Dog Names That Start With L

Lior is a unisex name frequently heard in Israel, capturing the popular light theme through its meaning.  For English speakers, the one down side is possible pronunciation confusion with "liar," though it's really lee-OR, with a long e sound and emphasis on the second syllable.

Lior

A "modernization" of Leonora that has suddenly come back on the radar along with the many other Leo names--both male and female. With literary cred via a famous eponymous poem by Edgar Allan Poe (and also in his even more famous The Raven,) Lenore was steadily in the top half of the popularity list until the mid-fifties, falling off in 1973. Cameron Diaz played a Lenore in The Green Hornet.

Lenore

An aristocratic and stately Germanic route to the popular Leo, Leopold is a royal name: Queen Victoria used it to honor a favorite uncle, King Leopold I of Belgium. These days, this royal tie may be seen as a drawback to the name, owing to the cruelty of King Leopold II's rule over the Congo, though it remains popular in Austria, Poland, and France (as Léopold). 
 
Though Leopold sounds as if it might be a leonine name, it's not really a relative of such choices as Leon, and Leonard. Instead, it comes from the Germanic elements liut and bald meaning "people" and "brave" respectively. Originally spelled as Luitpold or Liupold, its spelling was altered to reflect the popularity and appeal of being connected to leo and the lionlike bravery it evokes.
 In literature, the name is famous via Leopold Bloom, the central character of James Joyce's Ulysses and in music is associated with the distinguished conductor Leopold Stokowski. It also connected to St Leopold, the patron saint of Austria, step-parents, large families, and child death.
 
Like with many names, it has a variety of pronunciations depending on language and location. LEE-uh-pold or LEE-o-pold may be heard in English, while in Dutch and German, LEH-o-pawlt is used. In Polish, it's leh-AW-pawlt, in Slovak, it's LEH-aw-pawld, in Czech it's LEH-o-polt, and in French, it's LEH-AW-PAWLD. 
 
In the US, Leopold rose up slightly during the late 2010s and early 2020s, reaching its all time American peak in 2018 when it was given to 114 boys. More recently, it has begun to decline again and was given to 72 boys in the latest count. 
 
Nickname Leo might freshen it up (as Archie does Archibald), though Poldi is a German diminutive.

Leopold

Lemuel is a neglected Old Testament name, with the friendly nickname Lem, that we're surprised hasn't been picked up on by parents who have known too many Samuels.

 In the Bible, Lemuel is mentioned twice in Proverbs as a king, but the name is probably remembered more as the first name of the narrator who journeys to Liliput in Jonathan Swift's satirical Gulliver's Travels.

 In the Book of Mormon, Lemuel was one of the sons of Lehi, notable for his rebellion against Lehi and Nephi.

 Lemuel was Number 195 in 1881, but started a downward trajectory from which it never recovered.

Lemuel

Evocative modern unisex choice brought into the spotlight by actress Lake Bell. 

Lake

Properly spelled Luã, this is a light and bright alternative to mega-popular Luna, with the same celestial meaning. Lua is also an attractive choice for tech-heads, with Lua being a popular programming language.
 
In Roman mythology, Lua was a goddess to whom captured weapons were sacrificed, and is, in this case, derived from the Latin luo meaning "to set free", adding to that light, sweet feel of it. 
 
Familiar in Spain, particularly in Galicia and Catalonia, and in the Netherlands, Lua could even work as a short form for the likes of Lucia, Luana, Luciana, Luella, and so on.

Lizzie was commonly used as an independent name in the last half of the nineteenth century. Today Lizzie is still one of the most stylish short forms of Elizabeth, but few U.S. parents put it on the birth certificate. 

Lizzie

Leya is a simple, attractive multicultural choice, but with some teasing peril. The "Star Wars" princess spelled her name Leia.

Leya

Saint Eulalia was born in Spain and is the patron saint of Barcelona, so her name and its derivatives are popular throughout the land — especially in her native Catalonia.

Laia

This streamlined variation of Eleanor is common in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries, particularly Portugal itself, where it has ranked among the Top 3 baby girl names for over a decade.

In Spain, Leonor is the name of the princess -- Leonor de Todos los Santos de Borbón y Ortiz, Princess of Asturias -- who is the heir presumptive to the Spanish throne.

The "lioness" meaning is given because of Leonor's similarity to Leona or Leonie, names with a Latin root meaning lioness. But technically, Leonor is a variation of Eleanor, one of the most prominent names with an unknown meaning.

Leonor

Lavinia is a charmingly prim and proper Victorian-sounding name which actually dates back to classical mythology, where it was the name of the wife of the Trojan hero Aeneas, who was considered the mother of the Roman people.
 Later literary bearers include the protagonist's daughter in Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus (which has the line "She is Lavinia, therefore must be lov'd"), the heroine of G.B. Shaw's Androcles and the Lion, and characters in David Copperfield, Henry James' Washington Square, and the contemporary The Hunger Games and Downton Abbey--and Lavinia was also used by Thackeray, T. S. Eliot, and by Ursula Le Guin for an eponymous novel.
 Trivia tidbit: Lavinia was Ava Gardner's middle name.
With its vintage nickname Vinnie, Lavinia might well appeal to parents who favor lavender-tinged names like Amelia and Matilda and Maude.

Lavinia

Leonie is a chic French and German form of a name that exists in a range of variations from Leona to Leonia to Leon to Leo to Lionel, all newly fashionable after a couple of generations in style limbo. 
 Pronunciation can be confusing: The first syllable can be pronounced as lee or lay, the second as on or own, and the accent can be on either the first or the second syllable or be evenly distributed over all three syllables of the name, so that it sounds like the male name Leon with an ee at the end. Take your pick, but know that others might often pick differently.
 Aunt Leonie is a major character in Proust's Remembrance of Things Past. Leonie Hemsworth is the mother of Liam and Chris and Leonie is the name picked by Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel for their daughter.

Leonie

Cool short form of Alexander, fresher than Alex and less trendy than Xander... for now.

The y makes it seem more like a name and less like an animal, but it's still not as appealing as several Leo choices. 

Lyon

Italian classic Luigi, though it lacks the modern style of Nico, Enzo, and Rocco, does have some notable namesakes, such as Nobel Prize winning author Luigi Pirandello and composer Cherubini.. 

Luigi

Lynn arrived in the 1940s, spinning off from the wildly popular Linda to become a top mid-century middle (and first) name, ranking at #58 during its 1956 peak. Now, however, Lynn is out of the charts, more likely found stuck on to the end of another name (see Emberlynn and Gracelynn)
 
Derived from either the Welsh llyn meaning "lake", the Spanish linda meaning "pretty, beautiful", or the Germanic lind meaning "soft, tender, flexible", Lynn was used predominantly as a masculine name, right up until 1942 when it swung more feminine for the first time, chosen for 1749 girls compared to 1394 boys.
 
Still given to nearly 70 girls in a recent year, Lynn remains, quietly, on the radar at least.

Lynn

Inspired by the Mexican singer who uses it as her single name. 

Litzy

One of the most feminine of surname names, calling to mind dresses and doilies, though it was once used for boys too. The spelling Lacey is currently more popular, while Lacie has been a favorite in the UK.

Lacy

A light-sounding name with a great meaning that could also appeal to non-Yiddish speakers. It is quite rare in the US, but on an upwards trend.

Liba

Linda begat Lynn which gave way to Lynette, which peaked in the late 1960s. Lynette has been off the Top 1000 for a couple decades now, and the Lynn variations finding the most favor are those that put the "lyn" part at the end: Evelyn, Madelyn, Brooklyn.

Lynette

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 9)