German Dog Names

Short for Brunhilda, the operatic Valkyrie of Teutonic legend, Hilda still has not quite shaken off that image that image. Though with the resurgence of Matilda, she might just have a bit of a comeback.

Subtract the last two letters of Arnold, and you're left with a much more modern-sounding name. Arno is also the name of the main river in Florence, upon which sits the famed Ponte Vecchio. The Italian river name means "flowing water".

Juna, a variation of the newly stylish month name June, goddess name Juno, or literary Djuna, is among the fresher-feeling girl names starting with J. While Juna has never been given to more than 50 baby girls per year in the US, it's a popular choice in Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands.

This sleek form of Constantine is traditional in many European countries, and most popular in German-speaking nations and Russia.

Ever since the enormous German cannon was dubbed by Allied soldiers "Big Bertha" in World War I, this name hasn't worked for a sweet little baby girl. But this was not always so. Hard as it might be to imagine now, Bertha was a Top 100 name until the 1930s, and in the 1880s was the seventh most popular name in the land--the equal of Joseph.

Selma has recently been given a more youthful spin via actresses Selma Blair and Salma Hayek. But while Selma has not yet become popular again in the US, it is widely used in both Sweden and Norway.

Ulrich has ancient roots — it was derived from the Old High German name Uodalrich (also spelled Odalric). Ulrich was a common given name in medieval Germany, when it was associated with St. Ulrich of Augsburg. St. Ulrich is the patron saint of pregnant women and easy births.

Reversed vowels make it seem less fierce.

Like Lars, Sven, Niels, and Nels, an unjustly neglected straightforward Scandinavian name. Surname Nilsson or the anglicized Nelson derives from Nils.

Also spelled Sigfrid, this hefty German name has an appropriately majestic meaning: "victorious peace". Fittingly, a famous bearer was the English World War I poet and pacifist Siegfried Sassoon. Sassoon was named after the hero of a Wagner opera, which in turn was based on a tragic hero from German legend.

This alternative and modern spelling of Leo is popular with German- and Dutch-speaking parents and features in the charts in Switzerland, The Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany. While it's less popular in English-speaking coutntries, there has been a quiet but not insubstantial increase in the number of boys given the name. 2024 saw it given to 44 babies in the US, compared to just 20 a few years earlier.

The first name of Ethiopian supermodel Liya (pronounced like Leah) Kebede is also a Russian variation of Lia and Lily. Rather than using Liya, English speakers will do better to call a child Leah or Lia.

Mitzi is a spunky German nickname name that might appeal to parents drawn to the genre of lively vintage chorus girl names that proliferated in 1930's musicals. Lively entertainer Mitzi Gaynor--who was originally named Francesca Marlene de Czani von Gerber--made the name notable in mid-century America.

Godfrey was very popular in the Middle Ages, but today you're more likely to hear it as a surname than a first name. It has a solid, old-man charm, but a couple of possible deal-breakers: the first syllable being God, and no obvious nickname. Goff, maybe? For a different feel, we also like the Italian artist's version Giotto.

Popular in its own right in Germany and definitely makes a more intriguing and grownup short form of the classic Timothy than Timmy or even Tim.

Similar to Ivana but less personality-driven.

Malina is a synthetic-feeling name that may be a feminization of the Scottish Malcolm or a spelling twist on the Greek Melina and that also has a fruit meaning in several Eastern European languages. For all that it's a little bit of lots of things, Malina doesn't feel very much like itself.

Actress Tilda Swinton injected this dated nickname name with some modern charm.

Innocent, sincere, and bright-eyed, and as outdated as its mother name, Gertrude.

An Old World name that might have a chance to rise again with other ancient and worldly forms. Be sure to say yo-HAHN-es.