Two Syllable Names for Girls

Unusual option, with a Waspy Connecticut air.

See ZELLA.

Jalen variations are all over the Top 1000 of 2015 for both genders, and this oddly-spelling version earned spot Number 933. This trend is clearly on the decline, however.

An elaboration on the Breton name Maël or Maëlle, or an English combination of Mae and Ella.

More modern than Helen or Helena, and an interesting alternative to Hayley and Hallie. By coincidence, heli also means "saltwater" in Welsh.

This Arabic name, which can be used for either boys or girls, can also mean "wide-eyed" in the sense of someone who is studious and perceptive. Ayaan is most familiar to people in the West from its connection to Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somali women's right activist.

One of the cute and bouncy nicknames so popular in the 1960s and 70s, but that hasn't made a comeback in the way Eames chairs and miniskirts have. Think of it as one of the original but now old-school unisex names starting with J, ala Jamie and Jessie.

A bright and breezy Scottish name which is little known outside its native land.

We wouldn't have considered Piaget as a viable given name option was it not for Solange Knowles, who has it as her middle name. Her mother chose it after the watch brand, but many will recognize it as the surname of pioneering Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget. His theories on cognitive development in children are among the most influential in the field of psychology.

Variation of Suheyla.

Used as a first name for a handful of girls every year, Joplin could be seen as a distant cousin of other -lin names, like Caitlin, Brooklyn and Braelynn. We think it works even better as a musical middle name possibility for fans of Janis... or Scott. Both great connections — albeit very different from one another.

Teddy or Teddie is an adorable short form of Theodora or Edwina, made more feminine by the -ie ending. Extremely cutesy for a full name, but feels increasingly wearable in this era of nicknames as given names. Television personality Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave is a famous bearer of another spelling variation.

This name of a constellation in Orion's belt has an astral feel; it also belonged to the first woman to win a Pulitzer prize in drama, Zona Gale.

This name of a mythical beauty transformed into a scarlet fly by a jealous wife is popular in its native land; here, while pleasant to the ear, it's bewildering on paper.

Sasi can be a nickname for the fuller Sasithorn, or just a name on its own. In a Western context, the very cute Sasi is probably the way to go.

As names become more popular, the truism goes, spelling variations are invented and become more popular too. Taytum entered the Top 1000 in the US for girls for the first time in 2021, following on the heels of mother name Tatum, now in the Top 300.

Fresh and fragrant nature name more apt to be used for a boy.

Makes the intriguing Olga even more so.

Too close to yenta.