Meaning and background
The story behind Orion
Orion is one of the best-known constellations, named after a giant hunter in Greek mythology. Its star pattern includes a recognisable three-star belt, but the original literal meaning of the hunter's name has never been securely established. Suggestions involving Greek 'boundary' or an Akkadian phrase for heavenly light remain competing proposals. The mythological and astronomical references are solid; the exact etymology is not.
- Origin
- Ancient Greek mythological personal name Ὠρίων, also used for the constellation; etymology disputed. Source
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Everyday moments“Orion, come here!”
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About Orion
Recorded as a dog’s name
Orion appears in 14 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
/oʊɹaɪən/
US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.
Stress on the second syllable in the recorded US readings.
Other dictionary readings and notation
/oʊɹaɪən/ · primary stress on syllable 2OW0 R AY1 AH0 N
/ɔɹaɪən/ · primary stress on syllable 2AO0 R AY1 AH0 N
These are US dictionary readings. Personal, regional and other language pronunciations may differ.
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In NameKennel collections
Editorial selections, not evidence of linguistic origin, suitability or popularity.
Sources and research notes (2)
Gender association: Editorial association; not a restriction. Any dog can use this name.
- 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.