Maine Coon Cat Names: What Owners Actually Chose, and Ideas Sized to Fit
The only measured Maine Coon name rankings (Lucy, Max and friends, 2015), why the breed is called a "coon" at all, and name ideas sized for a gentle giant.
Published August 21, 2026 4 min read
Contents
You are naming a cat that may pass a meter from nose to tail. Here is the one measured dataset that exists, the strange story of the breed's own name, and our editorial shortlists, labeled as exactly that.
The measured list: what Maine Coon owners actually named their cats
Only one formal dataset ranks names for this breed specifically: a 2015 Vetstreet study of more than 330,000 registered pet names across the ten most popular breeds of the time. For Maine Coons, the top female names were Lucy, Chloe and Bella; the top males were Max, Tigger and Tiger. The study is a decade old, US-only, and predates the breed's climb to CFA's #1 spot, but it is measured, which nothing newer can say: no registry and no major insurer has published a breed-specific Maine Coon name ranking since. Any "most popular Maine Coon names" list you meet on a breeder blog is editorial opinion, ours included below.
Why is the breed itself called "Maine Coon"?
Maine is the easy half: the breed is New England's farm and ship cat, and the state made it official, by statute, in 1985 ("The state cat shall be the Maine coon cat", Maine Revised Statutes, Title 1, §217). The "coon" half is folklore with two competing tellings. The famous one says the ringed, bushy tails of brown tabby Maine Coons once prompted a theory that cats had mated with raccoons, which is biologically impossible (different genera), so the tail earned the name that the biology never could. The other telling has an English sea captain named Coon whose longhaired ship cats left kittens in New England ports, each called "one of Coon's cats". Registries present both as folk etymology, not fact, and the full origin story, legends included, lives on our history page.
Names the breed itself suggests
Our editorial shortlists, drawn from what a Maine Coon actually is. From the coat colors (each is a real registry term from our colors guide): Blue, Smoke, Silver, Cream, Tabby, Patch, Ember. From the size (this is the biggest domestic breed's whole identity): Moose, Bear, Titan, Sequoia, Everest, Atlas. From the home state: Acadia, Harbor, Katahdin, Pine, Compass, Skipper, the last two borrowed from the breed's documented ship-cat past. From the history: Cosey, the brown tabby female who won Best Cat at the 1895 Madison Square Garden show, the first major American cat show; her silver medal and collar sit in 's headquarters today, which makes her name the closest thing cat fancy has to a founding relic.
The famous Maine Coons to steal from
Stewie and Barivel, the two Guinness-verified longest-cat record holders, both Maine Coons, both on our size page with their measurements. And Pebbles, the spayed female Maine Coon from England's Kittycoonz cattery who played Mrs. Norris in the Harry Potter films, trained to hit marks and prowl Hogwarts corridors on cue. One honest asterisk: that casting is the films' choice only. In the books, Mrs. Norris is thin, dusty-colored and lamp-eyed, which no Maine Coon is, so name your cat Pebbles, not Mrs. Norris, if accuracy matters to you.
The vet's take
Veterinary review
Are you a vet?
Your professional read belongs here: every verified practitioner can leave a note, published once our editors have reviewed it.
Sign in and get your license number verified. We check it in the public register, we never ask for or keep a copy of your diploma, and your number is never published.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most popular Maine Coon cat names?
In the only measured dataset (Vetstreet, 2015, 330,000+ registered names): Lucy, Chloe and Bella for females; Max, Tigger and Tiger for males. Nothing newer is measured.
How did the Maine Coon get its name?
Maine is the home state (it is the official state cat, by a 1985 statute). "Coon" is folklore: the raccoon-tail resemblance story and the "Captain Coon" ship-captain story both circulate, and registries present both as legend, not fact. The full story lives on our history page.
What should I name a Maine Coon kitten?
Cheat with the breed sheet: a registry color (Blue, Smoke, Cream), the size (Moose, Titan, Sequoia), the home state (Acadia, Harbor), or the history (Cosey, Stewie).
Who is the most famous Maine Coon?
On screen, Pebbles, the Maine Coon who played Mrs. Norris in the Harry Potter films. In the record books, Stewie and Barivel, the two longest-cat record holders.
Community questions
Got a question this page doesn't cover? Ask it: the best ones get published here with their answer.
This is information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot tell you what is wrong with your cat. Our rule is a simple one: if something is wrong with your cat, call your vet, and call an emergency clinic if it is out of hours. Nothing you read here is a reason to wait.
Medical information applies to every reader. Prices, legal duties and common practice do not: unless stated otherwise, they are given for the United States, and they differ in the UK, Canada and Australia, and often between states or provinces. Check with your own vet and your own local authority.
Our sources
Purr or PassThe cat newsletter
Our verified guides, no spam. Unsubscribe in one click.
