Tuareg and Other Berber Dog Names for an Azawakh

The Azawakh dog breed is a type of tall sighthound mainly kept by people of the Tuareg, a semi-nomadic tribe of North African Berbers. (The Tuareg live mostly in the West African country of Mali, but before national borders limited their movements, were able to range over much of the Saharan desert.) Most of the Tuareg speak Tamacheq, a Berber language used around Timbuktu and other regions where the Azawakh is found.

Many of the Tuareg still involved in Saharan trade also learn Amazigh, Tashelhait, and also learn to read and write in dialectical Arabic. They bring the words home of course, and the Tamacheq language is rich with foreign words.

Have you decided to give your new puppy a Tamacheq name?

Since there are not many dog name choices available in Tamacheq, I have also included several great choices in Amazigh, another Berber tongue.

Azawakh dog names need to be short, one or two syllables, and words that end with a vowel or high note are best for training and recall. Out of about 300 pure Tamacheq words, there were only a few that would work to call a dog. Here are a few good Tuareg words to choose from.

There are some good choices there but not much to choose from. Here are some other choices from Amazigh, a Berber language from the north, for both male and female dogs.

Among Tashelhait speakers (another Berber dialect), any male name can be made female by adding a “T” at the beginning and end of the word. Thus Ay-rad, the lion, can be changed to Tay-radt, and it now means “a lioness” (although there are several forms of this word).

If you like any of the male names and want to call your female dog by that name, just add a “T” to the beginning and end of the word.

Some of the Tuareg also speak French, so you might choose one of those French dog names for your new Azawakh. Many of the names are a lot more familiar to Europeans and Americans and are easier to pronounce.

Tuareg that travel the Sahara also learn to read and speak some dialectical Arabic. If you would like to give your dog one of those great names, check out this Moroccan Arabic list.

If you do pick one of the Berber names, will you be pronouncing it correctly? Probably not. Do not worry about it—you could call him Max or Charlie and be sure it was correct, but it would not be special for an Azawakh.

Enjoy your new sighthound, whatever name he goes by.

There are more Azawakh videos out there, and if you have not seen them all, take a few hours and take a look at them all.