15,000+ Two-Syllable Boy Names

Used in Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, this strong-sounding name belonged to a hero in Persian legend. Its derivation is unclear, but the consensus seems to be that it relates to the hero’s great size and strength, possibly from Avestan raodha "to grow" and takhma "strong, brave, valiant".

An important name in the Hindu religion, connected to Lord Shiva.

Place names for boys are few and far between; this one would make a singular choice. Prince William of Wales uses this as a surname when required, as in his military life; Jimmy Wales is the entrepreneur behind Wikipedia, Clint Eastwood played the eponymous character Josey (!) Wales in the 1976 The Outlaw Josey Wales.

An Old Testament name used by the Puritans, less well known than female relatives Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah and as deserving of revival.

An auspicious choice connected to dragons. English speakers will have difficulty pronouncing this name in Japanese — it's all one syllable, with barely any emphasis on the R sound.

Too close to the name of a bodily fluid.

Tied to the hero of the classic Spanish novel Don Quixote, likely to produce a quixotic daydreamer.

Not all words work as baby names, but Wonder would transition seamlessly.

This more user-friendly Anglicized form of Beacan, could profit from its kinship with the popular Beckett--with which it could share the nickname Beck. Becan is an Irish saint's name, attached to the founder of a sixth century monastery.

Strongly connected to Elie Wiesel — Holocaust survivor, Nobel laureate, and author of the influential book Night.

Of unknown origins, but speculated to be influenced by English names such as Wallace.

A great choice for a native Swedish speaker, but not as user-friendly as some of the other international short forms of William — Pim (Dutch), Gwil (Welsh), and of course, Liam (Irish).

Elvio is a barely-ever-used name that might just be a hidden gem. From the Latin family name Elvius, international bearers of the name include several footballers and the Paraguayan poet Elvio Romero. Parents today might see it as an alternative to more better-known Italianate names like Enzo and Elio.

Cutter was an old-fashioned term for a tailor or barber that was eventually adopted as a surname. That gives it more legitimacy than many of the other aggressive boy names — Striker, Shooter, Breaker, et al. — but Cutter remains equally threatening.

One of Noah's biblical grandsons, making it a natural to honor a relative with the name of the ark builder.

As a male name, Joni is a nickname for Jon or Jonathan, akin to Johnny or Jonny. It's more commonly used as a girl name, where it originated as a nickname for Joan.

Sanders is one of the S-ending surnames gaining traction as a first name for boys in the US. It jumped nearly 2000 points in popularity this year.

Moloch is a name and term that appears in the Hebrew Bible several times. Moloch is thought to be a deity whose practices include child sacrifice.