Three Letter Girl Names
Updated Wed Nov 22 2023
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Three letter girl names boast two representatives on the US Top 10, Ava and Mia.
Along with Ava and Mia, other girls' names with three letters popular in the US include Zoe, Eva, Ivy, Mya, Amy, Ana, and Lia.
The classics Ann and Eve are two of the most enduring baby girl names with three letters. Other classic three letter girls names include Ada, Ida, Fay, Kay, and May.
Unique three letter names for girls on our recommended list include Bay, Bee, Fia, Kit, Liv, Lou, Paz, Poe, Sky, Taj, Una, and Zen.
Our full collection of three letter names for girls follows, organized by their current popularity on Nameberry.
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- Mae
Origin:
Diminutive of Mary or Margaret, Hebrew, LatinMeaning:
"beloved, bitter, drop of the sea; pearl"Description:
Mae, a sweet and springlike old-fashioned name, hadn't been on the national charts in forty years, but finally made it back in 2010. Mae is derived from May, the month name that was chosen for its connection to Maia, the Roman goddess of growth and motherhood.
- Ava
Origin:
Hebrew, Latin or GermanicMeaning:
"life; bird; water, island"Description:
Ava is one of the prime examples of a modern classic name, rising thought the course of a generation into the Top 10, where it has lingered for nearly 20 years.
- Mia
Origin:
Italian word name or Scandinavian short form of MariaMeaning:
"mine or bitter"Description:
Mia is an appealingly unfussy multicultural name that has enjoyed a meteoric rise up the charts and is now firmly among the ten top girl names. Mia has surpassed its mother name Maria as the Number 1 girls' name starting with M.
- Ivy
Origin:
Botanical nameDescription:
The quirky, offbeat and energetic botanical name Ivy is enjoying a deserved revival, propelled even higher by its choice by high-profile parents Beyonce and Jay-Z for daughter Blue Ivy. Ivy is also traditionally used at Christmas, make this one of the perfect names for December babies.
- Ada
Origin:
German or TurkishMeaning:
"noble, nobility, or island"Description:
Ada is one of the classic baby names for girls that is suddenly super stylish again. A favorite at the end of the nineteenth century, Ada is an alternative to the over-popular Ava. Ada is also part of the trend toward simple, old-fashioned names beginning with a vowel, like Ivy and Ella.
- Nyx
Origin:
Greek mythology nameMeaning:
"night"Description:
In Greek mythology, Nyx was a powerful goddess and the embodiment of the night, but when spoken, its negative meaning can't be ignored.
- Zoe
Origin:
GreekMeaning:
"life"Description:
Zoe is one of those surprising names that has been on the Top 1000 nearly every year since 1880, but it's only since the turn of this century that it's ranked in the Top 100.
- Fia
Origin:
Irish or Portuguese or ItalianMeaning:
"wild or weaver"Description:
Fia may be most notable at this moment as the Anglicized version of the Irish Fiadh, one of the fastest-rising names in the Republic of Ireland. The meaning of Fia or Fiadh is sometimes given as "deer" but that's in the sense of a wild deer, as the name relates to the ancient word for wild.
- Eva
Origin:
Latin form of Eve, HebrewMeaning:
"life"Description:
Eva is a simple, classic Hebrew name for girls that recently slipped out of the US Top 100 for the first time in more than a decade. Pronounced either like her more popular sister Ava or less popular sister Eve, Eva is one of the elite group of girl names that mean life.
- Noa
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"motion"Description:
This Old Testament female name has been one of the most popular girls’ names in Israel over the last decade. Also highly popular in Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, and a new entrant to the US Top 1000, it may be misunderstood here as an attempt to streamline and feminize the more familiar Noah – although it's a separate name with a separate derivation.
- Eve
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"life"Description:
Eve, the oldest name in the Book, is now coming back into style, having the virtues of simplicity and purity, yet with more strength and resonance than other single-syllable names like Ann. British actor Clive Owen chose Eve for his daughter, as did Jessica Capshaw.
- Una
Origin:
Latin, Irish, or Old NorseMeaning:
"one; lamb; happy"Description:
In an epic poem, the personification of truth, beauty, and unity; this ancient name is popular in several European countries but less common in the US. The Oona spelling is slightly more popular but Una sleeker.
- Ida
Origin:
GermanMeaning:
"industrious one"Description:
Many vowel names stylish a century ago are coming back, and Ida seems like a possible, logical successor to Ada and Ava.
- Rae
Origin:
English, diminutive of RachelMeaning:
"ewe"Description:
All the old ae/ay middle names for girls are back--Kay, Fay, Mae/May, --and Rae is one of the coolest, used as such by celebrities as Mark Wahlberg and Daniel Baldwin. Even more popular in the celebrisphere is the jazzy Ray spelling: among those who used it as their daughters' middles are Bruce Willis, Dermot Mulroney, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard, Uma Thurman and Lee Lee Sobieski.
- Rue
Origin:
Botanical names or word nameMeaning:
"herb; regret"Description:
Rue has gone from Golden Girls actress to Hunger Games heroine to a fresh alternative to beloved middle name Rose. This botanical name is also a coincidental double word name, meaning "regret" in English and "street" in French. Despite these unfortunate secondary meanings, Rue has real potential to be one of the most popular new middle names for girls.
- Amy
Origin:
FrenchMeaning:
"beloved"Description:
Amy is the English variation of the Old French name Amée—Aimée in modern French. Amée was a translation of the Latin name Amata, which derived from amatus, meaning "beloved." Other spelling variations include Amie and Ami.
- Kit
Origin:
English, diminutive of KatherineMeaning:
"pure"Description:
Kit is a crisp, old-time nickname with plenty of spirit and style. In the UK it's a rising star for boys, while in the US, it is trending upwards for girls too. Originally used as a diminutive of Katherine and Christopher, Kit could make a cool alternative to Katie, or an unexpected honor name for the aforementioned classics.
- Gia
Origin:
ItalianMeaning:
"God is gracious"Description:
Gia is a cute if slight name that calls to mind stylish sisters Mia, Lea, Pia, Tia, and Nia. One of the most familiar Italian baby names in the US, Gia is a short form of Gianna, which in turn is a diminutive of Giovanna, the feminine form of Giovanni, the Italian equivalent of John—all of them meaning "God is gracious."
- Rio
Origin:
Spanish, Portuguese, JapaneseMeaning:
"river or place of the cherry blossoms"Description:
Rio is one of Japan's most popular girls' names, constantly sitting in that country's Top 10. Of course, Rio may also stem from the Portuguese and Spanish word for river, and the Brazilian city Rio de Janeiro. A truly international name for a cosmopolitan baby!
- Ann
Origin:
English variation of Hebrew HannahMeaning:
"grace"Description:
Ann, the name of the sainted mother of the Virgin Mary, was among the top girls’ names for centuries, in both the original English Ann spelling and the French Anne. Both left the Top 100 around 1970 and show no signs of returning, with Anne is the middle of the US Top 1000 and Ann dropped out of sight.