Skip to main content
Name Biscuit

Boy name

Sam

Sam ranks #44 out of 6,032 boy dog names in our data (the #1 boy dog name is Charlie). Across all 17 places, 839 dogs carry the name. It's also a cat name: #17 among boy cat names.
Sam's popularity trend

Sam's share of dogs, year by year — or toggle to its yearly rank. Peak year by share: 2007.

0.2%0.4%200720112015201920232025
Dogs in our data
839
across 17 places
Popularity rank
#44
of 6,032 boy dog names
5-year rank move
−36
2020 → 2025
Gender split
90% boys
10% girls90% boys
What does Sam mean?
/ˈsæm/1 syllable

Sam is best known as a short form of Samuel, a Hebrew name traditionally interpreted as “God has set” or “God has placed.” It's also used as a nickname for Samson and, for girls, Samantha, making it one of the most flexible unisex short names around.

Easygoing and friendly, Sam has a plainspoken warmth that suits a pet with a steady, no-fuss personality. It works just as well shouted across a backyard as it does on a collar tag.

Etymology & pronunciation from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Where Sam shows up

Sam's share of each place's counted dogs. Places count differently — hover a Share figure for the basis. Click a heading to sort.

Noosa ShireAustralia0.6%
ProspectAustralia0.5%
Surf Coast ShireAustralia0.4%
BurnsideAustralia0.4%
Port Adelaide EnfieldAustralia0.4%
PlayfordAustralia0.3%
TorontoCanada0.3%
DarwinAustralia0.2%
Allegheny CountyUnited States of America0.1%
ZürichSwitzerland0.1%
AdelaideAustralia0.1%
New York CityUnited States of America0.1%
SeattleUnited States of America0.1%
WorcesterUnited States of America0.1%
CambridgeUnited States of America0.1%
Basel-StadtSwitzerland0.1%
Maple RidgeCanada0.1%

Names like Sam

SammySamsonSampsonSamuelSamwiseSamySamuraiSamanthaSammieSammiSamiSamba

Sam means, by theme

God