Goats are among the favorite animals domesticated by humans. Although they are mostly commercial animals and are reared for profit purposes, they also make amazing pets. Even though they are not flock-oriented, goats are sociable animals. They even become depressed when isolated from their companions. Choosing the right goat name can be just as difficult as naming one of your children. We have compiled this huge list to make your life much easier.
They are inquisitive, smart, and cute creatures that deserve amazing names. Also, they are extremely intelligent and like dogs, they can be taught their names and be called by these names. Are you finding it difficult to pick a suitable name for your goat? This article contains a huge list of handpicked goat names that you might like. Once the name has been chosen, I would suggest you take a look at our complete goat raising article to brush up on your goat knowledge.
If you are in a hurry to find a suitable goat name, you can use the goat name generator to find your choice.
Why it’s so difficult to choose a name for your goats
Naming dogs and cats come so naturally. It’s almost like those animals were born to be named. You take one look at a dog and a name pops up in your head. It’s that easy. Naming goats on the other hand, doesn’t come so easy. This is probably due to a mental stereotype that we all adopt subconsciously.
We find dogs and cats cute. So cute, we give them names. But goats bleat. Yeah! That’s how most people feel. After moving past all that and finally challenging yourself to pick a name for your goat, one more obstacle still lies ahead.
If you’re looking to register your goat under the American Goat Association or the American Dairy Goats Association, you might spend a little more time trying to choose a name than you think. There are some strict rules of naming your goats that you must follow which could slow you down a bit by narrowing your options.
Nevertheless, our amazing list will broaden your options and make it easy to choose the perfect name for your goat.
How to Name Your Goats
Naming a goat, as discussed, can be a bit difficult. However, there are some simple guidelines you can follow to ease the burden and make it easier.
Observe the goat’s characteristics and personality
Each goat has a unique personality, just like humans. Don’t just rush into naming the goat once it is born or immediately you purchase it. Be patient a little to observe the goat. It might take a few days or weeks, but it’s totally worth it. This can give you an idea of a very unique name for that particular goat.
Observe the Coat Color
You could also name the goat with its coat color. For instance, a goat with black coat color could be called “Black” or “Blackie” or even “Midnight”. You don’t have to give it a name that is the exact coat color. Be creative with it.
A goat with patches of different colors could be named “patches”. And if you’re feeling extra playful, you could name it “Joseph”. It’s also fun to ask your friends for name ideas. Who knows, you might like what they have in mind.
Choose a goat name from a different language
Another easy method is to name your goat: “Goat”, but in a different language.
Goat Names in Different Languages
- Croatian – jarac
- Danish – ged
- Dutch – geit
- Italian – Capra
- German – Ziege
- Spanish – cabra
- Turkish – keçi
- Portuguese – bode
Naming your goats doesn’t have to be rigid. You could be inspired by almost anything. The most important thing is that you have fun picking the names. You should also ensure that the name meets the length requirements of the AGS and the ADGA in case you plan to register your goats under any of these associations.
Using a goat name generator is also a good option. It suggests amazing goat names you can modify to suit your taste.
Naming the Herd
Each person has a first name and then a surname (or last name). This surname is like the general family name. Everyone in the family has that name in common. The same with goats.
The herd name is like the surname of that particular goat family. Naming the herd is a bit more difficult than naming individual goats. And if you have more than one herd on your farm, you have to think of more than one herd name.An easy way would be to use themes.
Pick a theme for each herd. Themes are discussed later in the article. Themes make record keeping easier. You could also name the herd after the first member of the herd.
If you’re planning to register your herd and goats under the American Goat Association or the American Dairy Goats Association, then I suggest you use their guide on naming herds. There are a few rules you need to strictly abide by. You can separate your goats according to their breeds into different herds and name each herd after that particular breed.
Goat Breeds
There are various breeds of goats. A breed is a group of animals with similar characters such as colour, shape, etc. They’re usually peculiar to a particular geographical location and these traits can be transferred from one generation to another. The breed of a goat largely determines the characteristics and performance of the goat.
