Chandra to Wubbo: These are the storm names the Netherlands chose
By Simone Jacobs
Ever wondered who comes up with the names of storms that blow through the Netherlands? The Dutch, Irish and British weather services have revealed the list of names for the 2025/26 storm season. The Netherlands contributed seven storm names this year, including Wubbo, after the first Dutch person to go into space.
7 names from the Netherlands for this year’s storm season
The British and Irish weather services (Met Office and Met Éireann) have been naming storms since 2015, and the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) has also been contributing since 2019, reports NOS. A list of names in alphabetical order is decided together every year before the storm season begins in September.
Storm names are usually given to stormy weather for which the KNMI issues a code orange or code red, and occasionally a code yellow. This year, the Netherlands chose seven of the 21 storm names: Chandra, Eddie, Hannah, Janna, Lilith, Nico and Wubbo.
Attendees of the KNMI open house in 2024 were asked to suggest storm names for the next season. From naming a storm after their grandmother, Janna, to submitting the name Lilith to represent the chaos that a storm can cause, the reason behind each name is different. Wubbo was suggested as a tribute to Wubbo Ockels, the first Dutch astronaut to go into space.
Storm names for next season revealed
According to the KNMI, the weather services name storms "to raise awareness of dangerous weather". The Dutch weather service explains, "By making them recognisable, we hope to reach as many people as possible with our warnings before the weather strikes."
The names for the 2025/2026 storm season are: Amy, Bram, Chandra, Dave, Eddie, Fionnuala, Gerard, Hannah, Isla, Janna, Kasia, Lilith, Marty, Nico, Oscar, Patrick, Ruby, Stevie, Tadhg, Violet and Wubbo. The letters Q, U, X, Y and Z are not used.
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Editor for the Netherlands at IamExpat Media. Simone studied Genetics and Zoology at the University of Pretoria in South Africa before moving to the Netherlands, where she has been working as a writer and editor since 2022. One thing she loves more than creating content is consuming it, mainly by reading books by the dozen. Other than being a book dragon, she is also a nature lover and enjoys hiking and animal training. Read more