Two Syllable Names for Girls

We give Briar Rose its own page thanks to the down-to-earth name of Princess Aurora, aka Sleeping Beauty. Rachel Bilson and Hayden Christensen named their newborn daughter Briar Rose, but we like Briar and Rose better when used separately. Read more about Briar Rose and other Disney Princess Names in our featured blog.

Like other "ee" names, Bailee is starting to lose its shine, slowly slipping down the charts.

A soft, sweet, distinctive name with a noble meaning.

Legend joins cousins Story, Saga and Fable in the baby name pantheon of narrative words. Unlike Story and Fable, however, Legend comes with additional weight, being used for fame ("living legend") and to denote a person who is fantastic "what a legend"). Who can live up to that?

A unisex Nahuatl name with a strong and stylish sound, but a meaning that some might find off-putting.

From the Arabic name Naila, which is used regularly by Muslims in England and France, as well as the Arabic-speaking world. Naila was the wife of the third caliph, Uthman.

Sander would be an unconventional short form of Alexandra, variation of Sandra, or surname-name for girls. It was given to 41 baby boys in the US last year but no girls, but it certainly can be a gender-neutral choice.

Seems to cry out for another syllable.

The exact origins of Tiril remain a mystery, but it is generally considered to be a name from Norwegian poetry. The heroine of Johan Sebastian Cammermeyer’s fantastical poem "Lokkende Toner" is Tirilil Tove.

Magi, as in the Three Wise Men who visited the baby Jesus, is a new word name appropriate for Christmas babies. It might also be a way to spell Maggie, but you can see the problems that's going to cause.

There are surprisingly few names meaning "winter". This one doesn't rank on the US charts, but with the English word name Winter becoming increasingly popular, it would make a catchy international alternative.

Clunky Gertrude is heading towards obscurity in the US, but here's a variation that might intrigue - Gesine, also spelled Gesina.

Although a variant of the operatic Zerlina, Zerline has her own theatrical tale. She is the star character of the opera Fra Diavolo by Daniel Auber. Zerline, daughter of the innkeeper of Terracina, is in love with an impoverished soldier, Lorenzo, but her father wants her to marry the rich old Francesco. Various tragedies and events occur. In the end, Zerline is free to marry her beloved Lorenzo.

The Czech word for the violet flower would make for a sweet and quirky nature name for a baby girl.

Selby, a rarely heard British surname, feels sleeker and more distinctive than Shelby. Todd Selby, known primarily by his last name, is a hip photographer of interiors.

Rigby is a rather stiff British surname, which might call to mind the Beatles "Eleanor Rigby" or, from the recent past, Cathy Rigby, the first American woman to win a medal in World Gymnastics competition. The problem with Rigby may be its similarity to the word "rigid."