Yoda ranks #434 with 284 entries, registered male. The name belongs entirely to a single cultural source: George Lucas's Star Wars Jedi master Yoda, introduced in The Empire Strikes Back (1980). There is essentially no naming tradition outside that anchor, which makes Yoda one of the most pop-culture-locked names on the chart.
The Star Wars and Baby Yoda layers
The original Yoda gave the name forty years of cultural penetration. The 2019 launch of The Mandalorian and its breakout Baby Yoda character (officially Grogu) added a fresh wave of pet-naming traffic, especially for small green-eyed or wrinkled pets. Owners reaching for Yoda in 2026 are often referencing the Mandalorian rather than the original films.
Breed lean and visual fit
Yoda lands disproportionately on small, wrinkled, or pointy-eared breeds where the visual matches the namesake — Pugs, French Bulldogs, Chihuahuas, Boston Terriers, and small mixed breeds. There is also a meaningful cluster of Sphynx cats and Cornish Rex cats wearing the name, where the wrinkled-or-bald aesthetic reinforces the Yoda visual.
The dated-already counter-reading
Worth flagging: Yoda as a name has been in steady use for forty years, which makes it feel slightly time-stamped to specific generations. Younger owners might pick it ironically; older owners might pick it sincerely. The cultural air around the name is well-saturated. The human Yoda page shows essentially zero SSA presence, confirming this lives almost entirely on the pet side of the naming line.