15,000+ Two-Syllable Boy Names

A sweet, simple name with roots in several cultures. In Lithuanian, Aras is a poetic bird name, while in Persian and Kurdish it is both a word ("equal"), and the name of a river that flows through Turkey, Armenia, Iran and Azerbaijan. It is one of the most popular boy names in Turkey, and also ranks in the Netherlands and England and Wales.

The ancient name Horace sounds fustily fuddy-duddy, and yet, with the resurrection of Homer, and the new interest in old Roman names...who knows.

Florin is one of the legion of names derived from the root word for flower, most of them like Flora and Florence used for girls. But the boys' form Florin is among the popular French names for boys, along with sister name Fleur for girls. There was a ninth century Swiss St. Florin. The related Florian was the name of a second century Roman saint.

Fun fact: Marion was the birth name of movie star John Wayne. Although commonly thought of as a female name today, it was actually more popular for boys until the late 19th century, and was given to roughly equal numbers of boys and girls throughout the 1970s-2000s.

Vigo is both an Italian and Spanish surname and a Scandinavian first name. As a place name, it's found in Spain, Italy, England – and Indiana.

Until recently it was rarely used as a proper name; Buddy Holly, for example, was christened Charles, and Salinger's Buddy Glass was born Webb. Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver did name his fourth child Buddy Bear Maurice--a fittingly named brother to Poppy Honey Rosie, Daisy Boo Pamela and Petal Blossom Rainbow, and singer Tom Fletcher has a double-nicknamed Buddy Bob.

Thanks to Elmer Fudd, Elmer the Cow, and even Elmer's glue, this name has become a bit of a joke -- the quintessential so-far-out-it-will-always-be-out name. But with its trendy El-beginning and popular er-ending, who knows?

Sounds like a Lewis variant, but in actual fact the surname-turned-first-name Lewin derives from the Old English name Leofwine, meaning "dear friend".

In the Bible, it's the name of an ancient prophet who was able to withstand Satan. It has gained modest attention in recent years, hitting the US Top 1000 in 2008.

Could be a novel way for a boy's name to honor an ancestral Claire.

Orlo is a name nobody ever heard of until the surprise popularity of the unrelated but similar-sounding Arlo. If Arlo can be a hit, why not Orlo? Why not indeed.

Digby is a place-name in Lincolnshire turned surname turned quirky first name that is starting to get some attention.

Names ending with O are popular, but this one is almost unheard-of. Faro has the advantages of being easy to spell and pronounce (unless it's confused with Pharaoh), and a bright meaning. Ultimately it comes from Pharos, the island where the great Lighthouse of Alexandria was built, and there's a district and city in Portugal called Faro. Be aware: it's also the name of a gambling card game, highly popular in the nineteenth century before poker took over.

Regal and ancient feeling, Jacques has been declining in popularity in its native France, but in the UK, it saw a surprising revival in 2022. Jumping from somewhere around the #2500 mark straight to #600, it was seven times more popular than in 2021.

Common in Holland, the appealing Willem (as in de Kooning and Dafoe) makes William fresh and distinctive.

Alvin has a sturdy, no-frills sound that belies its somewhat whimsical meaning. Interesting potential namesakes include British rocker Alvin Stardust, and US footballer Alvin Williams, and African-American dance legend (and activist) Alvin Ailey.

Celyn, which starts with the hard K sound and rhymes with Helen, is a Top 100 name in Wales although largely unknown outside that tiny, beautiful country. It is usually a masculine name.

Khalid has flirted with the Top 1000 for several decades now, climbing back on in 2015 after more than a decade's absence. Its return could be in part because of the popularity of snapchat personality and rap collaborator DJ Khaled. R&B singer Khalid may also be contributing to its newfound popularity. The name is important in Islamic history thanks to a 7th century military leader. Khalida is the feminine version.

Once an upper-class British surname conjuring up the epic poetry of John Milton, it then descended to the antics of "Uncle Miltie" Berle, and now has left the stage completely.

Arlen is a surname long used as a first name: It ranked on the US Top 1000 from the late 1920s until the late 1960s. Originally, Arlen was a variation of Harlan which came from Harland, a place-name which means "hare land" – a place with lots of rabbits.