Check out "A Layered Naming Architecture for the Internet". This is the paper we focused on in an Advanced Networking class when we talked about naming. It aggregates several key principles from the literature into one system. I haven't read the RON paper Thomas linked to, but based on a quick glance, I'd say both papers are definitely worth your time. The Naming paper is actually written by several of the same people who wrote or collaborated on RON.
Feel free to drop me an email if you want to discuss the Naming paper.