Dog Names That Start With L

Perhaps best associated today with the character from The Legend of Zelda game franchise, Link also has ties to the retro crime drama, The Mod Squad, to the presidential surname Lincoln, and of course, to links on the internet. Part fantastical, part retro cool, part futuristic, Link was chosen for 200 boys in 2022, and 144 in 2023.

Link

Recently chosen by singer Elle King for her son. Lucky is a name that could see a considerable rise in the near future, as word names continue to heat up.

Lucky

Simple but substantial, Lani is surprisingly underused considering the popularity of Lainey, Leilani, Lana, and Kehlani. A multi-cultural choice with both Hawaiian and English origins, it is also used in the Philippines, possibly as a variation of the modern Laarni, or as a twist on the word langit meaning "skies, heaven", which aligns with the Hawaiian meaning too. 
 
Voice actress Lani Minella is one notable bearer, while the singer Lorde (born Ella) has Lani as one of her middle names.

Lani

Lindy is a feminine name with multiple origins. It can be a diminutive of names like Linda, Melinda, Belinda, or Rosalind. In German, Lindy derives from "lind" meaning "soft, tender, or flexible." The name gained unique cultural associations in the 1930s and 1940s with the popularity of the Lindy Hop dance, named after aviator Charles Lindbergh. Lindy has a playful, energetic quality that evokes a friendly and approachable personality. While it peaked in popularity in mid-20th century America, it maintains an enduring charm with its vintage appeal. The name balances casualness with a classic feel, making it work equally well for a child or an adult.

Lindy

Liza's heyday was the mid-1970s, following on the heels of super-popular sister Lisa. But thanks to the fact that it never became superpopular, Liza remains a name not especially tied to one generation or style. 

At one time, the name was closely associated with Liza Minnelli, who was named by her mother Judy Garland after a George Gershwin song. Today, it's the name of the lead character, played by Sutton Foster, in TV's Younger, based on a novel by Nameberry cofounder Pamela Redmond.

Liza

The eternal fiancee of Superman turned sweet gray-haired lady who's always available to babysit her grandkids turned....hot new baby name?
 True to the Hundred Year Rule, Lois is poised to climb the charts again and reprise its heyday in the 1920s. Its choice by Mrs. America, Ballerina Farm momfluencer Hannah Neeleman, is helping ropel it back into style.
In the 1920s, Lois was a Top 20 names. Lois stayed in the Top 50 into the 1940's, but dropped off the list completely in 1983.
 
Lois is actually a New Testament name of Greek origin: she was converted by Paul and was the grandmother of Timothy, who became one of Paul's disciples. Other s-ending names are making a comeback, as is Iris and Louise, so why not Lois?

Lois

Laynee

Lysander is a distinctive Greek name that could be thought of as a more creative cousin of Alexander. In ancient history, Lysander was the name of an esteemed Spartan naval commander and his literary cred comes from one of the two star-struck young men in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, as well as one of the twin sons (the other being Lorcan) of Luna Lovegood, whom we learn about in the Harry Potter epilogue.
 Previously confined to the nurseries of Mayfair and Belgravia, we think Lysander could easily emigrate to the playgrounds of Park Slope.

Lysander

Lucinda, an elaboration of Lucia created by Cervantes for his 1605 novel Don Quixote, is a pleasingly pretty alternative to Lucy. It was subsequently used by Moliere in his play The Doctor in Spite of Himself' (1666). More in tune with the times than Linda, Belinda and Melinda, it could be used to honor someone with one of those dated names. 
 Lucinda was a Top 200 name in the late nineteenth century, but hasn't been on the charts for more than 25 years--which could make her ripe for revival.
 One appealing namesake is country-rock-blues singer Lucinda Williams. Similar in feel: Lucilla and Lucetta.

Lucinda

Lane is a unisex name equally accessible to boys and girls. Breezy, cool and contemporary, it might equally put in mind country lanes and banks of wildflowers. 
 
As a word name, Lane means "small roadway or path", however, it could easily be used as a nickname or diminutive of Delaney, ("dark river"), Elaine ("shining torch"), or similar. Currently as a given name, it is used nearly 14 times more often on boys than it is on girls, however, the Layne spelling is used more evenly, the Laine form leans feminine, and Lainey is a Top 1000 choice for girls. 
 
As a common surname, Lane is attached to such celebrities as Diane and Nathan, while as a given name, it it used in the English translated version of the novel Concerning My Daughter by Hye-Jin Kim.

Lane

A flower name containing both beauty and power, Lotus has significance in both Buddhism and Hinduism, symbolizing purity, grace and spiritual growth — not to mention a familiar yoga position.
 In ancient Greece, the lotus was a legendary plant, whose fruit was eaten by the mythical lotus eaters, causing them to go into a state of hypnotic forgetfulness. Lotus Flower is a Chinese character in the 1931 Pulitzer Prize-winning Pearl S. Buck novel, The Good Earth.
 
