Five Letter Girl Names

Deren is a name that could easily cross borders — and who wouldn't love it, with that whimsical meaning?

A recent favorite among boy names, now a top riser for girls.

In Cherokee, TS is pronounced like a J, which may lead to some pronunciation confusion. Nevertheless, Tsula is an appealing choice.

Variously spelled trendy name in the 1970s that hasn't even been in the Top 1000 in a decade.

Readers who remember J. D. Salinger's Franny and Zooey have probably forgotten that the character was male (nee Zachary). Nowadays the somewhat loopy spin on Zoe is associated with actress Zooey Deschanel.

Taura is a possibility for a girl born between mid-April and mid-May, but, if a name is destiny, its meaning does suggest stubbornness. Consider Laura, Flora, or Honora instead.

Radha (also called Radhika, Radharani, or Radhe) is an important goddess in Hinduism, the queen and favourite consort of the god Krishna. She is also sometimes considered an avatar of Lakshmi, goddess of beauty, wealth and prosperity.

One of the few K names that sounds middle-aged.

Nickname left over from the last generation.

About 60 girls were named Alise in the US last year, making it an uncommon but not truly rare name. While it's pretty and intriguing as a spin on the very popular Alice, it's pronounced more like Elise or -- in Latvian -- Elisa, and so may prove more confusing than it's worth. If you want to name your daughter Alice, name her Alice, and if you want to name her Elise, name her Elise. Choosing Alise in many ways gives you the worst of all worlds.

Out-of-date for a boy, innovative for a girl.

Nansi is a phonetic Welsh spelling of Nancy that is currently popular in Wales.

An epithet of the goddess Durga, associated with the beginning of the earth.

Whether you pronounce it like the original Amy or the Frenchified Ay-may, this form adds considerable elan to an old favorite.

Although Tegen resembles the names Teagan and Tegan, they are etymologically distinct names. Tegen, pronounced TEG-en rather than TEE-gan, is a modern Cornish word name meaning "pretty" or "ornament."