Dog name guide

Zilla

The meaning, background and naming story of Zilla.

Letters
5
Syllables
2Dictionary reading
Starts with
Z

Meaning and background

The story behind Zilla

Zilla is the German and Italian form of Zillah. The linked Zillah entry gives a Hebrew meaning of shade and identifies a biblical bearer as Lamech’s second wife. This is an explicit personal-name relationship, rather than a meaning guessed from the ending of a modern monster name. The exact one-h-less spelling can therefore preserve a documented European form within the older Hebrew naming family.

Origin
Zilla is the German and Italian form of Zillah. Source · Source 2

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About Zilla

Recorded as a dog’s name

Zilla appears in 7 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.

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Pronunciation and rhythm

/zɪlə/

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

/zɪlə/ · primary stress on syllable 1
Z IH1 L AH0

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.

More names to consider

Suggestions by sound, written form or existing editorial selections. Similarity does not imply a shared origin.

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