Breeds of goat are grouped majorly into four:
- Meat breeds
- Milk breeds
- Hide/skin breeds
- Fleece breed
Some common breeds of goats include:
Alpine
They are usually medium to large-sized. Also, they are milk breeds which means they produce relatively more milk than meat and hide breeds. Furthermore, they have no specific coat color. You’ll generally find them with straight, slightly longhorns with erect ears.
There are different types.
- Swiss Alpine
- French Alpine
- British Alpine
Angora
The Angora is a very good-looking breed of small-sized domesticated goats. They are very hairy and their fleece is used to produce a special type of fiber. Although they are mostly kept for commercial purposes, they make cute pets because of the huge returns from their hair
West African dwarf
As the name implies, this breed is found mostly in Africa. They are medium-sized with short legs and they are also meat breeds.
American Cashmere
They are known for their fine, long straight hair. Like the Angora, they are fleece/fiber breeds.
Moreover, they have straight faces and ears that are down-turned.
Anglo-Nubian
This is a British breed. They are large-sized and dual-purpose (meat & dairy). Plus, they have large pendulous ears and slightly long legs. No specific coat color. They are also very sociable and vocal.
Corsican
They are an especially “good-looking” breed of goats. Moreover, they have long straight fleece, especially at the rear side. In addition, they are French.
Australian
Mainly based in Australia, this is a fleece/fiber breed. It produces lean and low-fat meat
Bagot
This is a wild breed of goats. They are usually white and black. You will find them with long, strong horns that are curved backwards. In addition, they are small to medium-sized with long hair.
Saanen
This is a Swiss breed of goats. And most fascinating is that it is the most widely distributed dairy goat. They are very sociable and docile animals.Usually, a pure white or light cream coat colored with some black spots on the nose, and ears. They have long necks and short legs and are naturally polled.
Toggenburg
A Swiss breed. They are medium-sized with short hair. Coat color ranges from light brown to dark chocolate.
Russian white
The main coat color is pure white. Dairy breed and medium-sized.
Goat terminology
Every field has its terminology. They are like basic jargon that is peculiar to a particular field. The direct opposite of a lame man’s language/terms. If you’re just starting goat production or you’ve been around goats for a while, there are some basic terms you should know.
Some basic goat terms are listed in this article.
- Billy or Buck – An adult male goat that has attained sexual maturity.
- Does it nanny – An adult female goat that has reached sexual maturity
- Wether – A castrated male goat
- Caprine – Generally used to refer to the goat species
- Herd – A group of goats
- Browse – Goats are not grazers, they are browsers. This is their method of feeding
- Polled – A goat that is naturally hornless
- Doeling – A young female goat that has not attained sexual maturity
- Buckling – A young male goat that has not attained sexual maturity.
- Kid – A baby goat under a year.
- Kidding – The act of parturition(giving birth) in goats.
- Gestation period – Time of pregnancy which is about 150 days in goats
- Udder – The mammary gland
- Sire – A male parent
- Dam – A female parent
- Pelt – Term for goatskin
- Open – A non-pregnant female that is open for mating
- Castration – The removal of the testicles to prevent fertility in male goats.
- Butting – This is the method of fighting for goats.
Especially the male goats.
- Wean – When a baby goat is stopped from breastfeeding.
Female Goat Names
A sizzling list of nice names for your female goats has been prepared in this article.
- Nanny- This one is simple and easy to guess since a female goat is called a nanny
- Nan/Nann – Still gotten from Nanny.
Basically the short form of Nanny.
- Anny – Still another short form of Nanny. Once you remove the ‘N’, you’re left with “Anny”
- Doe – Another name for a female goat.
- Patches – A nice name to give a female goat that is patched
- Goldie – A brown or golden colored female goat can be given this name
- ILLy – A short form of Billy which is used to refer to a male goat
- Molly- a female name
- Tilly- an abbreviated form of Matilda
- Tinker- unskillful worker
- Penny – a flat or slim looking goat could be called penny
- Shortlegs – for a female goat with short legs
- Brownie – a nice name for a brown color coated goat
- White – a white color coated goat can be called white
- Remy- its french origin means remedy
- Elle- female in French
- Mimi- a fairy depicted in rock and carvings
- Holly- a beautiful shrub with dark-green leaves, small white flowers, and red berries.
