Names That Mean Short

The name recently given to their daughter by Susan and Robert Downey, Jr. is pronounced like Avery and may be seen as a kree8tiv spelling variation of that popular unisex name or a girlish short form of Avraham, the Biblical Hebrew form of Abraham.

Cortland, is an English form of the Dutch habitational surname Cortlandt. Cortlandt was a village near modern-day Wijk bij Duurstede, Netherlands. Its name was derived from the Dutch elements cort, meaning "short" or "narrow," and landt, "land."

Many C forms of this name are becoming more popular, from Cassia for girls to Cassian, Cassius, and Caspian for boys, so Kass feels more possible today too. And Kassia and Kassiani are both intriguing longer forms.

Trini is a nickname-name that's gender neutral. It was made famous by singer Trini Lopez whose big hit was "If I Had A Hammer".

Tassos makes this venerated Greek name more earthy and approachable.

Ada, yes. Ida, maybe. But Oda, a Scandinavian version of Odelia, not really. To English speakers, it sounds too much like "odor".

Meeri is kind of like Siri with an M. This unusual name is certainly cute and intriguing but would forever be mistaken for Mary.

This Dutch version of Jules is used for both girls and boys. The association with the vaping product of the same name (but different pronunciation) makes this one a no-go in the US.

An lesser-known member of the John-Joan family, though popular in its native habitat, has never emigrated, possibly due to its non-intuitive pronunciation.

Once you get past thinking of it as a red-painted building where they keep cows and hay, has a nice plainspoken country-like feel and may make a cooler diminutive than the still-purple Barney.

Kamma is an appealing Danish name signifying a combination of Katherine or Karen and Maria or Margaret. It may also be a short form of Kamilla, the usual Scandinavian spelling of Camilla.

Zakk is an ekstra-kinetic spelling of a short form that's more and more often standing on its own, also as Zac, Zak, Zach, and Zack. This version is largely associated with musician Zakk Wylde.

The Steen, Steena, and Stina nicknames for Christina are much more common in Scandinavia than in the English-speaking world, which prefers the Chris variations.