Names That Are Variations

While Liesa is the German short form of mother name Elizabeth, Leisa is a spelling variation and is pronounced just like Lisa, though some people say it Lee-sha.

Payton and Peyton are both very popular names for girls as well as boys, but Paityn is a spelling variations used almost exclusively for girls.

Surname Brantley comes from the Swiss German Brandle. As Brantley has raced up the popularity charts, some parents have opted for this spelling as something just a little bit different. In this iteration, it has been in the US Top 1000 since 2013.

Natale is the handsome gender-neutral Italian spin on Natalia or Natalie or Noel, traditionally given to babies born on Christmas Day. English speakers might stumble over the pronunciation -- Natalie? Natal? -- but they'll catch on. Babbo Natale is the Italian name for Santa Claus. Natalino is the adorable short form.

X replaces J in the Galicia region of Spain but is pronounced with the same H sound, making Xulia and Xulio the equivalent of Julia and Julio.

The Icelandic transcription of Emilia, pronounced with an emphasis on the first syllable.

Tuomas is a variation of the classic Thomas that is used in Finland.

An over-elaborate Italian name associated with fashion designer Simonetta Colonna, a key figure in the emergence of Italian haute couture. Stop at SIMONE or SIMONA.

William is a stylish classic right now, and while translating many classic names into Italian makes them instantly cooler and more attractive, this is one exception: Guglielmo presents pronunciation problems for the English speaker, suggesting the less-than-cool word "googley" followed by the even-less-cool-than-that Elmo.

Pronounced more or less the same as Victoria, depending on the local language.

Although the origins of Ene aren't entirely certain, it is likely to have ultimately derived from Anne, meaning "grace."

Nace, a derivative of Ignac, is considered much more fashionable in Slovenia.

Gabrina is a name sometimes heard in the Latino community, could make a distinctive alternative to Gabriela.

Lans is the Dutch variation of the German name Lanzo, which is also the origin of Lance.

The Swedish form of Agnes may be known to English speakers as that of Agnetha Fältskog, a member of the band ABBA.

Several variations of this name, including Kayce and Casey, had a significant rise in 2022 thanks to the hit show Yellowstone, featuring main character Kayce Dutton. However, Kaycee did not share this success and still remains strongly on the girls' side.

Whether it be due to the Kardashian's or another manifestation of the creative spelling trend, we're seeing K spelling variations as some of the fastest-rising names of the past few years -- and Karly is no exception.