Though its origins are debatable the black-spotted Dalmatian gets it name from Dalmatia, a region in western Yugoslavia, even though it probably did not originate there.  Even the breeds original function is unclear. It was as a coach dog in Victorian England, however, that the Dalmatian found its niche. It continued as a coach dog for horse-drawn fire engines, and this association led to its adoption as the modern "fire-dog."