Dog Names That Start With B

This ancient Greek male name, well-used in Britain, also has an herbal quality that may explain its increasing use for girls. While as a name it rhymes with dazzle, the herb has a long a, making the pronunciation BAY-zel.

Brigitte is the French version of the ancient Irish Brighid long associated with 1950s sex symbol Brigitte Bardot. If you want to pronounce Brigitte the French way, it's brih-ZHEET.

This ancient name is that of the hero of the epic Beowulf, which is thought to be the oldest-ever poem in English lit written in the vernacular. J. R. R. Tolkien used the poem as one of his inspirations for The Lord of the Rings.

The surname of enterprising journalist Nellie Bly and poet Robert Bly makes a simple, modern, and upbeat sounding choice for either a boy or a girl.

Herby and aristocratic Basil remains a tough sell, but we’d like to introduce you to Basile, the delightful French version. It retains all of Basil’s charm, but sheds some of the pesto linkage.

Bristol Palin, the daughter of former Alaska governor and Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, grabbed her own share of headlines by having a baby out of wedlock and then appearing on Dancing With The Stars. She single-handedly propelled her distinctive name, inspired by a city in England, into the Top 1000 and up the charts. Bristol's ascent ended a few years back.

The middle name of the Travoltas' Ella, this French color alternative hasn't caught on with many other parents.

Bryant has a longer history as a first name in the US than its father name Brian, ranking among the Top 1000 since the list began in 1880 while Brian only jumped on in 1925.

The name of an affluent suburb of Columbus, Ohio and a section of Greater London, Bexley is increasingly being coopted by parents looking for a novel name in the Kinsley/AInsley/Paisley family. Bexley debuted on the US Top 1000 in 2016 and is definitely one of the trendiest girl names starting with B. Think of it as a 21st century Becky.

One of the aggressive new boys' names, ala Tracker and Heller, that have become fashionable among parents who are courting trouble.

If you want a pan-Scandinavian name with energy and style that could have been a winner, if not for the sound-alike water filtration company Brita.

A less common relic of the Claudette-Paulette-Annette era.

This name may be a variation of the more-popular Bryson, but it has appealed to enough parents to make it a widely used name in its own right.

Brother for Biff and Bud. McFly rocker Tom Fletcher transformed this from midcentury short form to modern cool name when he used it for his newborn son.

Modern, mini nickname for Rebecca, much fresher than Becca or Becky.

Despite its modern sound, Blaise has plenty of history as a given name (for boys), from a Christian martyr to Arthurian legends. Today Blaise feels like the cool and edgy Blaze with a French accent.

This fabric word name would be a one-of-a-kind.

Attached to one of the heroes of Christopher Paolini's megapopular fantasy novel Eragon, this name sounds strong yet sensitive.

Bartleby (that's his last name) the Scrivener is a famous Herman Melville character whose surprisingly powerful refrain was, "I would prefer not to." Or, in the immortal words of any two-year-old: No.

Brisk but rather brittle. Britt Eklund was a Bond Girl in the 1974 The Man with the Golden Gun. Britt is a contracted form of Birgit, but be aware that it does come with the strong possibility of being confused with Bret/Brett—or as a shortening of Brittany.