Baby Name of the Day Dove: Meaningful and Surprising

The baby name Dove might be the next girl name borrowed from the birds.

Thanks to Photoquilty for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.

WHAT DOES THE NAME DOVE MEAN?

Like Robin and Wren, Raven and Paloma, bird names often inspire parents. 

Some feel more obviously avian; others seem more subtle.

Doves are cousins to pigeons, both members of the Columbidae family, along with a few hundred others. Names like Jonah and Jemima also relate to the birds.

It’s thought that the word comes from the Germanic dubon – to dive, related to their pattern of flight – via the Old English dufe.

SYMBOL OF PEACE

Many nature names carry specific symbolism, but few are as immediately familiar as Dove.

In the story of Noah, the bird signals the end of the floods, by returning to the ark carrying an olive leaf, confirming that dry land awaits.  

Long before that, ancient goddesses in Mesopotamia and Greece claimed the birds as their symbols, to name just two uses in the pre-Christian era.

Early Christians took them as a symbol of the holy spirit. Doves appear in Shintoism and Buddhism, too.

Despite many religious uses, the bird is best known as an international symbol of peace, dating back to ancient Greece. 

But it took a famous artist to make the connect explicit for the modern world.

PICASSO and WORLD PEACE

In 1948, artist Pablo Picasso’s lithograph La Colombe inspired the symbol of the Word Peace Council. They adopted the bird as their official symbol in 1949.

Picasso spoke at a future World Peace Congress, and named his daughter Paloma, the Spanish name for the bird.

At least one of his iterations of the bird as symbol remains widely known. 

IS DOVE A UNISEX NAME?

Dov – spelled without an E – comes from Hebrew. Instead of wings, it suggests paws. Dov means bear, and is traditionally masculine.

There’s also the masculine Dovev and feminine Doveva, from a Hebrew word meaning “to draw out” or possibly “to whisper.” In this case, there’s a clear male/female divide.

As for the bird? A tiny handful of boys have received the name, but the overwhelming use is feminine. It’s tough to call this name gender-neutral in terms of use, but on sound alone, it works perfectly well. 

DOVE IN THE OLD WEST

In 1985, Larry McMurtry published Lonesome Dove, the Old West story of retired Texas rangers driving cattle to Montana. It became a bestseller and won the 1986 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. It inspired a television mini-series adaptation, too. Three more books – and mini-series – followed into the 1990s.

The novel’s title refers to the Texas border town where the story begins. McMurtry has also said that the title refers to one of the characters, a teenage orphan – though the character answers to a different name. 

It remains a powerful association for many, and with a new Netflix adaptation in the works, it’s easy to imagine this name gaining more attention. 

DOVE SI TROVA & OTHER USES

If you speak Italian, this is simply a word meaning where. But it’s pronounced doh-VAY.

It’s possible you’d find it in use as a surname, either for someone who kept the birds or maybe someone who shared their gentle nature.

Some might think of Tamora Pierce’s character Dovesary, from Tamora Pierce’s fantasy novels.

YouTube family The Crawfords, known for their extended hikes and adventures as a family, gave the name to their firstborn daughter. 

Reality television’s Natalie Halcro of E’s Relatively Nat & Liv gave the name to a daughter in early 2020. So did Teddi Mellencamp, of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills fame.

Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom welcomed daughter Daisy Dove in 2020.

But in recent years, there’s no question where at least some parents have first heard it as a possible choice.

FAMOUS FIGURE

While other people have answered to the name, as of the 21st century it belongs to one actress.

Disney Channel alum Dove Cameron headlined popular hits like Liv & Maddie and The Descendants.

Cameron was born Chloe Celeste Hosterman. She took her screen name from a childhood nickname.

If you know your Disney villains, chances are you know the story.

In 2015, Cameron took on the role of Mal, daughter of Maleficent in an alternate universe where all the Disney villains have been imprisoned on the Isle of the Lost. But now a handful of the “villain kids” are getting a chance to enroll at Auradon Prep, where the children of the heroic good are educated.

Mal falls in love with Ben, son of Belle and the Beast, and heir to the throne of Auradon.

Drama follows. Enough for not one, but four sequels with a fifth in the works. Cameron left after the original trilogy. It made her a major celebrity for a generation. 

The actress has graduated to more adult roles, like sSchmigadoon!’s Betsy on Apple TV+, and has launched a singing career. 

Along the way she’s also ensured that a generation grew up hearing her nickname-turned-stage name as a viable option for a daughter.

HOW POPULAR IS THE NAME DOVE?

The name appears in US popularity data way back in 1880, the very first year for which data is reported. 

Prior to the Disney Channel star’s success, the name was used in tiny numbers – a dozen or so girls a year.

By 2020, with fellow brief bird name Wren soaring, it was given to 51 girls.

As of 2025, an all-time high of 144 girls received the name.

A NAME SET TO SOAR

Parents have embraced nature names. Meaning matters, too. Dove blends both – it’s a purpose name at home in the blue sky, a hopeful choice that immediately brings to mind a specific image.

The brief, complete sound and that V sound help, too. Just ask Evelyn and Olivia, Grace and Quinn. And, of course, Maeve – perhaps the most obvious forerunner. 

Put it all together and this name feels set to soar.

What do you think of the baby name Dove?

Originally published on June 5, 2009, this post was revised on February 22, 2020; December 1, 2021; and October 20, 2026.