Until 1926, there was in France no rule for naming a dog registered in the LOF. From this year, the S.C.C. decided that all dogs born in the same year would have a name beginning with the same letter, which would simplify the work of dog genealogists. The letter 'Z' was excluded because one though that the choice of names beginning with this letter was not big enough in French. One should be aware that for several years after, some breeders didn't follow this new rule; so, if you find a dog born in 1930 whose name is 'Médor', don't be too astonished.
The only change to this system happened in 1973, when it was decided to remove 5 letters (K, Q, W, X, Y), for the same reason which had lead to the exclusion of 'Z' in 1926.
Here is a table summarizing the dogs' names in France since 1926:
| 1926 | A | 1936 | K | 1946 | U | 1956 | F | 1966 | P | 1976 | M | 1986 | B | 1996 | M | 2006 | B |
| 1927 | B | 1937 | L | 1947 | V | 1957 | G | 1967 | Q | 1977 | N | 1987 | C | 1997 | N | 2007 | C |
| 1928 | C | 1938 | N | 1948 | W | 1958 | H | 1968 | R | 1978 | O | 1988 | D | 1998 | O | ||
| 1929 | D | 1939 | M | 1949 | X | 1959 | I | 1969 | S | 1979 | P | 1989 | E | 1999 | P | ||
| 1930 | E | 1940 | O | 1950 | Y | 1960 | J | 1970 | T | 1980 | R | 1990 | F | 2000 | R | ||
| 1931 | F | 1941 | P | 1951 | A | 1961 | K | 1971 | U | 1981 | S | 1991 | G | 2001 | S | ||
| 1932 | G | 1942 | Q | 1952 | B | 1962 | L | 1972 | V | 1982 | T | 1992 | H | 2002 | T | ||
| 1933 | H | 1943 | R | 1953 | C | 1963 | M | 1973 | I | 1983 | U | 1993 | I | 2003 | U | ||
| 1934 | I | 1944 | S | 1954 | D | 1964 | N | 1974 | J | 1984 | V | 1994 | J | 2004 | V | ||
| 1935 | J | 1945 | T | 1955 | E | 1965 | O | 1975 | L | 1985 | A | 1995 | L | 2005 | A |
I won't do the same for each country, but you should know that in French speaking countries,
the same system is used. Here are the letters for 2004:
Belgium: D, Luxembourg: B, Canada: P
In some other countries, a breeder has to name the dogs in
his first litter with names beginning with 'A', those from the second litter
with names beginning with 'B', etc...
It is often the system chosen by breeders of countries which no specific system is enforced.
The affix is the name of a kennel, given for life to a breeder and which enables the recognition of dogs he produced with their name. A dog is given the affix of the owner of the bitch when the mating is done. It is not compulsory to have an affix.
-It is a suffix if it is put after the dog's name (it is generally the case in Latin countries):
"Vrac du Rocher des Jastres" is named "Vrac" with the affix "du Rocher des Jastres".
-It is a prefix if it is put before the dog's name (it is generally the case in Anglo-Saxon countries):
"Happiness Vulcain" is named "Vulcain" with the affix "Happiness".
If the owner of the bitch doesn't have an affix when the mating is done, the dog will never have one. Because once a dog has a name, he can never change it.
The last sentence of the previous paragraph is true in continental Europe, but there is in England a slightly different system: when the breeder sells a dog to his first owner, the latter can add his affix to the name of the dog. After that, the dog's name will not change anymore, even if the owner changes.
This system is sometimes used in the USA, for example: "Phantom Force of Northland" is named "Force", he has been produced by Beth Cephil (affix: "Phantom"), who sold it to Mr. North (affix: "Northland"); then he has taken the affix of his new owner. as a suffix. Under this name he has produced some puppies with this affix (e.g. "NorthLand's Jewel"
However, there is an exception to the French rule forbidding changes of names: between the moment where a dog is identified
and the moment where the S.C.C. gives him a birth certificate, one can add a nickname.
This is because when the breeder identifies the dog, he generally doesn't know the new owner; as the latter is sometimes unhappy of the chosen name,
he is going to name his dog differently; to have a trace of this nickname, it will be added on the birth certificate, following "dit" (if it is a sire) or "dite" (if it is a bitch), which means 'said' or 'alias' in French.
For example, "Colt dit Chably du Fief d'Epsom" has been identified as "Colt du Fief d'Epsom", but as his new owner wanted to call him "Chably", this name has been added.
In some cases, a dog has a nickname which isn't written in any official paper. To keep track of this kickname, I add "alias XXX" at the end of his name in the database. For example, "Luron du Rocher des Jastres" which was called "Mobylette" is called in the database "Luron du Rocher des Jastres alias Mobylette".
And when two dogs have the same name, that no nickname enables me to differentiate them, I had a number at the end of this name. Then, each dog has a unique name. This system was invented in France by the Dr H. Castaing in 1904, before the adoption of the more
simple "one letter by year" system; it
was described in the second page of his pedigree template (see pedigree of "Vic
de l'Antenne") and in "Fram, chien d'arrêt" by the colonel Dommanget.
The name is made of three parts:
1- One first name beginning with a letter depending on the year of birth (A for 1901
and 1926, Z for 1925 and 1950, etc…), which will by entirely written in capital
letters.
2- A matronymic family name, i.e. transmitted by the mother. The terminal vowel of
this name is changed to show the generation (chronopentascale, from "penta"
meaning "five" in greek, for the 5 vowels: a for the
1rst generation, e for the 2nd, i for the 3rd,
o for the 4th, u for the 5th)
3- The affix of the breeder (kennel name)
Here is an example:
-"DRAGONNE-Maba-Fram", born in 1904, in the "Fram" kennel,
from the bitch "Mab de Bellefontaine".
-The daugther of "DRAGONNE-Maba-Fram" born in 1906 will be called "FANNY-Mabe-Fram"
-If "FANNY-Mabe-Fram" is sold to the "Bretagne" kennel her daugther
born in 1909 will be called "IRA-Mabi-Bretagne",
etc...
-When the five vowels will have been used, one will add a "1", so the offspring
of "Mab de Bellefontaine" at the 8th generation will have the
matronymic family name "Mabi 1".
©2007 Michaël Comte
