Five Letter Girl Names

Better: Irina.

Not (just) a respelling of Ocean, Oshun is a river deity in the Yoruba culture of Nigeria.

This lovely Arabic name is gaining popularity in the US, used equally for boys and girls. Indeed, its sound (it rhymes with the feminine Tamar but ends with the fashionably masculine -ar sound, as in Oscar) and most logical nickname (Sam) make it a choice that's at once accessible and unsual for both boys and girls.

The color red was considered to have magical properties in early Japanese culture, with the power to cure blood and other illnesses. Pronounced ah-kah-ko.

This light, airy name has been given to a few dozen American girls since the early 2000s. It's a legitimate Italian word, but it's more likely to be inspired by the word "angel" backwards.

Popular in mid-century Norway, Turid was ultimately derived from the Old Norse name Þórfríðr, from Þórr, "Thor," and fríðr, "beautiful." Turi is a more contemporary spelling, connected to aviator Turi Widerøe.

One of the moons of Jupiter, named for a nymph that Zeus seduced. Aitne was the daughter of Oceanus. It is from her name, sometimes also spelled Aetna, that the Sicilian volcano Mt Etna derives its name.

U is an oft-rejected first initial, but a name like Uzoma makes it cool.

Hatty is an old school nickname for Harriet, itself an old-fashioned choice. The more usual spelling historically is Hattie, with was given to more than 750 baby girls last year in the US, three times as many as were named Harriet. Hatty, by contrast, was used for fewer than five babies -- quite a contrast!