Meaning and background
The story behind Psycho
Psycho has a specific cinema association with Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 film, documented by Universal’s official film page. The studio identifies Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh and describes the mystery surrounding Norman Bates’s isolated motel. A household may choose the name as a horror-film tribute. That story should remain separate from the ordinary word’s disparaging usage and should not be treated as a diagnosis or a prediction about a dog’s behaviour.
- Association
- Title of Hitchcock’s 1960 suspense film, documented by Universal. Source
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Everyday moments“Psycho, come here!”
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About Psycho
Recorded as a dog’s name
Psycho appears in 2 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
/saɪkoʊ/
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
/saɪkoʊ/ · primary stress on syllable 1S AY1 K 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.