How do you name your Pokemon?

I don't like nicknames for some reason

I usually don't nickname mine, unless I'm trading with somebody and I'll give them a horrible name like Cow-Dung... ^_^

But when I first played pokemon... my charmander was !!FIREpkmn!!J!

I was little... ^_^

I sometimes name my pokemon other pokemon names o.O eg

Charizard named Metapod

I also name them after my pets or just random animals

I sometimes use the names of mythological creatures/people when naming my Pokemon. Ex: My Houndoom is nicknamed Cerberus, the three-headed hound of hades; my Mightyena is Fenrir, a legendary wolf from Viking folklore (I think. I only heard a few things about it, so...); and my Skuntank is Orion, the constellation of a huntsman depicted in folklore.

Other than those, I use some names that the Pokemon remind me of. Ex.: I've got a Ninetales called Victoria and a Floatzel called Amber (okay, they're both females).

the only pokemon i have nicknamed is my miltank which i named......Moo Moo, i dont know why i just thought "i will call him......(cue close up) Moo Moo (cue evil music and slightly retarted laugh)" but normally i dont nickname my pokemon

I either name my Pokémon after things that I've seen and found funny, (Fredburger the Tyranitar, Emo Monkey my future Infernape, Mustard the Weezing etc) some lame joke (for example Mie Tarzan the Starmie and my Pachirisu called Squirrelol) and sometimes I just go with a good sounding name with no particular meaning or a nickname with some Japanese word from my extremely limited vocabulary that describes the Pokémon. (Such as Aoimaru for my Lucario; aoi means blue.)

I just use random names that fit the pokemon in some way. Steelix is Chromo, Umbreon is moondust...blahblahblah. Sometimes I use totally random names that are more like jokes than anything else.

I haven't liked naming my Pokemon since what happened to my Silver version. The internal battery died so they died with these names:

Milly - Dragonite
Reddy - shiny Gyarados
Selma - Pidgeot
Mick - Ho-Oh
Mark - Lugia
Mike - Feraligatr

I don't want to put any more of my Pokemon through the same trauma...

I just run through names that I think fit my Poke until I find the right one. Sometimes it takes very little time (My trademark Ludicolo named Ludicrous came to me in an instant), while others take me a long time (I left my DS in sleep mode in the Nickname rater's house all night, just so I could come up with the name Mushboom for my Breloom the next day. I still don't think it's that great, but it's the best I could come up with).

There are multiple ways to name Pokemon for me;
Usually, I either name them by their element, their opposite/weakness element, physical element, or I (literally) just throw something down the hall, and whatever sound it makes, theres a nickname.
On rare occasions, I name a team after the first names of band members that I like xD;;

I don't usually nickname my Pokemon, but when I do it's usually a name from Greek mythology that can relate to them. Like, naming a Lugia Poseidon (Neptune in Roman mythology) because Poseidon is the God of the Sea, like Lugia. Or naming a Machamp Atlas, since the Titan Atlas had to hold the world on his shoulders, and was really strong and all.

But I only named my Pokemon in LeafGreen, and that was a while back.

when i do name pokemon, i take their name and swap round parts of it

e.g. : blaziken-zikenbla
magikarp-karmagi
chansey-seyhan

sometimes i take/add letters so they make more sence

I use names I make up on the spot, like Kira and Ekemo. They don't have any meaning that I know of, and follow no particular pattern.

i named my Charmander "Charizard" once. hehe

Dragonite- Hyourinmaru (Bleach)
Alakazam- Zangetsu (Bleach)
Blissey- Angelus (Hmm...it's a skill in RO)
Spiritomb- Magictomb (It saved my butt on wifi tons of times)
Snorlax- Curselax (Lol, it gives away my strategy)
Weavile- Genshuga (...Tenshou)

I just name them depending on the Pokemon they are, and their type

I name my pokemon depending on what attacks the never go down in one hit on (usually) like my L81 Sceptile Freya (FF9 Spear dude) because she never lets aerial ace stop her.

I also name Pokeon like skunter doesm nyth stuff, like my Drgonite named NIDHOGG, or my TYRANITAR Ragnarok.

I leik teh random names!

Alakazam- Sade(he just looks it!)

Salamence(Chompah)

Torterra(Grass rock)

Charizard

Gengar(Spookly)

Blissey(Lucky)

Raichu(Death. Rai)