A new study has given a state-by-state breakdown of America's most-popular dog names.
Pet-sitting platform TrustedHousesitters looked at over 50,000 pet names registered on its website to find out the most-popular dog names in the U.S. in 2023. The five most-popular male dog names were Charlie, Max, Cooper, Buddy and Jack. The most-used female monikers were Lucy, Bella, Luna, Daisy and Lilly.
The moniker you give to your dog matters. In fact, it's the "single most important word" a canine will ever learn, according to dog researcher Stanley Coren of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. He said dogs are capable of understanding more than 150 human words, but none holds as much importance as the name handed down to them by their owner.
"Think of it this way, a dog lives in a sea of human sounds and, with only the language ability of a human 2-year old, it has to decide which words are directed at it and which are not," Coren told magazine Psychology Today.
"A dog's name becomes a signal which tells him that the next sounds that come out of his master's mouth are supposed to have some impact on his life," added Coren. "Thus a dog's name linguistically translates into something like 'This next message is for you."'
From an owner's perspective, choosing the right name is important as it's likely to be one they will be calling out in public for some time to come.
In Coren's experience, naming his dogs "two syllable names" tends to "roll off" the tongue easier and "produce a better response."
A breakdown of the most popular dog name in each U.S. state can be found in the graphic below:
The study revealed some surprising statistics. For example, Aspen is the most popular city a dog is named after.
Pop culture appears to have a strong influence on dog names, with Winnie, Zeus, Gizmo, Thor and Mickey all among the most popular.
The Cajun and Creole French culture and language of Louisiana evidently influenced the most-popular pet names in the state. The deep-fried pastry associated with New Orleans—Beignet—is the 10th most-popular dog name.
Dog names in Colorado also took plenty of influence from the Mountain State, with Bear ranking as the 20th most-popular dog name. The top 50 in Colorado also included Scout, Aspen, Moose, Rocky and Ash.
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com with some details about your best friend, and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Jack Beresford is a Newsweek Senior Internet Culture & Trends Reporter, based in London, UK. His focus is reporting on ... Read more
