Name Game

Story and photos by Yossi Guy

Kennel names, whether prefixes or affixes, are usually not just a couple of words pertaining to a breed. Oftentimes, they are much more personal than that: The breeder chooses the kennel name for certain reasons, whether to express a passion of some sort, recall particular memories or relate to a close person. Famous names are remembered by many other people affiliated with the breed.

Here are the back stories on a few world-famous kennel names.

Debbie Pearson of Edglonian Shelties in the United Kingdom says her kennel name originates with her father’s hometown of Edgeley. “As a young man he used to play for a local football team called The Edgelonians,” she explains. “When he sent the name off to the Kennel Club, it came back as Edglonian. They dropped an ‘e’ from the name, and he never did anything about it, so that’s how it stayed and that’s how it’s pronounced: Edgelonian.”

Chie Ejima Yamakado of Japan has been involved in the dog world since she was a child, as both her parents used to breed dogs. She has bred Akita, Japanese Spitz, Shiba, Poodles and Yorkshire Terriers, and is known for her Papillons and Golden Retrievers, which she registers under the prefix Queen Bless, recognized by the Japanese Kennel Club and FCI. The kennel name is a translation of her own name: “Chie” is Japanese for “bless,” and “queen” comes from a very famous Japanese animation called Millennium Queen.

Almanza is world renowned for its Flat-Coated Retrievers, one of which won BIS at Crufts. “Ragnhild [Ulin] was on vacation in Spain,” explained her friend Siv-Hilde Oware. “She arrived at a place called Almansa and turned it into her kennel name, Almanza, even though it has no connection with the breed.”

Lyudmila Komyakova of Russia breaks down the etymology of her DanStarKom Pomeranians: In Russian, “Dan” means “a degree of mastery,” and “Star-Kom” is “the beginning of my last name.”

Henric Fryckstrand is an extremely well-known Swedish breeder of Golden Retrievers under the Dewmist banner. That prefix, he explains, “is from one of my earlier visits in the ’70s to northern England. When travelling with a breeder early in the morning to one of the Scottish shows, it was very ‘misty’ outside with lots of ‘dew.’” And so a kennel name was born.

Kinga Gyorgy established her Soul of the Northern Lights Kennel Mini Pinscher kennel in 2017. “I wanted a kennel name related to Scandinavia, since I lived there.”

Marco Tomei is a successful breeder of Chihuahuas in Italy, where he is involved in the fashion industry.

"After a few years presenting my dogs at dog shows, getting a deep understanding of the breed and developing a clear vision on standards, it became natural to establish my own blood line. I chose That’s Amore as my kennel name,” he says. "This is the name of a perfume line from Gai Mattiolo, a well-known fashion designer, and also owner of the company where I work. I believe this name reflects my passion for Chihuahuas and is a tribute to my job.”

Gyula Kozel breeds Bullmastiffs in Hungary. His kennel name is Safety of Flatland, and its origin goes back to their first Bullmastiff, Omár, and to the village in which they lived then — a newly built community in Etyek Botpuszta, near Budapest.

"Puszta may be translated to Flatland,” Gyula explains. “The young Omár often got bored alone during the day while we were off to work in the city. He wandered around the community, being spoiled by the neighbors with small kids who loved the warm-hearted giant dog.”

Imitation was the sincerest form of flattery for Tor W. Johansen of Quantos German Shepherds in Norway: “My kennel name comes from this male that I had imported — Quanto vom Lärchenhein.”

Shimik Regev of Israel is among the best breeders of Australian Shepherds in Europe, having spent time with some of the leading American breeders. His kennel name, Regmon, was the third choice of the three names he sent to FCI for approval.

"It is a merger between Regev, my last name, and Monday,” he explains. “Today I am happy with it. It just happened by chance and without intent.”

Christiane Lohman from Germany breeds Dachshunds under the Anne Pichten kennel name, which originally was “an den Fichten,” meaning “at the spruce trees.”

"When our son was four years old, he was unable to pronounce it properly,” she remembers fondly, “and we thought it was rather sweet and well-fitting for Dachshunds.”