So you don’t want to give your dog an ordinary name like Fido. And you love books. So, naturally, you turn to your favorite literary classics when it’s time to name the new puppy. The result? This list of actual canine names inspired by literature (from “The Giant Book of Dog Names”)
Auntie Em
Bandersnatch
Bloomsbury
Boo Radley
Byron
Chekhov
Dr. Watson
Galsworthy
Gatsby
Gunga Din
Hemingway
Ibsen
Jeeves
Kafka
Kilimanjaro
Mrs. Danvers
Nietzsche
Romeo
Sam Spade
Voltaire
Voldemort
A chiwawa named Kafka? A pug named Nietzsche? Well, why not? Still, it takes a very special — or just very bookish — person to name her dog Voldemort.
Not that I have anything against literary dog names. In fact, we named our own Yorkie-poo Captain Colossal, after a character in a young adult novel by Daniel Pinkwater, thus going with both literature AND irony. Does Captain mind being saddled with a (gently) mocking moniker? Not at all.
He’s probably just glad we didn’t name him Mrs. Danvers.
(First published by Womens Voices For Change.)
I want a benji type dog who goes by Holden Caulfield..no nicknames please…everyone must call him by his full name. As in, “No Holden Caulfield don’t eat your own poo!”
I like Mrs. Danvers. Rebecca would be proud!
Now I know what I want to name my next male cat — Hagrid!
And of course there’s Frankie and LuLu!
Bill Y, Frankie and lulu are moved truly!
Our dog’s name is Beowulf, although we spell it Baeowulf because he’s nickname’s Bae. On a related note, my username online is usually Ozma, after the character from the Oz books. My wife would totally name a pet Voldermort.
Sounds like a great match to me.