Two Syllable Boy Names

A rarely used Nottinghamshire place name of the sort now being considered for girls.

Associated with the Philadelphia Eagles footballer Asante Samuel, the Asante (or Ashanti) are a people living in Ghana. Asante is also the name of the language they speak, a close relative of Akan and Twi.

This name of an attractive and arty California town could make an unusual but friendly choice.

The name of the patron saint of Wales is virtually unknown in the US under this spelling. There were no baby boys named Dewi or Dewie in the US in 2021, though there were 35 named Dewey. Incredibly enough, Dewey ranked among the US Top 1000 for an entire century, from 1887 to 1986, reaching as high as Number 19 in 1898.

Now that Courtney is becoming more unisex for babies, surname Fortney also seems like a viable name for a boy. It fits the trend for names with an -ey ending like Huxley and Finley, with an added dash of fortitude.

This international variation of the popular Elijah might also be written as Iliya, Ilya, Ilja, and Ilija. It is currently a unisex option in the US.

For towheads with ties to Scotland -- in theory, anyway.

Gently pleasant English family name long associated with 60-Minuteman Morley Safer.

The surname of Jean Valjean, the protagonist of Victor Hugo's 1862 novel Les Misérables. The character was portrayed in the 2012 film adaptation by Hugh Jackman. A notable real-life bearer of the name is American pianist Valjean Johns.