Dog Names That Start With R

Could be seen as extravagantly ecstatic for a baby name, though feel free to rhapsodize about your little girl, whatever her name.

Venerable old saint's name now associated solely with talk show host Philbin, who is constantly seeking namesakes.

A combination of Spanish rosa "rose" and aurea "gold". This name was used by Pedro Calderón de la Barca for a character in his play Life Is a Dream (1635), and more recently by Mexican author Laura Esquivel in her 1989 novel Como agua para chocolate.

A musical name that is undeniably cool and, well, rhythmic. Its biggest challenge may be the spelling. Well, maybe not the biggest challenge. Save this one for a middle name.

Raiden is a powerful choice for a baby girl. The Japanese god of thunder’s name is traditionally pronounced RYE-den, but most children named Raiden in the US pronounce it to rhyme with familiar choices Aiden, Jayden, and Hayden.

Rupin is one of those names that is virtually unknown in the Western world and yet is easily translated because it feels so familiar -- parts Rupert, Robin, and Reuben. A handsome choice.

Romer might be considered a streamlined spelling of the German surname Rohmer, whose root means fame or renown, or a name that was given to those who made pilgrimages to Rome, which is related to Romeo and its brothers. With the style value of other Rome names from Roman to Romy, this is one we predict we'll hear more of.

Like other stylish choices from Roman to Romy to Romeo, Rohmer is a German surname that relates to both Roman pilgrims and the root word for fame.

Ragnarök is a great future battle foretold in Norse mythology, which will lead to the ultimate destruction of many key deities and the rebirth of the Earth and mankind. The word is newly familiar to many thanks to the 2017 Marvel Comics film "Thor: Ragnarok".

Revere is a word name (meaning to admire or esteem) whose meaning alone has enough to recommend it. In the USA, however, Revere attracts further connotation as the surname of Paul Revere, one of the celebrated patriots of the American Revolution.

Many will associate Rihanna with the Barbados-born singer, known mononymously by her middle name. During her early years of fame, when "Umbrella" was on the radio and "Take a Bow" was playing through the iPod Shuffle, the name shot up the charts in the US, UK, France, and Puerto Rico. Though the name did fall out of the charts as rapidly as it entered and while some parents might feel it is way too tied to the mid-2000s, Rihanna was given to 165 babies in 2023.

Used primarily for girls in Ireland, but sounds unisex to us.

The Reid spelling is surprisingly more popular than the naturey Reed for both boys and girls, though more than 95% of little Reids are male.

This intriguing Scandinavian name is associated with Roald Dahl, author of the juvenile classics James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. You can honor an ancestral Ronald just by dropping that middle 'n'.

The name of this historic European city is more distinct than Paris and London but sounds similar enough to the rising Romy and well-established Ramona and Rosemary that it doesn't feel totally out there. Currently in the US Top 1000 for boys, Rome has been quietly used as a girl name since the 2000s and in 2023, it was given to around 60 girls. While it is therefore nine times more popular as a masculine name, it has plenty of unisex potential.

An auspicious choice connected to dragons. English speakers will have difficulty pronouncing this name in Japanese — it's all one syllable, with barely any emphasis on the R sound.

Model Lucky Blue Smith welcomed daughter Rumble Honey in 2020, introducing a new name to the pool and putting it among the craziest celebrity baby names of the year. We don't see Rumble inspiring many copycats.