- Ellie- fair to look at.
- Olive – nice name for a female twin goat, the male can be called Oliver
Male goat names
A list of amazing male goat names to give your goats in 2021
- Billy – Don’t you just struggle to hold back your laughter when you hear a male human being referred to as “Billy”. Really, humans should just leave the name for goats
- Bill – Nice short form of Billy
- ILLY – another short form for Billy
- Oliver – a nice name for a male twin; the female can be olive.
- Poker- a metal rod with a handle
- Grumpy – a not so sociable goat could be called grumpy
- Buckly – from Buck
- Barry- fair-haired boy
- Brandy – a goat named it tagged with a branding iron
- Robin- having a red breast
- Bob – a fat or round like goat.
- Roley- a truncated form of Roland
- Blackie – a name for a black color coated goat
- Buck – a male goat is called a buck
- Buster
- Cavani
Typical goat name ideas
Typical goat names ideas for naming your goats. You could give them names based on their personalities and looks. Or you’re feeling silly, witty, sassy and you’d like to give your goat names to express just how you feel. You could even pick a theme and name your goats in line with that theme.
Here are some categorized amazing name ideas for you.
Funny goat names
Funny names you could give your goats to give your neighbors a good laugh.
- Ganker
- Shortlegs
- Batman
- Fries
- Chevon
- Mutton
- Peppers
- Nutmeg
- Sir Dingles
- Beef
- Jerky
- Sushi
- Dwarfy
- Wonder
- Cherish
Cute goat names
Cute pet goat names for cute goats with irresistible charm
- Giggles
- Cupcakes
- Sweets
- Glitters
- Peaches
- Pumpkin
- Snowballs
- Nibbles
- Buttercup
- Bubbles
- Blossom
- Candy
- Sugar
Sassy goat names
- Rachet
- Sassy
- Harley Quin
- Joker
- Sass
- Rudey
- Diva
- Tramp
- Queen B
- Godiva
- Cover girl
Unique goat names
Unique goat names you might not hear anywhere else
- Manjer
- Barney (from barn not Barney and friends)
- Paddock
- Randler
- Hooves
- Furry
- Browsie – from browsing, goat way of feeding.
- Nubian
- Nubia
- Butter – from butting
- Pelty
- Sannen
- Alpie
Inappropriate goat names
Some names are inappropriate for your goats.
Names that promote violence, incite hate speech, or are offensive to a group of people or a particular religion are off-bound and inappropriate.
- Killer
- Fighter
- Foe
- Hater
- War
- Butthead
- Allah
- god
- Scapegoat
- Shooter
Silly goat names
- Jingle bells
- Butt
- Milky
- Kiddy
- Goat
- Goaty
- Goatham
- Goatly
- Hornie
- Horns
- Goat face
Themed goat names
You could pick an interesting theme for your goat names. If you want to have more fun with themes, then you can divide your goats into herds. Each herd should have a name. Here’s the fun part. The name of each herd will be a particular theme. Every goat in that herd gets a name based on that particular theme.
Here’s an example. Assuming I have 9 herds on my farm. I pick one of those herds and I name the herd: “One Direction”.
A goat in that particular herd could be named: Zayn or Zayny. Get it? Some nice themed names are listed here in this article.
Famous goat name
- Messi
- Beyonce
- Nickki
- Ronaldo
- Neymar
- Le’ Bron
- Jordan
- Smith
Royalty goat names
Royalty goat names make your goat look special and important.
