City Dog Names

Brisk, preppy York is an underused classic with the potential to really shine in the 21st century. It's most familiar as a place name — York is a city in England — and surname. New York City and State were named after the Duke of York.

Attractive North Carolina place-name and surname of explorer Sir Walter Raleigh. Distinctive, classy-but-approachable choice for either sex.

Unseen in the USA since 1901, Boston rocketed back into the Top 1000 in 2004 and, like other place-names such as Brooklyn, London and Paris, is now a reliable presence on the list.

Paris, a one-time mythical and Shakespearean boys' name, peaked in 2004 at Number 157 at least in part due to the highly publicized Paris Hilton. Michael Jackson used it for his daughter.

Hard and shiny, Steel projects an image that's smooth, macho...and cold to the touch.

Looking for a Texas name more distinctive than Austin and Dallas? Houston is a lanky, roguish place-name, right in style with its Texas accent and cowboy image.

Lovers of the languid South Carolina city might be attracted to this rich-sounding name. Could make an interesting update on Charles -- and can certainly work for a girl too. Actor Joey Lawrence used it for his daughter.

Unless it runs in your family, or Alexander Hamilton is your particular hero, you might consider something less imposing -- and without the teasable nickname Ham.

This color name, spelled either Gray or Grey is rapidly catching on. Actress Jenny von Oy recently called her daughter Gray Audrey.

Frisco is a frisky, roguish semi-place-name (San Francisco natives never call it that) that could make a lively, unusual o-ending choice.

Part of the trend for formerly canine royal names; this is one a little girl might love—up till the age of eight.

Kyoto is a Japanese city name not yet on the map for babies, but why not?

Rockers Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz put a new baby name on the map when they chose this downscale New York borough name for their son. The Bronx, the place, was named for early Dutch settler Jonas Bronck. Might Bronx become the next Brooklyn? We'd be surprised if it did.

Tied to the bluesy southern city and to the world heritage cite in Egypt after which it was named, Memphis is a modern choice with ancient history. Currently significantly more popular for boys in the US, as a place name with sounds reminiscent of Paris, Meredith and Emma, it has plenty of potential as a unisex choice.

Wellington is a tony-sounding English surname turned baby name by pregnancy guru Rosie Pope, who calls her son Wells for short. It's also the middle name of one of the Sweet Home sextuplets, Blu Wellington.

British habitational surname that calls to mind the Connecticut capital

Queen has seen a revival in recent times, reaching its record high in 2018 with 280 births — it has remained steady since then. Previously, Queen saw a peak in the 1920s, but its origins go back even further than that. Queen was a noted name among enslaved people in America, along with other royal choices such as Duke, Squire, and Prince.

Viva Las Vegas? What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas? We think not. Maybe Vega, the name of an actual heavenly star?

Edgy German capital with definite possibilities as a baby name.