More Maine Coon guides
The Maine Coon profile →
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon Size: How Big They Really Get
How big Maine Coons really get: measured weights from five studies, TICA's two ranges explained, both Guinness length records, and the growth anchors with real sources.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon Price: Four Countries, Real Numbers, No Averages
Real August 2026 Maine Coon prices from named catteries and live listings in four countries, what makes the price climb, the cheaper doors in, and what no registry will ever tell you.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Black Maine Coon: The Panther Look, Held to a Standard
What makes a true solid black Maine Coon, why the standards call it a hard coat to keep perfect, black and white bicolors, and real kitten prices.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Orange (Ginger) Maine Coon: Officially Red, Universally Adored
Why your orange Maine Coon is officially red, what ginger means in the UK, the cream dilute, why most gingers are boys, and two famous ones.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon Breeders: How to Find One Worth Your Trust
What "registered" actually proves, the registries per country, the questions a good Maine Coon breeder answers without blinking, and what the law requires of breeders where you live.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon Lifespan: Two Honest Numbers, Not One
How long Maine Coons really live: the measured UK figure, the 9 to 15 years everyone quotes, why the two differ, and what measurably shortens a life.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon Food: Feeding a Big Cat Without the Marketing
What a Maine Coon actually needs to eat: the real portion math, why no official large-breed formula exists, kitten-food timing, and the grain-free question untangled.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Blue Maine Coon: Yes, That Gray Cat Is Officially "Blue"
Why registries call a gray Maine Coon blue, how the dilute coat works, what blue smoke and blue silver mean, and what these cats actually sell for.
Read
Maine Coon guide
White Maine Coon: A Coat That Keeps a Secret
Why a white Maine Coon is genetically a masked cat, the four white eye-color classes, what the UK registry requires before breeding one, and prices.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon Mix: How to Tell, Honestly
The honest guide to Maine Coon mixes: what the breed standard actually describes, which traits mean something, why size proves nothing, and the one method that settles it.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Calico Maine Coon: Three Colors, One Enormous Cat
What makes a calico Maine Coon, how the registries define the patches, dilute and smoke versions, why males are vanishingly rare, and what they cost.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Giant Maine Coons: The Records, and What "Giant" Really Means
The verified biggest Maine Coons, the records the breed does not hold, and what to check before paying a cattery with "giant" in its name.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Are Maine Coons Hypoallergenic? No, and Here Is the Honest Version
No cat breed is hypoallergenic, and the Maine Coon's long coat doesn't mean less allergen. What Fel d 1 is, why individual cats vary hugely, and what actually helps.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon Colors: The Whole Palette, Straight from the Standards
Every Maine Coon color the five major registries actually recognize, the three they all exclude, eye-color rules, and what blue-eyed buyers should ask about.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Tortie Maine Coon: Black and Red, Woven Together
What a tortoiseshell Maine Coon actually is, how torties differ from calicos and torbies, the blue-cream dilute, and what breeders charge for them.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Black Smoke Maine Coon: Midnight Over Silver
What makes a black smoke Maine Coon, how smoke differs from solid black and silver, why kittens declare themselves late, and what breeders charge.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Tuxedo Maine Coon: Black Tie, Twenty Toes of Fluff
Yes, tuxedo Maine Coons exist: what the registries call the pattern, the minimum-white rules that make it showable, and what the coat costs.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon Grooming: What That Coat Actually Asks of You
How much grooming a Maine Coon really needs: the honest brushing range straight from the registries, seasonal shedding, nails, ears, mats, and when a lion cut is the right call.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Tabby Maine Coon: The Coat Everyone Pictures
Why the brown tabby IS the classic Maine Coon, classic versus mackerel patterns, the ticked-tabby registry dispute, and what tabbies cost.
Read
Maine Coon guide
European Maine Coon: A Look, a Label, and One Single Breed
"European Maine Coon" is a look and a marketing label, not a separate breed: what the European standards actually say, what sellers mean, and what to check.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Polydactyl Maine Coon: The Extra Toes That Split the Registries
What a polydactyl Maine Coon is, why TICA shows them and CFA does not, the snowshoe story told honestly, and what the extra toes change for the cat.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Silver Maine Coon: Frost Over the Tiger
What makes a silver Maine Coon, how silver differs from smoke, the tarnish fault that makes clean silvers rare on show benches, and real prices.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Maine Coon History: From Ship Cats to State Cat
Where Maine Coons really come from: the documented timeline from 1861 to CFA's number one breed, the myths told honestly, and the 1985 law that made it Maine's state cat.
Read
Maine Coon guide
Cream Maine Coon: Red, Whispered
What makes a cream Maine Coon, how cream relates to red and blue, why two orange parents can throw cream kittens, and what the coat costs.
Read
The floor belongs to our members. Keep it kind, links are not allowed, and images go through moderation before anyone else sees them.