Two Syllable Names for Girls

Hagar is an Old Testament name with an unfortunate association with comic strip character "Hagar the Horrible."

Nelma originated as a Nordic nickname for names such as Anelma and Sanelma.

In Turkey, as in many countries around the world, word names are on the rise. Doğa is among the most popular for baby girls.

Female form of Neal, now more popular in Ireland than its male counterpart.

Haylee dropped out of the Top 500 for the first time since 1992 recently, in step with a decline by Hailey (though the alternative Hadley is still near the Top 100). For some, Haylee is one E too many, but it reflects the broader popularity in -lee suffixes.

Ayden in all its variations is becoming more unisex. Still, there were only 47 girl Aydens born last year vs. 3600+ baby boys with the Ayden spelling alone.

Dated 'creative' spelling of Irish classic.

The kind of countrified-combo name that you would think went out with ruffled gingham pinafores. Still, it's managed to hold its ground in recent years.

A possible alternative to the ever-common Leah.

Hilma is heard in Germany and the Scandinavian countries, and sometimes used as a shortening of Wilhelmina--though there are more appealing German names for girls. to be found. Hilma Wolitzer is an American novelist and the mother of author Meg Wolitzer.

The Italian Gemma is rising, and Spanish Gema is following suit. More fresh and exciting than Emma or Ruby, Gema is a lovely alternative.

Just when we thought Paisley couldn't get trendier, this -ee suffix showed up. Although it's not our favorite, parents are choosing this spelling more and more often.

Dutch diminutive of Marie, the meaning of which is uncertain. Theories include "drop of the sea" (from Hebrew roots mar "drop" and yam "sea"); "bitter" (from Hebrew marah "bitterness"); and "beloved" (from the Egyptian root mr).

Peppi ranked in the Finnish Top 50 from 2007-2012, where it was used for hundreds of baby girls each year. In Finland, Peppi is used as the translation for Pippi in the Pippi Longstocking books.

Panda, welcome to the baby name menagerie! Panda is an adorable animal name (after an adorable animal) that is sure to be both very rare and very cute. In Skins there was a character called Panda, which was short for Pandora. The name Panda comes from the Nepali word ponya meaning "bamboo eater".