The 9 Best Cow Names for Your Farm Friend


Cows are sweet and gentle animals. They are also extremely useful. People use cows for milk, beef, and plow work, and some even keep them as pets. There are 920 recognized breeds of cow including Brahma, Holstein, and Angus. There are even miniaturized versions of many breeds people keep as pets. In farms across the U.S., it is not unusual for people to have at least one pet cow. Most people name cows if they have a few dairy cows that they interact with daily. Cow names are useful for dairy cows, pet cows, and show cows. There are traditional names for cows such as Bessy and Mildred but you might want something a bit more unusual or unique.

Cows bond very securely with the people who interact with them regularly. It is a known fact that cows have best friends in the herd and having a single cow means that you are its best friend. Like naming a dog, cow names should be carefully thought-out and suitable for the animal's personality. This list gives you some suggestions for different cow names.

Cow Names FAQ

a man milking his pet cow using his bare hands

Image Source: Unsplash.com

When it comes to naming cows, you might have some questions. Some people name their cows, while others, particularly ranchers who raise beef cattle, do not. Cow names are important particularly when you want to distinguish one cow from another.

1. What Is a Cow, Exactly?

2. What Is the Difference Between a Cow and a Bull?

3. Why Name a Cow?

4. Do Bulls Have Names?

5. Do Cows Make Good Pets?

6. Do Bulls Make Good Pets?

7. How Should You Choose the Right Cow Names?

How We Reviewed Cow Names 

We reviewed a variety of cow names for the overall background and meaning of each name. We also looked at ease of use and uniqueness of the name. Although not all the cow names on this list are completely unique, they do mean interesting things. This list can give you a general idea of some of the best cow names.

What We Reviewed 

a mother cow looking after her calf who may need to get one of the best cow names

Image Source: Pexels.com

  • Dhenu
  • Babhru
  • Akabeko
  • Mucca
  • Charlene
  • Maudine
  • Gaavi
  • Pauline
  • Ushi
  • Vachel

Dhenu

Background or Meaning

Dhenu is an Indian word for a cow or the goddess Durga. In India, cows are sacred and often have names. These names range from words for cow, like Dhenu, to the names of various gods, goddesses, and saints. Dhenu's origin is Hindi. It is also a popular girl's name for human children. There are a few different variations on the name Dhenu such as Dhaenuka, which means sacred cow, and Dhena, which is a milch cow. It is pronounced Den oo, with the oo sound of too, without the T.

Babhru 

Background or Meaning

Although Babhru is technically a boy's name, it works for a cow just fine. Babhru comes from Sanskrit. Sanskrit is an ancient Indian and Indo-European language often used for Hindu text and poetry. It means tawny or yellowish-brown in color, fierce reddish-brown cow, or it can mean fire depending on the language and context. They sometimes refer to the tawny cows as fawn cows. Babhru is pronounced Ba Bar hoo with the hoo sounding like who.

Akabeko 

Background or Meaning

Akabeko has its origins in Japan. It is a famous cow from the Aizu region. It is said that the cow helped to build the famous Enzo-ji temple of Yanaizu in the 9th century. It became a popular toy made from paper mache-covered wood. This toy was not created until the 16th or 17th century and since the head was attached to a string at the back of the body and moved, it was easily the first bobblehead toy. Akabeko is pronounced A (like the a in father) Ka (same a sound as before) bek (pronounced the same as beck) and Ko (hard k, long o.)

Mucca 

black and white cows who have some of the most bizarre cow names

Image Source: Unsplash.com

Background or Meaning

Mucca means cow in Italian but in slang Romanian it can mean friend or mate. It can also denote friendship or kinship. The Italian pronunciation of Mucca is Moo

Ka. It is an interesting name for a cow because of the way that it is pronounced and the fact that it means cow.

Charlene 

Background or Meaning

Charlene, also known as Charlene Mooken or Cincinnati Freedom, is a famous cow. In 2002, she jumped a six-foot slaughterhouse fence and evaded police and animal control for almost a month. She was later turned over to an animal sanctuary where she lived for several more years before succumbing to cancer. You pronounce it sharleen. The name means free man.

Maudine 

Background or Meaning

Maudine Ormsby is a famous winner of the 1926 Ohio State University's homecoming queen competition. Being crowned homecoming queen is a wonderful honor, but in this instance, was a bit unusual as Maudine was a Holstein cow. The name is pronounced Maw Deen. The original meaning of Maudine is from Old English and means strong in battle. It is little wonder that Maudine won for homecoming queen.

Gaavi 

Background or Meaning

Gaavi means cow in Sanskrit which is an ancient Hindu language. Sanskrit is noted in both Indian and Indo-European text and poetry. Many cow names are Hindu in nature because some sects of Hindus believe that cows are a sacred animal, so being named after one was not an insult but an honor. There are a few ways to pronounce this name. The first is closest to the actual Hindi pronunciation. It is Gaa, where the g is short like in got, and the aa is short like in father. The vi sound is more like a hu sound. Another way sounds similar to gay v.

Pauline 

Background or Meaning

Pauline or Pauline Wayne is one of the most famous cows. She was also known as the queen of the capital cows. President Taft and several presidents before him kept cows at the White House. Pauline could be seen roaming around the White House lawns, peacefully grazing or posing for pictures. She provided milk and butter for the President and his family for a number of years and was one of the last cows to occupy the White House. The name is actually a feminine version of Paul and means small.

Ushi 

Background or Meaning

Ushi is Japanese for ox or cow. It is pronounced u (long u) shee. Now if you want to get creative, you could name your cow Ushi-Oni which is the ox demon. Oni is pronounced with the long o and then nee, so o nee.

Vachel 

a brown and small calf with rope around her neck

Image Source: Pexels.com

Background or Meaning

Vachel is the French word for a small cow. In Latin, it means little cow or one who raises cattle. You can pronounce Vachel in a few different ways. The most common way is the French pronunciation va shell. The a makes the short a sound as in happy.

The Verdict 

Cow names make it easy to call, instruct, or give a command to a pet cow, show cow, or dairy cow. Names make different cows easier to distinguish. To find the very best name for your cow, observe its personality. The above selection of cow names is just a guide to some of the more meaningful and unusual names for your cow friends.

Featured Image Source: Pixabay.com

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