Three Letter Girl Names

Distinctive and intriguing relative of Rae.

Dee is a slight midcentury nickname that might be short for Deanna or Denise, but might be too slight for today's strong, independent female.

Old-fangled nickname could make dot.com era short form or middle name.

Mio is a lovely Japanese name for girls that has migrated beyond its native country. One Berry reports several young girls named Mio in Australia, and the name has potential in the rest of the English-speaking world for parents who want to move beyond Mia and Maya.

Traditionally a masculine diminutive of Moses, Moe could work equally well as a short, sweet, gender-bending nickname for girls – perhaps from Ramona, Moana, Imogen, or Monroe.

This mild-mannered short form was Queen of the Prom in the fifties and sixties, but today is mostly heard on TV's The Office (and of course as one of the founders of Nameberry).

A very popular girls' name in Japan with an unfortunate English pronunciation: picture a toddler with a hurt knee saying "owee."

Fei would make a great way to honor Chinese roots in the US, thanks to its similarity to the fast-rising Faye.

Kim was the coolest name... of the 1960s. Kim was popularized by actress Kim Novak, and its energy is still maintained by rapper Lil' Kim, but it holds lil' or no appeal for new babies. Parents who like Kim's short, sweet sound might look to a choice such as Sam, Lou, or Belle.

A hum of a name occasionally heard. Madame Mim was a villain in Disney's "The Sword in the Stone."

One of the boys' names newly appropriated for girls -- either on its own, as a pet form of any J name, or as a singular middle name.

Pim is traditionally a male nickname in the Netherlands, but its relative obscurity in the US would allow you to get away with using it for a daughter. This name has never been recorded in the US - for boys or girls. But it's style match with other slim, boyish nicknames for girls like Lou and Scout means Pim may not stay off the grid for much longer.

Ala is the Igbo earth goddess whose symbol is the crescent moon. In a very different vein, Ala can be a diminutive for Alicja or Alexandra or really any other name with an A at both ends and an L in the middle. Ala is also an Arabic name meaning "excellence, supremacy"; could be confused as a homonym for Allah, or as part of a phrase like a la mode.

Meg, perennially one of the Little Women, is a Margaret short form that manages to be neither quite in nor quite out of style. Meg is sleeker and more sophisticated than Maggie, more contemporary than Peg, more stylish than Megan, and still one of the best diminutives of Margaret.

Meg Ryan was born Margaret Mary Emily Anne.

A multicultural unisex choice that peaked for girls at the same time as Amy. Ami is also the French word for "friend."

Aza is an excellent Arabic choice: elegant and simple. Too simple for you? Consider Aziza.

Ash is a gender-neutral choice that calls to mind the '80s favorite: Ashley. But view it as a nature name -- as in the tree, not the charred bit of soot in the fireplace -- and it makes a cool choice that fits with today's trends.

Sam as a name standing on its own was given to only 18 girls in 2021, versus over 400 boys. But as a short form it's appealing and down-to-earth for both sexes, and heard far more often: There were over 2500 baby girls named Samantha in the US in one recent year and more than 8500 boys named Samuel, so you will hear the name Sam a lot more often than you might guess judging by the numbers for this short form. Like the wildly popular Charlie, Sam is a nickname that works equally well as a girls' name as a boys'. All forms considered, Sam is still one of the most popular names that start with S.