Rover
Meaning: One who roves or wanders – the classic name for a dog for at least thirty years from the 1920s.
Origins & History: To “rove” was apparently coined with its current meaning in around 1536; however, by 1607 it had become an archery term, and to “rove” was to shoot at a randomly selected target (which might therefore be in any direction and at any distance). Within another hundred years it had retrieved its original meaning, thanks to confusion with the Dutch term rover, meaning “robber” and especially “pirate,” and sea rovers were then held not only to rob, but also to wander the oceans at will.
*From the book Dog the Wag by Mike Darton
