Unique Male Dog Names: Unique Male Names and Meanings

The unique male dog names list has names for dogs who are different, uncommon or downright anomalous. For unique dogs or owners, you need a name that is special. Leave the commonplace behind as you hunt for the consummate canine cognominate.

Hunting for a famous name? Look for highlighted entries with details about famous people and characters who inspired some of the names on this list.

Do you have a unique Chihuahua? How about naming him Jumbo or King? If you are an artist, how about Picasso? Love country music? Try Rascal in honor of Rascal Flatts.

If you prefer one syllable dog names, there are a few on this list including Benz, Gage, Jax and Monk. Head straight over to the one syllable list to see a lot more. Caution: Try to avoid one syllable name that sounds like a dog training command. It could confuse your dog.

For this unique list, I tried to avoid the most popular dog names like Jake, Bailey, Sadie and Bella, even though one of my dogs is named Bailey (love that name). If you DO like popular names, check the top 100 dog names list for suggestions.

My Favorite Unique Male Dog names

Four of my favorite unique male dog names are Radar, Gizmo, Basil and Zephyr. As a fan of Eric Clapton’s music, I also like the name Clapton. Never heard of Clapton? Ugh.

NOTE: That very beautiful dog in the picture to your right is named Loke, a very unique name. Thanks to Damian Searles of Australia for making this outstanding photo available.

You might also find something you like on the Hunting dog names list. You don’t hunt? No problem. There are still a ton of great one syllable names to consider.

Below is a list of more than 140 of my favorite unique male dog names, many with reasons why they made the list. Have fun while you are search.

If you don’t find a name you like, visit our Dog Names by Breed page or one syllable dog names list to see more options. For even more names, search our list of more than 4,000 puppy names.

