Two Syllable Names for Girls

Sprightly name popular in Israel with beachy meaning and international flex.

Britton, technically a spelling variation of Britain, is much more popular that the original place name for both boys and girls. There are about three baby girls named Britton for every four boys, making it a truly nonbinary choice.

A diminutive form of the Finnish Katariina, used by Tove Jannson in her book The True Deciever.

Arete is a minor goddess in Greek mythology who personifies the idea of excellence or perfect virtue. There is also a mythological queen Arete, with her sister an "exacter of justice".

Cute nickname but the "gabby" synonym might prove problematic, especially is your daughter is chatty....or not.

Spelled this way, Adine could be a relative of either the Irish Aideen, which means jealousy, or the Arabic Adina, meaning slender. We'll go with the slender.

Tindra is a new name in Sweden, used only since the 1980s, that has become enormously popular: It's in the Top 60 there. And while unknown in the US, Tindra certainly has possibilities as a substitute for the flagging Kendra.

Not strictly Spanish but Guanche, the original inhabitants of the Canary Islands, this place name became popular as a first in Spain via a trilogy by Alberto Vazquez Figueroa. The Guanche meaning of the place name is "one who shares equally."

Quinlan is an Irish surname name given to a few dozen baby girls in the US each year. With the success of Quinn as a girls' name, Quinlan and its variant spellings Quinlin and Quinlyn might follow behind.

Cirrus is a type of cloud formation characterized by thin, wispy strands (from the Latin cirrus "tendril; ringlet"). British cloudspotter Gavin Pretor-Pinney named his eldest daughter Flora Cirrus.

A strong and simple Maori name that could also be an alternative spelling of Kaia.

One of the most popular nicknames of the fifties and sixties -- and who could forget the romantic heroine of "Wuthering Heights"? -- now largely ignored in favor of Cate or Kate.

There aren't many Glendas under forty.

The childhood name of the heroine of Memoirs of a Geisha is pretty and accessible. Chiyiko is a pet form.