Pet Names · Dog Names
By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 6 pages
of 6
Literature, French
"pointy hill"
The family name of Shakespeare's Romeo, Montague has a touch of old-fashioned grandeur about it. With clunky-cute nickname Monty and similar sounds to Montgomery, it has been used as a given name…
French from Latin
"naive"
French saintly name, used for both boys and girls. Although not common in France, it has been used in small numbers for boys in the 2010s and 2020s. Candide, in its sense as the French word for…
French
"delicate, dainty"
Charming French endearment, first used as a name by Goethe, that now makes an appealing choice -- though the proper feminine form is Mignonne. Note, though, that this is not actually used as a name…
"beloved"
For years there was only one Cher, and then along came the charming heroine of the movie "Clueless." The world now officially has enough Chers in it.
"Tuesday"
Mardi is a foreign word name that sounds like a homegrown nickname. For what? We're not sure, but it's kinda cute, and preferable to Tuesday.
"lark"
Alouette is a sweet Gallic twist in the stylish bird name genre made familiar via the charming French children's song, Alouette, gentile alouette .
French diminutive
"apple"
Pom is a shortened word name that's not much used in France, but cute and familiar here as one of Babar (the Elephant's) triplets. Pom, pommy and pommie are (non-derogatory) terms sometimes used by…
French literary name
For remembrance of books past, Proust might be a meaningful middle name.
Fruit name
Prune is a fruit name loved by the French, for whom it's a Plum equivalent. In the U.S., Plum works, but Prune is not a name we'd want to inflict on a child. Prunella is slightly more plausible.
"little doe"
Charming Gallic possibility but with some obvious playground problems.
French variation of Danica
"morning star"
This Danielle/Monique hybrid offers a new twist on an old favorite.
"the beautiful field"
Pronounced Beecham, but still too fancy and fey. Likewise Beaufort (beautiful fort), Beaufoy (beautiful beech tree), and Beaumont (beautiful mountain).
Italian
"curly-haired"
With its stylish -o ending, the Italian surname sounds enough like Rita or Rio that it may appeal as a first name. It is in fact movie-inspired choice, taken from the classic musical Grease where…
Given to a small handful of boys each year since 2016, Italian surname Rizzo could make an unexpected and sparky choice for a boy. Similar in sound to Reese, Rio, and Rico, parents may have been…
"brown-haired one"
The best-known bearer of this name by far is basketball superstar LeBron James. While LeBron James is a great athlete and American hero, only 19 baby boys were named LeBron or Lebron in 2021.
French diminutive of Josephine, Hebrew
"Jehovah increases"
Fifi is a perfect name -- for a French poodle. But Fifi may seem more child-friendly as names like Coco and Lulu rise. Fifi in its fluffiness also balances the seriousness of such full names as…
"smooth, shiny"
Satine, the name of the Nicole Kidman character in Moulin Rouge, , is, by definition satiny smooth. Jacinda Barrett named her daughter Satine Anais.
"baptist"
Traditionally used by the ultrareligious, the French boys' name Baptiste comes from the Greek word meaning "to dip". Baptiste is one of the Top 100 Boy Names in France .
"from Bellou"
Unusual surname with rowdy quality.
Hyacinthe is a feminine name with Greek origins, derived from the name of the purple-blue flower called hyacinth. In Greek mythology, Hyacinthus was a beautiful youth beloved by Apollo. The feminine…
