The animal kingdom is filled with millions of amazing species beloved and admired by humans. As an animal lover, giving your baby a name inspired by one of your favorite creatures is a meaningful way to share this appreciation with your child.
After combing through our database of over 300,000 names from the Social Security Administration and Oxford University Press, MooseRoots gathered the 28 most common names inspired by animals and ranked them from least to most popular in 2014.
Beverley
Gender: Female
Meaning “beaver and stream,” the name Beverley remains uncommon, with only five baby girls in the U.S. receiving the name in 2014, earning it the rank of 16,845.
Branwen
Gender: Female
The name Branwen, meaning “raven, white, fair” and “blessed, holy,” earned the rank of only 16,715 in 2014, with five baby girls receiving the name.
Rosamund
Gender: Female
Rosamund, a name of English origin meaning “horse" and "protection,” ranked No. 11,665 in 2014, with just nine newborn girls given the name.
Deryn
Gender: Female
Meaning “blackbird,” the Welsh name Deryn earned the rank of 10,269 in 2014, with only 10 baby girls bearing the name.
Bina
Gender: Female
Bina, meaning “bee” or “understanding,” is of Hebrew origin and ranked No. 7,666 among female newborns in 2014.
Portia
Gender: Female
Portia, a name with Latin roots meaning "pig," peaked in popularity in the 1940s, but in the last decade, has declined significantly in use, dropping to the rank of 3,151 in 2014.
Jemima
Gender: Female
A name of English origin, Jemima means “dove,” and ranked No. 3,071 among baby girls in 2014.
Zipporah
Gender: Female
Zipporah, a name of Hebrew origin meaning “bird,” earned the rank of 2,398 in 2014, with only 76 female newborns receiving the name.
Rosalind
Gender: Female
Rosalind, meaning “horse,” and “soft, tender, and weak,” peaked in use in the 1940s. In the last decade, it has experienced steady popularity, ranking No. 1,979 in 2014 among female newborns.
Arlette
Gender: Female
Defined as “eagle,” the French name Arlette ranked just No. 1,818 among baby girls born in 2014.
Coleman
Gender: Male
Coleman, meaning “dove,” was most common in the early 1900s, but over the last decade has experienced a significant decline in popularity, ranking No. 950 among male newborns in 2014.
Paloma
Gender: Female
The Spanish name Paloma means “dove” and earned the rank of 869 in 2014 among female newborns.
Deborah
Gender: Female
Deborah — a name of English, Hebrew and Jewish origins meaning “bee” — was the fourth most popular name for baby girls in the 1950s but ranked No. 753 among baby girls in 2014.
Callum
Gender: Male
The Scottish name Callum, also meaning “dove,” earned the rank of 729 among male newborns in 2014.
Leonard
Gender: Male
Defined as “lion" and "brave, hardy and strong,” the name Leonard reached its pinnacle in the 1920s, but has since experienced a slow decline, dropping to the rank of 662 in 2014.
Malcolm
Gender: Male
Also sharing the meaning of “dove,” the name Malcolm peaked in popularity in the 1920s. However, the name of English and Scottish origins ranked only No. 442 among male newborns in 2014.
Braden
Gender: Male
Braden, meaning “salmon,” ranked No. 358 among baby boys born in 2014 despite a sharp decline in popularity after its peak in the 2000s.
Drake
Gender: Male
Drake, a name coming from the Old English word draca meaning “dragon” or “snake,” has experienced a recent surge in use, ranking No. 348 in 2014 among male newborns.
Marshall
Gender: Male
Defined as “horse" and "servant,” the name Marshall ranked No. 319 in 2014, with a total of 1,079 male newborns given the name.
Hector
Gender: Male
Hector, a Scottish name meaning “brown" and "horse,” ranked No. 291 among male newborns in 2014.
Corbin
Gender: Male
Corbin, a French name meaning “crow,” has soared to new levels of popularity, securing the rank of 203 among male newborns in 2014.
Rose
Gender: Female
Rose, a name of English origin defined as both “fame” and “horse,” reached its peak in the 1910s when it had an average rank of 15. In 2014, however, it was only the 194th most popular name among female newborns.
Mark
Gender: Male
Meaning “crow,” Mark ranked No. 189 among baby boys born in 2014.
Kai
Gender: Male
The German name Kai means “hen” and has been more popular than ever in recent years, ranking No. 177 in 2014, with a total of 2,387 male newborns given the name.
Jonah
Gender: Male
Though Jonah isn’t the only male name meaning dove, it is the most popular: In the last few years, it has experienced a surge in popularity, reaching the 2014 rank of No. 138.
Leo
Gender: Male
While Leo, a name meaning “lion,” was most common in the early 1900s, it has soared in popularity in the last decade, climbing to the rank of No. 97 in 2014.
Penelope
Gender: Female
A name of English origin meaning “duck,” Penelope ranked No. 42 among baby girls born in 2014.
Caleb
Gender: Male
Defined as “dog,” the name Caleb is of Hebrew origin and reached peak popularity in 2014 as the 35th most common name among male newborns.
Baby Names Inspired by Animals
Posted on February 25, 2016 by Laura Woods
