Meaning and background
The story behind Maldonado
Maldonado is a Spanish and Portuguese surname, not a straightforward adjective describing its present-day bearer. A specialist surname dictionary records both an old nickname linked to *mal* and *donado*, roughly “badly endowed” or “ill favoured”, and a place-name route from a Spanish village called Maldonado. These alternatives matter: a dog’s name may be inspired by a family surname rather than an insulting literal phrase.
- Origin
- Spanish and Portuguese surname: either an old nickname from mal + donado (compare Latin male donatus) or a habitational name from Maldonado in Albacete. Source
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About Maldonado
Recorded as a dog’s name
Maldonado appears in 6 dog licence records in the 2022 New York City dataset.
How to read this count
These records cover New York City and may count the same dog in more than one licence period. They are not a national popularity ranking.
Pronunciation and rhythm
/mældənɑdoʊ/
US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.
Stress on the third syllable in the recorded US readings.
View dictionary notation
/mældənɑdoʊ/ · primary stress on syllable 3M AE0 L D AH0 N AA1 D OW0
These are US dictionary readings. Personal, regional and other language pronunciations may differ.
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Sources and research notes (2)
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NYC Dog Licensing Dataset — all seven available extract years, retrieved 24 October 2026 — Recorded name spellings in NYC licence-period rows, extract years 2016–2018, 2022–2024 and 2026. Evidence selects one stated year per name. Annual snapshots overlap; never sum them as unique dogs. No national popularity, etymology or owner naming-intent claim.
- Carnegie Mellon University / CMU Sphinx maintainers CMU US English Pronouncing Dictionary — US English dictionary readings; not owner-specific or exhaustive multilingual pronunciation
References support the individual facts shown. A source link does not mean the entire profile has been verified.