop using Greek letters?
The WMO Hurricane Committee said in March 2021 that Greek letters distracted from hazard warnings and could be confusing, partly because Zeta, Eta and Theta sounded alike and occurred in succession in 2020.
What is the next Atlantic hurricane name?
As of November 9, 2026, the next unused name on the 2026 Atlantic list is Kyle. The 2027 list starts with Ana.
When did hurricanes start getting male names?
NHC says the United States began using female names for storms in 1953. Male names were added to eastern North Pacific lists in 1978 and to Atlantic lists in 1979.