Meaning and background
The story behind Nemo
Nemo combines a Latin nobody meaning with two well-known fictional associations: Jules Verne’s captain of the Nautilus and the fish in Finding Nemo. Those stories offer very different images despite the shared name. An owner can choose the submarine captain, the animated character or simply the sound without pretending the literal word describes the dog’s importance. The short spelling keeps either reference compact. Mention the intended character when telling the story, since listeners may automatically imagine the other one.
- Origin
- Latin word meaning nobody, used for Jules Verne’s captain and later the film fish. Source
Try Nemo out loud
Everyday moments“Nemo, come here!”
Say it as you would on a walk or at home. Does it feel natural alongside your usual commands and other pets’ names?
About Nemo
Recorded as a dog’s name
Nemo appears in 15 dog licence records in the 2026 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
/nɛmoʊ/
US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.
Stress on the first syllable in the recorded US readings.
View dictionary notation
/nɛmoʊ/ · primary stress on syllable 1N EH1 M 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 — extract_year 2026 — Dog licence periods, not unique dogs; NYC only. No owner-level fields retrieved.
- 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.