Two Syllable Names for Girls

Jessie has never been used as much as Jennie/Jenny, partly because it's a boys’ name as well (spelled Jesse), but it does have a friendly and unpretentious pioneer feel. In Scotland, it's found as an Anglicized form of Teasagh, itself a form of Jean, and is used as a full name. And in the rest of the world, Jessie may be short for Jessica or used on its own.

The name of a courageous tribe, Cheyenne became quite popular in the 1990s, inspiring a wide range of spelling variations—Shyanne is one example that's still on the rise.

This beautiful girl name is a popular choice in India. It is connected to Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of luck and prosperity. Lakshmi is composed of the elements sā, referring to Lakshmi, and anvi, meaning "follow."

Pronounced MAW-rayt or ma-REYD, Mairead is close enough to Maureen to be accepted here. The name became popular in Ireland due to admiration for the saint of that name. Peig and Peigi are its Irish-language nicknames.

Callum is virtually unused for girls in the US, but we could easily see it fitting in with other boy names for girls such as Elliot, Asher, and August.

Taryn is an offshoot of Tara that has a variety of meanings in a variety of cultures. In 1953, Taryn was presented to the public as an invention by actors Tyrone Power and Linda Christian for their daughter's name, at which point it gained a short spurt of popularity. Taryn returned to the Top 1000 in 1974, peaking in the 1980s, and has remained on the list ever since.

A beautiful Hebrew name that would work perfectly for a child today.

Saint Eulalia was born in Spain and is the patron saint of Barcelona, so her name and its derivatives are popular throughout the land — especially in her native Catalonia.

This streamlined variation of Eleanor is common in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries, particularly Portugal itself, where it has ranked among the Top 3 baby girl names for over a decade.

A modern Welsh name that will be misunderstood as Irene.

The sixth letter of the Greek alphabet, popularized by Welsh actress Catherine Zeta-Jones -- Zeta was her grandmother's first name. Zeta can also refer to the letter Z, the last in the Roman alphabet, or be a spelling variation of Zita, a name with several possible origins and meanings.

This unusual and alluring choice was used by David Mamet for his daughter, who is now grown and an actress on the hit show Girls.

Allie is one short form that's gotten so popular it's often used as a name on its own. Cute, friendly, yet we'd recommend using one of the proper names such as Alice to give your daughter an option. These days, Ellie might be more fashionable.

As Mary falls further out of favor, her variations become more appealing, whether you're honoring an ancestral Mary or Marie or Miriam or simply love the tradition of the name.

This spelling of Jillian is now much more popular than the original, maybe because the G version invites pronunciation problems.

First used during the Victorian craze for jewel names; it could rise again, along with Ruby and Pearl, though it doesn't have as much luster.

Originally a unisex nickname for a redhead -- red hair is called "ginger" in Britain -- or for the name Virginia, Ginger perennially wears pink gingham and spike heels.

Ettie or Etty works as a nickname for any name with a prominent "et" sound, usually at the end: think Henrietta, Juliette or Colette. The -ette ending is a French diminutive suffix.

The girls' name Kyra sounds like the also popular Keira/Kiera, but has a different root. There are twice as many baby girls named Keira as Kyra, with Kiera in third place. Kyra now ranks at #590 and is most familiar via actress Kyra Sedgwick.

Connie is a sweet and charming vintage nickname, which ranks in the top 200 in the UK and has a vintage charm that makes it ready for a comeback in the US as well.