Two Syllable Boy Names

Timon has strong associations with The Lion King, making it a tough sell for American parents. Attractive Polish variation Tymon, with the emphasis on the first syllable, preserves the strength of the original while eliminating the meerkat connection.

An unusual name which feels familiar, thanks to its similarity to other names containing the Hebrew element el "God", like Daniel and Gabriel. It was originally a masculine name, but is now used for both sexes.

There are seemingly infinite ways to spell Jackson — in fact, if you add all of them up, it becomes the most popular boy name in America. Jaxsyn is mid-to-low range popularity among all the variations.

Rarely heard in the US, but borne by Jorma Taccone an actor featured on the TV series Girls., who was named after the Jefferson Airplane guitarist Jorma Kaukonen. Taccone--who plays Booth Jonathan on the show-- has been quoted as saying, "I grew up in Berkeley and my parents were hippies, obviously, since my name is Jorma.

The traditional French spelling of Nael, Naël is a French diminutive of names ending in -nael, though in recent years, it has risen up the charts as a standalone choice. A Top 20 name in France, it is also popular in Belgium and Switzerland.

Chaplin carries two very distinctive images: the beloved Little Tramp and a minister, often to the military. It was the baby-name choice of Ever Carridine in 2010.

Originally a Frisian short form of names beginning with the element gild "sacrifice, value". It is also used as a Dutch short form of William.

Traditionally a feminine name in Japan, although Ammika Harris and Chris Brown chose Aeko for their son, born in 2018. The starbaby's name is pronounced like "echo," but the traditional Japanese pronunciation is AH-EE-KO.

A handsome and energetic Sanskrit name, borne by Indian actor and comedian Vivek, and Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi.

Has a harmonic feel.

Ayal is a boys' name used in modern Israel but virtually unknown in the US. Even more popular in Israel is the female form, Ayala.

Many emotional, virtuous word names are coming back into style, but Happy feels unlikely to be revived. This could be because it doesn't have a solid history of being popularly used (in comparison to Joy) and because it's such a familiarly used word in day to day life (unlike Valor).

Soft yet strong.

Kåre was a common name in Norway in the early 20th century — today it's associated with the grandfather generation.

Could be seen as an affectionate Old World take on Kole.

Verlin is an obscure name that found some use in the US in the early part of the 20th century, but now it and variation Verlyn are extinct, given to no baby boys in the US last year.