Dachshund Names

Actress Tilda Swinton injected this dated nickname name with some modern charm.

Fig was the unlikely name of a beautiful character in Curtis Sittenfeld's Man of My Dreams. Better bets: Plum, Quince, or even Apple. Still, you might consider Fig as an unusual nickname for any more formal F-starting name, from Frances to Fiona.

Franz is the German equivalent to Francis, and you'll be hard-pressed to find a Franz outside of countries with Germanic origins. In America the name is often associated with celebrated author Franz Kafka, who was born in Prague.

More unique than Cooper, and a favorite among pet parents. Copper was the loveable bloodhound from Disney's Fox and the Hound. Keep in mind that Copper is also slang for a policeman.

An old-fashioned nickname in the Bud/Buzz/Biff mold; this one's kind of belligerent. Michelle Hicks and Jonny Lee Miller moved outside the box when they used it for their son--given the safer middle name of Timothy.

The unisex word name Bean, distant cousin of the infamous Apple, was used for the name of a child of mysterious gender in Louise Penny's novel "A Rule Against Murder." While we can imagine Bean as a cute nickname for a yet-unnamed and unborn baby, we don't recommend it for real life.

Once upon a time, in the 1930s, Huey (yes, just Huey) was a Top 250 name. Could the 100-Year Rule bring it back?

Pippi may be cute but isn't very practical. In addition to being forever Pippi Longstocking, there is that variant pee-pee spelling to consider. Try Pippa instead.

When it's spelled with two dots over the 'u' in German, Gunther is pronounced GUWN-ter, but it has a much softer sound when the 'h' is voiced by English-speakers, as it was, for example, for the name of a character in Friends.

Can Ernie shed the rubber ducky association and make its way onto the vintage revivals list? Years ago we may have said no, but celebrity chef Stephanie Izard made a strong case for Ernie when she gave the name to her son in 2016.

Though as a formal name Rusty is a little, well, rusty, it spent half a century among the Top 1000, departing only in 1995. Only 45 baby boys received the name in the US in one recent year and it's difficult to imagine it as the winning choice of many modern parents. Whether you want an informal name or a spin on a traditional name or even a word name or a name that means red, there are simply too many better options.

So uncool it's almost cool, Bertie makes for a boyish nickname for Alberta, Roberta, Bertille, Albertine... or just use it on its own, à la Billie or Frankie.

Sure, he'd probably get a certain amount of red-nosed teasing around the holiday, but a boy named Rudolph could probably take it. Besides, he's got other, more distinguished namesakes -- the great ballet dancer Nureyev, silent screen Lothario Valentino and 9-11 Mayor Giuliani.

The connection to Freud is a strong one, but this German name has a strong and interesting sound and great nickname potential: Ziggy, Iggy, Sim, Sid...

A cute nickname, but June is a much better bet for the birth certificate.

Gretel originated as a nickname for Margarete, the German form of Margaret. It’s a charming name, but most American parents prefer Greta, as Gretel is strongly tied to the fairy tale heroine.

Only if you're madly nostalgic for sixties TV.

There's a football player called Pepper (born Thomas and given the childhood nickname for sprinkling pepper on his cereal) Johnson -- but this sounds more like the name of a cheerleader.