Lotus is gaining in popularity with over 120 girls receiving the name in a recent year. Rain Pryor, daughter of comedian Richard, named her daughter Lotus Marie in 2008; chef Richard Blais used it in the middle spot for daughter Emory Lotus in 2011; actress Teresa Palmer chose it for her daughter Lotus Bloom in 2025.

Lotus

Loyalty is one of the Modern Virtue Names rising precipitously for babies in recent years, used last year for nearly 300 children, about 85 percent of them girls. Loyalty may also owe some of its popularity to trendy sibling name Royalty.

Loyalty

Lonnie is one of those antiquated nicknames that is used much more often in the US than you might think, especially as a short form of Alonso or Alonzo, names always on the US Top 1000.

Lonnie

Loki is the shape-shifting, gender-bending god of mischief in Norse mythology.  Taking several animal forms, from a salmon to a seal to a fly, Loki is alternately friend and foe of the gods.

Loki

Could Lowen be the next Owen, Rowen, and Cohen? This Cornish name certainly has the right sounds to be an American hit, and is rising dramatically for both boys and girls.

About 80 baby boys were named Lowen in the US last year, along with 100 baby girls, making this name a new appealing gender-neutral choice. In the Netherlands, Lowen is the fastest-rising name for baby boys.

Lowen

Lars is a perfect candidate for a cross-cultural passport: it has been heard often enough here to sound familiar and friendly, yet retains the charisma of a charming foreigner.
 In this country Lars has been particularly associated with two Danes--Metallica's Lars Ulrich and film director Lars von Trier. In the 2007 movie Lars and the Real Girl, protagonist Lars Lindstrom was played by Ryan Gosling.

Lars

Can Linus lose its metaphorical security blanket and move from the Peanuts page onto the birth certificate? We think it has enough charm and other positive elements going for it for the answer to be yes. 
 In Greek myth, Linus is both a musician and poet, the inventor of rhythm and melody who taught music to Hercules. In the Christian era, Linus was the name of the second pope, Saint Peter's successor, while in modern times chemist Linus Pauling was awarded the Nobel Prize twice.
 Humphrey Bogart as Linus Larrabee won the heart of Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina, and Matt Damon played Linus Caldwell in three of the Oceans movies. There's also Linus Baker, one of the central character's in T.J. Klune's popular novel, The House in the Cerulean Sea. 
 Linus is currently in or around the Top 50 in Germany, Sweden and Norway, and is one of the most popular boys' names on Nameberry. In the US, it was given to around 130 boys in a recent year, making it an underused, but not totally out there choice. 
 
As with many names, the pronunciation varies, depending on language and location. Among English speakers, the first syllable is said to rhyme with eye or pie, making it LYE-nuhs. In Swedish and German, it would be more like LEE-noos, the oo sound short, like that in took or shook, while in its traditional Greek, it would be LEE-NOS. 
 
International forms include the French, Russian, Bulgarian, and Ukrainian Lin (LEHn, the Lithuanian Linas and the Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese Lino (LEE-no).

Linus

Lou, all by itself, is become fashionable for girls, which usually makes a name LESS fashionable for boys.  But Lou, like Bill or Jim, is rarely used on its own for boys anyway.  (You wouldn't name a boy Frederick Lou the way that girls are named Mary Lou or, in the case of Keri Russell's new baby, Willa Lou.)  Long form Louis is getting cool again and, with the Lewis spelling, is the Number 2 name in Scotland.

Lula is one of the livelier nickname-names with the fashionable double-L sound: It joins Lulu, Lila, Lily, and Lou among the trendiest names today. Lula might be short for Talula and sisters or for Lucy or Louise, or may stand on its own two adorable feet. Lula was actually a Top 50 name in the late 1880's and continued in the Top 100 for a couple of decades more.
 Bryan Adams named his second daughter Lula Rosylea, sister of Mirabella Bunny, and master character namer J. K. Rowling has a Lula in her novel The Cuckoo's Calling.

Lula

Lumi may be a rare <a href="https://nameberry.com/girls-names">girls' name</a> in the USA and England, but it comes in the Top 50 in Finland, where it means snow. Given the popularity of Winter, Holly, Ivy and many other wintery-christmassy names, we think that short and spunky Lumi definitely has potential for greater usage outside its home country as one of the more unusual <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/412/christmas-baby-names">names for Christmas babies</a>. 
 
Lumi can also be considered an Albanian name, derived from the word lumë meaning "river" and inspired by the name of the northern Albanian Luma tribe. In this case, it would be considered a unisex choice and has been used evenly, though very rarely, between the sexes in Albania.
 
Another possibility is that it could come from the Filipino word lumay meaning "gentleness, moderation, manners", making it a sweet and friendly choice but with a grounded meaning. 
 
Given to nearly 90 babies in the US in 2024, use of the name had increased tenfold since 2014.

Lumi

Female dog names that start with L currently in the Top 100 dog names include 

Luna, Lucy, Lily, Lola, Lulu, Lexi, Layla, Lady 

Dog names currently trending on Nameberry include 

. Unique female dog names that start with L include 

Male dog names that start with L in the Top 100 dog names include 

. Unique male dog names that start with L include 

male and female dog names that start with L (Page 8)