Some fancy names you can call your goat :
- Duke
- Dutchess
- Prince
- Princess
- Lord
- Lady
- King
- White House
- Queen
- Oueenett
- Beverly hills
- Kingly
- Sire
- Madame
- Queenie
- Kingdom
- Ruler
- Elizabeth
Western goat names
- Bill
- Bonne
- Butch
- Colt
- Copper
- Frank
- Hary
- Gary
- Flynn
- Alonzo
- Clayton
- Dallas
- Holy
- Henry
- Cassady
- Annie Oakley
- Calamity
- Jane
- Belle
- Pearl
- Hart
- Elliot
- Dora
- Nellie
- Mae
- West
Disney characters goat names
Popular actual goat names from Disney characters;
- Billy gruff – the goat from Goldie and the bear
- Billy – from air buddies
- Gertie – Mickey mouse
- Gomper – gravity falls
- Lupe – Ferdinand
- Gideon – Mickey mouse
- Djali – hunchback of Notre Dame
Some other names from Disney characters ;
- Anna
- Elsa
- Olaf
- Simba
- Mufasa
- Ariel
- Anna
- Alice
- Aurora
- Aladdin
- Belle
- Chip
- Dale
- Cinderella
- Beast
- Charming
- Nala
- Kiara
- Zazu
- Timon
- Punmba
African Goat Names
It really isn’t a normal custom in most parts of Africa to name goats.
However, here are some cool African goat names for your goats :
- Nthatisi
- Tinu
- Zulu
- Gbogon
- Abu
- Obi
- Mbuzi
- Xolani
- Tokelo
- Ewure
- Ewe
Hawaiian goat names
- Lilo
- Nani
- Elue
- Aikane
- Noa
- Lelele
- Laka
- Hiwa
- Kiki
- Lale
Military goat names
These include names that reflect anything peculiar to the military.
- Sergeant – A nice name for a male goat
- Platoon – This will make a really nice herd name
- Captain
- Serge
- Colonel
- Corporal
- Commander – a rather authoritative male goat could be give this name
- Attention
- Base
- Air Force
- Major
- General
Pirate goat names
- Captain
- Ship
- Eye patch
- Hooker
- Captain hook
- Pirate
- Hat
- Ahoy
- Skull
- Captain
Our yearly list
Now it’s time to compile our yearly goat list.
Our top picked goat names of 2021
- Molly
- Tilly
- Tinker
- Penny
- Shortlegs
- Brownie
- Bonne
- Butch
- Colt
- Copper
- Frank
- Hary
- Gary
- Flynn
- Alonzo
- Clayton
- Dallas
- Holy
- Annie
- White
- Remy
- Elle
- Mimi
- Holly
- Ellie
- Olive
- Smokey
- Midnight
- Pitchy
- Bevey
- Gruff
- Billy
- Bill
- Nanny
- Nan
- Miami
Goat Names from 2020
Below are a few of our top male and female goat names from 2020.
- Steve
- Dwight
- Rainn
- Pam
- Jenna
- Ryan
- Ed
- Andy
- James
- Jim
- Ceryl
- Daenerys
- Jorah
- Viserys
- Jon
- Robb
- Sansa
- Arya
- Theon
- Bran
- Joffrey
- Sandor
- Ellen
- Doris
- Lisa
- Bettie Joe
- Billie Jo
- Kate
- Janet
- Lovey
- Maryann
- Ginger
- Granny
- Bob
- Bobbie Jo
- Betty
- Bernie
- Barney
- Elsa
- Anna
- Roody
Goat Names from 2019
Top goat names from 2019;
- Broody
- Toby
- Winchester
- GGoos
- Poppy
- Sweet Pea
- Lawson
- Jax
- Opie
- Ansel
- Petal
- Cora
- Nia
- Candie
- Jenni
- Tulip
- Gemma
- Tori
- Thuner
- Chopper
- Gunther
- Hammerhead
- Winter
- Rawhide
- Maverick
- Karma
- Mojo
- Kahun
- Jalap
- Majesty
- Dave
- Rico
- Seline
- Turine
Bottom line
Choosing a name for your goats doesn’t have to be complicated. There are few helpful guidelines that you can glean from this article. Your goat names don’t have to be perfect, even human names are not perfect.
Inspiration can come from anywhere and anything, you just have to be observant and creative. Just ensure you have fun naming your goats. If you want a tool that can do all the work for you, then you should try the goat name generator.
It’s easy to use and you don’t have to trouble your brain.