1798 Four Letter Girl Names

Breton cognate of Angela, from Breton ael "angel".

Shai is a name newly-used in the US for both boys and, slightly less often, girls. Though the correct pronunciation is "shy", many will say shay, which might be all right with you.

A Slavic classic, as common as Jane or Joan here.

Short form of Adebayo

The popularity of Maya clarifies the pronunciation of Raya, which makes that the better spelling of this name.

More Scandinavian names are making their way into English-speaking homes. If Sven and Freya are useable, why not Svea?

French version of Leah, currently popular with French-speaking parents. In this spelling, it looks pleasingly like the female equivalent of Leo (or Léo), and sounds like Leia.

Cute and nicknamey girl name with a great meaning to boot.

A short form that is given on its own to a good number of baby girls each year — Cali has been on trend in recent years along with sister names Callie and Kali, as the popular 90s and early 2000s nickname Allie has felt less fresh. The Cali spelling in particular also brings to mind the sunny state of California and all of the beachy imagery that follows.

Though it's used far more often for boys, Lyle has a lot in common with today's trending girl names that share the double L sound: Lila, Layla, and Lola.

Intriguing derivation, though people will assume it's a simplified form of Maura.

Familiar through the similarly pronounced TV Warrior Princess, but the original Xena spelling is cooler.

Sela is a Biblical place name, the original term for the city of Petra, which is finding new life through actress Sela Ward, star of several TV series. The young daughter of singer Lauryn Hill is named Selah, pronounced the same but with a different derivation and meaning. Found among early African-American enslaved people, it was sometimes spelled Cela or Cella.

Though Tate is used almost exclusively for boys, we can see Tate as a stronger surname alternative to Kate or a clipped form of Tatum.

A peppy nickname name associated with Lolo (born Lori) Jones, American track and field champ.

A Top 100 name among boys, but a rare option for a girl. The French female form is Axelle (emphasis on the "elle").

Runes are symbols in ancient Germanic alphabets. They are often viewed as mysterious and therefore as a name, Rune imparts a feeling of folkloric mystery. As intriguing as that might be, the homonym ruin creates a lot of teasing potential.

This spelling variation of the popular girls' nickname ranks behind the more traditional form—Allie (Number 255). This spelling could be hurt by the word name ally, which bears a different pronunciation.

Amal is an attractive name with a wonderful meaning that has long been used in many Middle Eastern countries, especially Lebanon (and migrant communities). It is of course getting a lot more coverage now since the fame of international human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin Clooney, who's singlehandedly made this one of the best-known Arabic names for girls.

As Ryan quickly becomes a plausible option for a girl, some parents may be interested in the spelling Rian — the more authentic and original form of the name.