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Name	Meaning
Achilles	Hero of Greek mythology. Remember the Trojan War? He was one of its heroes.
Al Fresco	Will your dog be outside a lot? Al Fresco may be perfect as it means “outside.”
Aladdin
Alcatraz	The famous prison island in San Fransisco Bay.
Alpaca	Like a Llama, only smaller.
Apex	The very top or peak of something.
Apogee
Argyle	Multi-colored, diamond shaped pattern. Think “preppy.”
Balboa	As in, Rocky Balboa. Yo, Adrian!
Baldwin	As in Alec, Stephen, William and Daniel, the actors who are brothers.
Famous Name: Alec Baldwin (born 3 April 1958) is the eldest of four brothers, all of whom are actors like him. Some of his most popular films include Beetlejuice (1988), The Cooler (2003) and The Aviator (2004).
Basil	Yes, the herb. Or, Basil of Baker Street, the mouse character in The Great Mouse Detective. One of my favorite unique male dog names.
Bengal	The great, orange striped tiger. Think “Shere Khan” from Disney’s The Jungle Book.
Benz	As in the sweet luxury cars.
Beowoof	A play on the Old English poem, Beowulf, from the 11th century.
Berber	A type of carpet or a North African people group.
Beret	A cool hat. No, not “cold,”but sic, rad, tight, etc.
Biscuit	Biscuits often taste good when you make them for breakfast with gravy
Blizzard	A large snowstorm. Might be a good name for an Alaskan Malamute or Siberian Husky.
Boa	Very large snake that squeezes the life out of its victims.
Bobo	Upscale and artistic Bohemians.
Bogart	As in, Humphrey. If you have a male and female dog, you can name them Bogi and Becall.
Famous Name: American cultural icon Humphrey Bogart (25 December 1899 to 14 January 1957) starred in numerous films, including The Petrified Forest (1936), In a Lonely Place (1950) and Sabrina (1954). In his almost 30-year film career, he has appeared in 75 feature films.
Bomber	In snow skiing, someone who flies down the mountain in an out of control fashion. Good name for a snow dog like a Husky, Alaskan Malamute or Akita.
Bookie	Are you a gambler?
Borat	A mockumentary comedy movie released in 2006.
Famous Name: Borat Sagdiyev is a fictional Kazakh character played by English actor Sasha Baron Cohen. He is the main protagonist in the 2006 mockumentary Borat which followed him in his travels across the United States.
Brewster	An old English name for Brewer. As in, someone who brews beer.
Brodie	The girl’s version of Brody. A Brody is actually a ditch, like the trench you leave in dirt when you peel out with a four wheeler. Think: doing brodies in the dirt.
Famous Name: Best known as “Polaroid Kidd,” Mike Brodie (born 1985) is an American photographer from Florida. His photographs usually depict hobos, squatters, train-hoppers and vagabonds.
Bubbles	Is your puppy bubbly? Do you like Lawrence Welk? (don’t know who that is?)
Buckwheat	As in the character from Little Rascals .
Buddy	From the 2003 movie, “Elf,” with Will Ferrell.
Cameo	An artistic shadow portrait, like you see in jewelry. Also, a brief appearance or small role in a play or film.
Canyon	The Grand Canyon, Hell’s Canyon, Bryce Canyon, etc.
Cappy	As in “Captain,” like an English military captain.
Champ	As in, Champion.
Charlemagne	A Roman Emperor in the 9th Century. Also King of the Frankish kingdom prior to his brief reign as Emperor.
Chauffeur	As in, the driver. Might name your female dog “Daisy.”
Chewbaca	The big brown creature in Star Wars who never actually says any real words. One of my favorite unique male dog names.
Clapton	As in Eric. If you are a guitar player, this could be the one you want.
Famous Name: Eric Clapton (born 30 March 1945) is an English musician, as is considered as the one of the most influential and important guitarists of all time. One of his hits entitled Tears in Heaven expressed his grief on the death of his son in 1991.
Crockett	Davy, Davy Crockett, king of the wild frontier!
Desert	No, not Dessert. The big, sandy place like the Gobi, Sahara, etc.
Dexter	Someone who dyes clothing. Also, the name of my daughter’s Cockapoo!
Diddley	Asin Bo Diddley, the American R&B singer.
Diesel	As in Vin Diesel of Fast Five fame.
Divot	For golfers.
Donner	…and Blitzen, perhaps?
Doodle	Drawing cute little images; often abstract.
Doyle	An Irish name. A stranger or foreigner, often “black” or “dark.”
Dragon	As in, Dungeons and…
Dynamite	If you have two spitfire dogs, you could name them Dynamite and Fire Cracker.
Elvis	The King lives!
Famous Name: Elvis Presley (8 January 1935 to 16 August 1977) is one of the most important cultural icons of the 20th century. Referred as the King of Rock and Roll, his biggest hits include Heartbreak Hotel and Love Me Tender.
Espresso	Coffee, indeed. Good Chocolate Lab name or name for a brown dog.
Euphrates	The sister river to the Tigris in the Fertile Crescent
Falcon	A bird of prey. Hawk-like.
Fender	A brand of guitar. OK, for some it is THE brand of guitar.
Fletch	Short for Fletcher, as in, Andy Fletcher from the band Depeche Mode. Also a 1980s movie with Chevy Chase.
Gage	As in a measuring gage. Also, an oath, guarantee, pledge or promise. Great name for a dog, right?
Gasper	A treasure. Also, one of the three kings – Magi – who visited Christ at His birth. Also, Gaspar.
Genghis	Famous Mongolian leader, Genghis Khan.
Ginko	As in, Ginko Biloba. Ginko is a Chinese tree. Good name for a Chinese dog breed, like a Chow Chow, Shar Pei or Shih Tzu.
Gizmo	One of my favorite Unique Male dog names.
Guinness	The Book of World Records or the beer. Take your pick.
