I have to admit, I have a soft spot in my heart for all things Spanish!
Coming up with a unique name for your dog can take time and needs careful consideration.
If like me, you love all things Spain or have a Spanish dog breed that needs an Spanish-sounding name, we have a list of 180+ Spanish female and male dog names and their meanings to get you started.
Top 10 Spanish Dog Names
We'll start off with this year's top 10 Spanish names being used by dog owners.
Paco ~ a shorter nickname for Francisco
Che ~ friend, mate or pal
Diego ~ supplanter, or one who rules
Zorro ~ fox, a tough manly dog name.
Taco ~ not only the name of a food dish but also means stocky or short
Maya ~ refers to the Mayan civilization
Male Spanish dog names
For all of you pet owners with boy dogs, we have a thorough list of manly dog names for you to choose from.
There are twelve breeds of dog that are native to Spain, and the best-known of these is Alano Español or Spanish Alano (Spanish Bulldog).
- Alejandro: means “defending men”, a good one for a watchdog
- Alonzo: noble or ready
- Antonio: means “worthy of praise”, for all the good boys
- Armand: means soldier, perfect for the protector of the home
- Benito: blessed, a cute Spanish boy dog name
- Bernardo: strong as a bear, the perfect Spanish guard dog name
- Chico: means “small boy”, for those lovable little dogs
- Cortez: as the name implies, it means polite, or courteous, perfectly apt for your well-behaved pooches
- Dante: enduring
- Eduardo: prosperous guardian
- Eloy: means "the chosen"
- Enrique: means “ruler of the home”
- Federico: translates to "peaceful ruler"
- Fernando: can mean adventure, or journey, a good one for adventurous hounds
- Galeno: means “small intelligent one”, for your super-smart dog
- Gitano: refers to a male gypsy, which is great for hiking and adventurous dogs
- Guillermo: it means "resolute protector", excellent names for German Shepherds, Dobermans or other guard dogs.
- Hernan: gentle traveller
- Inigo: it translates to "my little love"
- Julio: means “soft-haired”
- Leon: lion
- Leonardo: brave lion
- Marco: means warlike, another cute name for a protecting guard dog
- Nicolas: victorious
- Onofre: “defender of peace”
- Pablo: small, or humble
- Paco: eagle
- Pancho: free
- Pedro: stone or rock
- Ramon: protector
- Raul: "wolf counsel"
- Riacardo: "dominant ruler"
- Serge: it means servant
- Vicente: origin ~ latin, meaning "conquerer"
- Nelo: Spanish, diminutive of Daniel and "God is my judge" is the Hebrew translation
- Alberto: means "noble, bright"
- Gonzalo: it means "saved from combat"
- Xabier: means "new house or bright"
- Dario: "kingly or possess well"
- Santiago: "Saint James"
- Baltasar: "God protects the King"
- Benicio: prounonced ben-EE-see-o and it means "blessed"
- Cecha: "long-haired", great choice of dog name for an Afghan Hound, Lhasa Apso or a Shih Tzu.
Spanish girl dog names
If you are looking for a female Spanish dog name, you can use any of these for inspiration.
- Alejandra: this is the female version of Alejandra, which means protector of man
- Alicia: noble
- Alma: caring
- Anita: grace
- Beatriz: means voyager, good for dogs who like to explore
- Bebe: means baby, because our dogs will always be our little babies
- Bonita: beautiful
- Brisa: breeze
- Rosalyn: pretty rose
- Carina: it means "dear little one"
- Carmen: garden
- Catalina: pure
- Charo: a flower or a rose
- Chica: refers to a female friend
- Chiquita: a nickname that means little lady, small fry, shorty, or little girl
- Cielo: heaven
- Consuela: means comfort, or to bring comfort
- Corazon: heart
- Dahlia: is the name of a Mexican flower
- Damita: means little noble one
- Eldora: can mean blonde or “gift of the sun”
- Elena: means bright, or shining light
- Esmeralda: means emerald or jewel
- Estrella: star
- Eva: life
- Felicia: happy
- Fernanda: means adventurous, for all of those curious pups
- Flor: flower
- Gitana: refers to a gypsy, great for traveling dogs
- Graciela: means graceful beauty
- Hada: can mean fairy or noble spirit
- Inez: pure
The Spanish Water dog (perro de agua español) has a very distinctive curly coat that requires minimal grooming
- Inocencia: innocent
- Jacinta: refers to a precious stone and means beautiful
- Lalo: "wealthy guardian"
- Lareina: “the queen”, perfect for those diva dogs
- Lela: can mean night, beauty, or flower
- Letitia: joy or gladness
- Lucia: light
- Luna: the Spanish word for Moon
- Macaria: blessed
- Margarita: means pearl but can also refer to the alcoholic beverage
- Marina: meaning “of the sea” and is great for those water-loving pooches
- Marta: meaning “the lady”, for those well-composed and polite pets
- Melia: meaning "work", a good one for those hard-working dogs
- Melosa: sweet and gentle
- Mona: can mean cute, doll, or monkey
- Neva: means white snow, perfect for white coated dogs
- Nieva: also means snow or snowy
- Nina: little girl
- Olinda: protector
- Paloma: dove
- Querida: dear
- Reina: queen
- Risa: laughter, something our pets bring a lot of
- Rosa: rose
- Sonora: pleasant-sounding
- Valencia: strong and brave
- Ventura: luck or good fortune
- Vida: beloved
- Xiomara: “ready for battle”, a good one for a guard dog
- Zerlina: beautiful dawn
- Zita: “little hope”
Spanish Food Dog Names
Ancient artifacts suggest that the Ibizan Hound has been in existence for over 5,000 years
For all of you pet owners who are also foodies, here are some inventive Spanish food names for dogs based on Spanish cuisine.
