Dog Names That Start With O

Rarely used surname, associated with humorous poet Ogden Nash.

Oaklyn is one of the oak-related names moving up the popularity charts, along with more popular sister Oakley and near-identical twin Oaklynn. The Oaklynn spelling used for three times as many baby girls as Oaklyn -- 1800 vs. 600.

What is so rare as a month named June? October – and November and December – are a lot rarer. Brisk and substantial, they're so much more memorable and modern than April or May. October got its name via being the eighth month in the old Roman calendar.

Popular in the Hispanic community, unlike its English cousin. It has been very near the bottom of the US Top 1000 for the last three years.

Orcus is the Roman equivalent of the Greek Hades, god of the underworld. His name is ultimately derived from the Greek word hórkos, meaning "oath,"

Intriguing name that's a Top 100 choice in Spain and virtually unknown outside that country. But has definitely possibilities for the adventurous baby namer.

Too tied to those well-publicized twins.

Most closely associated with famed English novelist George Orwell (whose real name was Eric Arthur Blair), this English surname is now occasionally sported as a literary first name. Given its meaning, Orwell could also be used by those looking for a more subtle alternative to River.

Simple, friendly, distinctive name heard in several cultures. The a ending may feel more feminine in the US than Ole, though both variations are acceptable in Scandinavia.

Oceanus was the Titan in ancient Greek mythology who rules what they thought was the body of water that surrounded the Earth. Oceanus was, appropriately enough, the name of the baby born on the Mayflower. Modern variations include Ocean, Oceana, and Oceane, a popular French name for girls.

Wildly popular name in France that could easily cross the Atlantic.

A bird name from the same Latin root as Aurelia, Oriole is extremely rare as a name: No babies were given the name in the US in 2022. But most people are aware of the Oriole bird, which makes this name uncommon yet possible.

The surname of the 44th US President has been been adopted as a first, for girls as well as boys, by admiring parents around the world. And the O beginning even makes it fashionable. Though Barack Obama's name derives from the Luo people of Kenya, Obama is also a Japanese place name and a surname that means "little beach."

Ten times as many boys are named Oak as girls: about 50 boys last year to five girls. Of course, nature names don't have any traditional gender identification the way names like John and Mary do, so Oak works well for all babies. Oakley is the most popular Oak name for babies of all genders.

Literally, the Odyssey is Homer's epic tale of Odysseus's voyage home from the Trojan wars, and it is also used figuratively for any long, challenging journey. It is used rarely but steadily for girls, and makes a recognizable and meaningful, yet uncommon, word name.

Otter first came onto the baby name radar when Zooey Deschanel used it as a middle name for her daughter in 2015. It entered the US charts the same year, but as a boy name. Cute, sleek and wild, it's an interesting alternative to more popular animal names like Fox and Bear.

Game of Thrones fans may recognize this as the name of the wily Wildling who helped protect Bran Stark for several seasons of the HBO show. George R.R. Martin has cited Harry Potter vet Natalia Tena's performance in the part as the one that most changed his understanding of a character he created.

Octave shortens Octavius to a more manageable length, keeping the "eighth" meaning. In English speaking countries, however, people could easily confuse this with the musical term octave.

No babies of any gender were named Orange in the US in the most recent year counted. But that doesn't mean, in this era of anything-goes baby names, that it couldn't happen.