Gyro	Like a Gyrocopter.
Hachiko	The dog star in Hachi: A Dog’s Tale, the 2009 movie staring Richard Gere.
Hogan	Is your dog a hulk? Think of Hulk Hogan, the famous pro wrestler.
Hojo	A Japanese name. The Hojo clan was a ruling family in Japan in the 13th century.
Hooligan	Trouble maker.
Hugo	Of German origin. A bright mind. Intelligent. A popular European name.
Hunter	Pretty good name for a gun dog, or a Hungarian Vizsla, for that matter.
Igor	Norse for Warrier archer.
Jagger	Does your puppy have big lips? Mick Jagger, the famous rocker, does. I’m not sure Mick would be happy he made the unique male dog names list, but we think he should.
Jax	An urban name for sexy guy.
Jetta	As in Volkswagen Jetta. Also, a black gem for a girl’s name.
Jinx	Something that brings bad luck. Actually, this was the nick name for my childhood friend’s dad.
Jumbo	For a big dog, or a very small one like a Chihuahua.
Kevlar	For your bullet-proof puppy.
King	Great name for a large or small dog breed.
Kodak	Like the camera company. Think “Kodak moment.”
Lappy	It’a actually short for laptop. I just thought it was a cute name.
Levi	Think Levi’s jeans. Also, the third son of Lea and Jacob. Head of the Israelite tribe of Levi.
Loverboy	Oh, you know.
Macbeth	As in, The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare. “Out, damned spot!”
Malcolm	Malcolm X, Malcolm in the Middle, etc.
Melvin	A Celtic mill worker. Also, the character Melvin Jones played by Jerry Lewis in the 1952 movie Sailor Beware .
Merc	Short for Mercury, the car, planet and the Greek god.
Monk	A religious man; member of a monastic order, who takes a vow of obedience, chastity and poverty.
Moppet	A child. Often little and sweet, as in a little tyke.
Morris	Of European decent. Comes from Maurice. Dark skinned.
Muscles	Good name for a Rottweiler.
Nacho	How about this one for a Chihuahua. Visit our Chihuahua names page for more ideas.
Napa	For the wine drinkers who love the Napa Valley.
Napoleon	As in, Napoleon Bonaparte or, my son’s favorite, Napoleon Dynamite. Gosh!
Nero	Roman Emperor from 54 to 68. Not a nice man. Executed his enemies – even his own mother!
Nike	The shoe company, the Greek Goddess of Victory, take your pick.
Nitro	For a potent little dog.
Oliver	This is French for elf army.
Oscar	Good name for a Dachshund, or weiner dog, as in Oscar Mayer hot dogs.
Paco	Latin for “from France.”
Paddington	As in, Paddington Bear.
Pagoda	Unique make dog name for an Akita dog or another dog of Asian descent.
Panda	Do you have a black and white dog? Good name.
Pharaoh	As in, the Pharaoh’s of Egypt. Learn about the Pharaoh Hound.
Picasso	As in, the famous Spanish painter, Pablo Picasso.
Pistol	As in, a hand gun. For a flowery pup, use Pistil instead. You know, pistils and stamens?
Popeye	…the sailor man.
Quark	In physics an electronic particle. Also, a type of cheese.
Radar	O’Reilly, from Mash. Another of my favorite unique male dog names.
Rafferty	One who posseses prosperity or good fortune. Abundance.
Rags	Cute name for a shaggy little dog.
Ramstein	As in, Ramstein-Miesenbach, a German municipality. Great German dog name.
Ranger	Think: Ranger Rick , the cute Racoon. Protector of the forest.
Rascal	As in the country band called “Rascal Flatts.”
Rasta	Ya man. As in, Rastafari of Jamaican origin.
Remington	The famous rifle.
Rolf	As in Ralph or Rudolf. Also, Roll On The Floor (laughing).
Romeo	…and Juliet.
Royce	As in Rolls Royce.
Sage	A type of herb, often used for healing.
Seal	Like a Navy Seal. The sea animal. Also, the famous musician.
Sinatra	Will your dog do it his way? Frank Sinatra certainly did.
Skinner	As in, hunter. Also, a mule driver or driver of a mule train.
Slicker	Think “City Slicker.” A city dweller with no experience in the country.
Sonata	Not the car, the song. A musical name.
Tamale	As in “Hot Tamale.” Good name for a Chihuahua or other Mexican breed.
Taz	As in, Tazmanian Devil.
Thumper	For Disney fans.
Tizzy	As in, don’t throw a tizzy! Nervously excited. Or agitated.
Trojan	Is your dog going to be as big as a horse? A Trojan horse, perhaps?
Trooper	Good hunting dog name.
Trout	A type of fish. Fun name for a water dog, like a Labrador Retriever, Otterhound, Standard Poodle, etc.
Venga	A type of fish
Waddles	As in, one who . . . waddles. Just thought this was cute!
Wanderer	One who wanders. Maybe a good name for an explorer or curious dog.
Warhol	For Andy Warhol fans (he was a well-known film maker and pop artist).
Weebles	As in, the rolly polly toys. Weebles wabble but they don’t fall down!
Woodsy	In honor of Woodsy Owl.
Wrangler	For Jeep fans.
Xavier	A Latin name. It has a boring meaing: owns a new house. But it is unique.
Xerxes	A king of the 5th century. One who rules.
Yo Yo	As in the toy yo-yo. Also, Yo-Yo Ma, the great cellist.
Zero	None, as in a numeric quantity. Also, to aim or “zero in.” Not a one syllable name, but not bad for a hunting dog .
Ziggy	As in, the cartoon character.
Zephyr	Greek God of the west wind. Also a cool train from the 1930s. This made the unique male dog names list because I have never met a dog name Zephyr. Great name.

Can’t find the name you like on the Unique Male Dog names list? Don’t give up. Visit our Dog Names by Breed list or one syllable dog names list to do some more searching. If you have a great name, tell us about it!

Share your favorite Dog Names!

Share your favorite dog names and a personal story if you have one. If you do have a story, tell us why you chose the name you did or let us know why the name is special to you.