- Bravas: short for patatas bravas, which is fried potatoes
- Chorizo: a cured spicy sausage, the perfect hispanic dog name
- Nacho: from Nachos, tortilla chips - another great spicy dog name choice
- Croquetas: refers to fried food rolls
- Jamón: a favorite in Spain, ham
- Paella: or Pypy for short, this is a dish of rice and seafood
- Pisto: Spanish version of ratatouille, which is a stewed vegetable dish
- Catalana: short version of Crema Catalana, is the Spanish version of a crème Brulee
- Churro: a fried pastry made from dough
- Empanada: a Spanish filled pastry
- Fabada: short for Fabada asturiana, this is a rich Spanish bean stew
- Gaz or Pacho: both are short for Gazpacho, which is a cold vegetable soup
- Leche: Spanish for milk
- Tigres: a Spanish seafood dish
- Corona: a Spanish beer
- Tostada: one of the most traditional Spanish breakfast foods is a tostada — a piece of toasted bread.
- Tortilla: a type of thin flatbread, typically made from corn or wheat.
- Enchillada: a corn tortilla rolled around a filling and covered with a savory sauce.
City-Inspired Unique Spanish Dog Names
The Spanish galgo dog (Spanish Greyhound) was a hunting dog and stretches back to ancient times
If you want to be even more unique, these Spanish cities make some really good names for your dog.
- Almy: short for the Spanish city Almería
- Avila: a Spanish county known for it's rolling countryside and medieval buildings
- Barcy: a shortened version for the city of Barcelona
- Burgos: the historic capital of Castile
- Cádiz: an ancient port city in the southwest of Spain
- Cata or Loni: both are shortened versions of Catalonia, known for its beach resorts
- Cancún: a Mexican city on the Yucatán Peninsula bordering the Caribbean Sea
- Caracas: capital of Venezuela
- Córdoba: a southern region of Spain that was once an important spot for the Romans
- Coruña: known for its tower of Hercules and Roman lighthouse
- Coro: a UNESCO World Heritage site in Venezuela
- Santiago: is the capital and largest city of Chile
- GeeGee: a shortened form of Gijón, which is a large northern coastal city
- Govi: shortened version of Segovia, this is a historic city that lies northwest of Madrid
- Ibiza: one of the Spanish Balearic islands that are well known for its lively tourism
- León: a northwestern city in Spain that is known for its medieval castles and churches
- Madrid: the capital of Spain
- Murcia: a southeastern Spanish city known for its universities
- Toledo: an ancient city in central Spain
- Vigo: a northwest coastal city that sits at the mouth of the Vigo Estuary
- Ronda: a mountain top city in Spain
- Acapulco: beach resort town on Mexico's Pacific coast.
- Panama: country on the isthmus linking Central and South America
- Duquesa: Puerto de la Duquesa is one of the main Costa del Sol's marinas in Spain.
Creative Spanish Names for Male and Female Dogs
Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.
This list is for pet owners, and their pooches, who have a bit of a sense of humor or want a name that sounds fun.
- Amigo: friend
- Amor: love
- Arco Iris: rainbow
- Batachica: refers to Batgirl, the female Super hero
- Blanco: means white, good for white-haired dogs
- Dinero: money
- Duende: probably one of the hardest words to translate in the Spanish language, it means a "strong feeling of passion"
- Friolero: refers to a person who is particularly sensitive to the cold
- Gordo: means fat, for your more rotund pets
- Grande: means big, perfect for those large breeds
- Iberian: refers to the people living in the eastern and southern coasts of the Iberian Peninsula.
- Loco: means crazy and brings to mind those nervous little Chihuahuas
- ¡Ándale: cartoon character Speedy Gonzales famous words: "¡Ándale! ¡Ándale! ¡Arriba! ¡Arriba! ¡Epa! ¡Epa! ¡Epa! Yeehaw!"
- Montadito: a small two-bite sandwich on an itsy bitsy baguette
- Pardo: in Spain when you’re undecided about something, you use the term “pardo”.
- Pequeno: means little, for a puppy or a small dog
- Pitufina: refers to Smurfette, cartoon character from the Smurfs
- Rojo: red, a good strong alcoholic dog name
- Uno: means one, but can also refer to the popular card game
- Bessos: kisses
- Brey: refers to Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy Brey
- Bueno: good
- Descarado: sassy
- Diez: the number 10, for dogs who are a perfect ten
- Perrito: puppy, a sassy Mexican boy dog name
- Perro: dog
- San Miguel: one of many of Spain’s best commercial beers
- Tonto: means silly
- Torpe: means awkward or clumsy
- Turas: from “Aventuras”, meaning "adventure"
You are sure to find the perfect name for your furry friend from these lists of great Spanish dog names.
While these aren't just for Spanish breeds, they do make great choices for Spanish Mastiffs, Spanish Water Dogs, Catalan Sheepdogs, Andalusian Hounds, Spanish Greyhounds, and Great Pyrenees.
Have fun choosing your pet's new name!
