Spanish Cat Names

Will this old-fashioned nickname make a comeback, now that Jane has shed her "plain" image? Janie is cute and approachable, and would stand as well on the birth certificate as Josie and Jessie do now.

What with Paul Simon's classic lyric about Julio down by the schoolyard and several distinguished bearers, this livelier Spanish version of Julius is completely familiar to the non-Hispanic community and would make a great choice for a bicultural family. Popular in Brazil, it also ranks in the US Top 600 and given to more than 500 boys each year. NFL Atlanta Falcons star Julio Jones bears this name.

Jadiel and Yadiel are Spanish versions of the Hebrew Yehudiel, the name of one of the archangels. It's been in the US Top 1000 since 2008, but still hovers towards the bottom.

Actress Mena Suvari (named after an Egyptian hotel) made this name seem especially appealing. Mena is also a minor Roman goddess of fertility.

Diminutive of Candelaria, a name derived from candle and given in honor of the festival of Candlemas, which marks the presentation of Christ in the temple and the purification of the Virgin Mother.

The Roman goddess Fortuna personified luck and ruled over fortune and fate. She is often depicted as blindfolded, and remains an important figure in Italian culture today, where a common saying translates to "Luck is blind."

Shortening Francisco somehow makes it sound even cooler. Cisco is also the name of a digital security company.

Ugo is very common in Italy, but here it might call to mind that little Yugoslavian car.

It's tempting to think of Gui as the Spanish form of Guy, but it's short for Guillermo.

A zippy, lively name that has never been popular, but has never completely disappeared. It is best known for writer and wit Gore Vidal, and hairdresser Vidal Sassoon and his many products.

Popular in the Hispanic world and use in honor of Saint Augustine, Agustin is an anglicized form of the Spanish Agustín. It peaked at Number 561 in 2001 in the US charts and has since dropped on and off of the list again. Given to around 210 boys in a recent year, Agustin also ranks highly in Chile and Uruguay.

Popular name in Spain drawn from the Provencal Mireio, coined by the poet Frederic Mistral. Very pretty and, though difficult to spell and pronounce, simpler than the French version.

Diago is sure to be confused with the more common Diego, the Spanish form of James.

Rare Spanish form of Valerius

Widely used in the Latino community, the name gained renown in the nineties for its association with rapper Gerardo Mejía of 'Rico Suave' fame.

Variation of the name Yara—an Arabic name well-used in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries meaning "butterfly"—with the suffix from names like Maritza.

This name of a famous ancient Roman jurist is sometimes heard in the Hispanic community.

A multicultural nickname for Samuel. The Spanish and Finnish variation is pronounced SAH-moo, while the Hungarian version is SHAW-moo.

Carlota is the preferred version of Charlotte in Spain and Portugal, each where it ranks among the Top 50 most popular girl names. Carlotta, with two Ts, is the Italian spelling.

Occasionally heard in the 1920s and 30s, along with siblings Bina and Mina; Vienna would be a more modern choice.