Pet Names · Cat Names
By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 122 pages
of 122
Catalan
"strong, healthy"
Catalan version of Valentine.
Greek
"of Athena"
The most famous bearer of this name was Athenaeus of Naucratis, a Greek rhetorician and grammarian who wrote the Deipnosophistae , which roughly translates to "Dinner Table Philosophers." There was…
English place name
"endless glade"
Latin
"high"
With its musical allusions, a harmonious possibility.
"over the moon"
Altalune is an invention used by Uma Thurman and Arpad Busson as one of several middle names for their daughter. It's evocative Latin meaning roughly translates to "over the moon." Celebrity baby…
English
"metal alloy"
Irish
"strength or exalted one"
This fanciful Irish extension of Bridget is known here through the wacky Amelia Bedelia books for kids -- an association your child may or may not like.
Invented name
"by the bank"
Credit, of course, to the artist for inventing this secretive pseudonym, but we actually have Hilary Duff to thank for Banksy as a baby name. Banksy is Duff's nickname for her daughter Banks, born in…
French form of Bartholomew
While Barthelemy does not garner much attention these days, it has a storied history in French-speaking countries. Notable bearers include geologist and explorer Barthélemy Faujas de Saint-Fond,…
Mongolian name meaning "clever, wise"
"clever, wise"
Similar to the Turkish name Bilge (Bil-jeh), which has the same meaning.
French from German
"magnificent crow"
This name of famed philosopher, mathematician and Nobel laureate Bertrand Russell becomes slightly more plausible with the French pronunciation, bare-TRAHN. Another noted bearer is French director…
English word name or variation of Almund or Aleman, German
"almond; noble strength; German"
Almond may seem like a hippy modern name, but its use for American boys goes right back to the mid-nineteenth century. In these cases, it was either a variation of Almund, meaning "noble strength,"…
German surname
"bright strength"
The surname Benz derived from the personal name Berthold and was used as a short form of Bernhard and Benedict as well. A small number of American boys are given Benz as a first name each year,…
Turkish
"strong, smart"
Beren is a gender-neutral name that's rare in the US, given last year to 20 baby boys and only five baby girls. But it's simple, distinctive, and yes, strong, plus it comes with an amazing nickname…
Scottish
"windy place"
Guthrie, folk singer Woody's last name, makes a perfectly fine first choice for a girl. Names such as Guthrie that have no gendered history can make true nonbinary names.
"always green"
German
"strong; brave as a bear"
Deceptively close to Bernardo, but suaver.
"one who lives near a stream"
A surname with more force than most.
Welsh
"battle prince"
A rare Welsh name with a wonderful meaning, Cadfael is the name of the detective monk character in Ellis Peters' medieval murder mysteries. It's usually pronounced CAD-vyle in Welsh, although Peters…
Word name
Gwyneth Paltrow's Apple has opened the world of botanical names beyond flowers to trees, herbs, fruits, and — why not — nuts. Cayley and Brandon Jenner have a daughter named Joan Almond.
