Girl Dog Names That Start With M

The African tradition of day naming—giving a child a name inspired by the day, time, or season in which they were born—has become attractive to Western parents as word names increase in use. Midnight is a relatively new addition to the pool—it was used as a middle name by Nicole Richie and Joel Madden for their son in 2009.

Melat is a lovely girl name that is frequently used in Ethiopia. Several meanings of Melat are possible, including "gift of God", and "sweet". Melat also refers to the fine linen or silk woven in the Virgin Mary's dress.

The adorable and iconic bunny character Miffy was created in 1955 by Dutch artist Dick Bruna. Her Dutch name is Nijntje, a contraction of the Dutch word for "little bunny", konijntje.

This name of the Hindu god of the sun and of friendship sounds feminine enough to work for a girl.

Marcheline was the first name of Angelina Jolie's late mother, who was part French-Canadian, which Jolie and Brad Pitt used as the middle name for their twin daughter Vivienne. The name is related to the Latin Marcellus and Marcus, which come from Mars, the name of the God of War, and is often spelled Marceline. Jolie's mother's birth name was Marcia Lynne.

Better for a perfume.

A unique international short form of Margaret.

Has followed mother name Maureen off the radar screen.

A pretty and little-known Spanish smoosh name, combining Maria with Celia.

Traditionally a masculine diminutive of Moses, Moe could work equally well as a short, sweet, gender-bending nickname for girls – perhaps from Ramona, Moana or Monroe.

Moria was a nymph, sister of Tylus, who played a role in a very complicated story involving a serpent and a life-giving plant. It sounds like and will often be mistaken for the name Mariah, as in Carey.

Cool and bluesy southern city name chosen by musician-activist Bono for his daughter.

This version of Malia (as in Obama) peaked at Number 296 in 2009, though it has lost ground since then.

Mako is a name used for both genders in Japan, most notably for the granddaughter of the emperor who chose to leave the Royal Family to marry a commoner. It's a simple name that translates easily to English-speaking cultures, though many will try to pronounce the first syllable with a long a. Mako also means "shark" in Maori, and is the name of two shark species.

Australian opera singer Nellie Melba—self-named for her hometown of Melbourne—inspired this now-dated name more associated today with a peach dessert and dietetic toast.

The Estonian writer Mats Tõnisson created Milvi as a nickname for Miranda. It's also connected to the Estonian word miilama, meaning "glow" or "burn slowly".

Mesa is the term for a flat-topped mountain, derived from the Spanish word for "table".

A merry surname cousin of Kerrigan, could make a lively choice for a happy little girl.

Actress Mena Suvari (named after an Egyptian hotel) made this name seem especially appealing. Mena is also a minor Roman goddess of fertility.