The article deals with the problem of functioning of allusive names in the text. Allusive names are a variant of allusion, an intertextual device which has a unique mechanism of apposition of the two contexts - the precedent text and the final text. An allusive name as an intertextual device is a sign which contains the whole precedent text in one name. This provides the author of the final text with the ability to save on lexical means and at the same time enrich the final text with the new meaning and increase its expressiveness at the same time. In the context of the modern popular culture an allusive name is to refer to some widely known character from a work from the “golden fund” of the international literature, some popular person, or a character of a widely known movie. For the final text to be enriched with some new meaning the allusive name must be recognized by the reader. Functions of allusive names are numerous, the most important among them being the introduction of a new meaning and creating irony. Quite often they are used to characterize a character or the speaker. Allusive names are an integral part of the modern fiction and are sure to enrich the final text at the expense of new meanings.