Testnet name needed for Sepolia replacement

Testnet name needed

A name is needed for the planned Sepolia replacement: Expected to launch in March 2026

  • Holešky: Validators and Staking providers (Expected end of life 30th September, 2025). Client developers will also use Holesky to test gas limit increases and other protocol stress tests.
  • Sepolia: Application and tooling devs (Expected end of life 30th September, 2026)
  • Hoodi: Validators and Staking providers (Expected end of life 30th September, 2028)
  • Planned Sepolia replacement: Expected launch date of March 2026

From: Holesky and Hoodi Testnet Updates | Ethereum Foundation Blog

Past testnet names

Testnet Lore Pronunciation Mascot
Hoodi Metro station in Bengaluru, India ಹೂಡಿ (hoo-dee) Peacock in a hoodie
Sepolia Neighborhood in Athens, Greece, known for its industrial and cultural history. suh-POH-lee-uh Dolphin
Görli (Goerli) Görlitzer Bahnhof train station in Berlin, Germany GUR-lee
Holešky Nádraží Holešovice train station in Prague, Czech Republic HOH-lesh-kee
Ropsten Subway station in Stockholm, Sweden ROPE-sten
Rinkeby Subway station in Stockholm, Sweden RIN-keh-bee
Kovan Singapore MRT station KOH-vuhn
Morden London Underground station MOR-den
Olympic Competitive spirit of the Olympics, launched pre-mainnet in 2015. oh-LIM-pik

Corrections/updates appreciated

Suggestions

Testnet Lore Pronunciation Mascot
Vyšehrad Metro station in Prague, Czech Republic, stop for Devcon 4 :european_castle: Castle
Osmanbey Metro station in Istanbul, Turkey, right next to Devconnect
Itsaraphap Metro station in Bangkok, Thailand. Devcon SEA was hosted in Bangkok. Itsaraphap means “independence” or “freedom” in Thai It-sa-ra-phāp :swan: Swan
Astoria Metro station in Budapest, Hungary
Picpus Metro station in Paris, France. Neighborhood of EDCON Paris 2017
Kabaty Metro station in Warsaw, Poland
Saulkrasti Train station in Saukrasti, Latvia. Directly translated as “sunny shores”. One of most famous summer destinations in Latvia. As part of large “Rail Baltica” corruption scandal in 2024 which unveiled insane corruption and resulted half of countries train stations in unfinished renovation states. Saulkrasti test network symbolises hope for sunny shores of future efficient and transparent technologies. Saul-Kra-sti Sun :sunny:
Naivasha A town in Kenya, with a lake and railway station of the same name, where the core devs worshop was hosted last year Nai-vaa-shuh :flamingo: Flamingo

Add your suggestion (this is a wikipost).
Once we have enough suggestions will add a poll for signaling.

1 Like

Suggesting “Osmanbey”, metro station in Istanbul right next to where Devconnect took place :slight_smile:

Following the convention of naming metro stations. Easy to read an recognizible.

4 Likes

Polyanka - metro station in Moscow

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Kabaty - metro station in Warsaw

4 Likes

Testnet
Itsaraphap

Lore
Metro station in Thailand,
Itsaraphap means “independence” or “freedom” in Thai

Pronounce
It-sa-ra-phāp

3 Likes

Astoria - Metro station in Budapest.

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Picpus
easy to pronounce in every language and the neighborhood where EDCON Paris was hosted back in 2017

2 Likes

Saulkrasti - train station in Latvia. Direct translation means “sunny shores”.

Give this country which no-one speaks about some love please.

Symbolism:
In 2024 there was a country wide scandal about “Rail Baltica” project of modernising railroad infrastructure. It appeared that unhidden corruption with clearly infeasible deliverables was put in to the budget, which ended up majority of country train stations being unreconstructed, instead of promised new in-line floors to enter trains, country-wide, citizens were forced to jump in to mud for a year, watching under-finished construction sites.

Sunny shores (Saulkrasti) network symbolises hope, that Ethereum solutions tested at this network will eventually contribute towards solving global inefficiencies and transparency in budget allocations & large scale projects delivery.

1 Like

Naivasha - a town (and a lake and railway station of the same name) in Kenya where a core devs workshop was hosted last year. Pronounced Nai-vaa-shuh. In the Maasai language it means “that which heaves”, referring to the waves on lake Naivasha

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Ipanema - a neighbourhood located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

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Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch - train station in Wales

3 Likes

Culver - inspired by Culver City, a city in LA. And there is a Culver City Metro Station.

Delphi

  • an ancient religious sanctuary dedicated to the Greek god Apollo
  • short and easy to pronounce
  • many past tesnet names pronounced with ‘i’ or ‘y’, it will be easy to remember and fit goreli, holesky, and hoodi
2 Likes

Saulkrasti sounds great since “test network symbolises hope for sunny shores of future efficient and transparent technologies.”

2 Likes

Palermo, Buenos Aires

edit: This is where Devconnect is taking place!

3 Likes

Mudchute (mud-shoot), GB
DLR station

Spoil from the excavation of the Dock and silt from its channels and waterways were dumped on nearby land, creating “The Mudchute” , which quickly established itself as a wildlife habitat and adventuring location for local children.

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Wawrzyszew sounds nice

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I don’t think we should replace sepolia in 2026, but in 2027, and sepolia should not go into LTS until 2027. My view is that Hoodi is a forced early deployment of the '26 chain, not a short-term holesky replacement.

This sets the performance standard that unless something exceptional happens that new testnets launch 2 years after the old one launched, and that unless there was a problem with the newer chain then the older goes into LTS for the next year and the newly launched chain fills the LTS chain’s role (community validators vs developer validators). So there is one year of 2 testnets + an LTS testnet, then one year of only two testnets, then the cycle repeats.

2 Likes

Suggested Testnet Name: Lumina

Lore / Meaning:

  • Derived from Latin lumen, meaning light.
  • Represents clarity, transparency, and guidance, reflecting Ethereum’s mission for open and secure development.
  • Symbolizes a bright path forward for testing new protocol upgrades on the Sepolia replacement.

Pronunciation: LOO-mee-nah

Mascot / Symbol: :star2: Star or light beam, representing innovation and guidance.

Why this name works:

  • Original & Technical: Not tied to any existing subway, train, or prior testnet name, keeping it fresh.
  • Memorable & Simple: Easy to pronounce, short, and evocative.
  • Symbolic: Conveys transparency, innovation, and hope—qualities aligned with Ethereum development and community values.
  • Fits Testnet Naming Tradition: Like past testnets (Sepolia, Görli, Hoodi), it is unique, meaningful, and easy to reference.

I believe Lumina would be a fitting, forward-looking name for the new Sepolia replacement testnet.

2 Likes