Black Dog Names

Better for a perfume.

Kona is strongly associated with the Kona coffee of Hawaii. The Hawaiian word kona means "leeward" or "dry side of the island," and Kona districts are where Kona coffee is grown.

Abbey might sound exactly like the popular Abigail nickname Abby or Abbie, but spelled this way it is also a churchy word name with a Gothic feel. But hearing it, no one will know the difference.

A pretty word, but laced with violent imagery.

More distinctive than Ella, if you're inspired by Cinderella.

It has a variety of associations from Smokey Robinson to Smokey the bear, but Smokey still feels a bit comical for a baby.

Lithe and leonine name chosen for her daughter by singer Erykah Badu -- whose other child has the number name Seven.

Old-fashioned, conjuring up an ardent suitor in a bow tie and straw boater.

A German surname name deriving from the same root as English Ryder. Traditionally, it was the name of the second lowest hereditary rank of the nobility, roughly equivalent to English Baronet. Notable associations are British actor Paul Ritter and a popular European chocolate brand.

Smoky variation of Hayes.

Several animal names, from Fox to Wolf and even to Tiger, ccan work, but Cougar should stay in its cage. Even John Mellencamp has dropped it.

A dramatic nature-inspired possibility for either sex.

Blakeley is one of the many -ley ending surnames that is being adopted as a first name, updating the 80s darlings Blake and Ashley.

Nabisco has never revealed the origins of their sandwich cookie brand name, but the prevailing theory is that it was derived from Oreodaphne, a genus in the laurel family.

Stormy and variations have always been more common among girls, but there's no reason you shouldn't use it for a son. Storm was historically more masculine, until the arrival of Stormi Webster.

Not one but two Spice Girls are named Mel, which led to it briefly being more popular for girls than boys in the 90s and early 00s, but it has now fallen out of favor for both sexes.

We don't see that bright a future for this one either.

Old-man name, soft as a fraying gray cashmere cardigan, that would be even cuter for a girl.

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.

Sabbath is a faith-inspired word name, like Sunday or Faith, that is attracting some notice since heavy metal musician Zakk Wylde chose it for his son. But then there's the band Black Sabbath, which gives the name a more devilish twist. While there's nothing intrinsically male or female about Sabbath as a first name, it squeaked onto the Social Security roster for five boys in 2012, but was not recorded for girls. Sabbath comes from the word for "day of rest" in many ancient cultures.